Günzburg (;

Swabian Swabian or Schwabian, or ''variation'', may refer to: * the German region of Swabia (German: "''Schwaben''") * Swabian German, a dialect spoken in Baden-Württemberg in south-west Germany and adjoining areas (German:"''Schwäbisch''") * Danube S ...

: ''Genzburg'') is a town in

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total l ...

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 betwee ...

. It is a ''

Große Kreisstadt ''Große Kreisstadt'' (, "major district town") is a term in the municipal law ('' Gemeindeordnung'') of several German states. In some federal states the term is used as a special legal status for a district-affiliated town—as distinct from an ...

'' and the capital of the Swabian district Günzburg. This district was constituted in 1972 by combining the city of Günzburg – which had not previously been assigned to a '' Kreis'' (district) – with the district of Günzburg and the district of Krumbach. Günzburg lies where the river

Günz The Günz is a river in Bavaria, Germany. It is formed near Lauben by the confluence of its two source rivers: the Östliche Günz (eastern Günz) and the Westliche Günz (western Günz). It is approx. long (including its western source riv ...

enters the

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...

, and has a population of about 20,350. Legoland Germany is located in Günzburg.

History

Günzburg was founded in about 70 BC by the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

to defend the borders of their land along the

; it was known as ''

Castellum A ''castellum'' in Latin is usually: * a small Roman fortlet or tower,C. Julius Caesar, Gallic War; 2,30 a diminutive of (' military camp'), often used as a watchtower or signal station like on Hadrian's Wall. It should be distinguished from ...

Guntia'', ''Gontia'' or ''Contia''. The name comes from that of the

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foo ...

goddess A goddess is a female deity. In many known cultures, goddesses are often linked with literal or metaphorical pregnancy or imagined feminine roles associated with how women and girls are perceived or expected to behave. This includes themes ...

Gontia Gontia () was a Celtic goddess. She was the tutelary deity of the river Günz, near Günzburg in Germany. She is known from an inscription on a Roman-era altar at Günzburg ( la, Guntia) that reads ''Gontiae / sac(rum) / G(aius!) Iulius / Faventian ...

. It consisted of a fort, later replaced by at least one other on the same site, a fairly large civilian settlement and most likely an important bridge over the Danube. After the Romans left in the fifth century, the

Alamanni The Alemanni or Alamanni, were a confederation of Germanic tribes * * * on the Upper Rhine River. First mentioned by Cassius Dio in the context of the campaign of Caracalla of 213, the Alemanni captured the in 260, and later expanded into pre ...

tribe settled there. In around 700 the nearby castle of ''Ricinis'' was mentioned by the Cartographer of Ravenna as one of the five most important castles of Alemannia. In 1065 first documentary evidence appears of the town itself as ''Gunceburch''. In 1301 the town became part of the

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air cond ...

and was developed into the centre of the Margraviate of

Burgau Burgau is a town in the district of Günzburg in Swabia, Bavaria. Burgau lies on the river Mindel and has a population of just under 10,000. History The territory around Burgau was originally part of the stem duchy of Swabia. The death of C ...

; for a time (1803–1805) it was even the capital of all

Further Austria Further Austria, Outer Austria or Anterior Austria (german: Vorderösterreich, formerly ''die Vorlande'' (pl.)) was the collective name for the early (and later) possessions of the House of Habsburg in the former Swabian stem duchy of south-wes ...

. Very near Günzburg is the site where the " Leipheim Horde" was defeated by the

Swabia Swabia ; german: Schwaben , colloquially ''Schwabenland'' or ''Ländle''; archaic English also Suabia or Svebia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany. The name is ultimately derived from the medieval Duchy of ...

n army in 1525 during the

German Peasants' War The German Peasants' War, Great Peasants' War or Great Peasants' Revolt (german: Deutscher Bauernkrieg) was a widespread popular revolt in some German-speaking areas in Central Europe from 1524 to 1525. It failed because of intense oppositi ...

. The same site saw the first flight by a

Messerschmitt Me 262 The Messerschmitt Me 262, nicknamed ''Schwalbe'' (German: " Swallow") in fighter versions, or ''Sturmvogel'' (German: " Storm Bird") in fighter-bomber versions, is a fighter aircraft and fighter-bomber that was designed and produced by the Ge ...

in 1942. In 1770 the city was visited by French queen Marie Antoinette. She broke her journey towards France for two days and was joined by her father’s sister, Princess Anne Charlotte of Lorraine. Together, they made a pilgrimage to the church of Maria Königin Bild, near Limbach. On 9 October 1805, elements of the Sixth Corps of Napoléon's

Grande Armée ''La Grande Armée'' (; ) was the main military component of the French Imperial Army commanded by Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte during the Napoleonic Wars. From 1804 to 1808, it won a series of military victories that allowed the French Em ...

assaulted Austrian positions in Günzburg. The first assault was initiated by the 25th Light Infantry and the 27th and 50th Infantry Regiments of the Line (under

Pierre-Louis Binet de Marcognet Pierre-Louis Binet de Marcognet (14 November 1765 – 19 December 1854) joined the French army in 1781 as an officer cadet and fought in the American Revolutionary War. During the French Revolutionary Wars he fought in the Army of the Rhine and ...

