Salzgitter (; Eastphalian: ''Soltgitter'') is an

independent city An independent city or independent town is a city or town that does not form part of another general-purpose local government entity (such as a province). Historical precursors In the Holy Roman Empire, and to a degree in its successor states ...

in southeast

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony is a States of Germany, German state (') in Northern Germany, northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ' of the Germany, Federal Re ...

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 ...

, located between

Hildesheim Hildesheim (; or ; ) is a city in Lower Saxony, in north-central Germany with 101,693 inhabitants. It is in the district of Hildesheim (district), Hildesheim, about southeast of Hanover on the banks of the Innerste River, a small tributary of t ...

and

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( ; from Low German , local dialect: ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the ...

. Together with

Wolfsburg Wolfsburg (; Eastphalian language, Eastphalian: ''Wulfsborg'') is the fifth-largest city in the Germany, German state of Lower Saxony, on the river Aller (Germany), Aller east of Hanover and west of Berlin. Wolfsburg is famous as the locat ...

and Braunschweig, Salzgitter is one of the seven ''Oberzentren'' (

metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region consisting of a densely populated urban area, urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories which share Industry (economics), industries, commercial areas, Transport infrastructure, transport network ...

s) of Lower Saxony. With 107,674 inhabitants and (as of 2015), it is the largest city by area in Lower Saxony and one of the largest in

. Salzgitter originated as a conglomeration of several small towns and villages, and is today made up of 31 boroughs, which are relatively compact conurbations with wide stretches of open country between them. The city is part of two

urban area An urban area is a human settlement with a high population density and an infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas originate through urbanization, and researchers categorize them as cities, towns, conurbations or suburbs. In urbani ...

s, Hildesheim and Braunschweig, because of its uneven distribution of urban quarters. Due to the uneven population distribution, the density of the areas within the Braunschweig urban area is over 1,500 people per km² with the Lebenstedt area having over 3,000 people per km². Over 70% (76,500) of the population lives within the urban area of

, but most of the area is within the urban area of

. 54.1% (41,000 people) of the city's population within the Braunschweig urban agglomeration area are immigrants or the children of immigrants. The city's main shopping street is in the borough of Lebenstedt, and the

central business district A central business district (CBD) is the Commerce, commercial and business center of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides wit ...

is in Salzgitter-Bad. The city is connected to the Mittellandkanal and the Elbe Lateral Canal by a

distributary A distributary, or a distributary channel is a stream channel that branches off and flows a main stream channel. It is the opposite of a ''tributary'', a stream that flows another stream or river. Distributaries are a result of river bifurc ...

. The nearest

metropolis A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural area for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications. A big city b ...

es are Braunschweig, about to the northeast, and

Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...

, about to the northwest. The

population Population is a set of humans or other organisms in a given region or area. Governments conduct a census to quantify the resident population size within a given jurisdiction. The term is also applied to non-human animals, microorganisms, and pl ...

of the City of Salzgitter has exceeded 100,000 inhabitants since its foundation in 1942 (which made it a city () in contrast to 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 ...

() by the German definition), when it was still called ''Watenstedt-Salzgitter''. Beside Wolfsburg,

Leverkusen Leverkusen () is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, on the eastern bank of the Rhine. To the south, Leverkusen borders the city of Cologne, and to the north the state capital, Düsseldorf. The city is part of the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan ...

and Eisenhüttenstadt, Salzgitter is one of the few cities in Germany founded during the 20th century.

Name

Until 31 March 1942, "Salzgitter" was the name of a town where the borough Salzgitter-Bad now is. From then until 1951, "Salzgitter" was the name of a borough of the city Watenstedt-Salzgitter that existed at the time. In 1951, the borough Salzgitter was renamed Salzgitter-Bad; the name Salzgitter, having thus been freed up, became the new and more succinct name of the city that had been called "Watenstedt-Salzgitter" until then. (Nowadays, "Salzgitter-Watenstedt" is the name of a small borough with a few hundred inhabitants.)

Geography

Salzgitter is located in a wide dell coated with

loess A loess (, ; from ) is a clastic rock, clastic, predominantly silt-sized sediment that is formed by the accumulation of wind-blown dust. Ten percent of Earth's land area is covered by loesses or similar deposition (geology), deposits. A loess ...

, between the Oderwald Forest and the Salzgitter-Höhenzug ("Salzgitter Hills"). The city stretches up to from north to south and up to from east to west. The highest point is the hill Hamberg (), located northwest of Salzgitter-Bad.

