The Black Elster or Schwarze Elster (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, ; ; ) is a long river in eastern

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 ...

, in the states of

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

Brandenburg Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a States of Germany, state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony. It is the List of Ger ...

and

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

. It is a right tributary of the

Elbe The Elbe ( ; ; or ''Elv''; Upper Sorbian, Upper and , ) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Republic), then Ge ...

. Its source is in the

Upper Lusatia Upper Lusatia (, ; , ; ; or ''Milsko''; ) is a historical region in Germany and Poland. Along with Lower Lusatia to the north, it makes up the region of Lusatia, named after the Polabian Slavs, Slavic ''Lusici'' tribe. Both parts of Lusatia a ...

region, near

Elstra Elstra () or Halštrow ( Upper Sorbian, ) is a town in the district of Bautzen, in Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Schwarze Elster, 6 kilometres southeast of Kamenz, and 34 kilometres northeast of Dresden. The name "Elstra" stems f ...

. The Black Elster flows through the cities Kamenz/Kamjenc, Hoyerswerda/Wojerecy, Senftenberg/Zły Komorow,

Lauchhammer Lauchhammer (, ) or Łuchow is a town in the Oberspreewald-Lausitz district, in southern Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated on the Black Elster river, approx. 17 km west of Senftenberg, and 50 km north of Dresden. History From 1815 to ...

Elsterwerda Elsterwerda (; Lower Sorbian: ''Wikow'') is a town in the Elbe-Elster district, in southwestern Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated on the Black Elster river, 48 km northwest of Dresden, and 11 km southeast of Bad Liebenwerda. Histor ...

Bad Liebenwerda Bad Liebenwerda () is a spa town in the Elbe-Elster district, in southwestern Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated on the river Schwarze Elster, 57 km northwest of Dresden, and 28 km east of Torgau. History The first written mention i ...

, Herzberg and Jessen. It flows into the river Elbe at Elster (Elbe), upstream from

Wittenberg Wittenberg, officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg, is the fourth-largest town in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, in the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany. It is situated on the River Elbe, north of Leipzig and south-west of the reunified German ...

Geography

The

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

rises in the

Lusatian Highlands The Lusatian Highlands at www.silvaportal.info. Accessed on 10 July 2011. or Lusatian Hills Upper Lusatia Upper Lusatia (, ; , ; ; or ''Milsko''; ) is a historical region in Germany and Poland. Along with Lower Lusatia to the north, it makes up the region of Lusatia, named after the Polabian Slavs, Slavic ''Lusici'' tribe. Both parts of Lusatia a ...

) about south of the village Kindisch in the borough of

on the eastern flank of the high ''Kuppe'', a subpeak of the Hochstein. From here the ''Black Elster'' flows initially in a northerly direction through Elstra,

Kamenz Kamenz () or Kamjenc ( Sorbian, ) is a town (''Große Kreisstadt'') in the district of Bautzen in Saxony, Germany. Until 2008 it was the administrative seat of Kamenz District. The town is known as the birthplace of the philosopher and poet Gotth ...

, Milstrich and

Wittichenau Wittichenau ( German) or Kulow ( Upper Sorbian, ) is a bilingual town in the district of Bautzen in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Schwarze Elster, 6 km south of Hoyerswerda. This small municipality is situa ...

; from Hoyerswerda it flows in westwards to

Elsterheide Elsterheide, in Sorbian language, Sorbian Halštrowska hola (), is a municipality in the Bautzen (district), district of Bautzen, in Saxony, Germany. The municipality is part of the recognized Sorbian settlement area in Saxony. Upper Sorbian la ...

. Further downstream, after , it crosses the Saxon-Brandenburg border and flows through

Senftenberg Senftenberg ( German, ) or (Lower Sorbian, ) is a town in Lower Lusatia, Brandenburg, in eastern Germany, capital of the Oberspreewald-Lausitz district. Geography Senftenberg is located in the southwest of the historic Lower Lusatia region at t ...

Ruhland ( Sorbian: ''Rólany'') is a town in the Oberspreewald-Lausitz district, in Upper Lusatia, Brandenburg, in eastern Germany. It is situated on the river Schwarze Elster, southwest of Senftenberg. Ruhland station is a major railway junction, ...

and

. From here it heads in a northwesterly direction through

, Herzberg and Jessen before emptying into the Elbe in the municipality of Elster (Elbe) (river kilometre 198.5). The most important tributaries of the ''Black Elster'' are the Hoyerswerdaer Schwarzwasser, the

Pulsnitz Pulsnitz (German, ; Upper Sorbian name: ''Połčnica'', ) is a town in the district of Bautzen, in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. It is situated on the small river Pulsnitz, 11 km southwest of Kamenz, and 24 km northeast ...

, the Große Röder, the Kleine Elster and the Schweinitzer Fließ.

Tributaries

History

Field Marshal Blücher crossed the

Elbe River The Elbe ( ; ; or ''Elv''; Upper and , ) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Republic), then Germany and flo ...

near its confluence with the Black Elster on 3 Oct 1813 on his march to

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

. Wright, George Newenham (1836). ''A New and Comprehensive Gazetteer, Volume 3'', p. 78.

References

{{Authority control Rivers of Brandenburg Rivers of Saxony Rivers of Saxony-Anhalt Geography of Lusatia Rivers of Germany

Geography

Tributaries

History

See also

References