Paderborn (; Westphalian: ''Patterbuorn'', also ''Paterboärn'') is a city in eastern

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, state () in Old states of Germany, Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabitants, it is the List of German states by population, most ...

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 ...

, capital of the Paderborn district. The name of the city derives from the river Pader and ''Born'', an old German term for the source of a river. The river Pader originates in more than 200 springs near

Paderborn Cathedral Paderborn Cathedral () is the cathedral of the Catholic Archdiocese of Paderborn. It is located in the city centre of Paderborn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The cathedral is dedicated to Mary (mother of Jesus), Saint Mary, Saint Kilian and ...

, where St. Liborius is buried.

History

Paderborn was founded as a

bishopric 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 associate ...

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( ; 2 April 748 – 28 January 814) was List of Frankish kings, King of the Franks from 768, List of kings of the Lombards, King of the Lombards from 774, and Holy Roman Emperor, Emperor of what is now known as the Carolingian ...

in 795, although its official history began in 777 when Charlemagne built a castle near the Paderborn springs.Ed. Heribert Zelder, Tourist Information Services, ''Welcome to Paderborn'', Stadt Paderborn: Paderborn, Germany, 2009. In 799

Pope Leo III Pope Leo III (; died 12 June 816) was bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 26 December 795 to his death on 12 June 816. Protected by Charlemagne from the supporters of his predecessor, Adrian I, Leo subsequently strengthened Charlem ...

fled his enemies in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

and reached Paderborn, where he met Charlemagne, and stayed there for three months. It was during this time that it was decided that Charlemagne would be crowned emperor. Charlemagne reinstated Leo in Rome in 800 and was crowned as

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...

by Leo in return. In 836, St. Liborius became the patron saint of Paderborn after his bones were moved there from

Le Mans Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...

by Bishop

Badurad Badurad, lists the following attested forms of his name from Latin documents: Baduradus, Badaradus, Baturatus, Baderadus, Baturicus, Bathuradus and Patratus. (died 17 September 862) was the bishop of Paderborn from 815 until his death. Badurad was ...

.Ed. Heribert Zelder, Tourist Information Services, Welcome to Paderborn, Stadt Paderborn: Paderborn, Germany, 2009. St. Liborius is commemorated in Paderborn every year in July with the Liborifest. The

bishop of Paderborn The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Paderborn () is a Latin Church archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Germany; its seat is Paderborn.

, Meinwerk, became a Prince of the Empire in 1100. The bishop had several large buildings built, and the area became a place for the emperors to stay. Paderborn-Kupferstich-Merian

The city was taken by

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

in 1802, then by the

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

vassal state A vassal state is any state that has a mutual obligation to a superior state or empire, in a status similar to that of a vassal in the feudal system in medieval Europe. Vassal states were common among the empires of the Near East, dating back to ...

Kingdom of Westphalia The Kingdom of Westphalia was a client state of First French Empire, France in present-day Germany that existed from 1807 to 1813. While formally independent, it was ruled by Napoleon's brother Jérôme Bonaparte. It was named after Westphalia, ...

from 1807 to 1813 and then returned to Prussia. Native

Friedrich Sertürner Friedrich Wilhelm Adam Sertürner (; 19 June 1783 – 20 February 1841) was a German pharmacist and a pioneer of alkaloid chemistry. He is best known for his discovery of morphine, which he isolated from opium in 1804, and for conducting tests, ...

, a pharmacist's apprentice in Paderborn, was the first to isolate

morphine Morphine, formerly also called morphia, is an opiate that is found naturally in opium, a dark brown resin produced by drying the latex of opium poppies (''Papaver somniferum''). It is mainly used as an analgesic (pain medication). There are ...

from

opium Opium (also known as poppy tears, or Lachryma papaveris) is the dried latex obtained from the seed Capsule (fruit), capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid mor ...

in 1804. In 1914 the Paderborn military camp was turned into a prisoner of war camp named ''

Sennelager Sennelager () is a village in Germany that forms part of the City of Paderborn. It is notable for its association with the military since the 19th century. Location Sennelager lies around 5 km north of Paderborn city centre in the west of t ...