Neighbouring municipalities

The following cities, towns and

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

, listed clockwise beginning in the northeast, border on the city of Salzgitter. (As Salzgitter was founded on the area of the district of Wolfenbüttel, that district borders on Salzgitter in the west and in the east and is therefore listed twice.) *Braunschweig (independent city) *in the

Landkreis Wolfenbüttel In 13 States of Germany, German states, the primary administrative subdivision higher than a ''Municipalities of Germany, Gemeinde'' (municipality) is the () or (). Most major cities in Germany are not part of any ''Kreis'', but instead combi ...

: City of

Wolfenbüttel Wolfenbüttel (; ) is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, the administrative capital of Wolfenbüttel District Wolfenbüttel (; ) is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, the administrative capital of Wolfenbüttel (district), Wolfenbüttel Distri ...

, Cramme, Flöthe (both belonging to

Samtgemeinde A (, ; plural: ''Samtgemeinden'') is a type of administrative division in Lower Saxony, Germany. ''Samtgemeinden'' are local government associations of Municipalities of Germany, municipalities, equivalent to the ''Amt (administrative division) ...

Oderwald), Gielde (Samtgemeinde Schladen) *in the Landkreis Goslar: Liebenburg, Wallmoden, Samtgemeinde Lutter am Barenberge *in the Landkreis Wolfenbüttel: Sehlde, Haverlah, Elbe, Baddeckenstedt, Burgdorf bei Salzgitter (all Samtgemeinde Baddeckenstedt) *in the Landkreis Hildesheim: Söhlde *in the Landkreis Peine: Lengede, Vechelde

City structure

The area of the City of Salzgitter consists of 31 boroughs (; often called

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

s): Bad, Barum, Beddingen, Beinum, Bleckenstedt, Bruchmachtersen, Calbecht, Drütte, Engelnstedt, Engerode, Flachstöckheim, Gebhardshagen, Gitter, Groß Mahner, Hallendorf, Heerte, Hohenrode, Immendorf, Lebenstedt, Lesse, Lichtenberg, Lobmachtersen, Ohlendorf, Osterlinde, Reppner, Ringelheim, Salder, Sauingen, Thiede, Üfingen and Watenstedt. These 31 boroughs are combined to 7 towns (). Each town has an elected

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

and

town council A town council, city council or municipal council is a form of local government for small municipalities. Usage of the term varies under different jurisdictions. Republic of Ireland In 2002, 49 urban district councils and 26 town commissi ...

. The towns with their boroughs are: *Town North: Lebenstedt, Salder, Bruchmachtersen, Engelnstedt *Town Northeast: Thiede, Beddingen, Üfingen, Sauingen *Town Northwest: Lichtenberg, Osterlinde, Reppner, Lesse *Town East: Hallendorf, Bleckenstedt, Drütte, Immendorf, Watenstedt *Town South: Bad, Gitter, Groß Mahner, Ringelheim, Hohenrode *Town Southeast: Flachstöckheim, Barum, Beinum, Lobmachtersen, Ohlendorf *Town West: Gebhardshagen, Calbecht, Engerode, Heerte

History

1300–1982

Salzgitter originated in the beginning of the 14th century around salt springs near the village Verpstedt (later Vöppstedt). The name was derived from the neighbouring village Gitter (nowadays a city borough) as "up dem solte to Gytere", which means "salt near Gitter"; the first mention was in 1347. After 200 years of salt production at various springs, the

peasant A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasan ...

s in the area which is nowadays Salzgitter were chartered around 1350, but lost municipal law again when being transferred to the

Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg The Duchy of Brunswick and Lüneburg (), commonly known as the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg or Brunswick-Lüneburg, was an imperial principality of the Holy Roman Empire in the territory of present day Lower Saxony. In 1235, Otto I, Duke of ...

in the beginning of the 16th century. Later, Salzgitter belonged to the diocese of Hildesheim. When the diocese was transferred to

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 1803, the municipal law was reconfirmed, but taken away once more in 1815, when Salzgitter became part of the

Kingdom of Hanover The Kingdom of Hanover () was established in October 1814 by the Congress of Vienna, with the restoration of George III to his Hanoverian territories after the Napoleonic Wars, Napoleonic era. It succeeded the former Electorate of Hanover, and j ...

