Sondershausen () is a town in

Thuringia Thuringia (; officially the Free State of Thuringia, ) is one of Germany, Germany's 16 States of Germany, states. With 2.1 million people, it is 12th-largest by population, and with 16,171 square kilometers, it is 11th-largest in area. Er ...

, central Germany, capital of the

Kyffhäuserkreis The Kyffhäuserkreis is a district in the northern part of Thuringia, Germany. Neighboring districts are the districts Mansfeld-Südharz, Saalekreis and Burgenlandkreis in Saxony-Anhalt, and the districts Sömmerda, Unstrut-Hainich-Kreis and E ...

district, situated about 50 km (30 mi) north of

Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital (political), capital and largest city of the Central Germany (cultural area), Central German state of Thuringia, with a population of around 216,000. It lies in the wide valley of the Gera (river), River Gera, in the so ...

. On 1 December 2007, the former municipality Schernberg was merged with Sondershausen. Until 1918 it was part of the principality of

Schwarzburg-Sondershausen Schwarzburg-Sondershausen was a small principality in Germany, in the present day state of Thuringia, with its capital at Sondershausen. History Schwarzburg-Sondershausen was a county (earldom) until 1697. In that year, it became a principal ...

Geography

Sondershausen is situated in North Thuringia and lies in a low mountain range between Hainleite (in the north) and Windleite (in the south). The highest mountain is the Frauenberg to the west of the town. A little river called Wipper flows through Sondershausen. The town is surrounded by mixed forests, dominated by beech.

Subdivisions

The city districts are:

Culture and main sights

Museums

Sondershausen Palace houses a large museum with three different exhibit areas. Special exhibits are the , the only one of its kind in Germany, and the legendary bronze figurine . There are special guided tours of the palace's storage depot, cellar, tower, and park. Other places of interest include a former mine under the city, and a Jewish bath from the 14th century.

Buildings

* Sondershausen Palace, with natural history and antiquarian collections. Built as a palace during the Renaissance, expanding from an earlier fort, it was later expanded further in a

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

style (1764–1771). Especially noteworthy are the "Blue Hall" and the gardens. * The previous Princes' Palace (1721–1725), a residence of the princes from 1835 to 1851. It currently houses the district administration office of the Kyffhäuserkreis. * The "Octagonal House" * "Alte Wache" * Main building of the "Geschwister-Scholl-Gymnasium Sondershausen" (a grammar school) * A

mikveh A mikveh or mikvah (, ''mikva'ot'', ''mikvot'', or (Ashkenazi Hebrew, Ashkenazic) ''mikves'', lit., "a collection") is a bath used for ritual washing in Judaism#Full-body immersion, ritual immersion in Judaism to achieve Tumah and taharah, ...

* "Haus der Kunst" ("House of the Arts") theatre * Rathaus (city hall) * Gottschalcksches Haus (House of Gottschalck)

Churches

* The Baroque ''Trinitatiskirche'', a Lutheran church with a mausoleum containing the graves of the last members of the princely family * Crucis Church, the oldest building in Sondershausen * St. Matthias Church, a historical structure considered one of the most beautiful churches in the region * St. Petri Church in Jechaburg * St. Georg Church in Bebra * St. Viti Church in Berka * St. Bonifatius Church in Großfurra * St. Johannis Church in Oberspier * Church of Großberndten * Church St. Mauritii in Himmelsberg * Church Gloria Deo in Hohenebra * Church of Immenrode * Church St. Johannes in Kleinberndten * St. Crucis Church in Schernberg * Church of Thalebra * St. Elisabeth Church (catholic)

Notable people

* Rudolf Arzinger (1922–1970), expert of

public international law International law, also known as public international law and the law of nations, is the set of Rule of law, rules, norms, Customary law, legal customs and standards that State (polity), states and other actors feel an obligation to, and generall ...

* Felix Becker (1864–1928), art historian * Regina Miriam Bloch (1888–1938), writer and poet * Johann Günther Friedrich Cannabich (1777–1859), geographer * Edmund Döring (1860–1938), German homeland culture ("

Heimat ''Heimat'' () is a German word translating to 'home' or 'homeland'. The word has connotations specific to German culture, German society and specifically German Romanticism, German nationalism, German statehood and regionalism so that it h ...

") historian *

Ernst Christoph Dressler Ernst Christoph Dressler (23 September 1734 – 6 April 1779) was a German composer, operatic tenor, violinist and music theory, music theorist. He began his career as a self taught singer and violinist, but eventually received vocal training from ...

(1734–1779), composer, operatic tenor, violinist and music theorist * Ernst Ludwig Gerber (1746–1819), composer, music writer, musician * Jörg Hoffmann (born 1963),

luge A luge () is a small one- or two-person sled on which one sleds Supine position, supine (face-up) and feet-first. A luger begins seated, propelling themselves initially from handles on either side of the start ramp, then steers by using the Ca ...

r, Olympic champion in Calgary 1988 * Thilo Irmisch (1816–1878),

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

* Günther Jahn (painter) (born 1933), painter * Michael Kohl (1929–1981), lawyer, East German deputy foreign minister * Olaf Koch (conductor) (born 1932), director of the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin * Karl Krieghoff (1905–1984), local poet * Vera Lengsfeld (born 1952), politician * Georg Richard Lewin (1820–1896),

dermatologist Dermatology is the branch of medicine dealing with the skin.''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary.'' Random House, Inc. 2001. Page 537. . It is a speciality with both medical and surgical aspects. A dermatologist is a specialist medi ...

university professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a 'person who professes'. Professors ...

* Kurt Lindner (1906–1987), hunting historian * Valentin Ernst Löscher (1674–1749), theologian, writer * Günther Lutze (1840–1930), botanist, German homeland culture ("

") historian, chronicler * Joachim Manard (Manhard, Manardt) (1564–1637), chronicler of the town * Ludwig Günther Martini (1647–1719), jurist * Curt Mücke (1885–1940), painter * Carl Moeller (German pastor) (1867–1920), pastor and German homeland culture ("

") historian * Hermann Müller (1891–1984), German homeland culture ("

") historian * Gunda Niemann-Stirnemann (born 1966), speed skater * Ronald Paris (1933–2021), painter * Werner Schubert (1921–1991), painter * Heinz Scharr (born 1924),

visual artist The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics (art), ceramics, photography, video, image, filmmaking, design, crafts, and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual a ...

* Ferdinand Schlufter (1871–1948), major * Volker Strübing (born 1971), book author, cabaret artist and songwriter * Johann Friedrich Suckow (1769–1842), musician * Johann Karl Wezel (1747–1819), poet

Sister cities

Sondershausen is twinned with three cities: *

Rolla, Missouri Rolla () is a city in and the county seat of Phelps County, Missouri, United States. Its population in the 2020 United States Census was 19,943. It is approximately midway between St. Louis and Springfield along I-44. Its micropolitan sta ...

, United States *

Pecquencourt Pecquencourt () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Geography Climate Pecquencourt has an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification ''Cfb''). The average annual temperature in Pecquencourt is . The average annual rai ...

, France * Kazlų Rūda, Lithuania

References

External links

* {{Authority control Kyffhäuserkreis