''. In 1930, the See of Paderborn was promoted to

archdiocese 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 associated ...

. 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 ...

, Paderborn was bombed by Allied aircraft in 1944 and 1945, resulting in 85% destruction, including many of the historic buildings. It was seized by the US 3rd Armored Division after a pitched

battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force co ...

31 March – 1 April 1945, in which tanks and

flamethrower A flamethrower is a ranged incendiary device designed to project a controllable jet of fire. First deployed by the Byzantine Empire in the 7th century AD, flamethrowers saw use in modern times during World War I, and more widely in World W ...

s were used during combined mechanized-infantry assaults against the city's southwestern, southern and southeastern approaches. After the city was reconstructed in the 1940s and 1950s, Paderborn became a major industrial seat in Westphalia. The British Army retained a significant presence in the area until 2020, when British units were relocated back to the United Kingdom. Only a small training and enabling staff remain at Paderborn to facilitate temporary deployments to use the

Sennelager Training Area The Sennelager Training Area () is a military training area in Germany, under the control of British Forces based in Paderborn Garrison. It covers an area of , and belongs to the German Government, which discharges its responsibility through i ...

. On 20 May 2022 Paderborn was hit by a damaging

tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with the surface of Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, although the ...

, leaving 38 injured & considerable damage along its path.

Geography

Paderborn is situated at the source of the river ''Pader'', approximately east of

Lippstadt Lippstadt () is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the largest town within the district of Soest. Lippstadt is situated about 60 kilometres east of Dortmund, 40 kilometres south of Bielefeld and 30 kilometres west of Paderborn. Geo ...

and approximately south of

Bielefeld Bielefeld () is a city in the Ostwestfalen-Lippe Region in the north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population of 341,755, it is also the most populous city in the administrative region () of Detmold (region), Detmold and the L ...

on the Pader. The hills of the

Eggegebirge The Egge Hills (, ), or just the Egge (''die Egge'') is a range of forested hills, up to , in the east of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Geography The Egge extends from the southern tip of the Teutoburg Forest range near Horn-Bad M ...

are located east of the city. Paderborn is east of Dortmund and the Ruhr region. To the north-west, Hannover is away.

Neighbouring municipalities

Altenbeken Altenbeken (, , in contrast to " New Beken") is a municipality in the district of Paderborn, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Altenbeken is situated in the Eggegebirge, approx. northeast of Paderborn. To the west of the town is t ...

Bad Lippspringe Bad Lippspringe () is a town in the district of Paderborn, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Bad Lippspringe is situated on the western slope of the Teutoburger Wald, approximately north-east of Paderborn. The river Lippe has its sour ...

Borchen Borchen () is a municipality in the district of Paderborn, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Location Borchen is situated in the Paderborn tableland, approximately 5 km south of Paderborn. The municipality also contains a sma ...

Delbrück Delbrück () is a town in the east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, located in the district Paderborn. History The first document mentioning the town dates to 1219. In 1410, the town was destroyed by fire during a conflict between the bisho ...

Hövelhof Hövelhof () is a municipality in the district Paderborn, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Since 14 March 2012, Hövelhof can use the official prefix ''Sennegemeinde'' (English: "Senne municipality"). Geography Hövelhof is located in the S ...

* Lichtenau *

Salzkotten Salzkotten () is a town in the district of Paderborn, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The name Salzkotten (in English, "Salt cottages") is based in the former salt production, which gave Salzkotten its wikt:raison d'être, raison d'être. Salt ...