. In 1830, a brine bath was established in Salzgitter. After the Kingdom of Hanover was transferred to Prussia in 1866, Salzgitter became a Prussian municipality, which was chartered again in 1929. Prior to that, the towns Vorsalz and Liebenhall had been incorporated (in 1926 and 1928, respectively). Salzgitter now belonged to the Landkreis (district) of Goslar and included, apart from Salzgitter itself, also some small settlements like Gittertor, which is nowadays part of Salzgitter-Bad. In 1936, Kniestedt was incorporated; it is also part of Salzgitter-Bad now. Due to the large

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 ...

body in Salzgitter, which had been mentioned first in 1310, the National Socialists founded the "

Reichswerke Hermann Göring Reichswerke Hermann Göring ("Hermann Göring Reich Works") was an industrial Conglomerate (company), conglomerate in Nazi Germany from 1937 until 1945. It was established to extract and process domestic iron ores from Salzgitter that were deemed ...

" for ore mining and iron production in 1937. In order to facilitate an unobstructed development of the smelting works, a unique

administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal: the process of dealing with or controlling things or people. ** Administrative assistant, traditionally known as a se ...

structure in the whole area was conceived. Therefore, it was decreed in the ''Order about the area settlement around the Hermann-Göring-Werke Salzgitter'', effective from 1 April 1942, to form a unified city district (

). Towards this aim, the town of Salzgitter and the municipalities Beinum, Flachstöckheim, Groß-Mahner, Hohenrode, Ohlendorf and Ringelheim (7 in total, all belonging to the Landkreis Goslar) and Barum, Beddingen, Bleckenstedt, Bruchmachtersen, Calbecht, Drütte, Engelnstedt, Engerode, Gebhardshagen, Hallendorf, Heerte, Immendorf, Lebenstedt, Lesse, Lichtenberg, Lobmachtersen, Osterlinde, Reppner, Salder, Thiede-Steterburg (nowadays simply Thiede) and Watenstedt (21 in total, all belonging to the

) were merged to form the ''Stadtkreis Watenstedt-Salzgitter''. As the neighbouring municipality Gitter had already been incorporated in 1938, the young city initially comprised 29 boroughs in 1942. Together with the remainder of the district of Goslar, the new independent municipality was integrated into the

Free State of Brunswick The Free State of Brunswick () was a Administrative divisions of Weimar Germany, state of the German Reich in the time of the Weimar Republic. It was formed after the abolition of the Duchy of Brunswick in the course of the German revolution of ...

. In return, Braunschweig transferred the Landkreis Holzminden to the Prussian

Province of Hanover The Province of Hanover () was a Provinces of Prussia, province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia from 1866 to 1946. During the Austro-Prussian War, the Kingdom of Hanover had attempted to maintain a neutral position, alo ...

. In October, 1942, the SS established the Drütte concentration camp, a subcamp of the

Neuengamme concentration camp Neuengamme was a network of Nazi concentration camps in northern Germany that consisted of the main camp, Neuengamme, and List of subcamps of Neuengamme, more than 85 satellite camps. Established in 1938 near the village of Neuengamme, Hamburg, N ...

, to provide slave labour for the Hermann Göring Works. This large subcamp held 2,800 inmates. There were three concentration camps located in Salzgitter. During the war, Salzgitter was severely damaged by several American and

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

bombing A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-transmitted mechan ...

s. After the war, the State of Braunschweig became part of the

Land Land, also known as dry land, ground, or earth, is the solid terrestrial surface of Earth not submerged by the ocean or another body of water. It makes up 29.2% of Earth's surface and includes all continents and islands. Earth's land sur ...

, and Watenstedt-Salzgitter became an Independent City in the "Administrative District of Braunschweig" (later

Regierungsbezirk A ' (, 'governmental district') is a type of administrative division in Germany. Currently, four of sixteen ' (states of Germany) are split into '. Beneath these are rural and urban districts ' (plural, ) serve as regional mid-level local gov ...

Grube Gitter-Georg - Schacht Georg - Totalansicht 1961

In 1951, the city was renamed to "Stadt Salzgitter" (City of Salzgitter), while the borough Salzgitter was renamed to "Salzgitter-Bad", referring to the brine bath there. In the course of the local administrative reform of Lower-Saxony effective from 1 March 1974, the municipalities Üfingen and Sauingen (formerly Landkreis Wolfenbüttel) were incorporated, increasing the number of boroughs to 31. Iron ore continued to be mined in Salzgitter until 1982; in the former mine '' Schacht Konrad'' (Konrad mine), an ultimate disposal place for

radioactive waste Radioactive waste is a type of hazardous waste that contains radioactive material. It is a result of many activities, including nuclear medicine, nuclear research, nuclear power generation, nuclear decommissioning, rare-earth mining, and nuclear ...

has been planned since 1975.

