Saxony
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\n\n| Statistics |
\n| Capital: | Dresden |
\n| Area: | 18,338 km² |
\n| Inhabitants: | 4,600,000 (2000) |
\n| pop. density: | 251 inh./km² |
\n| Homepage: | sachsen.de |
\n| ISO 3166-2: | DE-SN |
\n| Politics |
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\n| Minister-President: | Georg Milbradt (CDU) |
\n| Ruling party: | CDU |
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\nWith an area of 18,400 sq. km. and a population of 4.6 million,
Saxony (German
Sachsen) is tenth largest in area but sixth in population among Germany's sixteen
federal states. Created upon
Germany's reunification in
1990, it occupies the approximate area of the former kingdom (1806-1918) of the same name. The capital is
Dresden.
In the early Middle Ages the term "Saxony" referred to a different region, occupying today's states of
Lower Saxony and
Bremen and the northern (Westphalian) part of
North Rhine-Westphalia. The
Saxons, after whom the area was named, had migrated from the area of present-day
Schleswig-Holstein during the second quarter of the 1st millennium AD. See the history section below for more details.
Geography
Saxony borders on (from the east and clockwise) Poland, the Czech Republic and the German states of Bavaria, Thuringia, Saxony-Anhalt and Brandenburg. Its capital is Dresden, and the other principal cities are Leipzig, Chemnitz and Zwickau. Since 1989 the state and its urban centres have lost population through migration to the former West Germany.
The main axis of Saxony is the Elbe river, crossing the state from southeast to northwest. Another important river, located west of the Elbe, is the Mulde. The Neiße (Nysa) river forms the Polish border.
The portions in the east of Saxony are the southern parts of the historical region of Lusatia (Lausitz) and are called Upper Lusatia (Oberlausitz); the minority of the Sorbs live in the region, which is bilingual today.
The countryside rises gradually from north to south, culminating in the mountain ranges along the Czech border. The Ore Mountains (Erzgebirge) extend from Bavaria to the Elbe river. The Elbe itself has cut a majestic gorge in order to pass the mountains of the Elbsandsteingebirge. Further east the mountains are less high and form a hilly countryside called the Lausitzer Bergland.
See also List of places in Saxony.
Saxony is divided into 3 Regierungsbezirke - Chemnitz, Dresden, Leipzig - which are subdivided into 22 districts:
Furthermore there are seven independent towns, which don't belong to any district:
- Chemnitz middle southern Saxony\n# Dresden capital\n# Görlitz in the very easty\n# Hoyerswerda didn´t belong to Saxony until 1945.\n# Leipzig another bigger city\n# Plauen western saxony\n# Zwickau western saxony
History
\nFor the origins of the Saxon tribes see Saxons.
Foundation of the first Saxon state
The first Duchy of Saxony emerged about
700 in a region, which is completely different from the present state of Saxony: It was located in today's
Lower Saxony and
North Rhine-Westphalia. In the
10th century the dukes of Saxony were at the same time kings (or emperors) of the
Holy Roman Empire (
Ottonian or Saxon Dynasty).
In
1137 Saxony was passed to the
Welfen dynasty. It reached its peak under duke
Henry the Lion, but after his death it began to shrink. In
1180 large portions west of the Elbe had to be ceded to the bishops of Cologne (these lands later formed the duchy of
Brunswick-Lüneburg). The small remains were passed to an
Ascanian dynasty and were divided in
1260 into the two mini states of Saxony-Lauenburg and
Saxony-Wittenberg.
Foundation of the second Saxon state
Saxony-Lauenburg was later called Lauenburg and had nothing to do anymore with the history of Saxony.
Saxony-Wittenberg (in present
Saxony-Anhalt) became subject to the margravate of
Meißen (ruled by the
Wettin dynasty) in
1423. A new powerful state was established, occupying large portions of present Saxony, Thuringia and Saxony-Anhalt. Although the centre of this state was far southeast of the former Saxony, it was soon called
Upper Saxony and then only Saxony, while the former Saxon territories were now called
Lower Saxony.
A collateral line of the Wettin princes diverged in
1485. This line received what later became
Thuringia and founded several tiny states there (see Thuringia for more details). The remaining state became even more powerful. In the 18th century Saxony was known for great cultural achievements, but was politically inferior to
Prussia and
Austria, which pressed Saxony from either sides.
Saxony in the 19th and 20th centuries
With the abolition of the Holy Roman Empire in
1806, Saxony became a Kingdom, and Elector Frederick Augustus III became King
Frederick Augustus I. Frederick Augustus made the mistake of remaining loyal to
Napoleon I for too long, and he was taken prisoner and his territories declared forfeit by the allies in
1813, with the intention of their being annexed by
Prussia. Ultimately, the opposition of
Austria,
France, and
Britain resulted in Frederick Augustus being restored to his throne at the
Congress of Vienna, but Saxony was forced to cede the northern part of the Kingdom to Prussia. These lands became the Prussian province of Saxony, which is today incorporated in Saxony-Anhalt.
What was left of the Kingdom of Saxony was roughly identical with the present federal state. After
1918 Saxony was a state in the
Weimar Republic, the
Nazi era and under Soviet occupation. It was dissolved in
1952, but reestablished in
1990 upon the
German reunification. Today Saxony also includes a little part of
Silesia around the town of
Görlitz which remained German after the war and for obvious reasons of unviability as a separate state, was incorporated into Saxony.
See also:\n*
Rulers of Saxony\n*
Ottonian dynasty\n*
Wettin dynasty
List of Minister-Presidents of Saxony
- 1945 - 1947: Rudolf Friedrichs\n# 1947 - 1952: Max Seydewitz\n# 1990 - 2002: Kurt Biedenkopf (CDU)\n# since 2002: Georg Milbradt (CDU)
External links
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Category:States of Germany