Amberg () is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

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 located in the Upper Palatinate about halfway between

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

Bayreuth Bayreuth ( or ; High Franconian German, Upper Franconian: Bareid, ) is a Town#Germany, town in northern Bavaria, Germany, on the Red Main river in a valley between the Franconian Jura and the Fichtel Mountains. The town's roots date back to 11 ...

History

The town was first mentioned in 1034 with the name Ammenberg. It became an important trading centre in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, exporting mainly

iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the f ...

and iron products. In 1269, together with

Bamberg Bamberg (, , ; East Franconian German, East Franconian: ''Bambärch'') is a town in Upper Franconia district in Bavaria, Germany, on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main (river), Main. Bamberg had 79,000 inhabitants in ...

, the town became subordinate to the

Wittelsbach The House of Wittelsbach () is a former Bavarian dynasty, with branches that have ruled over territories including the Electorate of Bavaria, the Electoral Palatinate, the Electorate of Cologne, County of Holland, Holland, County of Zeeland, ...

dynasty which ruled Bavaria. In 1329 the town and the entire region fell to the Palatinate branch of the

family. The region adopted the name Upper Palatinate. It was no longer part of the duchy of Bavaria politically, though in geographic terms it was regarded as Bavarian and the region was part of the Bavarian circle in the organization of the Imperial Circles. In the 16th century, the rulers of Upper Palatinate turned to

Protestantism Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

. The town turned to

Lutheranism Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

. Later attempts of the ruling family to introduce the more radical

Calvinism Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Christian, Presbyteri ...

failed due to the reluctance of its citizens. In 1628 Amberg and Upper Palatinate became part of the electorate of Bavaria. The inhabitants were given the choice to return to

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

or emigrate. Many families left the town and moved to the Free Imperial Cities of

and

Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...

. On 24 August 1796, during the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars () were a series of sweeping military conflicts resulting from the French Revolution that lasted from 1792 until 1802. They pitted French First Republic, France against Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain, Habsb ...

, a major battle, the

Battle of Amberg The Battle of Amberg, fought on 24 August 1796, resulted in a Habsburg victory by Archduke Charles over a French army led by Jean-Baptiste Jourdan. This engagement marked a turning point in the Rhine campaign, which had previously seen Fre ...

was fought in the city and its environs at which 35,000 French, under the command of Jean Baptiste Jourdan fought with 40,000 Austrians under the command of Archduke Charles; the French suffered significantly more losses in the Austrian victory. Amberg was the regional capital of Upper Palatinate until 1810 when power was transferred to the larger city of

. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, when Bavaria fell into the American Sector, Amberg was home to Pond Barracks, a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

post. I.F.Stone writes about it in his book Underground to Palestine (pp. 31ff). The post was closed in 1992 and the facility turned over to the local community for housing, most of it for social housing. In late 2018, the town was the site of the Amberg attacks resulting in Rainer Wendt asking the federal government to take a stand on the case. The city was reported to be "in a state of emergency." Joachim Herrmann, the Bavarian minister of the Interior, visited Amberg for consultations. Horst Seehofer, the federal minister of the Interior, said "the violent attacks (were) worrisome."

Jewish history

Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

had settled in Amberg before 1294, when the first documentation can be found. Shortly after, in 1298, thirteen of the town Jews died during the Rindfleisch massacres. Nevertheless, in 1347 six families received permission to settle in Amberg and twenty years after, in 1367, a Yeshivah was opened in it, although the Jewish community was expelled from Amberg in 1403. Upon the expulsion, the

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

was annexed to the nearby church. Twelve Jews remained in town in 1942. The few survivors returned to the town after 1945, and a displaced persons camp named Amberg-near the town-housed mostly

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

refugees and survivors. As a result of immigration from the former

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

, the

population grew to about 275 in 2003.There is a synagogue in town.

Subdistricts

Amberg has 25 sub-districts, which include its surrounding villages: * Amberg * Atzlricht * Bergsteig * Bernricht * Eglsee * Fiederhof * Fuchsstein * Gailoh * Gewerbegebiet-Gailoh * Gewerbegebiet-West * Gärbershof * Karmensölden * Kemnathermühl * Kleinraigering * Krumbach * Lengenloh * Luitpoldhöhe * Neubernricht * Neumühle * Neuricht * Oberammersricht * Raigering * Schäflohe * Schweighof * Speckmannshof * Unterammersricht

Lord mayors

* 1866–1892: Vincent König * 1892–1907: Josef Heldmann * 1907–1913: Georg Schön * 1913–1933: Eduard Klug, BVP * 1933: Otto Saugel (temporary) * 1933–1945: Josef Filbig,

NSDAP The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party ( or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor, the German Workers ...

