Eisenhüttenstadt (literally "

ironworks An ironworks or iron works is an industrial plant where iron is smelted and where heavy iron and steel products are made. The term is both singular and plural, i.e. the singular of ''ironworks'' is ''ironworks''. Ironworks succeeded bloomeri ...

city" in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

; , dsb, Pśibrjog) is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

in the

Oder-Spree Oder-Spree is a ''Kreis'' (district) in the eastern part of Brandenburg, Germany. Neighboring are (from north clockwise) the district Märkisch-Oderland, the district-free city Frankfurt (Oder), Poland, the districts Spree-Neiße and Dahme-Spreewal ...

district of the state of

Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a states of Germany, state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an ar ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, on the border with

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

founded the city in 1950. It was known as Stalinstadt (''Stalinměsto'') between 1953 and 1961.

Geography

The municipal area is situated on a sandy

terrace Terrace may refer to: Landforms and construction * Fluvial terrace, a natural, flat surface that borders and lies above the floodplain of a stream or river * Terrace, a street suffix * Terrace, the portion of a lot between the public sidewalk a ...

in the Berlin-Warsaw glacial valley (''

Urstromtal An ''urstromtal'' (plural: ''Urstromtäler'') is a type of broad glacial valley, for example, in northern Central Europe, that appeared during the ice ages, or individual glacial periods of an ice age, at the edge of the Scandinavian ice sheet and ...

''). It is bounded by the

Oder The Oder ( , ; Czech, Lower Sorbian and ; ) is a river in Central Europe. It is Poland's second-longest river in total length and third-longest within its borders after the Vistula and Warta. The Oder rises in the Czech Republic and flows thr ...

river to the east, which since 1945 has formed the German–Polish border. Eisenhüttenstadt is the eastern terminus of the

Oder–Spree Canal The Oder–Spree Canal (german: Oder-Spree-Kanal ), is a canal in the east of Germany. It links the Dahme river, at Schmöckwitz in the south-eastern suburbs of Berlin, with the River Oder, at Eisenhüttenstadt. It provides an important commerci ...

. The town centre is located about south of

Frankfurt (Oder) Frankfurt (Oder), also known as Frankfurt an der Oder (), is a city in the German state of Brandenburg. It has around 57,000 inhabitants, is one of the easternmost cities in Germany, the fourth-largest city in Brandenburg, and the largest German ...

and southeast of

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

. Eisenhüttenstadt is served by the

Berlin–Wrocław railway The Berlin–Wrocław railway (german: Niederschlesisch-Märkische Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft, roughly translating as "Lower Silesian-Marcher Railway", NME) was a German private railway that connected Berlin (then capital of the March of Brandenburg, ...

line. The town comprises the districts of Diehlo, Fürstenberg (Oder), and Schönfließ.

History

The town was built near the historic village of Fürstenberg (Oder) which was founded in 1251. After the Peace of Prague in 1635, Fürstenberg and

Lower Lusatia Lower Lusatia (; ; ; szl, Dolnŏ Łużyca; ; ) is a historical region in Central Europe, stretching from the southeast of the German state of Brandenburg to the southwest of Lubusz Voivodeship in Poland. Like adjacent Upper Lusatia in the sou ...

became part of the

Electorate of Saxony The Electorate of Saxony, also known as Electoral Saxony (German: or ), was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire from 1356–1806. It was centered around the cities of Dresden, Leipzig and Chemnitz. In the Golden Bull of 1356, Emperor Charles ...

, and in 1815 it was transferred to

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...

. In 1925, a port on the

was created. The present-day town was founded as a socialist

model city A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...

in 1950 (initially named Stalinstadt after

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secreta ...

) following a decision by the East German Socialist Unity Party (SED), alongside a new steel mill combine located west of the historic town of Fürstenberg (Oder). A few years before the

new town New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

was established, a bridge over the Oder river had been constructed, the earlier one having been destroyed by retreating

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...

forces in February 1945, near the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. The population grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s. In 1961, during

de-Stalinization De-Stalinization (russian: десталинизация, translit=destalinizatsiya) comprised a series of political reforms in the Soviet Union after the death of long-time leader Joseph Stalin in 1953, and the thaw brought about by ascension ...

, the town was renamed Eisenhüttenstadt. After

German reunification German reunification (german: link=no, Deutsche Wiedervereinigung) was the process of re-establishing Germany as a united and fully sovereign state, which took place between 2 May 1989 and 15 March 1991. The day of 3 October 1990 when the Ge ...

in 1990, the state-owned steel works were

privatized Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...

, and most of its 12,000 employees lost their jobs. Thereafter the factory employed around 2,500 workers. The town experienced a steep decline in population, from just over 50,000 to under 30,000.