Modern history

Population development

Population figures in order to the then area, i.e. until 1942 the contemporary quarter Salzgitter-Bad and from 1942 on the Independent City Watenstedt-Salzgitter and Salzgitter respectively. 76% of the population was developing near the City

due to urbanization, closer proximity to a major city and other factors. Although a high concentration of the population lives near the larger City

, most of the area is near the Hildesheim agglomeration or in other parts

Immigration

The foreigner-born population is 37,048 (32.8% of the total population) in 2023. 57.5% of Salzgitter had a migration background and majority of the nations are Middle Eastern or Eastern European

countries A country is a distinct part of the Earth, world, such as a state (polity), state, nation, or other polity, political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, List of states with limited r ...

. Salzgitter has the highest share of migrants to Germans in

. The areas with the highest percentage of migrants in Salzgitter are Steterburg with 57.5%, Seeviertel with 55.7%, Lebenstedt with 54.1%,

Lichtenberg Lichtenberg may refer to: Places * Lichtenberg, Austria * Lichtenberg, Bas-Rhin, France * Lichtenberg, Bavaria, Germany * Lichtenberg, Berlin, Germany * Lichtenberg, Mittelsachsen, Saxony, Germany * Lichtenberg (Lausitz), Saxony, Germany * Lichte ...

with 52.1%, Watenstedt with 48.4% and Bad with 46.4%. Most of the migrants live within the Braunschweig urban agglomeration. About 17.5% of the total population is Muslim in 2024, having the highest percentage of Muslims in the whole state and one of the highest in Germany. The percentage of people with an immigration background in Salzgitter is projected to be 60% to 75% in the year 2030

Braunschweig-Salgitter-Wolfsburg Area

The three cities form a Oberzentrum and a sub-metropolitan area. The area is primarily dependent on the

Steel Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon that demonstrates improved mechanical properties compared to the pure form of iron. Due to steel's high Young's modulus, elastic modulus, Yield (engineering), yield strength, Fracture, fracture strength a ...

, Automotive and R&D industries. The area has population over a 1 million (1,014,477) as of 2023. The three main cities have a total number of 512,600 people, where over half the population lives. The area has 40.6% of the population with a migration background and is aiming to progressively increase the foreign population in the upcoming years. The area contributes highly to the economy of the country especially due to Volkswagen, Siemens, Salzgitter AG and other companies. The area has one of the highest GDP per Capita in the whole of Europe with Wolfsburg having the highest in the whole country and Braunschweig having one of the highest. Though the area faced a debt, mass amount destruction, a population decrtafter World War 2, the area strived back due to high demand of car manufacturing and need for research and development.

Religions

The area of the modern city of Salzgitter originally pertained to the diocese of Hildesheim. In 1568, the

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

was established in Salzgitter, and two ecclesiastical superintendencies came into existence: the southern part of the area of the modern city, the Superintendency of Salzgitter, pertained to the

and thus ecclesiastically to the Evangelical Lutheran State Church of Hanover (and, within it, to the Consistory of Hildesheim); the northern part (the Superintendency of Lebenstedt), however, belonged to the

and therefore to the Evangelical Lutheran State Church in Brunswick. When the city of Watenstedt-Salzgitter was created in 1942, the entire area was attached to the state of Brunswick both politically and ecclesiastically. Thus, all parishes of Salzgitter now belong to the Church of Brunswick. The two superintendencies are called ''Propstei'' ( provostry) today, and both the ''Propsteien'' Salzgitter-Bad and Salzgitter-Lebenstedt comprise additional

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

es which are not within the city of Salzgitter. Roman Catholics who after the Reformation moved into the city belonged, as 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 ...

, to the diocese of Hildesheim, which established a separate

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion, the Evangelical Church in Germany, and the Church of Norway. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residence of ...

in Salzgitter. All Roman Catholic parishes of the city now pertain to that deanery. Besides the two major denominations, there are congregations in Salzgitter which belong to

free church A free church is any Christian denomination that is intrinsically separate from government (as opposed to a state church). A free church neither defines government policy, nor accept church theology or policy definitions from the government. A f ...

es. These include a

Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

parish, the Church of God,

Plymouth Brethren The Plymouth Brethren or Assemblies of Brethren are a low church and Nonconformist (Protestantism), Nonconformist Christian movement whose history can be traced back to Dublin, Ireland, in the mid to late 1820s, where it originated from Anglica ...

