Jessen () is a municipality on the

Black Elster The Black Elster or Schwarze Elster ( German, ; ; ) is a long river in eastern Germany, in the states of Saxony, Brandenburg and Saxony-Anhalt. It is a right tributary of the Elbe. Its source is in the Upper Lusatia region, near Elstra. The Blac ...

river and lies in the eastern part of

Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt ( ; ) is a States of Germany, state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.17 million inhabitants, making it the List of German states ...

in the district of Wittenberg.

Geography

Jessen is an amalgamated municipality, and has the following 44 subdivisions (''Ortsteile''):Hauptsatzung der Stadt Jessen (Elster)
2 July 2019. * Arnsdorf * Battin * Buschkuhnsdorf * Dixförda * Düßnitz * Gentha * Gerbisbach * Glücksburg * Gorsdorf * Grabo * Großkorga * Hemsendorf * Holzdorf * Jessen (Elster) * Kleindröben * Kleinkorga *

Klöden Klöden is a village and a former municipality in Wittenberg district in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2011, it is part of the town Jessen (Elster). Geography Klöden lies on the Elbe about 12 km southwest of Jessen and in easter ...

* Klossa * Kremitz * Leipa * Linda * Lindwerder * Lüttchenseyda * Mark Friedersdorf * Mark Zwuschen * Mauken * Mellnitz * Mönchenhöfe * Morxdorf * Mügeln * Naundorf * Neuerstadt * Rade * Rehain * Reicho * Rettig * Ruhlsdorf * Schadewalde * Schöneicho * Schützberg * Schweinitz * Seyda * Steinsdorf * Zwuschen

History

The first documentary evidence of Jessen's existence dates to 1217. On the night of 20 to 21 September 1729, much of the town was destroyed in a fire. After belonging to

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

for centuries, Jessen became

Prussian Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, the House of Hohenzoll ...

in 1815. From 1815 to 1844, Jessen was part of the

Province of Saxony The Province of Saxony (), also known as Prussian Saxony (), was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and later the Free State of Prussia from 1816 until 1944. Its capital was Magdeburg. It was formed by the merger of various territories ceded ...

and from 1944 to 1945 of the Province of

Halle-Merseburg The Province of Halle-Merseburg () was a province of the Free State of Prussia from 1944 to 1945. The provincial capital was the city Merseburg. Halle-Merseburg was created on 1 July 1944, out of Regierungsbezirk Merseburg, an administrative ...

. In 1945, it became part of the Province (since 1947, State) of

. In 1952, owing to

East German East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from its formation on 7 October 1949 until its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on 3 October 1990. Until 1989, it was generally vie ...

administrative reforms, Jessen became a district capital in

Bezirk Cottbus Cottbus was a Administrative divisions of the German Democratic Republic, district () of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). The administrative seat and main town was Cottbus. History The district was established, along with the othe ...

. In 1990, Jessen once again became part of the newly-refounded state of

. In 1992 came the amalgamation of the communities of Grabo, Gorsdorf-Hemsendorf, Lindwerder and Großkorga, and in 1993, Schweinitz, Gerbisbach, Klossa, Schöneicho, Steinsdorf and Dixförda. With the district reform in 1994, Jessen became part of Wittenberg district, as well as having a further three communities melded with it, namely Battin, Düßnitz and Kleindröben-Mauken. In 1999 came further amalgamations: Arnsdorf, Leipa and Ruhlsdorf mit Rehain. On 1 March 2004 came a further 12, among them Seyda, Holzdorf and Linda (Elster). Some of these formerly independent communities themselves each consisted of more than one centre, and so Jessen now has a total of 47 ''Stadtteile'' (constituent communities).

Economy and infrastructure

Established businesses are mostly small and mid-sized concerns in

metalworking Metalworking is the process of shaping and reshaping metals in order to create useful objects, parts, assemblies, and large scale structures. As a term, it covers a wide and diverse range of processes, skills, and tools for producing objects on e ...

, building, dairy processing and drink production. There are also, however, bigger enterprises in

agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

Culture and Sightseeing

*Historic

marketplace A marketplace, market place, or just market, is a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other goods. In different parts of the world, a marketplace may be described as a ''souk'' (from ...

in Jessen *Parish

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

of St. Nicolai in Jessen *Schloss Jessen (stately home), since 1999 town council seat *Parish church of St. Marien in Schweinitz *''Amtshaus'' in Schweinitz *Gorsdorf village church *Kleindröben village church *Pretzsch-Mauken

reaction ferry A reaction ferry is a cable ferry that uses the reaction of the current of a river against a fixed tether to propel the vessel across the water. Such ferries operate faster and more effectively in rivers with strong currents. Types and modes of ...

Personalities

Karl Lamprecht Karl Gotthard Lamprecht (25 February 1856 – 10 May 1915) was a German historian who specialized in German art and economic history. Biography Lamprecht was born in Jessen in the Province of Saxony. As a student, he trained in history, politic ...

(25 February 1856 – 10 May 1915 in

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

), was Professor of History at the

University of Leipzig Leipzig University (), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December 1409 by Frederick I, Electo ...

, who is known today mainly for his rôle in the ''

Methodenstreit ''Methodenstreit'' (German for "method dispute"), in intellectual history beyond German-language discourse, was an economics controversy commenced in the 1880s and persisting for more than a decade, between that field's Austrian School and the (Ge ...

''. *

Herbert Kaiser Herbert Kaiser (16 March 1916 – 5 December 2003) was a Luftwaffe ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or succes ...

(16 March 1916 – 5 December 2003), a pilot in the

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 ...

during

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 ...

Manfred Schüler Manfred Schüler (7 March 1932 – 8 April 2025) was a German financial and management expert and politician (SPD). After teaching management and business studies activities at several scientific institutes and the private sector, from 1958 h ...

(1932–2025), an economist and politician

Sundry

The town is Germany's twelfth-largest municipality by land area, and is thereby about 3 km² bigger than

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

References

External links

Jessen
{{Authority control Wittenberg (district)