Helmstedt (; Eastphalian: ''Helmstidde'') is a town on the eastern edge of the

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 ...

state of Lower Saxony. It is the capital of the District of Helmstedt. The historic university and Hanseatic city conserves an important monumental heritage of Romanesque and Renaissance buildings, as well as numerous timber framed houses. During the

German partition The Prussian Partition ( pl, Zabór pruski), or Prussian Poland, is the former territories of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth acquired during the Partitions of Poland, in the late 18th century by the Kingdom of Prussia. The Prussian acquis ...

the nearby

Bundesautobahn 2 is an autobahn in Germany that connects the Ruhr area in the west to Berlin in the east. The A 2 starts at the junction with the A3 near the western city of Oberhausen, passes through the north of the Ruhr valley, through the Münsterland ...

was the site of the Helmstedt–Marienborn border crossing, the most important on the former

inner German border The inner German border (german: Innerdeutsche Grenze or ; initially also ) was the border between the German Democratic Republic (GDR, East Germany) and the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG, West Germany) from 1949 to 1990. Not including the ...

as starting point of the shortest land route between West Germany and West Berlin.

Geography

Helmstedt is situated in a basin between the Elm and Lappwald hill ranges, at the transition area between the northern foothills of the Harz mountains and the North German Plain. It is surrounded by the Elm-Lappwald Nature Park. The town centre is located about east of Braunschweig, west of Magdeburg, and east of the state capital Hanover. The municipal area includes the localities of Barmke and Emmerstedt, both incorporated by a 1974 administrative reform, and Büddenstedt, incorporated in 2017, as well as the

resort town A resort town, often called a resort city or resort destination, is an urban area where tourism or vacationing is the primary component of the local culture and economy. A typical resort town has one or more actual resorts in the surrounding ...

of Bad Helmstedt, about east of the town centre. Helmstedt currently has about 25,000 inhabitants (2015).

History

The settlement in the Duchy of Saxony was first mentioned as ''Helmonstede'' in a 952 deed issued by the

king Otto I. In former times also called ''Helmstädt'', the town developed in the vicinity of the Benedictine

St. Ludger's Abbey St. Ludger's Abbey (german: Kloster St. Ludgeri) was a former monastery of the Benedictine Order in Helmstedt, Lower Saxony, founded by Saint Ludger around 800. Until it was secularised in 1802 it was an Imperial Abbey, with sovereignty over the ...

that was founded around 800 by

Saint Liudger Ludger ( la, Ludgerus; also Lüdiger or Liudger) (born at Zuilen near Utrecht 742; died 26 March 809 at Billerbeck) was a missionary among the Frisians and Saxons, founder of Werden Abbey and the first Bishop of Münster in Westphalia. He has ...

as a mission station. Helmstedt's town privileges were documented in 1247. It belonged to the Abbacy of

Werden Werden is a southern borough of the city of Essen in Germany. It belongs to the city district ''IX Werden/Kettwig/Bredeney'' and has 9,998 inhabitants as of June 30, 2006. The borough occupies a space of and is situated at a median height of . __ ...

until 1490, when it was bought by the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg. From 1576 to 1810, the University of Helmstedt was located here. From the late 1940s to 1990, the town was the site of a major border crossing between the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic. The main rail and autobahn route between West Germany and Berlin, across the

GDR 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 ...

, began at the Helmstedt–Marienborn border crossing, also known as Checkpoint Alpha. Official military traffic from NATO countries to West Berlin was only allowed to use this route.

Transport

The town lies on the Brunswick-Magdeburg railway. Image:Rathaus Helmstedt.jpg, Mayor's office (built 1904 - 1906) Image:Helmstedt Eulenturm.JPG, The "Owl Tower" of the medieval town wall Image:Hausmannsturm Helmstedt.jpg, The Hausmannsturm of Helmstedt Image:Helmstedt-Grenzdenkmal.jpg, Memorial to the former border between West and East Germany

Notable people

Franz Heinrich Ludolf Ahrens Franz Heinrich Ludolf Ahrens (6 June 1809, Helmstedt – 25 September 1881, Hanover) was a German philologist. He was born in Helmstedt. After studying at the University of Göttingen (1826-1829) under Karl Otfried Müller and Georg Ludolf Dissen, ...

(1809–1881), philologist *

Bibiana Beglau Bibiana Beglau (born 16 July 1971) is a German actress. Life Born in Braunschweig, Lower Saxony, Bibiana Beglau is the daughter of a border guard and a nurse. After training as an actor at the University of Music and Theatre in Hamburg, she wor ...

(born 1971), actress *

Victor von Bruns Victor von Bruns (9 August 1812 – 19 March 1883) was a German surgeon born in Helmstedt. He studied at Braunschweig, Tübingen, Halle and Berlin, and from 1843 to 1882 was a professor of surgery at the University of Tübingen. His son, Pau ...

