Geringswalde

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Geringswalde

Coat of arms
Geringswalde
Coordinates: 51°4′35″N 12°54′15″E / 51.07639°N 12.90417°E / 51.07639; 12.90417Coordinates: 51°4′35″N 12°54′15″E / 51.07639°N 12.90417°E / 51.07639; 12.90417
Country Germany
State Saxony
District Mittelsachsen
Government
  Mayor independent
Area
  Total 29.93 km2 (11.56 sq mi)
Elevation 268 m (879 ft)
Population (2012-12-31)[1]
  Total 4,498
  Density 150/km2 (390/sq mi)
Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes 09326
Dialling codes 037382
Vehicle registration FG (formerly MW)
Website www.geringswalde.de

Geringswalde (German pronunciation: [ɡeːʁɪŋsˈvaldə]) is a town in the district of Mittelsachsen, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated 12 km northwest of Mittweida, and 27 km north of Chemnitz.

History

The town was first mentioned in 1233 in a document confirming the establishment of a Benedictine nun's convent. After the Protestant reformation, the convent was dissolved and transformed into a manor. The town was never walled. A short-lived orthodox Lutheran school was closed in 1568 due to the rector being accused of Gnesio-Lutheranism.

Until the 19th century, the economy was chiefly based on agriculture and linen manufacture. After Industrialization Geringswalde was known for the production of furniture (mainly chairs and armchairs) and cutting tools. The manor was dissolved after World War II and most of its buildings demolished. Geringswalde was part of Kreis Rochlitz from 1945 to 1994, of Landkreis Mittweida from 1994 to 2008 and belongs now to the Central Saxony administrative district.

From 1893 to 1997, the town was served by the standard-gauge railway line Waldheim - Rochlitz.

Sights

The neogothic Martin Luther church of 1890 replaces a former romanesque church. The neo-baroque town hall was opened in 1905, the school house in neo-renaissance style in 1894. An observation tower named after Frederick Augustus III of Saxony, situated north of the town, opened in 1907.

A copy of the 1727 Saxon post milestone (Postmeilensäule) stands near the town centre. The original is kept in a museum in Rochlitz.

A castle in the nearby forest was destroyed in the Middle Ages, only minuscule remains of its basement walls are left.

The village church of Altgeringswalde houses a painted wooden altar which was made around 1510 and restored in 1994.

References

External links

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