Bad Segeberg (; ) is a German town of 16,000 inhabitants, located in the state of

Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; ; ; ; ; occasionally in English ''Sleswick-Holsatia'') is the Northern Germany, northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical Duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of S ...

, capital of the district (Kreis)

Segeberg Segeberg (; ) is a district in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is bounded by (from the southwest and clockwise) the districts of Pinneberg, Steinburg and Rendsburg-Eckernförde, the city of Neumünster, the districts of Plön, Ostholstein and St ...

. It is situated approximately northeast of

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

, and west of

Lübeck Lübeck (; or ; Latin: ), officially the Hanseatic League, Hanseatic City of Lübeck (), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 220,000 inhabitants, it is the second-largest city on the German Baltic Sea, Baltic coast and the second-larg ...

. It is famous for its annual Karl May Festival, which takes place in the town's Kalkberg Stadium, a large amphitheater originally built by the

Reich Labour Service The Reich Labour Service (''Reichsarbeitsdienst''; RAD) was a major paramilitary organization established in Nazi Germany as an agency to help mitigate the effects of unemployment on the German economy, militarise the workforce and indoctrinate ...

into an exploited quarry at the Segeberger Kalkberg. There is a large television tower in the middle of the town.

Geography

Bad Segeberg is not far from the eastern edge of the hills of

Ostholstein Ostholstein (; ) is a district in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is bounded by (from the southwest and clockwise) the districts of Stormarn, Segeberg and Plön, the Baltic Sea and the city of Lübeck. Geographically, the district covers the vas ...

. The western part of the town is bordered by the

Trave The Trave () is a river in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is approximately long, running from its source near the village of Gießelrade in Ostholstein to Travemünde, where it flows into the Baltic Sea. It passes through Bad Segeberg, Bad Old ...

, the northern part by the Ihlsee and forests, the northeast is bordered by the Großer Segeberger See, and the west is also bordered by forests. In the south, Bad Segeberg is bordered by the towns of Högersdorf and Klein Gladebrügge. Geologically, the area around Bad Segeberg is unique because it is the only area with

Karst topography Karst () is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and Dolomite (rock), dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground. Ther ...

in Schleswig-Holstein, which is indicated by the presence of sinkholes in the area. There were even sinkholes in the town itself, although these have all been filled in and are no longer visible. The only exception is the Kleiner Segeberger See, which is a sinkhole that is filled with water at the foot of the Segeberger Kalkberg.

Notable people

* Werner Wrangel (1922 in Passopp – 1945), decorated Army officer * Maria Jepsen (born 1945), Lutheran bishop * Christian Habicht (1952–2010), actor * Bernd Jorkisch (born 1957), entrepreneur and President of the Lübeck Chamber of Commerce and Industry from 2004 to 2010 * Gero Storjohann (born 1958), politician, member of the CDU * Detlev Buck (born 1962), film director, actor, producer and screenwriter *

Eilika Duchess of Oldenburg Eilika von Habsburg (née Duchess Eilika Helene Jutta Clementine of Oldenburg; born 22 August 1972) is married to Georg von Habsburg, the third in the line of succession to the former Austro-Hungarian throne. By birth, she is a member of the Hou ...

(born 1972), wife of

Georg von Habsburg Georg von HabsburgThe Habsburgs' titles are not recognised anymore in Austria or in Hungary, where he is referred to as Georg Habsburg-Lothringen, which is his legal name (see Austrian nobility and Statute IV of 1947 regarding the abolition of c ...

* Alexander Holtmann (born 1978), cinema, television and theatre actor

Sport

Frauke Kuhlmann Frauke Kuhlmann (born 27 September 1966 in Bad Segeberg) is a German women's international footballer who plays as a defender. She is a member of the Germany women's national football team. She was part of the team at the 1991 FIFA Women's World ...

(born 1966), women's international footballer *

Mona Barthel Mona Barthel (born 11 July 1990) is a German tennis player. On 18 March 2013, she reached her best singles ranking of world No. 23. On 14 September 2015, she peaked at No. 63 in the doubles rankings. Barthel has won four singles and three double ...

(born 1990), tennis player * Rachel Rinast (born 1991), footballer, played over 280 pro games * Janek Sternberg (born 1992), footballer, played over 260 pro games *

Fiete Arp Jann-Fiete Arp (born 6 January 2000), known as Fiete Arp, is a German professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football), forward for Bundesliga club Holstein Kiel. He has also represented Germany at youth ...

(born 2000), footballer, played over 120 pro games

Twin towns – sister cities

Bad Segeberg is twinned with: *

Kiryat Motzkin Kiryat Motzkin () is a city in the Haifa District of Israel, north of the city center of Haifa. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, in it had a population of . However, as of September 2024, the unofficial population count is 55 ...

, Israel *

Riihimäki Riihimäki (; ) is a town and municipality in the south of Finland, about north of Helsinki and southeast of Tampere. An important railway junction is located in Riihimäki, since railway tracks from Riihimäki lead to Helsinki, Tampere and La ...

, Finland *

Teterow Teterow () is a town of Germany, in the Rostock (district), district of Rostock, in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. It is the geographical center of this federal state. It had a population of 8,852 in 2011. History The ''Stadtkirche St. Peter u ...

, Germany *

Võru Võru (; ; ) is a town and a municipality in south-eastern Estonia. It is the capital of Võru County and the centre of Võru Parish. History Võru was founded on 21 August 1784, at the request of the Empress Catherine II of Russia, by the o ...

, Estonia *

Złocieniec Złocieniec (; ) is a town in northwestern Poland. Located in West Pomeranian Voivodeship's Drawsko County since 1999, it was previously a part of Koszalin Voivodeship (disambiguation), Koszalin Voivodeship (1950–1998). The population of Złoci ...

, Poland

References

{{Authority control Towns in Schleswig-Holstein Spa towns in Germany Segeberg