Nordhausen
Encyclopedia
Nordhausen is a town
at the southern edge of the Harz Mountains
, in the state of Thuringia
, Germany
. It is the capital of the district of Nordhausen
. It was once known for its tobacco industry, and is still known for its distilled spirit, .
made it an Imperial Free City, and in 1430 Nordhausen joined the Hanseatic League
. In 1500 it became part of the Lower Saxon Circle
, and from around the same year the city began producing fermented grain liquor, which became famous under the name Nordhäuser Doppelkorn. In 1523, a year in which Thomas Müntzer spent some time in the city, the Protestant Reformation
came to Nordhausen.
After the Peace of Westphalia
in 1648, much of Nordhausen's surroundings became part of Brandenburg-Prussia
, although the city itself remained independent. During the Napoleonic Wars
, Prussian troops
occupied Nordhausen on 2 August 1802; the city lost its status as an Imperial Free City during the German Mediatisation
. It became part of the Kingdom of Westphalia
created in 1807. Following the defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte
, Nordhausen was included in the Kingdom of Prussia
's Province of Saxony
created in 1816. Nordhausen was an urban district
from 1882-1950.
In 1866 Nordhausen became connected by railway to Halle
.
The Mittelbau-Dora
Nazi concentration camp was located on the outskirts of town during World War II
to provide labor for the Mittelwerk
V-2 rocket
factory in the Kohnstein
. On April 3 and 4 April 1945 three-quarters of the town was destroyed by bombing raids of the Royal Air Force
, in which around 8,800 people died, including 1500 sick prisoners at the Boelcke Kaserne barracks within Nordhausen. Earlier on August 24, 1944, 11 B-17 Flying Fortresses of Mission 568 bombed the airfield at Nordhausen as a target of opportunity. On 11 April 1945, the Americans occupied the town, and on 2 July the Red Army
took over. On 18 July the Soviet administration created the Institute Rabe to develop Soviet rocket technology on the basis of the substantially more sophisticated V-2 rocket
s. In May 1946 the Institute was subsumed into the new Institute Nordhausen, under an expanded programme of research across the Soviet occupation zone, including a new Institute Berlin. On 22 October 1946, under Operation Osoaviakhim
, 10-15,000 German scientists, engineers and their families were deported to the Soviet Union, including around 300 from Nordhausen. Transplanted along with their equipment, many remained there until the early 1950s.
Nordhausen was part of East Germany
from 1949–1990 and was administered within Bezirk Erfurt. After the German reunification
of 1990, Nordhausen was made part of the recreated state of Thuringia
. Its medieval town centre has since been rebuilt. On 1 December 2007, the former municipalities Petersdorf
, Rodishain
and Stempeda
were incorporated by Nordhausen.
and Master's degree
s in business administration, public management
, and business engineering
, among others.
with Beit Shemesh, Israel
Charleville-Mézières
, France
Bochum
, Germany
Ostrów Wielkopolski
, Poland
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
at the southern edge of the Harz Mountains
Harz
The Harz is the highest mountain range in northern Germany and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. The name Harz derives from the Middle High German word Hardt or Hart , latinized as Hercynia. The legendary Brocken is the highest summit in the Harz...
, in the state of Thuringia
Thuringia
The Free State of Thuringia is a state of Germany, located in the central part of the country.It has an area of and 2.29 million inhabitants, making it the sixth smallest by area and the fifth smallest by population of Germany's sixteen states....
, 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...
. It is the capital of the district of Nordhausen
Nordhausen (district)
Nordhausen is a Kreis in the north of Thuringia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Harz and Mansfeld-Südharz in Saxony-Anhalt, the district Kyffhäuserkreis, Eichsfeld in Thuringia and the districts Osterode and Goslar in Lower Saxony.-History:The district was created in 1815, when the Prussian...
. It was once known for its tobacco industry, and is still known for its distilled spirit, .
History
The town is first mentioned in a 13 May 927 document of King Henry the Fowler, but an earlier settlement on the site dates back to around 785. In 1220, Emperor Frederick IIFrederick II, Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick II , was one of the most powerful Holy Roman Emperors of the Middle Ages and head of the House of Hohenstaufen. His political and cultural ambitions, based in Sicily and stretching through Italy to Germany, and even to Jerusalem, were enormous...
made it an Imperial Free City, and in 1430 Nordhausen joined the Hanseatic League
Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League was an economic alliance of trading cities and their merchant guilds that dominated trade along the coast of Northern Europe...
