Markgräflerland () is a region in the southwest of

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

, in the south of the German federal state of

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

, located between the

Breisgau The Breisgau () is an area in southwest Germany between the Rhine River and the foothills of the Black Forest. Part of the state of Baden-Württemberg, it centers on the city of Freiburg im Breisgau. The district of Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald, ...

in the north and the

Black Forest The Black Forest (german: Schwarzwald ) is a large forested mountain range in the state of Baden-Württemberg in southwest Germany, bounded by the Rhine Valley to the west and south and close to the borders with France and Switzerland. It is ...

in the east; adjacent to west with

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and in the south with

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

History and geography

The name translates to ''Margraves' Land'', in reference to the

Margrave Margrave was originally the medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or of a kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain feudal families in the ...

s of

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden i ...

. They ruled the area from the 12th century as a margraviate of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 unt ...

until its elevation to the

Grand Duchy of Baden The Grand Duchy of Baden (german: Großherzogtum Baden) was a state in the southwest German Empire on the east bank of the Rhine. It existed between 1806 and 1918. It came into existence in the 12th century as the Margraviate of Baden and subs ...

in 1806, following the Empire's dissolution. Markgräflerland is the combination of three lordships: Badenweiler, Rötteln and

Sausenburg Sausenburg Castle is a ruined German castle on the edge of the Black Forest, just north of the town of Kandern in Baden-Württemberg, between the villages of Sitzenkirch and Malsburg-Marzell. The castle was originally the stronghold of the lor ...

. In 1556 the Markgraf (

) became

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

following the actions of the German monk

Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation and the namesake of Lutherani ...

. The river

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , source ...

marks the frontier to

in the west and

in the south. Markgräflerland is considered to be part of the transnational metropolitan area that includes

Freiburg Freiburg im Breisgau (; abbreviated as Freiburg i. Br. or Freiburg i. B.; Low Alemannic: ''Friburg im Brisgau''), commonly referred to as Freiburg, is an independent city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population of about 230,000 (as o ...

Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (B ...

, and

Mulhouse Mulhouse (; Alsatian: or , ; ; meaning '' mill house'') is a city of the Haut-Rhin department, in the Grand Est region, eastern France, close to the Swiss and German borders. It is the largest city in Haut-Rhin and second largest in Alsace a ...

. This region of Germany, also called the ''Dreiländereck'' (three-country corner), includes many towns, but it is generally accepted that the center of the region is the town of Müllheim. Historically the region was a bit smaller, only reaching to

Heitersheim Heitersheim is a town in the district Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald, Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The name of the school located in Heitersheim is Johanniterschule. It was the seat of the Grand Prior of Germany of the Knights Hospitaller ...

in the north. The largest mountain in the region, the Blauen, lies on the outside border.

Viticulture

Aerial View - Landschaft Markgräflerland1

The region is known for its vineyards. A unique grape variety is the Gutedel grape, also known as

Chasselas Chasselas or Chasselas blanc is a wine grape variety grown mainly in Switzerland, France, Germany, Portugal, Hungary, Romania, New Zealand, Croatia and Chile. Chasselas is mostly vinified to be a full, dry and fruity white wine. It ...

, which probably made its way into the region in 1780 from

Vevey Vevey (; frp, Vevê; german: label=former German, Vivis) is a town in Switzerland in the canton of Vaud, on the north shore of Lake Geneva, near Lausanne. The German name Vivis is no longer commonly used. It was the seat of the district of ...

in Switzerland; this grape is also used in some of the viticulture on the northern shore of

Lake Constance Lake Constance (german: Bodensee, ) refers to three bodies of water on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps: Upper Lake Constance (''Obersee''), Lower Lake Constance (''Untersee''), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Lak ...

. Other popular varieties in the region include

Müller-Thurgau Müller-Thurgau is a white grape variety (sp. '' Vitis vinifera'') which was created by Hermann Müller from the Swiss Canton of Thurgau in 1882 at the Geisenheim Grape Breeding Institute in Germany. It is a crossing of Riesling with Madelein ...

, Grau Burgunder ( Pinot gris), Weiss Burgunder ( Pinot blanc), Spätburgunder (

Pinot noir Pinot Noir () is a red-wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from pinot noir grapes. The name is derived from the French words for ''pine'' and ''black.'' The word ''pine ...

) and Weissherbst. Other agricultural products include

Spargel Asparagus, or garden asparagus, folk name sparrow grass, scientific name ''Asparagus officinalis'', is a perennial flowering plant species in the genus '' Asparagus''. Its young shoots are used as a spring vegetable. It was once classified in ...

(white asparagus) and cherries. The region is often called by Germans the

Tuscany it, Toscano (man) it, Toscana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Citizenship , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = Italian , demogra ...

of Germany, referring to the Tuscan region of Italy, due in part to its climate, milder than the rest of the nation.

Language

This region is home to the German dialect known as Alemannisch. The most famous writer of ''Alemannisch'' literature is

Johann Peter Hebel Johann Peter Hebel (10 May 1760 – 22 September 1826) was a German short story writer, dialectal poet, Lutheran theologian and pedagogue, most famous for a collection of Alemannic lyric poems (''Allemannische Gedichte'') and one of Ger ...

Cities and towns

Markgräflerland includes (among others) the following locations: Auggen, Badenweiler, Ballrechten-Dottingen, Betberg,

Binzen Binzen is a municipality in the southwestern German Federal State of Baden-Württemberg, part of the district Lörrach. The town's coat of arms was granted on 29 August 1967. The blazon of the arms is ''Azure a Garb Or on a Chief Gules a Risi ...

, Bollschweil, Britzingen, Buggingen, Dattingen, Dossenbach, Efringen-Kirchen,

Eimeldingen Eimeldingen is a municipality in the district of Lörrach, in Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germ ...

, Gersbach, Hach, Hartheim am Rhein, Hammerstein,

Hausen im Wiesental Hausen may refer to: Places in Germany Bavaria *Hausen, Miltenberg, in the Miltenberg district * Hausen, Lower Bavaria, in the Kelheim district *Hausen, Upper Franconia, in the Forchheim district * Hausen, Rhön-Grabfeld, in the Rhön-Grabfeld dis ...

, Hügelheim, Inzlingen,

Kandern Kandern is a town in southwestern Germany in the state of Baden-Württemberg, in the '' Kreis'' (district) of Lörrach. During the Battle of Schliengen, in which the French Revolutionary army fought the forces of Austria, the battle lines of both ...

, Kleinkems,

Lörrach Lörrach () is a town in southwest Germany, in the valley of the Wiese, close to the French and the Swiss borders. It is the capital of the district of Lörrach in Baden-Württemberg. It is the home of a number of large employers, including ...

, Malsburg, Marzell, Müllheim, Neuenburg, Neuenweg, Riedlingen, Schliengen, Schopfheim, Seefelden, Steinen, Sulzburg, Tegernau, Vögisheim,

Weil am Rhein Weil am Rhein ( High Alemannic: ''Wiil am Rhii'') is a German town and commune. It is on the east bank of the River Rhine, and extends to the point at which the Swiss, French and German borders meet. It is the most southwesterly town in Germany ...

, Wies, Wieslet, Weitenau, Wollbach.

External links

* Map: https://web.archive.org/web/20051222203414/http://www.geschichtsverein-markgraeflerland.de/
Markgräflerland: pictures & history
{{DEFAULTSORT:Markgraflerland Geography of Baden-Württemberg Regions of Baden-Württemberg