, and the

Seventh-day Adventist Church The Seventh-day Adventist Church (SDA) is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sa ...

, as well as several

New Apostolic Church The New Apostolic Church (NAC) is a Christian denomination, Christian church of the Catholic Apostolic Church, Irvingian tradition. Its origins are in 1863, in the split from the Catholic Apostolic Church during a schism in Hamburg, Ger ...

es. Due to the

immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as Permanent residency, permanent residents. Commuting, Commuter ...

of foreign workers during the 1970s, there are some

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

s. According to calculations based on census data, Salzgitter in 2011 had the highest proportion of Muslim migrants of all major cities in Lower Saxony.

Politics

After the creation of Salzgitter a state commissar was set in place as provisional Mayer of the city of Watenstedt-Salzgitter. 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 ...

, the military government of the British zone of occupation installed the communal

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

. Furthermore, there is an elected Council in place. The Council elects one of its members to

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

(German: ''Oberbürgermeister'') as leader and representative of the city. Besides, since 1946 on there was the ''Oberstadtdirektor'' as the Chief Executive of the City Council. Since 2001, the office of the leader of the Council and the Chief Executive are merged into one, simply called Mayor. Being elected by the people, the Mayor represents the city and leads the Council.

Coat of arms

Salzgitter's

Coat of Arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

consists of a silver furnace visible behind a silver

pinnacle A pinnacle is an architectural element originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire. It was main ...

wall on which there is a buckler whose upper ground is green and adorned with two saltern instruments and whose lower ground is gold and adorned with a black sledge and black iron. On the red ground behind the furnace, there are two

wheat Wheat is a group of wild and crop domestication, domesticated Poaceae, grasses of the genus ''Triticum'' (). They are Agriculture, cultivated for their cereal grains, which are staple foods around the world. Well-known Taxonomy of wheat, whe ...

en ears. The Coat of Arms stands for the

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 ...

, which is important for many villages of Salzgitter, on the one hand, and for the

industry Industry may refer to: Economics * Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity * Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery * The wider industrial sector ...

, which led to Salzgitter's foundation, on the other hand. This Coat of Arms is from 1951. Before, Watenstedt-Salzgitter had got a different one. Also the former town Salzgitter had got various coats of arms from 1854 on. Like many German cities, Salzgitter has used the city's logo for some years. It is a green field with a white snaking way that narrows towards the

horizon The horizon is the apparent curve that separates the surface of a celestial body from its sky when viewed from the perspective of an observer on or near the surface of the relevant body. This curve divides all viewing directions based on whethe ...

Transport

Road

In the north of Salzgitter, there is an

Autobahn The (; German , ) is the federal controlled-access highway system in Germany. The official term is (abbreviated ''BAB''), which translates as 'federal motorway'. The literal meaning of the word is 'Federal Auto(mobile) Track'. Much of t ...

(A 39) from Braunschweig to the interchange Salzgitter (where it is possible change to Autobahn 7 Kassel-Hanover). Salzgitter has got five

grade-separated In civil engineering (more specifically highway engineering), grade separation is a method of aligning a junction of two or more surface transport axes at different heights ( grades) so that they will not disrupt the traffic flow on other tr ...

interchanges to this Autobahn. East from Salzgitter, there is the Autobahn 395 (Braunschweig-

Goslar Goslar (; Eastphalian dialect, Eastphalian: ''Goslär'') is a historic town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the administrative centre of the Goslar (district), district of Goslar and is located on the northwestern wikt:slope, slopes of the Harz ...

), which can be reached from Salzgitter by four interchanges.
Moreover, two

highways A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It includes not just major roads, but also other public roads and rights of way. In the United States, it is also used as an equivalent term to controlled-access highway, or ...

go through Salzgitter.

Railway

Salzgitter has six

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

s. The most important one is in the quarter Salzgitter-Ringelheim, the most central one in Salzgitter-Lebenstedt. There is no ''Hauptbahnhof'' (main railway station) in Salzgitter. Salzgitter-Ringelheim's station is located on the

Halle (Saale) Halle (Saale), or simply Halle (), is the second largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is the sixth-most populous city in the area of former East Germany after (East Berlin, East) Berlin, Leipzig, Dresden, Chem ...