Demography

File:Bevölkerungsentwicklung Eisenhüttenstadt.pdf, Development of Population since 1875 within the Current Boundaries (Blue Line: Population; Dotted Line: Comparison to Population Development of Brandenburg state; Grey Background: Time of Nazi rule; Red Background: Time of Communist rule) File:Bevölkerungsprognosen Eisenhüttenstadt.pdf, Recent Population Development and Projections (Population Development before Census 2011 (blue line); Recent Population Development according to the

Census in Germany A national census in Germany (german: Volkszählung) was held every five years from 1875 to 1910. After the World Wars, only a few full population censuses have been held, the last in 1987. The most recent census, though not a national census, wa ...

in 2011 (blue bordered line); Official projections for 2005-2030 (yellow line); for 2017-2030 (scarlet line); for 2020-2030 (green line) Bundesarchiv Bild 183-19521-0005, Namensgebung

Bundesarchiv Bild 183-19521-0005, Namensgebung

Eisenhuettenstadt asv2020-09 img08 FWolfTheater

Architecture

The first design for the new residential quarter was developed by the

modernist Modernism is both a philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new forms of art, philosophy, an ...

and

Bauhaus The Staatliches Bauhaus (), commonly known as the Bauhaus (), was a German art school operational from 1919 to 1933 that combined crafts and the fine arts.Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 4th edn., 200 ...

architect, Franz Ehrlich, in August 1950. His

plan, which laid out a dispersed town landscape along functional lines, was rejected by the Ministry for Reconstruction. The same happened to the plan presented by the architects Kurt Junghanns and Otto Geiler. The plan that was ultimately realized was developed by Kurt Walter Leucht.

Twin towns – sister cities

Eisenhüttenstadt is twinned with: * Dimitrovgrad, Bulgaria (1958) *

Drancy Drancy () is a commune in the northeastern suburbs of Paris in the Seine-Saint-Denis department in northern France. It is located 10.8 km (6.7 mi) from the center of Paris. History Toponymy The name Drancy comes from Medieval Lati ...

, France (1963) *

Głogów Głogów (; german: Glogau, links=no, rarely , cs, Hlohov, szl, Głogōw) is a city in western Poland. It is the county seat of Głogów County, in Lower Silesian Voivodeship (since 1999), and was previously in Legnica Voivodeship (1975–1998) ...

, Poland (1972) *

Saarlouis Saarlouis (; french: link=no, Sarrelouis, ; formerly Sarre-Libre and Saarlautern) is a town in Saarland, Germany, capital of the district of Saarlouis. In 2020, the town had a population of 34,409. Saarlouis, as the name implies, is located on t ...

, Germany (1986), first East and West German town twinning

Notable people

Eisenhüttenstadt is the birthplace of: *

Udo Beyer Udo Beyer (born 9 August 1955) is a former East German track and field athlete who competed in the shot put. Beyer has admitted to knowingly taking part in doping while he competed for East Germany. He was a Stasi informer under the codename ...

(born 1955), shot put, Olympian champion 1976 and holder of world record *

Hans-Georg Beyer Hans-Georg Beyer (born 3 September 1956 in Eisenhüttenstadt) is a former East German handball player who competed in the 1980 Summer Olympics. He was a member of the East German handball team which won the gold medal. He played five matc ...

(born 1956), handball player, olympic winner 1980 *

Detlef Gerstenberg 300px, Detlef Gerstenberg on 20 May 1984 in Karl-Marx-Stadt Detlef Gerstenberg (5 March 1957 – 24 January 1993) was a hammer thrower from East Germany, who competed at the 1980 Summer Olympics for his native country. Born in Eisenhüttenstadt, ...

(1957–1993),

hammer thrower The hammer throw is one of the four throwing events in regular track and field competitions, along with the discus throw, shot put and javelin. The "hammer" used in this sport is not like any of the tools also called by that name. It consists ...

, competitor in

1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (russian: Летние Олимпийские игры 1980, Letniye Olimpiyskiye igry 1980), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad (russian: Игры XXII Олимпиады, Igry XXII Olimpiady) and commo ...

Frank Schaffer Frank Schaffer (born 23 October 1958 in Stalinstadt (today Eisenhüttenstadt), Bezirk Frankfurt) is an East German retired athlete who specialised in the 400 metres. He won the bronze medal in the 400 metres at the 1980 Summer Olympics ...

(born 1958), athlete, medal winner in 1980 Summer Olympics *

Katharina Bullin Katharina Bullin (born 2 March 1959) is a German former volleyball player who competed for East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that ex ...

(born 1959), volleyball player *

Gisela Beyer Gisela Beyer (later Reißmüller, born 16 July 1960 in Stalinstadt, Bezirk Frankfurt) is a retired East German discus thrower. She finished fourth at the 1980 Summer Olympics, fourth at the 1982 European Championships and fifth at the 1983 Wo ...

