Weißensee, Thuringia
Encyclopedia
Weißensee is a town
in the district of Sömmerda
, in Thuringia
, Germany
. It is situated 6 km northwest of Sömmerda
, and 25 km north of Erfurt
.
and sister of Emperor Frederick I
, it got market rights in 1198 and city rights in 1265. Due to the excellent strategic lay between two lakes, which are emponymous for the city, and a ridge of hills it became quickly a very important trade centre, especially for fish and woad.
Some notabilities lived on the Runneburg and in 1446 William III, Duke of Luxembourg
adopted the first thuringian constitution.
In time of Renaissance
it became less importend and the two lakes were drained. But after the Congress of Vienna
it was awarded by Prussia
and got a revival as district capital.
Today Weißensee is famous for its middle aged castle, one of the largest in Thuringia, and its annual Beerfest.
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...
in the district of Sömmerda
Sömmerda (district)
Sömmerda is a Kreis in the north of Thuringia, Germany. Neighboring districts are the districts Kyffhäuserkreis, the Burgenlandkreis in Saxony-Anhalt, the district Weimarer Land and the district-free city Erfurt, and the districts Gotha and Unstrut-Hainich.-History:The district Sömmerda was...
, in 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 situated 6 km northwest of Sömmerda
Sömmerda
Sömmerda is a town near Erfurt in Thuringia, Germany, on the Unstrut river. It is the capital of the district of Sömmerda.-History:Archeological digs in the area that is now Sömmerda, formerly Leubingen, have uncovered prominently buried human remains dating to around 2000 BCE...
, and 25 km north of Erfurt
Erfurt
Erfurt is the capital city of Thuringia and the main city nearest to the geographical centre of Germany, located 100 km SW of Leipzig, 150 km N of Nuremberg and 180 km SE of Hannover. Erfurt Airport can be reached by plane via Munich. It lies in the southern part of the Thuringian...
.
History
It is one of a very few cities which was actually planned in the Middle Ages. Founded in the second half of the 12th century by Jutta Claricia, Landgravine of ThuringiaThuringia
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....
and sister of Emperor Frederick I
Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick I Barbarossa was a German Holy Roman Emperor. He was elected King of Germany at Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 and crowned in Aachen on 9 March, crowned King of Italy in Pavia in 1155, and finally crowned Roman Emperor by Pope Adrian IV, on 18 June 1155, and two years later in 1157 the term...
, it got market rights in 1198 and city rights in 1265. Due to the excellent strategic lay between two lakes, which are emponymous for the city, and a ridge of hills it became quickly a very important trade centre, especially for fish and woad.
Some notabilities lived on the Runneburg and in 1446 William III, Duke of Luxembourg
William III, Duke of Luxembourg
William III of Luxembourg , called the Brave , was Landgrave of Thuringia and Duke of Luxemburg...
adopted the first thuringian constitution.
In time of Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
it became less importend and the two lakes were drained. But after the Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...
it was awarded by Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
and got a revival as district capital.
Today Weißensee is famous for its middle aged castle, one of the largest in Thuringia, and its annual Beerfest.