Subdivisions

The city of Paderborn consists of the following ''Stadtteile'' (city sections): * Paderborn (city center) * Benhausen * Dahl * Elsen * Marienloh * Neuenbeken * Sande *

* Schloß Neuhaus * Wewer

Climate

Demographics

Paderborn has a population of over 144,000, of which approximately 10% are students at the local university (Paderborn University). Additionally, about 10,000 members or relatives of members of the

British armed forces The British Armed Forces are the unified military, military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its British Overseas Territories, Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests ...

live within

Westfalen Garrison Westfalen Garrison is a major British garrison with facilities located in Paderborn, Sennelager and Gütersloh in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany which now forms the major part of British Forces Germany. It was the home of 20th Armoured Brigade ...

, but are not included in the nominal population size. 60% of the population are Catholics, 20% Lutherans and 20% members of other faiths or not religious.

Economy

Paderborn is the headquarters of the former

Nixdorf Computer AG Nixdorf Computer AG was a West Germany, West German computer company founded by Heinz Nixdorf in 1952. Headquartered in Paderborn, Germany, it became the fourth largest computer company in Europe, and a worldwide specialist in banking and point- ...

, which was acquired by

Siemens Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational technology conglomerate. It is focused on industrial automation, building automation, rail transport and health technology. Siemens is the largest engineering company in Europe, and holds the positi ...

in the early 1990s and known as

Siemens-Nixdorf Siemens Nixdorf Informationssysteme (SNI) AG was formed in 1990 by the merger of Nixdorf Computer and the Data Information Services (DIS) division of Siemens. It functioned as a separate company within Siemens. It was the largest information te ...

for about ten years. The company is now known as

Diebold Nixdorf Diebold Nixdorf, Incorporated is an American multinational financial and retail technology company that specializes in the sale, manufacture, installation, and service of self-service transaction systems (such as ATMs and currency processing ...

, which is still located in Paderborn, but Siemens retains a considerable presence in the city. Many other

information technology Information technology (IT) is a set of related fields within information and communications technology (ICT), that encompass computer systems, software, programming languages, data processing, data and information processing, and storage. Inf ...

companies as well as industrial enterprises are located in Paderborn, too: * Benteler AG (steel/tube, automotive, trade) *

Claas } CLAAS is an agricultural machinery manufacturer based in Harsewinkel, Germany, in the federal state of North Rhine Westphalia. Founded in 1913 by August Claas, CLAAS is a family business and one of the market and technology leaders in ha ...

(farm machines) *

Deutsche Bahn AG (, ; abbreviated as DB or DB AG ) is the national railway company of Germany, and a state-owned enterprise under the control of the German government. Headquartered in the Bahntower in Berlin, it is a joint-stock company ( AG). DB was fou ...

(vehicle maintenance) *

dSPACE GmbH dSPACE GmbH (''digital signal processing and control engineering''), located in Paderborn, Germany (North Rhine-Westphalia), is one of the world's leading providers of tools for developing electronic control units. dSPACE GmbH has Project Centers ...

(engineering tools) *

Flextronics Flex Ltd. (previously known as Flextronics International Ltd. or Flextronics) is an American Singapore-domiciled multinational manufacturing company. It is the third largest global electronics manufacturing services (EMS), original design ...

Fujitsu Technology Solutions Fujitsu Technology Solutions GmbH (FTS) is a Munich-based information technology vendor in the so-called "EMEIA" markets: Europe, the Middle East, India and Africa. A subsidiary of Fujitsu in Tokyo, FTS was founded in 2009 when the parent firm b ...

* Orga Systems GmbH *

Secure Computing Corporation Secure Computing Corporation (SCC) was a public company that developed and sold computer security appliances and hosted services to protect users and data. McAfee acquired the company in 2008. The company also developed filtering systems used b ...

Siemens AG Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational technology conglomerate. It is focused on industrial automation, building automation, rail transport and health technology. Siemens is the largest engineering company in Europe, and holds the posit ...

(Siemens IT Solutions and Services) *

Zuken is a Japanese multinational corporation, specializing in software and consulting services for end-to-end electrical and electronic engineering. Zuken came into existence as a pioneer in the development of computer-aided design (CAD) systems in J ...

(PCB EMC Analysis and Design Software) Paderborn is also home of the " Paderborner"

brewery A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of b ...

