Mark Municipality

Mark Municipality
Marks kommun
Municipality

Coat of arms

Nickname(s): Tygriket

"The Fabric Kingdom"
Country  Sweden
County Västra Götaland County
Established in 1971
Seat Kinna
Area[1]
 • Total 1,013.2 km2 (391.2 sq mi)
 • Land 929.25 km2 (358.79 sq mi)
 • Water 83.95 km2 (32.41 sq mi)
  Area as of January 1, 2014.
Population (December 31, 2014)[2]
 • Total 33,887
 • Density 33/km2 (87/sq mi)
Demonym Marbo
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code 43499 -to- 51997
Area code(s) 0320
ISO 3166 code SE
Province Västergötland
Municipal code 1463
Website www.mark.se

Mark Municipality (Marks kommun) is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in southwest Sweden.

The municipal seat is located in the center of Kinna town.

The municipality was created through the Municipal Reform Act of 1971 by the amalgamation of eight smaller municipal entities.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was created and granted with the municipality in 1974. The colours of Gold and Black on the shield represent power and solidity.

The grain represents the history of agriculture in the region.

The circles symbolise four cannonballs, representing the wars fought between Denmark and Sweden in the greater Mark region.

The weaver's shuttle-tool represents the historical tradition of textile workmanship in the region, which the region is famous for nationwide.

History

Medieval times

The word Mark comes from an old documented district called Mark Härad that existed in the southern parts of the region sometime during the 13th century.

The word Mark is believed to be an old Swedish name for "border" or "edge". During the medieval times the district of Mark Härad (now Mark municipality) was situated right at the border region between the Kingdom of Denmark and Kingdom of Sweden.

Several wars were fought in the region which during medieval times, and it is not uncommon that farmers accidentally unearth old remains and weapons when plowing the fields.

The fields close to Öresten Fortress have been the place for most of the relic findings. Öresten Fortress was originally built by the Danes, and the first documented nobleman to rule and inhabit the fortress was Tyge Puder (1364-1384/86). The fortress was conquered by the Swedish army during the battle of Öresten in 1470 when the Danish king Kristian the First lost the battle against Sten Sture the Oldest.

The fortress was later destroyed in early 1500 and is now a protected historical sight open to the public year-round.

In 1682, as a sign of the times, the local governance established a place of execution outside Skene village called Galgbacken (eng: The hill of hanging). Thieves where executed there as well as those judged as witches where burned on the stake. In 1934 archeologists found the buried remains of those that where executed.

The Industrial Revolution

The Mark region was the cradle of Sweden's textile industry and has since the late 18th century been known as the Fabric Kingdom due to the widespread textile workmanship that comes from the region. It was from Mark that several of the nationwide travelling salesmen where based, spreading high-quality fabric manufacturing throughout the county. The region later evolved into a national industrial center for sewing, dyeing and textile manufacturing after the industrial revolution.

The biggest textile factories of the time was Kungsfors Textilfabrik in central Skene, Fritsla Textilfabrik in Fritsla, Rydal Textilfabrik in Rydal. As of 2014 none of those factories remain in use but the old factory in Rydal has been converted into a museum for the regions textile and entrepreneur heritage.

Modern era

In 1971 Mark Municipality was created out of a consolidation of eight smaller municipalities. The common name given to the municipality was Mark, signifying the historical events taken place which is also manifested in its shield.

During the early 1980s most of the textile factories had disappeared and only a few remained.

Today there are only three major textile and dyeing factories remaining: Almedahls (central Kinna), Ekelund (central Horred), Ludvig Svensson (outskirts of Kinna).

Throughout Mark municipality the textile heritage has been preserved and the region is famous for its textile "know-how" and specialist production. The region is home to Sweden's largest manufacturer of fire hoses, bulletproof materials and filtering equipment.

Roads and communications

Mark Municipality have excellent road, rail and public transport links to the major cities in the county.

Within 1 hour it is possible to travel to Gothenburg (swe: Göteborg - Sweden's 2nd largest city) by car or bus from the stations in Kinna and Skene.

The major roads in and out of Mark Municipality

Public transport (bus & train)

All public transport options are trafficked by the regional Västtrafik (eng: West traffic) company.

Towns and villages

Major towns

Minor towns

Villages

International sister cities

Mark Municipality has three sister cities. The Municipality has been focusing on finding sister cities that shares a tradition in textile manufacturing.

Bordering municipalities

Sports and pastimes

There are over 60 major sporting and pastime clubs throughout Mark Municipality. The major ones are:

Clubs

Name (Hometown / Year - Field)

References

  1. ↑ "Statistiska centralbyrån, Kommunarealer den 1 januari 2014" (Microsoft Excel) (in Swedish). Statistics Sweden. Retrieved 2014-04-18.
  2. ↑ "Folkmängd i riket, län och kommuner 31 december 2014" (in Swedish). Statistics Sweden. Retrieved March 2015.

External links

Coordinates: 57°31′N 12°41′E / 57.517°N 12.683°E