(born 1960), athlete *

Hendrik Reiher Hendrik Reiher (born 25 January 1962 in Eisenhüttenstadt) is a German rowing cox. He competed for the SG Dynamo Potsdam / Sportvereinigung (SV) Dynamo. He won medals at several Summer Olympics as well as at international r ...

(born 1962), rowing

cox Cox may refer to: * Cox (surname), including people with the name Companies * Cox Enterprises, a media and communications company ** Cox Communications, cable provider ** Cox Media Group, a company that owns television and radio stations ** ...

, medal winner in multiple Olympic Games * Torsten René Gutsche (born 1968), sprint canoer, competitor in two Summer Olympic Games; 1992 winner of the

Bambi Award The Bambi, often called the Bambi Award and stylised as BAMBI, is a German award presented annually by Hubert Burda Media to recognize excellence in international media and television to personalities in the media, arts, culture, sports, and ot ...

Sven Helbig Sven Helbig (born in 1968) is a German composer and director. He composes orchestral, chamber and choral music. Beside this, he is active in the field of electronic music ( dark ambient, noise, field recordings). Helbig's versatility has made him ...

(born 1968), producer, musician *

Kathrin Boron Kathrin Boron (born 4 November 1969 in Eisenhüttenstadt, East Germany) is a German sculler, and four-time Olympic gold medallist. She's an athlete of the SV Dynamo / SG Dynamo Potsdam. Boron won the women's double sculls at the 1992 Summer Oly ...

(born 1969),

sculler Sculling is the use of oars to propel a boat by moving them through the water on both sides of the craft, or moving one oar over the stern. A long, narrow boat with sliding seats, rigged with two oars per rower may be referred to as a scull, i ...

, competitor in multiple Olympic Games, gold medalist in several

World Rowing Championships The World Rowing Championships is an international rowing regatta organized by FISA (the International Rowing Federation). It is a week-long event held at the end of the northern hemisphere summer and in non-Olympic years is the highlight of the ...

* Sören Lausberg (born 1969), retired

track cyclist Track cycling is a bicycle racing sport usually held on specially built banked tracks or velodromes using purpose-designed track bicycles. History Track cycling has been around since at least 1870. When track cycling was in its infancy, it wa ...

, competitor in two

Summer Olympic Games The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

Paul van Dyk Matthias Paul (; born 16 December 1971), known professionally as Paul van Dyk () is a German DJ, record producer and musician. One of the first true renowned DJs, van Dyk was the first artist to receive a Grammy Award nomination in the newly a ...

(born 1971), DJ, composer and music producer *

Katja Adler Katja Adler (born 20 May 1974) is a German politician from the Free Democratic Party. Early life Adler was born in Eisenhüttenstadt, Brandenburg. Her parents are of German Jewish origin. Political career At the 2021 German federal elec ...

(born 1974), politician * Amadeus Wallschläger (born 1985), footballer *

Roger Kluge Roger Kluge (born 5 February 1986) is a German professional racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . Kluge left at the end of the 2013 season, and joined for the 2014 season. At the 2008 Summer Olympics, he won the silver medal ...

(born 1986), racing cyclist, silver medal winner in

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

* Florian Müller (born 1986), footballer

Other personalities associated with the city

Bundesarchiv Bild 183-1989-1216-014, Berlin, SED-Sonderparteitag, Bahro

* Bernhard Lösener (1890–1952), jurist *

Rudolf Bahro Rudolf Bahro (18 November 1935 – 5 December 1997) was a dissident from East Germany who, since his death, has been recognised as a philosopher, political figure and author. Bahro was a leader of the West German party The Greens, but became dis ...

(1935–1997), regime critic and author of the book '' The alternative. A critique of real-existing socialism.'', spent his school days in the city *

Tamara Bunke __NOTOC__ Tamara may refer to: People * Tamara (name), including a list of people with this name * Tamara (Spanish singer) (born 1984) * Tamara, stage name of Spanish singer Yurena (born 1969) * Tamara, stage name of Macedonian singer Tamara Tod ...

(1937–1967), fellow combatant of

Che Guevara Ernesto Che Guevara (; 14 June 1928The date of birth recorded on /upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/Ernesto_Guevara_Acta_de_Nacimiento.jpg his birth certificatewas 14 June 1928, although one tertiary source, (Julia Constenla, quoted ...

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

, took her Abitur (school leaving examination) in Eisenhüttenstadt * Rolf Henrich (born 1944), lawyer, first signatory of the Founding Congress of the

New Forum New Forum (german: Neues Forum) was a political movement in East Germany formed in the months leading up to the collapse of the East German state. It was founded on 9 September 1989 and was the first independent (non- National Front) political ...

References

External links

Official municipal website

EKO Stahl AG

The local encyclopedia Wikihüttenstadt
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eisenhuttenstadt Localities in Oder-Spree Socialist planned cities Geography of East Germany Populated places established in 1950 1950 establishments in East Germany De-Stalinization