* 1945–1946: Christian Endemann, SPD * 1946: Eduard Klug * 1946: Christian Endemann, SPD * 1946–1952: Michael Lotter, CSU * 1952–1958: Josef Filbig, Deutsche Gemeinschaft (Deutschland) * 1958–1970: Wolf Steininger, CSU * 1970–1990: Franz Prechtl, CSU * 1990–2014: Wolfgang Dandorfer, CSU * since 2014: Michael Cerny, CSU

Population

Sights

A defining feature of the town is the ''Stadtbrille'' (literally: town spectacles)–a bridge, originally a part of the town fortifications, whose arches reflected on the river waters resemble a pair of spectacles. Other tourist attractions in Amberg: * Market Square, which contains the Gothic town hall (built in 1358) and the late-Gothic parish church of St. Martin * The New Palace, the former residence of the counts of the Rhenish Palatinate, built at the beginning of the 15th century and renovated in 1603 Amberg Wahrzeichen Stadtbrille

* A well-preserved section of the medieval walls and gates * The baroque

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

monastery on the Hill of Our Lady Help of Christians (Germ. ''Mariahilfberg'') above the town; the hill was given its name during the

bubonic plague Bubonic plague is one of three types of Plague (disease), plague caused by the Bacteria, bacterium ''Yersinia pestis''. One to seven days after exposure to the bacteria, flu-like symptoms develop. These symptoms include fever, headaches, and ...

in the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

in 1633/4 when the locals beseeched the Virgin Mary to rid them of the plague * The ' Little Wedding House' (local German dialect ''Eh’häusl''), claimed by town authorities to be the world's smallest hotel; built in 1728, the 2 metre wide hotel was 'sold' to young couples for one night to circumvent laws prohibiting marriages between poor people * The town museum (Stadtmuseum Amberg) has exhibits on life and industry in Amberg, the history of clothing and works of Michael Mathias Prechtl and houses travelling exhibitions. * Air Museum (Luftmuseum), opened in 2006

Twin towns – sister cities

Amberg is twinned with: * Bad Bergzabern, Germany * Bystrzyca Kłodzka, Poland * Desenzano del Garda, Italy * Périgueux, France *

Trikala Trikala () is a city in northwestern Thessaly, Greece, and the capital of the Trikala (regional unit), Trikala regional unit. The city straddles the Lithaios river, which is a tributary of Pineios (Thessaly), Pineios. According to the Greek Natio ...

, Greece *

Ústí nad Orlicí Ústí nad Orlicí (; ) is a town in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 14,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument zones, urban monument z ...

, Czech Republic *

Kranj Kranj (, ) is the List of cities and towns in Slovenia, fourth-largest city in Slovenia and the largest urban center of the traditional region of Upper Carniola (northwestern Slovenia) and the Slovene Alps. It is located approximately northwest o ...

, Slovenia

Notable people

* Karl Addicks (born 1950), politician (FDP), Member of Bundestag 2004–2009 * Hans Aumeier (1906–1948), Nazi SS officer in a leading position in several

concentration camp A concentration camp is a prison or other facility used for the internment of political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or ethnic minority groups, on the grounds of national security, or for exploitati ...

s executed for war crimes * Hans Baumann (1914–1988), elementary school teacher, poet, song composer, Children's Book Author, Nazi official * Alexander Bugera (born 1978), football player * Sara Däbritz (born 1995), German football player ( Bayern Munich, Germany national team) * Daniel Ernemann (born 1976), football player * Heiner Fleischmann (1914–1963), motorcycle racer (mainly on NSU) * Fritz Hilpert (born 1956), musician (Kraftwerk) * Michael Huber (1841–1911), priest *

Theodor Kaes Theodor Joseph Martin Kaes (7 November 1852 – 22 December 1913) was a German neurologist who was a native of Amberg. Career He practiced medicine at the (''Staatskrankenanstalt Friedrichsberg'') in Hamburg, where he was first prosector ...

(1852–1913), German neurologist, was a native of Amberg * Barbara Meier (born 1986), German fashion model * Franz Stigler (1915–2008), German

Luftwaffe The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...

fighter ace, 45 aerial victories, member of Jagdgeschwader 27, and

Jagdverband 44 __NOTOC__ ''Jagdverband'' 44 (JV 44) was a German Luftwaffe special operations unit during World War II. It was formed during the last months of World War II to operate the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter. History The commander of JV 44 was ...

. Known best for

Charlie Brown and Franz Stigler incident The Charlie Brown and Franz Stigler incident occurred on 20 December 1943, after a successful bomb run on Bremen, 2nd Lt. Charlie Brown (pilot), Charles "Charlie" Brown's Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, B-17F Flying Fortress ''Ye Olde Pub'' of the ...

. * Kathrine Switzer (born 1947), first woman to run the Boston Marathon, was born to American parents in Amberg