), while the second consisted of only the 59th Infantry Regiment of the Line, under Mathieu de la Bassé; around one thousand

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...

prisoners were taken, and six guns captured. In 1806, through the Franco-Bavarian alliance, Günzburg was integrated into the

Kingdom of Bavaria The Kingdom of Bavaria (german: Königreich Bayern; ; spelled ''Baiern'' until 1825) was a German state that succeeded the former Electorate of Bavaria in 1805 and continued to exist until 1918. With the unification of Germany into the German ...

. In April 1945, near the end of the Second World War, the city of Günzburg was bombed by the allies. Among other targets that were severely damaged or destroyed were the nearby town of Denzingen, the castle, and a munitions train that was in the train station. Günzburg is the birthplace of

Josef Mengele , allegiance = , branch = Schutzstaffel , serviceyears = 1938–1945 , rank = '' SS''-'' Hauptsturmführer'' (Captain) , servicenumber = , battles = , unit = , awards = , commands = , ...

, medical officer at

Auschwitz concentration camp Auschwitz concentration camp ( (); also or ) was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. I ...

. Günzburg has flourished, boasting a thriving downtown shopping area, scenic views of the nearby historic castle, and one of the top five Legoland theme parks in Germany. It is also home of the soccer player Stefano Celozzi, who moved to Günzburg in 2016.

Main sights

The attractions of Günzburg include the Church of Our Lady ('' Frauenkirche'') built by

Dominikus Zimmermann Dominikus Zimmermann (30 June 1685, Gaispoint – 16 November 1766, Wies) was a German Rococo architect and stuccoist. Life Dominikus Zimmermann was born in Gaispoint near Wessobrunn in 1685 and became a Baumeister (Architect) and a stu ...

, the

margrave Margrave was originally the medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or of a kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain feudal families in the ...

s' castle (the only Habsburg castle built in Germany), the ''Reisensburg'' fort, today the congress centre of the

University of Ulm Ulm University (german: Universität Ulm) is a public university in Ulm, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The university was founded in 1967 and focuses on natural sciences, medicine, engineering sciences, mathematics, economics and computer sci ...

and the nearly-intact old town centre. In 2002

Legoland Legoland (, trademark in uppercase as LEGOLAND) is a chain of family theme parks focusing on the construction toy system Lego. They are not fully owned by The Lego Group itself; rather, they are owned and operated by the British theme park co ...

built a theme park near the town.

Notable people

* Fred Benninger (1917–2004), executive of several companies in the United States * Stefano Celozzi, (born 1988), footballer for VfL Bochum * Diana Damrau (born 1971), opera singer, soprano *

Johann Eck Johann Maier von Eck (13 November 1486 – 13 February 1543), often anglicized as John Eck, was a German Catholic theologian, scholastic, prelate, and a pioneer of the counter-reformation who was among Martin Luther's most important int ...

(1494–1554), Reformation theologian * Johann Eberlin von Günzburg (died 1533), reformist preacher and author, was born in the town around 1470 * Erhard Keller (born 1944), speed skater * Petra Kelly (1947–1992), politician, peace activist and founding member of the party Greens *

(1911–1979), a Nazi war criminal, the SS officer and

Auschwitz Auschwitz concentration camp ( (); also or ) was a complex of over 40 Nazi concentration camps, concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany, occupied Poland (in a portion annexed int ...

physician was born in Günzburg. On 8 March 2005 a monument to his victims was erected in the town. * Karl Mengele (1884–1959), father of war criminal and concentration camp doctor

, temporarily owner of the Mengele agricultural Engineering company, in the 1950s, with 2,000 employees the largest employer in the region * Franz Xaver Schwarz (1875–1947), Nazi politician, Reichsschatzmeister * Tina Stöckle (1948–1982), activist in humanistic

anti-psychiatry Anti-psychiatry is a movement based on the view that psychiatric treatment is often more damaging than helpful to patients, highlighting controversies about psychiatry. Objections include the reliability of psychiatric diagnosis, the questionabl ...

Zenon Andrusyshyn Zenon Andrusyshyn (born February 25, 1947) is a German-Canadian former Canadian Football League punter and kicker from –, –, primarily for the Toronto Argonauts. He also was a member of the Kansas City Chiefs in the National Football Leag ...

(1947-), former professional football player

athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-de ...

Literature

* Wüst, Wolfgang: ''Historische Einleitung'', in: Klaus Kraft: ''Landkreis Günzburg, Bd. 1: Stadt Günzburg'' (Die Kunstdenkmäler von Bayern, Teil Schwaben IX), München 1993, p. 1–49. * Wüst, Wolfgang: ''Günzburg''. Historischer Atlas von Bayern, Teil Schwaben, Reihe I, Bd. 13, München 1983, . * Keller, Sven: ''Günzburg und der Fall Josef Mengele – Die Heimatstadt und die Jagd nach dem NS-Verbrecher''. Oldenbourg Verlag, München 2003, .

References

External links