, which has belonged to the Warsteiner group since 1990.

Arts and culture

Paderborn has the largest

computer museum A computer museum is devoted to the study of historic computer hardware and software, where a "museum" is a "permanent institution in the service of society and of its development, open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, comm ...

in the world, the

Heinz Nixdorf MuseumsForum The Heinz Nixdorf MuseumsForum (HNF) in Paderborn, Germany, is a computer museum named after the Paderborn computer pioneer and entrepreneur Heinz Nixdorf. History In 1977, Heinz Nixdorf received numerous gifts in the form of historic office mac ...

, opened in 1996. From 2001 to 2005, it hosted the . The town supports the

Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie The Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie (North West German Philharmonic) is a German symphony orchestra based in Herford. Founded in 1950, the orchestra is one of the ''Landesorchester'' of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, along with the ''Philhar ...

for regular symphony concerts in the Paderhalle. The city is currently known for its exhibitions in three museums: the ''Kaiserpfalz'', The Diocesan Museum and the Art Museum - Städtische Galerie. The city also has some natural tourist attractions within and around it. *The city has given its name to the Paderborn Gesangbuch of 1765, a collection of hymn tunes amongst which is one used in England as 'Paderborn' for the hymn 'Ye servants of God, your Master proclaim' (New English Hymnal 476).

Image gallery

File:Over paderborn.jpg, Central Paderborn and Cathedral File:Paderborn Kath.Bonifatiuskirche-2.jpg,

Saint Boniface Boniface, OSB (born Wynfreth; 675 –5 June 754) was an English Benedictines, Benedictine monk and leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of Francia during the eighth century. He organised significant foundations of ...

church, Paderborn File:Paderborn Kath.Kirche St.Georg.jpg,

Saint George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the ...

's church, Paderborn File:Paderborner Rathaus.jpg, Town hall Paderborn (Rathaus) File:Bartholomäuskapelle Paderborn.jpg, Inside the Bartholomäuskapelle File:Paderborn Westernstrasse asv2024-05.jpg, Pedestrian zone in Paderborn city center

Politics

With the

Archdiocese of Paderborn The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Paderborn () is a Latin Church archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Germany; its seat is Paderborn.

based in the city cathedral, Paderborn has traditionally been a conservative Catholic city. In the

Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet (assembly), Diet") is the lower house of the Germany, German Federalism in Germany, federal parliament. It is the only constitutional body of the federation directly elected by the German people. The Bundestag wa ...

, it is located in the eponymous electoral district, which is a safe seat for CDU. Only twice (

1949 Events January * January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2025 * January 2 – Luis ...

and

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

) has CDU not received a majority of the district's votes, and from 1953 to 1987 always received at least 60% of the district's vote. In the

Landtag of North Rhine-Westphalia The Landtag of North Rhine-Westphalia is the state parliament (''Landtag'') of the German federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia, which convenes in the state capital of Düsseldorf, in the eastern part of the district of Düsseldorf-Hafen, Hafen ...

, the city currently located in the district Paderborn II, which also has a strong CDU lean. At local level, the city has always elected CDU mayors since 1946. Until 2009, the CDU held an absolute majority on the city council, and as late as 1979 received over 60% of the vote in the city.

Mayor

The current mayor of Paderborn is Michael Dreier of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). The most recent mayoral election was held on 13 September 2020, and the results were as follows: ! colspan=2, Candidate ! Party ! Votes ! % , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Michael Dreier , align=left, Christian Democratic Union , 29,038 , 52.0 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Klaus Schröder , align=left,

Alliance 90/The Greens Alliance 90/The Greens (, ), often simply referred to as Greens (, ), is a Green (politics), green political party in Germany. It was formed in 1993 by the merger of the Greens (formed in West Germany in 1980) and Alliance 90 (formed in East Ger ...

, 11,194 , 20.1 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Martin Pantke , align=left,

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Form ...