. In 1500 it became part of the Lower Saxon Circle
Lower Saxon Circle
The Lower Saxon Circle was an Imperial Circle of the Holy Roman Empire. Covering much of the territory of the mediæval Duchy of Saxony , firstly the circle used to be called the Saxon Circle , only to be later better differentiated from the Upper Saxon Circle the more specific name prevailed.An...
, and from around the same year the city began producing fermented grain liquor, which became famous under the name Nordhäuser Doppelkorn. In 1523, a year in which Thomas Müntzer spent some time in the city, the Protestant Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
came to Nordhausen.
Peace of Westphalia
The Peace of Westphalia was a series of peace treaties signed between May and October of 1648 in Osnabrück and Münster. These treaties ended the Thirty Years' War in the Holy Roman Empire, and the Eighty Years' War between Spain and the Dutch Republic, with Spain formally recognizing the...
in 1648, much of Nordhausen's surroundings became part of Brandenburg-Prussia
Brandenburg-Prussia
Brandenburg-Prussia is the historiographic denomination for the Early Modern realm of the Brandenburgian Hohenzollerns between 1618 and 1701. Based in the Electorate of Brandenburg, the main branch of the Hohenzollern intermarried with the branch ruling the Duchy of Prussia, and secured succession...
, although the city itself remained independent. During the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
, Prussian troops
Prussian Army
The Royal Prussian Army was the army of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was vital to the development of Brandenburg-Prussia as a European power.The Prussian Army had its roots in the meager mercenary forces of Brandenburg during the Thirty Years' War...
occupied Nordhausen on 2 August 1802; the city lost its status as an Imperial Free City during the German Mediatisation
German Mediatisation
The German Mediatisation was the series of mediatisations and secularisations that occurred in Germany between 1795 and 1814, during the latter part of the era of the French Revolution and then the Napoleonic Era....
. It became part of the Kingdom of Westphalia
Kingdom of Westphalia
The Kingdom of Westphalia was a new country of 2.6 million Germans that existed from 1807-1813. It included of territory in Hesse and other parts of present-day Germany. While formally independent, it was a vassal state of the First French Empire, ruled by Napoleon's brother Jérôme Bonaparte...
created in 1807. Following the defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
, Nordhausen was included in the Kingdom of Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
's Province of Saxony
Province of Saxony
The Province of Saxony was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and later the Free State of Prussia from 1816 until 1945. Its capital was Magdeburg.-History:The province was created in 1816 out of the following territories:...
created in 1816. Nordhausen was an urban district
Urban districts of Germany
This is a list of urban districts in Germany. Germany's sixteen states are further subdivided into 402 districts of which 107 are urban districts – cities which constitute a district in their own right. A similar concept is the Statutarstadt in Austria...
from 1882-1950.
In 1866 Nordhausen became connected by railway to Halle
Halle, Saxony-Anhalt
Halle is the largest city in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is also called Halle an der Saale in order to distinguish it from the town of Halle in North Rhine-Westphalia...
.
The Mittelbau-Dora
Mittelbau-Dora
Mittelbau-Dora was a Nazi Germany labour camp that provided workers for the Mittelwerk V-2 rocket factory in the Kohnstein, situated near Nordhausen, Germany....
Nazi concentration camp was located on the outskirts of town during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
to provide labor for the Mittelwerk
Mittelwerk
Central Works was a World War II factory that used Mittelbau-Dora forced labor in 2 main tunnels in the Kohnstein. The underground facility produced V-2 rockets, V-1 flying bombs, and other Nazi weapons.-Mittelwerk GmbH:...
V-2 rocket
V-2 rocket
The V-2 rocket , technical name Aggregat-4 , was a ballistic missile that was developed at the beginning of the Second World War in Germany, specifically targeted at London and later Antwerp. The liquid-propellant rocket was the world's first long-range combat-ballistic missile and first known...
factory in the Kohnstein
Kohnstein
The Kohnstein is a mountain, 2 kilometres southwest of the village of Niedersachswerfen and 3 kilometres northwest of the center of the city of Nordhausen...
. On April 3 and 4 April 1945 three-quarters of the town was destroyed by bombing raids of the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
, in which around 8,800 people died, including 1500 sick prisoners at the Boelcke Kaserne barracks within Nordhausen. Earlier on August 24, 1944, 11 B-17 Flying Fortresses of Mission 568 bombed the airfield at Nordhausen as a target of opportunity. On 11 April 1945, the Americans occupied the town, and on 2 July the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
took over. On 18 July the Soviet administration created the Institute Rabe to develop Soviet rocket technology on the basis of the substantially more sophisticated V-2 rocket
V-2 rocket
The V-2 rocket , technical name Aggregat-4 , was a ballistic missile that was developed at the beginning of the Second World War in Germany, specifically targeted at London and later Antwerp. The liquid-propellant rocket was the world's first long-range combat-ballistic missile and first known...
s. In May 1946 the Institute was subsumed into the new Institute Nordhausen, under an expanded programme of research across the Soviet occupation zone, including a new Institute Berlin. On 22 October 1946, under Operation Osoaviakhim
Operation Osoaviakhim
Operation Osoaviakhim was a Soviet operation which took place on 22 October 1946, with NKVD and Soviet army units recruiting thousands of military-related technical specialists from the Soviet occupation zone of post-World-War-II Germany for employment in the Soviet Union...