-Goslar-Salzgitter-Hildesheim-Hanover line. Another line leads into the

Harz The Harz (), also called the Harz Mountains, is a highland area in northern Germany. It has the highest elevations for that region, and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. The name ''Harz'' der ...

Mountains and to Braunschweig, passing Salzgitter-Bad. Salzgitter-Lebenstedt is the end of a local line coming from Braunschweig and passing the other train stops of Salzgitter.

Public transport

There are three bus companies in Salzgitter. The bus network is quite important considering Salzgitter consists of many spread-out villages.

Economy and infrastructure

Media

In Salzgitter, the daily

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

'' Salzgitter-Zeitung'' and the Sunday newspaper ''Salzgitter-Woche am Sonntag'' are published. There is the event calendar ''Salzgitter Szene'' and the

online In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity, and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed as "on lin ...

magazine ''Salzgitter-aktuell''. Furthermore, the local TV channel ''TV 38'' is broadcast by

cable television Cable television is a system of delivering television programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This contrasts with bro ...

Important companies in Salzgitter

* Alstom Transport * Salzgitter AG (which had once been the ''Hermann-Göring-Werke'') *

Volkswagen Volkswagen (VW; )English: , . is a German automotive industry, automobile manufacturer based in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. Established in 1937 by German Labour Front, The German Labour Front, it was revitalized into the global brand it ...

werk Salzgitter * Schaper & Brümmer *

MAN A man is an adult male human. Before adulthood, a male child or adolescent is referred to as a boy. Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromosome from the f ...

Robert Bosch GmbH Robert Bosch GmbH (; ), commonly known as Bosch (styled BOSCH), is a German multinational engineering and technology company headquartered in Gerlingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The company was founded by Robert Bosch in Stuttgart in 188 ...

* SMAG *

IKEA IKEA ( , ) is a Multinational corporation, multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in Sweden that designs and sells , household goods, and various related services. IKEA is owned and operated by a series of not-for-profit an ...

built its biggest storehouse in Salzgitter

Public institutions

Salzgitter is seat of these public institutions: * Bundesamt für Strahlenschutz, the Federal Radiation Protection Office of Germany, founded in 1989 *Central Registration Office of the State Judiciary Administration of Lower-Saxony

Education

The Ostfalia University of Applied Sciences has operated a campus in Salzgitter since 1993, which offers studies in a range of fields including

logistics Logistics is the part of supply chain management that deals with the efficient forward and reverse flow of goods, services, and related information from the point of origin to the Consumption (economics), point of consumption according to the ...

traffic management Traffic management is a key branch within logistics. It concerns the planning, control and purchasing of transport services needed to physically move vehicles (for example aircraft, road vehicles, rolling stock and watercraft) and freight. Tr ...

and

sport management Sport management is the field of business dealing with sports and recreation. Sports management involves any combination of skills that correspond with planning, organizing, directing, controlling, budgeting, leading, or evaluating of any organiz ...

. There are also several

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Work ...

, secondary and

vocational school A vocational school (alternatively known as a trade school, or technical school), is a type of educational institution, which, depending on the country, may refer to either secondary education#List of tech ed skills, secondary or post-secondar ...

s, among them the ''Gymnasium Salzgitter-Bad'', the ''Gymnasium am Fredenberg'' and the ''Kranich-Gymnasium'', the latter two located in Salzgitter-Lebenstedt. The ''

Volkshochschule Folk high schools (also ''adult education center'') are institutions for adult education that generally do not grant academic degrees, though certain courses might exist leading to that goal. They are most commonly found in Nordic countries and ...

Salzgitter'' offers

adult education Adult education, distinct from child education, is a practice in which adults engage in systematic and sustained educating activities in order to gain new knowledge, skills, attitudes, or values. Merriam, Sharan B. & Brockett, Ralph G. ''The Pr ...

, with sites in Salzgitter-Bad and in Salzgitter-Lebenstedt.

Culture and sights

Libraries

There are three public libraries in Salzgitter. The main-library is located in Salzgitter-Lebenstedt (155,000 media) with branch-libraries in Salzgitter-Bad (42,000 media) and Salzgitter-Fredenberg (25,000 media).

Theatre

There is no theatre in Salzgitter nor any building used as one. Yet there are several representations at various places. For example, in Salzgitter-Bad there is a society rooting in the students' theater of the local grammar-school that supports the amateur play. They act on various stages, with an auditory between 100 and 600 people. Furthermore, there are irregular performances of

musicals Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movement ...