, 6,902 , 12.4 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Elke Süsselbeck , align=left, The Left , 2,467 , 4.4 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Marvin Weber , align=left,

Alternative for Germany Alternative for Germany (, AfD, ) is a Far-right politics in Germany (1945–present), far-right,Far-right: * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Right-wing populism, right-wing populist and National conservatism, national-conservative p ...

, 2,404 , 4.3 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Alexander Senn , align=left, Free Democratic Party , 1,743 , 3.1 , - , , align=left, Stephan Hoppe , align=left, For Paderborn , 1,099 , 2.0 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Verani Kartum , align=left,

Volt Germany Volt Germany (, mostly known by the abbreviated name Volt) is a social-liberal pro-European, eurofederalist political party in Germany. It is the German branch of Volt Europa, a political movement that operates on a European level. Italian A ...

, 538 , 1.0 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Hartmut Hüttemann , align=left,

Free Voters Free Voters (, FW) is a political party in Germany. It originates as an umbrella organisation of several Free Voters Associations (), associations of people which participate in an election without having the status of a registered party. These a ...

, 416 , 0.8 , - ! colspan=3, Valid votes ! 55,801 ! 99.2 , - ! colspan=3, Invalid votes ! 464 ! 0.8 , - ! colspan=3, Total ! 56,265 ! 100.0 , - ! colspan=3, Electorate/voter turnout ! 118,244 ! 48.6 , - , colspan=7, Source
City of Paderborn

City council

The Paderborn city council governs the city alongside the Mayor. The most recent city council election was held on 13 September 2020, and the results were as follows: ! colspan=2, Party ! Votes ! % ! +/- ! Seats ! +/- , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Christian Democratic Union (CDU) , 22,412 , 40.3 , 6.1 , 24 , 6 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

(Grüne) , 13,412 , 24.1 , 9.6 , 14 , 5 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

(SPD) , 7,101 , 12.8 , 9.5 , 7 , 7 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Free Democratic Party (FDP) , 3,152 , 2.7 , 1.1 , 3 , ±0 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

(AfD) , 2,811 , 5.1 , 1.5 , 3 , 1 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, The Left (Die Linke) , 2,554 , 4.6 , 0.0 , 3 , ±0 , - , , align=left, For Paderborn (Für PB) , 1,541 , 2.8 , New , 2 , New , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

Die PARTEI (''Party for Labour, Rule of Law, Animal Protection, Promotion of Elites and Grassroots Democratic Initiative''), or Die PARTEI (''The PARTY''), is a German political party. It was founded in 2004 by the editors of the German satirical magazine ...

, 1,485 , 2.7 , New , 2 , New , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Free Citizens' Initiative – Free Voters (FBI) , 564 , 1.0 , 1.9 , 1 , 1 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

(Volt) , 536 , 1.0 , New , 1 , New , - ! colspan=2, Valid votes ! 55,568 ! 98.9 ! ! ! , - ! colspan=2, Invalid votes ! 604 ! 1.1 ! ! ! , - ! colspan=2, Total ! 56,172 ! 100.0 ! ! 60 ! 4 , - ! colspan=2, Electorate/voter turnout ! 118,244 ! 47.5 ! 1.1 ! !

Twin towns – sister cities

Paderborn is twinned with: *

, France (officially since 1967, traditionally since 836, the oldest partnership of its kind) *

Bolton Bolton ( , locally ) is a town in Greater Manchester in England. In the foothills of the West Pennine Moors, Bolton is between Manchester, Blackburn, Wigan, Bury, Greater Manchester, Bury and Salford. It is surrounded by several towns and vill ...

, England, United Kingdom (1975) * Belleville, Illinois, United States (1990) *

Pamplona Pamplona (; ), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Navarre, Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. Lying at near above sea level, the city (and the wider Cuenca de Pamplona) is located on the flood pl ...

, Spain (1992) *

Przemyśl Przemyśl () is a city in southeastern Poland with 56,466 inhabitants, as of December 2023. Data for territorial unit 1862000. In 1999, it became part of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship, Subcarpathian Voivodeship. It was previously the capital of Prz ...

