The Saxon Elbeland Dickinson, Robert E (1964). ''Germany: A regional and economic geography'' (2nd ed.). London: Methuen, p.625. . () is a term used in more recent times which describes a region along the

Elbe The Elbe ( ; ; or ''Elv''; Upper Sorbian, Upper and , ) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Republic), then Ge ...

, whose boundaries are not clearly defined, but which extends roughly from the

Elbe Sandstone Mountains The Elbe Sandstone Mountains, also called the Elbe Sandstone Highlands (, ; , ), are a mountain range straddling the border between the state of Saxony in southeastern Germany and the North Bohemian region of the Czech Republic, with about three-q ...

Torgau Torgau () is a town on the banks of the Elbe in northwestern Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district Nordsachsen. Outside Germany, the town is best known as where on 25 April 1945, the United States and Soviet Armies first met near ...

. The best-known cities and town in this area are

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

Meißen Meissen ( ), is a town of approximately 30,000 about northwest of Dresden and 75 km (46 mi) west of Bautzen on both banks of the Elbe river in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. Meissen is the home of Meissen porcelain, th ...

Riesa Riesa (; ) is a town in the district of Meißen in Saxony, Germany. It is located on the river Elbe, approximately northwest of Dresden. History The name ''Riesa'' is derived from Slavic ''Riezowe''. This name, romanised as "Rezoa", appears f ...

and

. The term is largely synonymous with the region along the river known as the Upper Elbe (''Oberelbe''), i.e. the German section of the

Elbe River The Elbe ( ; ; or ''Elv''; Upper and , ) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Republic), then Germany and flo ...

nearest its source region. The tourist association of the same name encompasses the city of Dresden, the northern part of the district of

Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge Saxon Switzerland-Eastern Ore Mountains (, ) is a district ('' Kreis'') in Saxony, Germany. It is named after the mountain ranges Saxon Switzerland and Eastern Ore Mountains. History The district was established by merging the former districts ...

including

Freital Freital is a town in the district of Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge in Saxony, Germany. The town is situated on a small river, the Weißeritz, and is southwest of Dresden. Geography Freital is located southwest of Dresden in the Döhlen Ba ...

and

Tharandt Tharandt () is a municipality in Saxony, Germany, situated on the Weißeritz, southwest of Dresden. It has a Protestant Church and the oldest academy of forestry in Germany, founded as the Royal Saxon Academy of Forestry by Heinrich Cotta in 181 ...

, the district of

including

Nossen Nossen (; , ) is a town in the Meißen (district), district of Meissen, in Saxony, Germany. It is located 80 km southeast of Leipzig. The town is dominated by a large Renaissance castle. Nossen is best known for its proximity to a motorway j ...

Lommatzsch Lommatzsch (; , ) is a municipality located in the district of Meißen in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. Geography Lommatzsch lies amidst the so-called ''Lommatzscher Pflege'', an area of land featuring high quality loessic soil and theref ...

, Coswig,

Radebeul Radebeul (; ) is a town (''große Kreisstadt'') in the Elbe valley in the district of Meißen (district), Meißen in Saxony, Germany, a suburb of Dresden. It is well known for its viticulture, a Karl May Museum, museum dedicated to writer Karl ...

Weinböhla Weinböhla is a municipality in the district of Meißen, in Saxony, Germany. It is situated 7 km east of Meißen, and 17 km northwest of Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city o ...

, Moritzburg,

Großenhain Großenhain (; also written as Grossenhain; , ) is a Große Kreisstadt (German for major district town) in the district of Meissen, Saxony, Germany. It was originally known as Hayne. The current name simply means "big Hayne". History Großenhain ...

and Radeburg, the western part of

Bautzen District The district of Bautzen (, ) is a district in the state of Saxony in Germany. Its largest towns are Bautzen, Bischofswerda, Kamenz, Hoyerswerda and Radeberg. It is the biggest district in Saxony by area, and a member of the Neisse Euroregion. It ...

including

Radeberg Radeberg is a small town in the Bautzen (district), district of Bautzen, Saxony, Germany. It is located approximately 20 kilometres north-east of Dresden. The town has an Evangelical and a Roman Catholic church, and an old castle. History Rade ...

and

Ottendorf-Okrilla Ottendorf-Okrilla is a municipality in the Bautzen district, Saxony, Germany. It is located 20 km northeast of Dresden. Geography The area of the municipality is 25.88 km², of which 1.58 km² are commercially used. The length from ...

and a narrow, strip of land along the river including

Strehla Strehla (; , ) is a small town in the district of Meißen, Saxony, Germany. It is located on the river Elbe, north of Riesa. This place name means ''arrow'' in Sorbian. Strehla includes the following subdivisions: *Forberge *Görzig/Trebnitz ...

and

Belgern Belgern (), is a town in the district Nordsachsen, in Saxony, Germany. It is located on the left bank of the Elbe, 12 km southeast of Torgau and 55 km east of Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the ...

. The landscape is home to one of the most northerly wine-growing areas in Europe. Here,

Saxon wine The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian "stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like them ...

is produced on the south-facing slopes on the right-hand bank of the Elbe near Dresden-

Pillnitz Pillnitz is a quarter in the east of Dresden, Germany. It can be reached by bus, ship, walking along the river or by bicycle. Pillnitz is most famous for its Baroque palace and park, the Pillnitz Castle. Pillnitz Palace consists of the Rivers ...

and between Radebeul and the Elbe wine villages around Diesbar-Seußlitz. The vineyards produce just 1% of Germany's total volume of wine. The Saxon Elbeland also forms the northern part of the Upper Elbe Valley - Eastern Ore Mountains (''Oberes Elbtal - Osterzgebirge'') regional planning region. This incorporates the districts of Sächsische Schweiz,

and

Riesa-Großenhain Riesa-Großenhain was a district in Saxony, Germany. It was bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the districts of Elbe-Elster and Oberspreewald-Lausitz in Brandenburg, Kamenz, Meißen, Döbeln and Torgau-Oschatz. History The district was ...

. As a result, the landscape is also an important part of the Elbe-Labe

Euroregion In European politics, the term Euroregion usually refers to a transnational co-operation structure between two (or more) contiguous territories located in different European countries. Euroregions represent a specific type of cross-border regio ...

The philharmonic orchestra, the New Elbeland Philharmonia, is named after the region.

References

Sources

* Matthias Donath: ''Sächsisches Elbland''. Edition Leipzig, Leipzig 2009, (''Kulturlandschaften Sachsens'' 1).

External links

Tourist Association of Saxon Elbeland (''Tourismusverband Sächsisches Elbland'')

Saxon Wine Road

Saxon Switzerland region

Upper Elbe Transport Association (''Verkehrsverbund Oberelbe'')

Regional Planning Region

Elbe-Labe Euroregion

''Neue Elbland Philharmonie''

Sächsische Binnenhäfen Oberelbe GmbH

Elbe Sandstone Mountains Tourist Association (''Tourismusverein Elbsandsteingebirge'')
{{Portal bar, Germany Geography of Saxony Dresden