, 10-15,000 German scientists, engineers and their families were deported to the Soviet Union, including around 300 from Nordhausen. Transplanted along with their equipment, many remained there until the early 1950s.
Nordhausen was part of East Germany
German Democratic Republic
The German Democratic Republic , informally called East Germany by West Germany and other countries, was a socialist state established in 1949 in the Soviet zone of occupied Germany, including East Berlin of the Allied-occupied capital city...
from 1949–1990 and was administered within Bezirk Erfurt. After the German reunification
German reunification
German reunification was the process in 1990 in which the German Democratic Republic joined the Federal Republic of Germany , and when Berlin reunited into a single city, as provided by its then Grundgesetz constitution Article 23. The start of this process is commonly referred by Germans as die...
of 1990, Nordhausen was made part of the recreated state of Thuringia
Thuringia
The Free State of Thuringia is a state of Germany, located in the central part of the country.It has an area of and 2.29 million inhabitants, making it the sixth smallest by area and the fifth smallest by population of Germany's sixteen states....
. Its medieval town centre has since been rebuilt. On 1 December 2007, the former municipalities Petersdorf
Petersdorf, Thuringia
Petersdorf is a former municipality in the district of Nordhausen, in Thuringia, Germany. Since 1 December 2007, it is part of the town Nordhausen....
, Rodishain
Rodishain
Rodishain is a former municipality in the district of Nordhausen, in Thuringia, Germany. Since 1 December 2007, it is part of the town Nordhausen....
and Stempeda
Stempeda
Stempeda is a former municipality in the district of Nordhausen, in Thuringia, Germany. Since 1 December 2007, it is part of the town Nordhausen....
were incorporated by Nordhausen.
Recent
Nordhausen has recently made international news due to a major labor dispute. Since 10 July 2007, 135 employees of the Biria bicycle factory (a subsidiary Bike Systems GmbH) have been occupying the factory and have resumed production, selling the cycles directly to consumers and retailers.Education
Nordhausen has a (University of Applied Sciences) that offers Bachelor'sBachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
and Master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
s in business administration, public management
Public management
Public management is a term that considers that government and non-profit administration resembles private-sector management in some important ways. As such, there are management tools appropriate in public and in private domains, tools that maximize efficiency and effectiveness...
, and business engineering
Business engineering
Business Engineering is an interdisciplinary field of engineering that focuses on how complex businesses should be designed and managed.- Overview :...
, among others.
Main sights
- A 17th-century Statue of RolandRolandRoland was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. Historically, Roland was military governor of the Breton March, with responsibility for defending the frontier of Francia against the Bretons...
, at the outer wall of the Town Hall. It is considered a symbol of the town. - The Cathedral of the Holy Cross (). It dates back to a church built in the mid-10th century. In 1220 the church was converted to a cathedral. The building has a late Gothic nave, while the towers, crypt and cloisters are in RomanesqueRomanesque architectureRomanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
style. - The („St. Maria auf dem Berg“), a Romanesque church.
- The (St. Peter'sSaint PeterSaint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
Tower), the remaining tower of a 14th-century church destroyed in 1945. - The , an early 20th-century Jugendstil villa that houses a small museum of contemporary art.
- The Theater, built in 1917.
Twin towns
The town is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with Beit Shemesh, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
Charleville-Mézières
Charleville-Mézières
Charleville-Mézières is a commune in northern France, capital of the Ardennes department in the Champagne-Ardenne region. Charleville-Mézières is located on the banks of the Meuse River.-History:...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Bochum
Bochum
Bochum is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, western Germany. It is located in the Ruhr area and is surrounded by the cities of Essen, Gelsenkirchen, Herne, Castrop-Rauxel, Dortmund, Witten and Hattingen.-History:...
, 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...
Ostrów Wielkopolski
Ostrów Wielkopolski
Ostrów Wielkopolski is a town in central Poland with 72,360 inhabitants , situated in the Greater Poland Voivodeship; the seat of Ostrów Wielkopolski County.-History:Recently, a small fortified dwelling dating from the 10th century was discovered on the north-east side of...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...