, Poland (1993) *

Debrecen Debrecen ( ; ; ; ) is Hungary's cities of Hungary, second-largest city, after Budapest, the regional centre of the Northern Great Plain Regions of Hungary, region and the seat of Hajdú-Bihar County. A city with county rights, it was the large ...

, Hungary (1994) *

Qingdao Qingdao, Mandarin: , (Qingdao Mandarin: t͡ɕʰiŋ˧˩ tɒ˥) is a prefecture-level city in the eastern Shandong Province of China. Located on China's Yellow Sea coast, Qingdao was long an important fortress. In 1897, the city was ceded to G ...

, China (2003)

Sports

Paderborn is nationally known as a center for American Sports. The local

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

team, the Paderborn Untouchables, has won many German championships. The local

American Football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

team, the Paderborn Dolphins, has also enjoyed considerable success. In 2006 the

Paderborn Baskets Paderborn Baskets 91 e.V., for sponsorship reasons named Gartenzaun24 Baskets Paderborn, is a basketball club based in Paderborn, Germany. The club currently plays in the ProA, the second highest basketball league in Germany. The club reached the ...

, the home

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

team of the city was promoted to the

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...

Paderborn Baskets (basketball)

In the past, the

played multiple seasons in the

Basketball Bundesliga The Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) (English language: ''Federal Basketball League''), for sponsorship reasons named easyCredit BBL, is the German basketball league system, highest level Sports league, league of professional club basketball in German ...

. They reached the playoffs in the 2008–09 season.

Rugby Club Paderborn e.V. (rugby)

Recently Rugby Club Paderborn e.V. have had a great run in Regionalliga NRW and are on the verge of being promoted to the next league.

SC Paderborn 07 (football)

SC Paderborn 07 Sport-Club Paderborn 07 e.V., commonly known as simply SC Paderborn 07 () or SC Paderborn, is a Football in Germany, German association football club based in Paderborn, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club has enjoyed its greatest success since the ...

is the most successful

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

club in Paderborn. They were promoted to the

, Germany's top flight, in 2019 but were relegated back to the 2. Bundesliga at the end of the same season. The club was formed out of the 1985 merger of FC Paderborn and TuS Schloß Neuhaus as TuS Paderborn-Neuhaus and took on its current, shorter name in 1997, the 07 remembering the link with SV 07 Neuhaus. The Neuhaus club was founded in 1907 as SV 07 Neuhaus which was joined by the local side TuS 1910 Sennelager to become TuS Schloss Neuhaus in 1970. The Neuhaus and Paderborn teams played as tier III sides for most of their histories, as has the unified club. Today Paderborn plays its home matches at the Benteler Arena. In

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

, SC Paderborn were promoted to the Bundesliga for the first time. After their relegation in their first season, Paderborn returned to the Bundesliga in

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

only to be relegated again. Currently (2022) they have achieved comfortable mid-table positions in the 2. Bundesliga.

Infrastructure

Transport

Paderborn is located at the Autobahn A 33, which connects Paderborn to the Autobahn A 2 in the north and the Autobahn A 44 in the south. The

main station Central stations or central railway stations emerged in the second half of the nineteenth century as railway stations that had initially been built on the edge of city centres were enveloped by urban expansion and became an integral part of the ...

is a regular stop for the

InterCity InterCity (commonly abbreviated ''IC'' on timetables and tickets) is the train categories in Europe, classification applied to certain long-distance passenger train services in Europe. Such trains (in contrast to InterRegio, regional train, r ...

on the Hamm–Warburg line and several local trains. The

Paderborn Lippstadt Airport Paderborn Lippstadt Airport (German: ''Flughafen Paderborn Lippstadt'') is a minor international airport in the Ostwestfalen-Lippe area in the Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Despite its name, the airport is actually located nea ...

connects Paderborn to the bigger German airports and offers flights to many locations in Europe. There is a bus shuttle between the airport and the Paderborn main train station. General Aviation and gliders are based at Paderborn-Haxterberg (site of the world gliding championships in 1981). In Paderborn there is a bus system served by the ''PaderSprinter'' for local buses and the ''Bahnbus Hochstift'' for regional buses.

