Merseburg () is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an o ...

in central

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 southern

Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt (german: Sachsen-Anhalt ; nds, Sassen-Anholt) is a state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.18 million inhabitants, making i ...

, situated on the river

Saale The Saale (), also known as the Saxon Saale (german: Sächsische Saale) and Thuringian Saale (german: Thüringische Saale), is a river in Germany and a left-bank tributary of the Elbe. It is not to be confused with the smaller Franconian Saal ...

, and approximately 14 km south of Halle (Saale) and 30 km west of

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

. It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a

diocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associ ...

founded by Archbishop Adalbert of Magdeburg. The University of Merseburg is located within the town. Merseburg has around 33,000 inhabitants.

Names

* cs, Merseburk, Meziboř * french: Mersebourg * german: Merseburg * la, Merseburga * pl, Międzybórz * wen, Mjezybor

Geography

The town Merseburg consists of Merseburg proper and the following four ''Ortschaften'' or municipal divisions:Hauptsatzung der Stadt Merseburg
§ 15, April 2019. * Beuna (Geiseltal) * Geusa *Meuschau *Trebnitz

Administrative reforms

Venenien was incorporated into Merseburg on 1 January 1949. The parish Kötzschen followed on 1 July 1950. Since 30 May 1994, Meuschau is part of Merseburg. Trebnitz, previously part of

Kreypau Kreypau is a village and a former municipality in the district Saalekreis, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 31 December 2009, it is part of the town Leuna Leuna is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, eastern Germany, south of Merseburg and Halle, on the ...

, followed in 2003. Beuna was annexed on 1 January 2009. Geusa is a part of Merseburg since 1 January 2010.

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 Hungarians, also known as Magyars ( ; hu, magyarok ), are a nation and ethnic group native to Hungary () and historical Hungarian lands who share a common culture, history, ancestry, and language. The Hungarian language belongs to the ...

in the vicinity. Thietmar, appointed in 973, became the first bishop of the newly created

bishopric of Prague The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Prague (Praha) ( cs, Arcidiecéze pražská, la, Archidioecesis Pragensis) is a Metropolitan Catholic archdiocese of the Latin Rite in Bohemia, in the Czech Republic. The cathedral archiepiscopal see is St. Vit ...

in Bohemia. Prague had been part of the archbishopric of Mainz for a hundred years before that. From 968 until the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and i ...

, Merseburg was the seat of the Bishop of Merseburg, and in addition to being for a time the residence of the margraves of Meissen, it was a favorite residence of the German kings during the 10th, 11th and 12th centuries. Fifteen diets were held here during the Middle Ages, during which time its fairs enjoyed the importance which was afterwards transferred to those of

. After Ekkehard's treacherous death on April 3, 1002, Bolesław I Chrobry took Merseburg and Meissen, and then Milsko with Bautzen and Strehla, with the help of the local Slavic population. The German princes accepted the sovereignty of the Polish prince in these areas. Some historians believe that since the convention in Gniezno, the Brave might have had certain rights to the German throne after Otto III, guaranteed by some succession document. Merseburg was later the site of a failed assassination attempt on Polish ruler Bolesław I Chrobry in 1002. The town suffered severely during the German Peasants' War and also during the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of batt ...

17th century to 20th century

From 1657 to 1738 Merseburg was the residence of the Dukes of Saxe-Merseburg, after which it fell to the Electorate of Saxony. In 1815 following the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fre ...

, the town became part of the

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

n Province of Saxony. Merseburg is where the Merseburg Incantations were rediscovered in 1841. Written down in

Old High German Old High German (OHG; german: Althochdeutsch (Ahd.)) is the earliest stage of the German language, conventionally covering the period from around 750 to 1050. There is no standardised or supra-regional form of German at this period, and Old Hig ...

, 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 Ammonia is an inorganic compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . A stable binary hydride, and the simplest pnictogen hydride, ammonia is a colourless gas with a distinct pungent smell. Biologically, it is a common nitrogenous ...

synthesis from 1909 to 1913. The nearby

Leuna works The Leuna works (german: Leunawerke) in Leuna, Saxony-Anhalt, is one of the biggest chemical industrial complexes in Germany. The site, now owned jointly by companies such as Total S.A., BASF, Linde AG, and DOMO Group, covers 13 km2 and pr ...

continue this tradition of chemical industry. Merseburg was badly damaged in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. In 23 air raids, 6,200 dwellings were completely or partly destroyed. The historic town centre was almost completely destroyed. Briefly part of

after the war, it was then administered within the ''Bezirk'' Halle in

East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In t ...