Museums

*''Städtisches Museum Schloss Salder'' ("Municipal Museum Salder Castle"), free entry, 3500+ sqm of permanent exhibitions about geology, prehistory, history of the city and its region (e. g. about an ichthyosaur, the neanderthals of Lebenstedt, Salzgitter iron ore mining and processing), overall featuring 3000+ exhibits, each year additional special expositions, an outdoor area with technical objects, a working windmill, the

ice age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages, and g ...

path with life-size animal models of mammoth and more. *''Städtische Kunstsammlungen Schloss Salder'' ("Municipal Art Collection in Salder Castle")

Buildings

*In the quarter Salzgitter-Lebenstedt: **City

monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...

(''Turm der Arbeit'' – "Tower of work", the city's

emblem An emblem is an abstract art, abstract or representational pictorial image that represents a concept, like a moral truth, or an allegory, or a person, like a monarch or saint. Emblems vs. symbols Although the words ''emblem'' and ''symbol'' ...

, constructed in 1995. The monument tells about the suffering of the forced workers and

Nazi concentration camp From 1933 to 1945, Nazi Germany operated more than a thousand concentration camps (), including subcamp (SS), subcamps on its own territory and in parts of German-occupied Europe. The first camps were established in March 1933 immediately af ...

prisoners while building up industry during the

national socialism Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During Hitler's rise to power, it was frequ ...

, about the flight from home beyond the rivers

Oder The Oder ( ; Czech and ) is a river in Central Europe. It is Poland's second-longest river and third-longest within its borders after the Vistula and its largest tributary the Warta. The Oder rises in the Czech Republic and flows through wes ...

and

Neisse The Lusatian Neisse (; ; ; Upper Sorbian: ''Łužiska Nysa''; Lower Sorbian: ''Łužyska Nysa''), or Western Neisse, is a river in northern Central Europe.

, about the fight against the removal of the

iron works An ironworks or iron works is a building or site where iron is smelted and where heavy iron and steel products are made. Iron Works may also refer to: * Iron Works, a neighborhood in Brookfield, Connecticut * Clay City, Kentucky, known as Iron ...

and about Salzgitter's people's will to live and to rebuild.) **Town hall (built 1959–1963) **Ice sports hall (in far-east style) *In the quarter Salzgitter-Bad: **Old Town **Thermalsolbad ("hot-springs brine bath") **Protestant church St. Mariae Jacobi; military defence church built in 1481 **Catholic church St. Marien **Former Nicolai church (nowadays event room) ** Salzgitter Bismarck Tower **Former town hall at the market place **Tilly house **farm house in Kniestedt (now care for old people and music school) **"Beamtensiedlung" (from 1930, dwellings of the employees of the smelting works) *

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a travel, journey to a holy place, which can lead to a personal transformation, after which the pilgrim returns to their daily life. A pilgrim (from the Latin ''peregrinus'') is a traveler (literally one who has come from afar) w ...

church in Salzgitter-Engerode, chapel built in 1236, one of Lower-Saxony's oldest pilgrimage churches with

fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

s laid open *Wasserburg (castle), Salzgitter-Gebhardshagen, nearly 1000 years old *Franzosenbrücke ("French bridge"), stone arch

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

over the river Innerste near Salzgitter-Hohenrode *Salzgitter-Lichtenberg: Castle ruins, once built by Henry the Lion, destroyed in 1552 and laid open again in the 1950s. Look-out and restaurant. * Salzgitter-Ringelheim: Ringelheim Castle, former

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

, founded in the 10th century, secularised in 1803.

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

church built in 1694, including a precious

organ Organ and organs may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a group of tissues organized to serve a common function * Organ system, a collection of organs that function together to carry out specific functions within the body. Musical instruments ...

;

crucifix A crucifix (from the Latin meaning '(one) fixed to a cross') is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the (Latin for 'body'). The cru ...

from the workshop of

Bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

Bernward of Hildesheim (around 1000); large castle park (''Schlosspark'') *Salzgitter-Salder: Salder Castle with Municipal Museum, former emblem of the city; the castle built in the style of the " Weser Renaissance" around 1600 was domicile of the noble family von Salder in the Duchy of Braunschweig, later domain of the

duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

; nowadays museum of local history; castle church Maria-Magdalena with a circular floor plan. *Salzgitter-Thiede:

Convent A convent is an enclosed community of monks, nuns, friars or religious sisters. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The term is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

Steterburg, ladies' convent founded in 1003; there are still buildings from the 11th century. The house of the

abbess An abbess (Latin: ''abbatissa'') is the female superior of a community of nuns in an abbey. Description In the Catholic Church (both the Latin Church and Eastern Catholic), Eastern Orthodox, Coptic, Lutheran and Anglican abbeys, the mod ...

was built in 1691. The church is from 1752. In 1938, the area was reconstructed to tenements.

