Delitzsch

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Delitzsch
Coat of arms Location
Coat of arms of Delitzsch
Delitzsch (Germany)
Delitzsch
Administration
Country Flag of Germany Germany
State Saxony
Admin. region Leipzig
District Delitzsch
Town subdivisions 4
Mayor Heinz Bieniek (CDU)
Basic statistics
Area 83.56 km² (32.3 sq mi)
Elevation 110 m  (361 ft)
Population 27,521  (31/12/2006)
 - Density 329 /km² (853 /sq mi)
Other information
Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Licence plate DZ
Postal code 04509
Area code 034202
Website www.delitzsch.de
Location of the town of Delitzsch within Delitzsch district
Map

Coordinates: 51°31′35″N 12°20′33″E / 51.52639, 12.3425

Delitzsch is a German city Saxony, near Leipzig. It is the capital of the district of Delitzsch.

Contents

[edit] History

Delitzsch was founded as a town around 1200 AD (according to chronicles) and became recognized as a city in 1300 AD. Both before and after its founding, the city fought off many invaders: first the Slavic tribes who had lived there before the city was founded and then, later, in the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648), the Swedes. A legend arose from this final encounter with the Swedes, saying that when the Swedes reached the river Lober, the tower warden's daughter spied them and blew a trumpet, allowing the citizens of the town to get to safety and prepare, and as a result the invaders were defeated. Every year there is a historical fair (medieval style) to celebrate this victory over the Swedes and, during the fair, shopping centers are open on Sundays.

In World War II (1939 - 1945), only one building was burned, the station. In comparison to other German cities that was the minimal damage a town could get in a nation under heavy fire.

According to a 1996 survey, Delitzsch had more than 27,000 inhabitants. However, many young people leave the region due to the high unemployment rate in the "Neue Bundesländer" (New Federal States). They instead go to the western parts of Germany to seek better employment and educational opportunities.

[edit] Industry

During the years of the German Democratic Republic, many regions were industrialized for coal mining to get electricity; as was the case in Delitzsch. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, the new government of Saxony decided to restructure the region around Delitzsch into a recreational center, called "Tagebaurestloch Goitzsche" (mining resort Goitzsch - the origin of Goitzsche is unknown).

In the 1990s, Delitzsch had a Südzucker sugar factory, Europe's largest sugar producer. It also had a railway plant for the Deutsche Bahn, which will be closed in 2006 following heavy debate with the CEO of the company, Hartmut Mehdorn, about its future.

The biggest employer in town is a chocolate factory of the Vanetten company which produces chocolate Santa Clauses, jelly bananas, chocolate Easter rabbits, and other sweets.

The private sector is the largest employer of the city - insurance, banks, etc. Delitzsch also has a hospital which is the largest in the county. However, most of the citizens are commuters who work in Leipzig.

Delitzsch is also home to a branch of the German Army's NCO Academy (Unteroffizierschule des Heeres).

[edit] Interesting facts

An older tenement near the city-centre
An older tenement near the city-centre

[edit] Famous Delitzschers

[edit] Sights

Delitzsch has many sights to offer, including a castle, a medieval inner city, and a historic town wall which was rebuilt in the 1990s. In the castle, there is also a marriage council.

[edit] Sports

After the GDR period, Delitzsch began a sports raffle because sport was no longer financed by the government, and many sports clubs had to close. However, there are still five major sports clubs in Delitzsch:

  • ESV (Eisenbahner Sportverein) - the town's first and older soccer team - soccer
  • PSV (Polizeisportverein) - the town's second soccer team
  • DTC (Delitzscher Tennisclub) - local tennis club - tennis
  • Delitzscher Sportfüchse - Judo
  • Concordia Delitzsch - was the first sports club to reach the first league of any type of sports in Germany in the history of Delitzsch in 2004.
  • GSVE (Gymniasialer Sportverein Ehrenberg) - currently in first league of Germany's volleyball bundesliga - volleyball.

There are also other sports clubs which seek to cater to everyone.

[edit] Education

Because Delitzsch lost many citizens to Western Germany, many schools were torn down because there were not enough students to teach.

In 2003, the Mittelschule Delitzsch Nord merged with the Mittelschule Delitzsch West, and the Oscar-Reime-Gymnasium (grammar school) merged with the Ehrenberg-Gymnasium. Delitzsch currently has two middle schools: Mittelschule Delitzsch-Nord and Arthur-Becker-Mittelschule. The Comenius-Mittelschule closed in 2006. It has one grammar school: Ehrenberg-Gymnasium. There are also elementary schools: Rosenweg and others. The Grundschule Delitzsch-West (elementary school) was closed in 1999.

Delitzsch has the most modern vocational grammar school in Saxony, the "Berufsschulzentrum Hermann-Schulze-Delitzsch". The school is in cooperation with Apple Germany, a computer manufacturer. The school has a good sporting complex for track and field, basketball, and other sports.

[edit] External links