. It became part of Saxony-Anhalt again after the reunification of Germany.

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)'': 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 Merseburg Cathedral (german: Merseburger Dom) is the proto-cathedral of the former Bishopric of Merseburg in Merseburg, Germany. The mostly Gothic church is considered an artistic and historical highlight in southern Saxony-Anhalt. History Ba ...

of St

John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

(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. MerseburgDomschloßsaale.JPG, Merseburg Castle Dom Merseburg 01.jpg,

Cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominations ...

Merseburg, Germany - panoramio (30).jpg, Ständehaus Merseburg, Kirchenruine Sankt Sixti, 001.jpg, St. Sixti Merseburg, the church St. Maximi.jpg, St. Maximi Church AltesRathausMerseburg.jpg, Old Town Hall Merseburg, Stadtbefestigung, Eulenturm, 001.jpg, 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

Merseburg station Merseburg Hauptbahnhof is the main station of the town of Merseburg in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is located on the Halle–Bebra railway (Thuringian Railway) and Deutsche Bahn assigns it to category 4. Merseburg is located in the tari ...

is located on the Halle–Bebra railway.

Leipzig/Halle Airport Leipzig/Halle Airport (German: ''Flughafen Leipzig/Halle'') is an international airport located in Schkeuditz, Saxony, Germany and serves both Leipzig, Saxony, and Halle, Saxony-Anhalt. It is Germany's 14th largest airport by passengers and ...

is just 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. MerseburgBf.JPG, Merseburg station Leipzig-Halle Airport Check-in.jpg, Leipzig/Halle Airport, 25 kilometres away from Merseburg Schkopau Strassenbahn.jpg, Tram in Schkopau, near Merseburg

Twin towns – sister cities

Merseburg is twinned with: * Châtillon, France * Genzano di Roma, Italy * Bottrop, Germany

Notable people

* Thietmar of Merseburg (975–1018), bishop and chronist * Johannes Knolleisen (1450–1513), theological professor *

Szymon Bogumił Zug Szymon Bogumił Zug (20 February 1733 – 11 August 1807), born Simon Gottlieb Zug, and also known as Zugk, was a renowned Polish- German classicist architect and designer of gardens. Born in Merseburg in Saxony, he spent most of his life in th ...

(1733–1807), Polish-German architect and designer of gardens *

Karl Adolph von Basedow Carl Adolph von Basedow (28 March 1799 – 11 April 1854) was a German physician most famous for reporting the symptoms of what could later be dubbed Graves-Basedow disease, now technically known as exophthalmic goiter. Biography Basedow was bo ...

(1799–1854), physician * Ernst Haeckel (1834–1919), biologist, philosopher, physician *

Lucian Müller Lucian Müller (17 March 1836 – 24 April 1898) was a German classical scholar. Life Müller was born in Merseburg in the Province of Saxony. After studying at the universities of Berlin and Halle, he lived for five years in the Netherlands, ...

(1836–1898), classical scholar *

Elisabeth Schumann Elisabeth Schumann (13 June 1888 – 23 April 1952) was a German soprano who sang in opera, operetta, oratorio, and lieder. She left a substantial legacy of recordings. Career Born in Merseburg, Schumann trained for a singing career in Berl ...

(1888–1952), operatic soprano *

Klaus Tennstedt Klaus Hermann Wilhelm Tennstedt (; June 6, 1926 – January 11, 1998) was a German conductor from Merseburg. Known for his interpretation of the Austro-German repertoire, especially his sympathetic approaches towards Gustav Mahler, Tennstedt ...

(1926–1998), conductor *

Uwe Nolte Uwe Nolte (born 11 May 1969 in Merseburg) is a German poet, musician and graphic artist. Life and work Uwe Nolte is a contemporary German poet. His work is an attempt to translate the concerns and aesthetics of German Romanticism into the pres ...

(born 1969), poet, musician and graphic artist * Jawed Karim (born 1979), American software engineer,

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

co-founder

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Saalekreis Members of the Hanseatic League