Other sights

*archeological excavation from the

Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistory, prehistoric period during which Rock (geology), stone was widely used to make stone tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years and ended b ...

in Salzgitter-Lebenstedt *Farm house Salzgitter-Flachstöckheim with open-air stage and English Park (1756/1821) * Salzgittersee ("Lake Salzgitter") in Salzgitter-Lebenstedt, beach, water-ski, boats, inliners, diving

Regular events

*May: municipal sports week in Salzgitter-Lebenstedt *May: museum festival in Salzgitter-Salder *May/June: '' Schützenfest'' in Salzgitter-Bad *June/July: Altstadt-Festival (a festival in the old town centre of Salzgitter-Bad) in Salzgitter-Bad

Twin towns – sister cities

Salzgitter is twinned with: *

Imatra Imatra is a city in Finland, located in the southeastern interior of the country. Imatra is located in the region of South Karelia, on Saima, Lake Saimaa and the River Vuoksi. The population of Imatra is approximately , while the Imatra sub-regi ...

, Finland (1970) *

Swindon Swindon () is a town in Wiltshire, England. At the time of the 2021 Census the population of the built-up area was 183,638, making it the largest settlement in the county. Located at the northeastern edge of the South West England region, Swi ...

, United Kingdom (1975) *

Créteil Créteil () is a Communes of France, commune in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, Île-de-France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, centre of Paris. Créteil is the ''préfecture'' (capital) of the Val-de-Marne Departments of France, dep ...

, France (1980) *

Stary Oskol Stary Oskol (, ) is a city in Belgorod Oblast, Russia, located south of Moscow. Population: It is called ''Stary Oskol'' () to distinguish it from Novy Oskol () located south. Both are on the Oskol River. History Oskol was first mentioned i ...

, Russia (1987) *

Gotha Gotha () is the fifth-largest city in Thuringia, Germany, west of Erfurt and east of Eisenach with a population of 44,000. The city is the capital of the district of Gotha and was also a residence of the Ernestine Wettins from 1640 until the ...

, Germany (1988)

Notable people

* Friedrich Schlemm (1795–1859), physician and anatomist * Heinrich Ahrens (1808–1874), philosopher * August Jäger (1808–1848), writer, led the effort at Nazification of the Evangelical Church in Prussia. * Hermann Lattemann (1852–1894), balloon pilot, experimented with an early prototype of a

parachute A parachute is a device designed to slow an object's descent through an atmosphere by creating Drag (physics), drag or aerodynamic Lift (force), lift. It is primarily used to safely support people exiting aircraft at height, but also serves va ...

. * Wilhelm Wassmuss (1880–1938), diplomat, spy and part of the Niedermayer–Hentig Expedition * Hagen Stehr (born 1941), German-Australian tuna breeder and entrepreneur * Hans-Joachim Gehrke (born 1945), historian of

ancient Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history through late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the development of Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient h ...

and

classical antiquity Classical antiquity, also known as the classical era, classical period, classical age, or simply antiquity, is the period of cultural History of Europe, European history between the 8th century BC and the 5th century AD comprising the inter ...

. * Harald Weiss (born 1949), composer, director, screenwriter and free-lance artist. * Christian Zwarg (born 1968),

audio engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproduc ...

and

mastering engineer Mastering is a form of audio post production which is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the Audio mixing (recorded music), final mix to a data storage device called a master recording, the source ...

* Şebnem Dönmez (born 1974), Turkish movie and TV series actress and TV show host.

Sport

* Wolfgang Dremmler (born 1954), footballer, played 310 games and 27 for

* Andreas Pospich (born 1961), footballer, played over 330 games * Peter Lux (born 1962), footballer and coach, played over 340 games * Henrik Stehlik (born 1980), trampoline gymnast, bronze medallist at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

* Daniel Theis (born 1992), basketball player

Notes

References

External links

*
Website of the Fachhochschule Braunschweig-WolfenbüttelWebsite of the Salzgitter AG (owning the iron works)Website of the SMAG GmbH
{{Authority control Cities in Lower Saxony Populated places established in 1942 1942 establishments in Germany Urban districts of Lower Saxony