Siegburg (i.e. ''

fort A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

on the Sieg river''; Ripuarian: ''Sieburch'') is a city in the district of Rhein-Sieg-Kreis in

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhab ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

. It is located on the banks of the rivers Sieg and

Agger Agger may refer to: * Agger (surname) * Agger (ancient Rome), a type of ancient Roman rampart or embankment * Agger (river), a river in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany * Agger nasi, an anatomical feature of the nose * Agger Rockshelter, in Wisconsi ...

, 10 kilometres from the former seat of West German government

Bonn The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ru ...

and 26 kilometres from

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

. The population of the city was 39,192 in the 2013 census.

Geography

Siegburg is located approximately 8 kilometres east of the river

Rhine The Rhine ; french: Rhin ; nl, Rijn ; wa, Rén ; li, Rien; rm, label=Sursilvan, Rein, rm, label=Sutsilvan and Surmiran, Ragn, rm, label=Rumantsch Grischun, Vallader and Puter, Rain; it, Reno ; gsw, Rhi(n), including in Alsatian dialect, Al ...

, at the

confluence In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river ( main stem); ...

where the

joins the Sieg, in the southeast corner of the Cologne Lowland. Neighbouring towns include Troisdorf, Lohmar, Sankt Augustin and Hennef. The nearby cities of

and

are easily accessible through good transport links. The highest point of the urban area is 220m above sea level ( NHN) in the Braschoß area and the lowest point is just under 54m above sea level at the mouth of the

History

Archbishop-Elector Anno II of

founded a

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , found ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whic ...

in 1064, known as Michaelsberg Abbey, on top of the hill also called the Michaelsberg. A settlement that arose from that was first mentioned as a city in 1182. Siegburg reached the height of its prosperity in the 15th and 16th century. It is famous for its

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and po ...

, especially for the Siegburg pitchers (''Siegburger Krüge''). Siegburg has been the county seat of the Rhein-Sieg-Kreis since 1816. Siegburg's synagogue was destroyed on

Kristallnacht () or the Night of Broken Glass, also called the November pogrom(s) (german: Novemberpogrome, ), was a pogrom against Jews carried out by the Nazi Party's Sturmabteilung, (SA) paramilitary and Schutzstaffel, (SS) paramilitary forces along ...

, signaling the demise of its Jewish community.

Politics

Municipal elections are held every five years, in which the mayor and city council of Siegburg, as well as the district administrator () and district council () of the Rhein-Sieg-Kreis are chosen. The last election took place on 13 September 2020.

City council

The

city council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

() of Siegburg consists of 50 councillors, half of which are chosen directly in 25 constituencies. The remaining 25 seats are distributed via party lists, resulting in a proportional representation. On 30 October 2020 the Social Democrats, Greens, and Liberals agreed to form a coalition government.

Mayor

The mayor of Siegburg is Stefan Rosemann, who was elected with 57.54% of the vote. He stated that he would withdraw from party politics and completely focus on the mayoral office. He was sworn into office on 5 November 2020.

Transport

Siegburg/Bonn station Siegburg/Bonn station, in the town of Siegburg, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, is on the Cologne–Frankfurt high-speed rail line and the Sieg Railway. It was rebuilt for the high-speed line and is connected to Bonn by the Siegburg line of ...

is a railway station on the Cologne-Frankfurt high-speed railway and the Sieg Railway. The name of the station derives from it having been rebuilt for the high-speed line in order to serve

. It is connected to Bonn by the Siegburg line of the Bonn Stadtbahn every 10 or 15 minutes. The station is located in the network area of the Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Sieg (Rhine-Sieg Transport Association, VRS) public transit authority.

Twin towns – sister cities

Siegburg is

twinned Twinning (making a twin of) may refer to: * In biology and agriculture, producing two offspring (i.e., twins) at a time, or having a tendency to do so; * Twin towns and sister cities, towns and cities involved in town twinning * Twinning inst ...

with: * Bolesławiec, Poland * Guarda, Portugal * Nogent-sur-Marne, France * Orestiada, Greece * Selçuk, Turkey

Notable people

* Engelbert Humperdinck (1854–1921), composer *

Adelheid Wette Adelheid Catharina Maria Humperdinck Wette (4 September 1858 – 9 August 1916) was a German author, composer, and folklorist who is best remembered today as the librettist of her brother Engelbert Humperdinck's opera ''Hansel and Gretel''. Life ...

, author, composer and librettist * Joseph Hermann Mohr (1834–1892), priest, hymn writer and hymnologist *

Liselotte Hammes Liselotte Hammes (born 1933) is a German operatic soprano and academic voice teacher. While based at the Cologne Opera, she performed internationally. One of her signature roles is Sophie in '' Der Rosenkavalier'' by Richard Strauss, which she pe ...

(born 1933), operatic soprano and academic voice teacher * Wolfgang Overath (born 1943), footballer *

Anja-Nina Bahrmann Anja-Nina Bahrmann (born 1980) is a German opera, operetta, Lied and concert soprano. Life Born in Siegburg, Bahrmann began her studies in 2001 at the Hochschule für Musik Saar in the voice class of Rosemarie Bühler-Frey. She deepened her ...

(born 1980), soprano * Catharina Felser (born 1982), racing driver

References

External links

* (in German) {{Authority control Rhein-Sieg-Kreis Districts of the Rhine Province Holocaust locations in Germany