Hochsauerlandkreis (meaning “High Sauerland District” in German) is a
Kreis (district) in the east of
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a States of Germany, state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more tha ...
,
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 ...
. Neighboring districts are
Soest,
Paderborn
Paderborn (; Westphalian: ''Patterbuorn'', also ''Paterboärn'') is a city in eastern North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, capital of the Paderborn district. The name of the city derives from the river Pader and ''Born'', an old German term for t ...
,
Höxter
Höxter () is a town in eastern North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany on the left bank of the river Weser, 52 km north of Kassel in the centre of the Weser Uplands. The main town's population is around 15,000, and with outlying centres, about 30,0 ...
,
Waldeck-Frankenberg
Waldeck-Frankenberg is a ''Kreis'' (district) in the north of Hesse, Germany. Neighbouring districts are Höxter, Kassel, Schwalm-Eder, Marburg-Biedenkopf, Siegen-Wittgenstein, Hochsauerland.
History
The district was created in 1972 by merging t ...
,
Siegen-Wittgenstein,
Olpe,
Märkischer Kreis
The Märkischer Kreis is a district ('' Kreis'') in central North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighbouring districts are Unna, Soest, Hochsauerland, Olpe, Oberbergischer Kreis, Ennepe-Ruhr, and the city of Hagen.
History
The district was create ...
.
The district is named “High Sauerland” because two of the highest mountains of the
Sauerland mountainous landscape,
Langenberg and
Kahler Asten Kahler may refer to:
Places
*Kahler, Luxembourg, a small town in the commune of Garnich
*Kahler Asten, a German mountain range
Other uses
*Kahler (surname)
*Kahler's disease, a cancer otherwise known as ''multiple myeloma''
*Kahler Tremolo System, ...
are in its territory. With 2,766 ft / 843 m (Langenberg) and 2,762 ft / 842 m (Kahler Asten) these are also the highest mountains of
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a States of Germany, state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more tha ...
.
History
The district was established in 1975 in the reorganization of the districts in
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a States of Germany, state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more tha ...
by merging the previous districts Arnsberg, Brilon and Meschede.
Geography
Geographically the district covers a big part of the
Sauerland
The Sauerland () is a rural, hilly area spreading across most of the south-eastern part of North Rhine-Westphalia, in parts heavily forested and, apart from the major valleys, sparsely inhabited.
The Sauerland is the largest tourist region in ...
mountains, including the highest and third highest elevation – the
Langenberg near
Olsberg with 2,766 ft / 843 m, and the better known
Kahler Asten Kahler may refer to:
Places
*Kahler, Luxembourg, a small town in the commune of Garnich
*Kahler Asten, a German mountain range
Other uses
*Kahler (surname)
*Kahler's disease, a cancer otherwise known as ''multiple myeloma''
*Kahler Tremolo System, ...
with 2,762 ft / 842 m near
Winterberg
Winterberg ( Westphalian: ''Winnenmerg'') is a town in the Hochsauerland district of North Rhine-Westphalia, central Germany and a major winter sport resort of the Wintersport Arena Sauerland.
Geography
Winterberg is located in the middle of ...
. These are also the two highest mountains of
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a States of Germany, state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more tha ...
.
Coat of arms
The coat of arms was inherited from the former district
Arnsberg
Arnsberg (; wep, Arensperg) is a town in the Hochsauerland county, in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the location of the Regierungsbezirk Arnsberg administration and one of the three local administration offices of the Hochs ...
. It shows the eagle as the symbol of the Earls of Arnsberg. When their county lost independence in 1368 it fell to the bishops of
Cologne
Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...
, thus the sign on the breast of the eagle shows the Cologne cross.
Towns and municipalities
Town twinnings
Hochsauerland is
twinned with the following cities:
*
West Lothian, Scotland
Notable persons
*
Franz Hoffmeister
Franz Hoffmeister (22 March 1898 – 27 March 1943) was a German Roman Catholic priest and the founder of the Sauerländer Heimatbund and Festspiele Balver Höhle.
Life
Hoffmeister was born in Ramsbeck. He was consecrated to a Roman Catholic p ...
(died 1943), Roman Catholic priest
Notable places
*
Abbey Bergkloster
An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christians, Christian monks and nuns ...
, Bestwig
*
Abbey Grafschaft, Schmallenberg
*
Abbey Königsmünster, Meschede
References
External links
*
Touristic website
{{Coord, 51.25, 8.33, display=title, format=dms
Districts of North Rhine-Westphalia
Sauerland
1975 establishments in West Germany