Education

Paderborn was once the oldest academic site in Westphalia. In 1614, the

University of Paderborn Paderborn University () is a public research university in Paderborn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was founded in 1972 and 20,308 students were enrolled at the university in the winter semester 2016/2017 in 62 different degree programmes. ...

was founded by the

Jesuits The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

but was closed in 1819. It was re-founded in 1972 as Universität-Gesamthochschule and transformed into a university in its own right in 2002. Today, it is attended by about 20,000 students. There also are several

theological Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of an ...

and private academic institutes in Paderborn. There are a number of grammar schools in the city, the most prominent of which are the Theodorianum and , along with others such as the Goerdeler-Gymnasium. There are also a few British primary schools such as John Buchan School, which was located in

and mainly educated children of British military personnel and the garrison's employees until its closure in 2019.

Notable people

* Heinrich Aldegrever (1502–1558?), painter and engraver. *

Carl Ferdinand Fabritius Carl Ferdinand Fabritius (1637 – 21 January 1673) was a Painting, painter in the Bishopric of Paderborn (German: ''Fürstbistum Paderborn''). Paderborn prince-bishop (German: ''Fürstbischof'') Ferdinand of Fürstenberg (1626–1683), ...

(1637–1673), painter * Franz Anton Cramer (1776–1829), apothecary, supported the discovery of morphine *

Sophie Schröder Sophie Antonie Luise Schröder ( Bürger; 1 March 1781 – 25 February 1868) was a German actress and an early adopter of spoken word performances combined with music. Born at Paderborn, the daughter of an actor, Gottfried Bürger, she made h ...

(1781–1868), singer and actress. *

(1783–1841), pharmacist, first to isolate morphine from opium * Joseph Hermann Schmidt (1804–1852), physician, director, Charité Birth Department, Berlin * George Henry Backhaus (1811–1882), Catholic priest * Franz von Löher (1818–1892), politician, jurist and historian * Christoph Ernst Friedrich von Forcade de Biaix (1821–1891), owner of the estate, judge and member of the German Reichstag *

Julius von Ficker Julius Ficker or Julius von Ficker or Johann Kaspar Julius Ficker von Feldhaus (30 April 1826 – 10 June 1902) was a Roman Catholic Germans, German historian. In 1898 he was awarded the Pour le Mérite for Sciences and Arts.Joseph F. Rigge (1842–1913), the first president of Marquette College (now

Marquette University Marquette University () is a Private university, private Jesuit research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. It was established as Marquette College on August 28, 1881, by John Henni, the first Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Ar ...

) * Aloys Loeher (1850–1904), American sculptor, exhibited at the

1893 Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition, also known as the Chicago World's Fair, was a world's fair held in Chicago from May 5 to October 31, 1893, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The ce ...

* Karl von Plettenberg (1852–1938), Prussian officer and later

General of Infantry General of the infantry is a military rank of a General officer in the infantry and refers to: * General of the Infantry (Austria) * General of the Infantry (Bulgaria) * General of the Infantry (Germany) ('), a rank of a general in the German Imper ...

during WW1 *

Clemens Baeumker Clemens Baeumker (16 September 1853 – 7 October 1924) was a German historian of philosophy. Baeumker was born in Paderborn to a gymnasium teacher. He studied philosophy, theology, and philology in Paderborn and later at the University of Münst ...

(1853–1924), Catholic philosopher and philosophy historian * Augustus F. Fechteler (1857–1921),

Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Ella Bergmann-Michel Ella Bergmann-Michel (20 October 1896 – 8 August 1971) was a German abstract artist, photographer and documentary filmmaker. An early student of constructivist art in Germany, her contributions to modern abstract art are often forgotten in Ame ...

