Hohegeiß
Encyclopedia
The health resort and winter sport
s village of Hohegeiß lies in the Harz Mountains between Braunlage
and Benneckenstein
at a height of between 570 to . Since 1 July 1972 Hohegeiß has been part of the borough of Braunlage in the district of Goslar in Lower Saxony
(Germany
). The village has about 1,000 inhabitants.
, a pan-Harz federal road. Neighbouring villages are Zorge to the south, Rothesütte to the southeast, Benneckenstein to the east, and Sorge to the north. The former Inner German Border (today the state border with Saxony-Anhalt
) lay immediately on the eastern edge of the settlement. Near the village is the Dicke Tannen protected landscape.
On 1 August 1963 there was an escape attempt on the Inner German Border at the exit to the village of Hohegeiß by 23-year old Helmut Kleinert (1940–1963) during which he was shot dead by East German border guards. In 1971 a wooden cross, which had been set up since Kleinert's death, was replaced by a memorial stone with the inscription "Am 01.08.1963 wurde 150 Meter von hier Helmut Kleinert vor dem Überschreiten der Demarkationslinie erschossen" ("On 01.08.1963 Helmut Kleinert was shot dead 150 metres from here before crossing the demarcation line.")
Winter sport
A winter sport is a sport which is played on snow or ice. Most such sports are variations of skiing, ice skating and sledding. Traditionally such sports were only played in cold areas during winter, but artificial snow and ice allow more flexibility...
s village of Hohegeiß lies in the Harz Mountains between Braunlage
Braunlage
Braunlage is a town and health resort in the Goslar district in Lower Saxony in Germany. It lies within the Harz mountain range, south of the Brocken.Nowadays Braunlage's main business is tourism, particularly ski tourists...
and Benneckenstein
Benneckenstein
Benneckenstein is a town in the district of Harz, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it has been part of the town Oberharz am Brocken. Benneckenstein is in the eastern Harz, 14 km southeast of Braunlage, and 24 km south of Wernigerode....
at a height of between 570 to . Since 1 July 1972 Hohegeiß has been part of the borough of Braunlage in the district of Goslar in Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
(Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
). The village has about 1,000 inhabitants.
Geography
The mountain village of Hohegeiß lies on the B 4Bundesstraße 4
The Bundesstraße 4 is a German federal highway running in a northwesterly to southly direction from the state of Schleswig-Holstein to Bavaria...
, a pan-Harz federal road. Neighbouring villages are Zorge to the south, Rothesütte to the southeast, Benneckenstein to the east, and Sorge to the north. The former Inner German Border (today the state border with Saxony-Anhalt
Saxony-Anhalt
Saxony-Anhalt is a landlocked state of Germany. Its capital is Magdeburg and it is surrounded by the German states of Lower Saxony, Brandenburg, Saxony, and Thuringia.Saxony-Anhalt covers an area of...
) lay immediately on the eastern edge of the settlement. Near the village is the Dicke Tannen protected landscape.
History
The village name comes from Hogeyz, the name of a wooded region that existed as early as 1268.On 1 August 1963 there was an escape attempt on the Inner German Border at the exit to the village of Hohegeiß by 23-year old Helmut Kleinert (1940–1963) during which he was shot dead by East German border guards. In 1971 a wooden cross, which had been set up since Kleinert's death, was replaced by a memorial stone with the inscription "Am 01.08.1963 wurde 150 Meter von hier Helmut Kleinert vor dem Überschreiten der Demarkationslinie erschossen" ("On 01.08.1963 Helmut Kleinert was shot dead 150 metres from here before crossing the demarcation line.")
Born in Hohegeiß
- Karl Uhde (1813–1885), surgeon
- Hermann Grote (1885–1971), composer and pedagogue