Cham () is a ''Landkreis'' (district) in

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. It is bounded by (from the south and clockwise) the districts of

Regen Regen (; Northern Bavarian: ''Reng'') is a town in Bavaria, Germany, and the district town of the district of Regen. Geography Regen is situated on the great Regen River, located in the Bavarian Forest. Divisions Originally the town consiste ...

Straubing-Bogen Straubing-Bogen is a Districts of Germany, ''Landkreis'' (district) in the eastern part of Bavaria, Germany. Neighboring districts are (from the north clockwise) Cham (district), Cham, Regen (district), Regen, Deggendorf (district), Deggendorf, Din ...

Regensburg Regensburg (historically known in English as Ratisbon) is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Naab and Regen (river), Regen, Danube's northernmost point. It is the capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the ...

and

Schwandorf Schwandorf is a town in the Upper Palatinate in Bavaria, Germany, which is the seat of the Schwandorf (district), Schwandorf district. It lies on the river Naab. Geography Geographical location Schwandorf is located at the intersection of ...

and by the

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...

Plzeň Region Plzeň Region or Plzeňský Region (also known as Pilsen Region; ) is an Regions of the Czech Republic, administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the western part of the historical land of Bohemia and named after the capital, Plz ...

History

The first historical date in the regional history is the year 748, when the

bishop of Regensburg The Bishops of Regensburg (; or ) are bishops of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Regensburg in Bavaria, Germany.

ordered the foundation of a monastery in the sparsely populated region. About 100 years later, the royal castle of Cham was built and became a summer residence for the Holy Roman Emperors. The region was called ''Campriche'' or ''Mark Cham''. In 1204, the Mark Cham became subject to Bavaria, in 1352 to the

Electorate of the Palatinate The Electoral Palatinate was a Imperial State, constituent state of the Holy Roman Empire until it was annexed by the Electorate of Baden in 1803. From the end of the 13th century, its ruler was one of the Prince-electors who elected the Holy ...

and in the 17th century back to Bavaria. Nowadays, Cham still enjoys the laid-back lifestyle from the days of yore. Many projects have been initiated to give this area an impetus to grow, yet in spite of this, it is still one of the least-populated regions in Germany.

Geography

The district is located in the northern parts of the

Bavarian Forest image:Zell-bayerischer-wald.jpg, The village of Zell in the Bavarian Forest The Bavarian Forest ( or ''Bayerwald'' ; ) is a wooded, low-mountain region in Bavaria, Germany, that is about 100 kilometres long. It runs along the Czech Republic, C ...

. It is situated within the borders of the ''Upper Bavarian Forest Nature Park''. The highest mountain is the ''

Großer Arber The Großer Arber (); , "Great Maple") or Great Arber, is the highest peak of the Bavarian Forest, Bavarian/Bohemian Forest mountain range and in Lower Bavaria, with an elevation of . As a result, it is known in the Lower Bavarian county of Regen ...

'' at 1,439 m, located near the Germany–Czech Republic border. The Regen river enters the district in the southeast and leaves to the west; most of the settled places are situated along this river and its main tributary, the

Chamb The Chamb () is a river in Germany and the Czech Republic, a right tributary of the Regen (river), Regen River. It flows through Bavaria and Plzeň Region. It is long. Etymology The name is derived from the Celtic word ''kambos'', which transla ...

coming from the Czech border.

Coat of arms

The upper part of the arms is occupied by the blue and white checkered pattern of Bavaria. The church of Chammünster (today belonging to the town of Cham), which was built in 748 within a famous monastery, is displayed below.

Towns and municipalities

References

External links

Official website
(German) {{Authority control Districts of Bavaria Upper Palatinate