Merseburg

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Merseburg" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (August 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Merseburg
Town
Merseburg Castle
Coat of arms
Location of Merseburg within Saalekreis district
Saalekreis
Government
• Lord mayor (2022–29)	Sebastian Müller-Bahr[1]
Area
• Total	54.73 km2 (21.13 sq mi)
Elevation	88 m (289 ft)
Population  (2022-12-31)[2]
• Total	34,335
• Density	630/km2 (1,600/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes	06217
Dialling codes	03461
Vehicle registration	SK, MER, MQ
Website	www.merseburg.de

Merseburg (German: [ˈmɛʁzəbʊʁk] ^ⓘ) is a town in central Germany in southern Saxony-Anhalt, situated on the river Saale, and approximately 14 km south of Halle (Saale) and 30 km west of Leipzig. It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a diocese founded by Archbishop Adalbert of Magdeburg. The

is located within the town. Merseburg has around 35,000 inhabitants.

Names

• Czech: Merseburk, Meziboř
• French: Mersebourg
• German: Merseburg
• Latin
  : Merseburga
• Polish: Międzybórz
• Sorbian languages: Mjezybor

Geography

The town Merseburg consists of Merseburg proper and the following four Ortschaften or municipal divisions:^[3]

• Beuna (Geiseltal)
• Geusa
• Meuschau
• Trebnitz

Administrative reforms

Venenien was incorporated into Merseburg on 1 January 1949. The parish Kötzschen followed on 1 July 1950.^[4] Since 30 May 1994, Meuschau is part of Merseburg.^[5] Trebnitz, previously part of Kreypau, followed in 2003.^[6] Beuna was annexed on 1 January 2009.^[7] Geusa is a part of Merseburg since 1 January 2010.^[8]

History

Pre-history and Middle Ages

Merseburg was first mentioned in 850. King Henry the Fowler built a royal palace at Merseburg; in the 933 Battle of Riade, he gained his great victory over the Hungarians in the vicinity.

.

17th century to 20th century

From 1657 to 1738 Merseburg was the residence of the Dukes of

.

Merseburg is where the

, they are hitherto the only preserved German documents with a heathen theme. One of them is a charm to release warriors caught during battle, and the other is a charm to heal a horse's sprained foot.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Merseburg was transformed into an industrial town, largely due to the pioneering work done by Carl Bosch and Friedrich Bergius, who laid down the scientific fundamentals of the catalytic high-pressure ammonia synthesis from 1909 to 1913. The nearby Leuna works continue this tradition of chemical industry.^[10] The Merseburger Tageblatt was published as a local newspaper in Merseburg.

Merseburg was badly damaged in World War II. In 23 air raids, 6,200 dwellings were completely or partly destroyed.^[11] The historic town centre was almost completely destroyed.

Briefly part of

.

Demographics

Like many towns in the former East Germany, Merseburg has had a general decline in population since German Reunification despite annexing and merging with a number of smaller nearby villages.

Population of Merseburg (from 1960, population on 31 December, unless otherwise indicated):

1834 to 1933 1834: 08,830 1875: 13,664 1880: 15,205 1890: 17,669 1925: 25,630 1933: 31,576

1939 to 1984 1939: 38,058 1946: 33,978 1 1950: 38,441 2 1960: 47,199 1981: 50,932 1984: 48,399

1990 to 2007 1990: 43,815 3 1995: 41,576 2000: 37,127 2005: 34,581 2006: 34,411 2007: 34,039 4

from 2008 2008: 34,623 2009: 34,313 2010: 35,419 2012 33,520 2015 34,052

from 2016 2016 33,931 2017 34,197 2021: 34,785 2022: 35,815

Data source from 1990: Statistical Office of Saxony Anhalt
1 29 October
2 31 August
3 3 October
4 14 July 2008

Sights

Among the notable buildings of Merseburg are the Merseburg Cathedral of St John the Baptist (founded 1015, rebuilt in the 13th and 16th centuries) and the episcopal palace (15th century). The cathedral-and-palace ensemble also features a palace garden.

Other sights include the Merseburg House of Trades with a cultural stage and the German Museum of Chemistry, Merseburg.

• 
  Merseburg Castle
• 
  Cathedral
• 
  Ständehaus
• 
  St. Sixti
• 
  St. Maximi Church
• 
  Old Town Hall
• 
  Eulenturm

Arts and culture

The Merseburg Palace Festival with the Historical Pageant, the International Palace-Moat Concerts, Merseburg Organ Days and the Puppet Show Festival Week are events celebrated every year.

Transport

is 25 kilometers away. Merseburg is connected with the

Halle (Saale) tramway network

. A tram ride from Halle's city centre to Merseburg takes about 50 minutes.

• 
  Merseburg station
• 
  Leipzig/Halle Airport, 25 kilometres away from Merseburg
• 
  Tram in Schkopau, near Merseburg

Twin towns – sister cities

Merseburg is twinned with:^[12]

• Châtillon, France
• Genzano di Roma, Italy
• Bottrop, Germany

Notable people

• Thietmar of Merseburg (975–1018), bishop and chronist
• Menahem of Merseburg (first half of 15th century), rabbi and author
• Johannes Knolleisen (1450–1513), theological professor
• Szymon Bogumił Zug (1733–1807), Polish-German architect and designer of gardens
• Karl Adolph von Basedow (1799–1854), physician
• Ernst Haeckel (1834–1919), biologist, philosopher, physician
• Lucian Müller (1836–1898), classical scholar
• Oskar Herrfurth (1862-1934), painter and illustrator
• Elisabeth Schumann (1888–1952), operatic soprano
• Klaus Tennstedt (1926–1998), conductor
• Uwe Nolte (born 1969), poet, musician and graphic artist
• Jawed Karim (born 1979), American software engineer, YouTube co-founder, creator of the first video uploaded to YouTube "Me at the zoo"
• Dave Grunewald (born 1986), metalcore singer for Annisokay (2011-2019), fitness expert, and podcaster

References

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Merseburg". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 18 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 173–174.

External links

• Media related to Merseburg at Wikimedia Commons
• Official website (in German)