(1895–1971), painter, photographer and documentary filmmaker * Gustav Simon (1900–1945), Nazi

Gauleiter A ''Gauleiter'' () was a regional leader of the Nazi Party (NSDAP) who served as the head of a ''Administrative divisions of Nazi Germany, Gau'' or ''Reichsgau''. ''Gauleiter'' was the third-highest Ranks and insignia of the Nazi Party, rank in ...

in the Moselland Gau from 1940 until 1944 and Chief of the Civil Administration in occupied Luxembourg, died here * Josef Wirmer (1901–1944), jurist and resistance fighter against National Socialism * Jenny Aloni (1917–1993), German-Israeli writer * Friedrich Wilhelm Christians (1922–2004), banker *

Heinz Nixdorf Heinz Nixdorf (April 9, 1925 – March 17, 1986) was a German computing pioneer, businessman and founder of Nixdorf Computer AG. Nixdorf was born in Paderborn, Germany. The 27-year-old Nixdorf, at the time a physics student at the Goethe Univ ...

(1925–1986), computer pioneer, entrepreneur and founder of

* Walter Salmen (1926–2013), musicologist *

Werner Franke Werner Wilhelm Franke (31 January 1940 – 14 November 2022) was a German biologist and a professor of cell and molecular biology at the German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg. He was an anti-doping pioneer in Germany. Life Franke was bor ...

(1940–2022), professor of cell and molecular biology * Ulrich Vogt (born 1941), teacher and non-fiction author * Mechtild Rothe (born 1947), politician (SPD) and member of the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...

* Franz-Josef Bode (born 1951), bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Osnabruck since 1995 * Rüdiger Hoffmann (born 1964), cabaret artist and musician * Bernd Hüttemann (born 1970), Vice President of the

European Movement International The European Movement International is a lobbying association that coordinates the efforts of associations and national councils with the goal of promoting European integration, and disseminating information about it. History Initially the Eur ...

and Secretary General of the

European Movement Germany European Movement Germany (EM Germany) is a non-partisan network of interest groups in the field of EU politics in Germany. It cooperates closely with all EU stakeholders on a national and European level, most particularly with the German Feder ...

* Stefan Gödde (born 1975), television presenter, radio presenter and reporter * Judith Rakers (born 1976), journalist and television supporter (ARD) *

Carsten Linnemann Carsten Christoffer Linnemann (born 10 August 1977) is a German economist and politician of the Christian Democratic Union (Germany), Christian Democratic Union (CDU) who has been a member of the Bundestag since the 2009 German federal election, ...

(born 1977), economist and politician (CDU), member of the

German Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the lower house of the German federal parliament. It is the only constitutional body of the federation directly elected by the German people. The Bundestag was established by Title III of the Basic Law for ...

Sport

* Klaus Ehl (born 1949), athlete (sprinter) * Hans-Günther Vosseler (born 1949), swimmer * Andreas Fischer (born 1964), footballer *

Günter Kutowski Günter Kutowski (born 2 August 1965) is a German retired professional footballer who played as a defender. Career Born in Paderborn, Kutowski joined Borussia Dortmund in 1984 at the age of 19, arriving from local amateurs 1. FC Paderborn. He m ...

(born 1965), footballer *

Martin Driller Martin Driller (born 2 January 1970) is a German former professional footballer who played as a forward. Honours Borussia Dortmund * DFL-Supercup: 1989 1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ...

(born 1970), footballer * Reiner Plaßhenrich (born 1976), football player and coach * Tolgay Ali Arslan (born 1990), footballer * Jasmin Duehring (born 1992), Canadian cyclist * Alexander Nübel (born 1996), footballer

References

External links

* *
Paderborn region website
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Ordinances of the "Fürstbistum Paderborn" online
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Homepage of the annual RoboCup competition
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University of Paderborn
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Basketball: Paderborn Baskets
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Introduction to the History of Paderborn
�� * {{Authority control Paderborn (district) Members of the Hanseatic League