(1812–1883), physician and plastic surgeon * Georg Fein (1803–1869), journalist and democratic politician of Vormärz, founder and organizer of Workers' Educational Association *

Peter Feldmann Peter Manuel Feldmann (born 7 October 1958) is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD). On 25 March 2012, he was elected Mayor of Frankfurt as successor of Petra Roth (CDU). On 6 November 2022, he was recalled, with 95% of th ...

(born 1958), politician, mayor (SPD) of Frankfurt since 2012 * Johann Andreas Graeffer (1746–1802), botanist and nurseryman remembered by garden historians as having introduced a number of exotic plants to British gardens *

Asta Hampe Asta Hampe (24 May 1907 – 22 October 2003) was a German electrical engineer, mechanical engineer, physicist, economist and statistician. According to ''The Woman Engineer'', Hampe was the first German member of the Women's Engineering Society, ...

(1907– 2003), engineer, physicist, economist and statistician * Johann Christian Friedrich Heyer (1793–1873), the first missionary who was sent abroad by Lutherans in the US * Hans Krebs (1898–1945), military officer and chief of staff of the Wehrmacht *

Rudolf Leuckart Karl Georg Friedrich Rudolf Leuckart (7 October 1822 – 22 February 1898) was a German zoologist born in Helmstedt. He was a nephew to naturalist Friedrich Sigismund Leuckart (1794–1843). Academic career He earned his degree from the Uni ...

(1822–1898), biologist and founder of

parasitology Parasitology is the study of parasites, their hosts, and the relationship between them. As a biological discipline, the scope of parasitology is not determined by the organism or environment in question but by their way of life. This means it fo ...

* Anton August Heinrich Lichtenstein (1753–1816), zoologist and librarian *

Johann Heinrich Meibom Johann Heinrich Meibom ( la, Iohannes Henricus Meibomius; 29 June 1638, in Lübeck – 26 March 1700, in Helmstedt) was a German physician and scholar. Life Heinrich Meibom was the son of physician Johann Heinrich Meibom (1590-1655), who was th ...

(1590–1655), physician and professor of medicine at the University of Helmstedt * Karl Reinhard (1769–1840), writer and editor of the ''Göttingen Musenalmanach'' *

Stefan Rinke Stefan Rinke (born December 31, 1965) is a German historian and specialist in Latin American history. Since 2005 he has been professor at the Institute of Latin American Studies and at the Friedrich-Meinecke-Institut at Freie Universität Berlin. ...

(born 1965), historian and specialist in Latin American history * Theodor von Schubert (1758–1825), astronomer *

Paul Gottlieb Werlhof Paul Gottlieb Werlhof (24 March 1699 – 26 July 1767) was a German physician and poet who was a native of Helmstedt. He studied medicine at the University of Helmstedt under Lorenz Heister (1683–1758) and Brandanus Meibom (1678–1740) ...

(1699–1767), Royal Hanoverian court physician and poet *

Andree Wiedener Andree Wiedener (born 11 March 1970) is a former professional footballer who played as a defender for SV Werder Bremen and Eintracht Frankfurt. Honours Werder Bremen * European Cup Winners' Cup: 1991–92 * Bundesliga 1992–93 * DFL-Super ...

(born 1970), footballer In addition, see the list of famous students and professors of the University of Helmstedt.

Twin towns – sister cities

Helmstedt is twinned with: * Albuquerque, United States *

Chard Chard or Swiss chard (; ''Beta vulgaris'' subsp. ''vulgaris'', Cicla Group and Flavescens Group) is a green leafy vegetable. In the cultivars of the Flavescens Group, the leaf stalks are large and often prepared separately from the leaf blade; ...

, England, United Kingdom *

Fiuggi Fiuggi ( Central-Northern Latian dialect: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Frosinone in the region of Lazio in central Italy. The town of Fiuggi became famous for its Acqua di Fiuggi (Fiuggi Water) which flows from its natural ...

, Italy * Haldensleben, Germany * Orăştie, Romania *

Svietlahorsk , nickname = Svietly (The Bright), , image_skyline = Svetlahorsk, Homieĺ Voblaść, Belarus.JPG , image_size = , image_caption = In the center of town, with ''16-floor one'' (left) and ''house with a clock'' (rig ...

, Belarus * Vitré, France

References

External links

*
District Emmerstedt (in German)Helmstedt-CITYTOUR (photo-gallery)Map of Helmstedt
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20050410064839/http://home.att.net/~rails_to_berlin/border.htm Riding with the locomotive engineer (engine driver) across the former intra-German frontier in 2005 {{Authority control Helmstedt (district) Members of the Hanseatic League Duchy of Brunswick