Itzehoe (; nds, Itzhoe) 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

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 **Ge ...

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; da, Slesvig-Holsten; nds, Sleswig-Holsteen; frr, Slaswik-Holstiinj) is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Sch ...

. As the capital of the district

Steinburg Steinburg () is a district in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, administered from Itzehoe. It is bounded by (from the west and clockwise) the districts of Dithmarschen, Rendsburg-Eckernförde, Segeberg and Pinneberg, and by the Elbe River (and the dis ...

, Itzehoe is located on the

Stör The Stör () is a river in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, right tributary of the Elbe. Its total length is . The Stör rises east of Neumünster, and flows west through Neumünster, Kellinghusen, and Itzehoe. The Stör joins the Elbe near Glücksta ...

, a navigable tributary of the

Elbe The Elbe (; cs, Labe ; nds, Ilv or ''Elv''; Upper and dsb, Łobjo) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Repu ...

, 51 km (31.7 mi) northwest of

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

and 24 km (14.9 mi) north of

Glückstadt Glückstadt (; da, Lykstad) is a town in the Steinburg district of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is located on the right bank of the Lower Elbe at the confluence of the small Rhin river, about northwest of Altona. Glückstadt is part of the ...

. The population is about 32,530.

History

Itzehoe is the oldest town in

Holstein Holstein (; nds, label=Northern Low Saxon, Holsteen; da, Holsten; Latin and historical en, Holsatia, italic=yes) is the region between the rivers Elbe and Eider. It is the southern half of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost state of German ...

. Its nucleus was a

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

, built in 809 by Egbert, one of

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first Holy ...

count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

s, against the

Danes Danes ( da, danskere, ) are a North Germanic ethnic group and nationality native to Denmark and a modern nation identified with the country of Denmark. This connection may be ancestral, legal, historical, or cultural. Danes generally regard t ...

. The community that sprang up around it was variously called Esseveldoburg, Eselsfleth and Ezeho. In 1201 the town was destroyed but it was restored in 1224. The new town was granted the

Lübeck rights Lübeck (; Low German also ), officially the Hanseatic City of Lübeck (german: Hansestadt Lübeck), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 217,000 inhabitants, Lübeck is the second-largest city on the German Baltic coast and in the st ...

by Adolphus IV in 1238 and the old town in 1303. During the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...

Itzehoe was twice destroyed by the

Swedes Swedes ( sv, svenskar) are a North Germanic ethnic group native to the Nordic region, primarily their nation state of Sweden, who share a common ancestry, culture, history and language. They mostly inhabit Sweden and the other Nordic countr ...

, in 1644 and 1657, but was rebuilt on each occasion. It passed 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 1867, with the

duchy A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a Middle Ages, medieval country, territory, fiefdom, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or Queen regnant, queen in Western European tradition. There once exis ...

of Schleswig-Holstein. Itzehoe is listed as a garrison depot (Wehrkreis X, Hamburg) of the former Infanteriedivision 225, which was implicated in the 1940 Vinkt Massacre in Belgium.

Sights

The Church of St. Laurentii and the building in which the Holstein estates formerly met are noteworthy. The town has a

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

founded in 1256, many

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compuls ...

s, a

hospital A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...

and other benevolent institutions. Itzehoe is also the location of the

Wenzel Hablik Wenzel August Hablik, also known as Wenceslav Hablik and Wilhelm August Hablik (4 August 1881 – 23 March 1934), was a painter, graphic artist, architect, designer, and craftsman of the early twentieth century, associated with German Expressio ...

Museum.

Transport

Itzehoe is situated at the

Marsh Railway The Marsh Railway (german: Marschbahn) is a main line in the state of Schleswig-Holstein in Germany that links the stations of Elmshorn in the south and Westerland on the island of Sylt in the north. It is part of long route from Hamburg-Alt ...

and offers connections to

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

and the island of

Sylt Sylt (; da, Sild; Sylt North Frisian, Söl'ring North Frisian: ) is an island in northern Germany, part of Nordfriesland district, Schleswig-Holstein, and well known for the distinctive shape of its shoreline. It belongs to the North Frisian ...

. During the period up to and including the

Wacken Open Air Wacken Open Air (, abbreviated as W:O:A) is a rock music, rock music festival, held annually since 1990 on the first weekend of August in the village of Wacken, Schleswig-Holstein, Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Almost all styles and su ...

festival many festival goers depart for the festival from Itzehoe using the 'Metal Shuttle Bus’, which leaves from near

Itzehoe station Itzehoe station is a railway station in the town of Itzehoe in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. It is located on the Marsh Railway, which is electrified from Elmshorn station, Elmshorn up to this point. It is classified by Deutsche Bahn ...

. During this time the town can become very overcrowded and inundated with traffic.

Twin towns – sister cities

Itzehoe is twinned with: *

Cirencester Cirencester (, ; see below for more variations) is a market town in Gloucestershire, England, west of London. Cirencester lies on the River Churn, a tributary of the River Thames, and is the largest town in the Cotswolds. It is the home of ...

, England, United Kingdom * La Couronne, France *

Pasłęk Pasłęk (pronounced ; formerly known in Polish as Holąd Pruski, , Old Prussian: ''Pāistlauks'', lt, Paslenkas) is a historic town in northern Poland, within Elbląg County in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship. In 2017, the town had 12,298 regis ...

, Poland

Notable people

* Carl Julian (von) Graba (1799–1874), German lawyer and ornithologist who visited and studied the Faroe Islands *

Bruno Adler Bruno Maria Adler (14 October 1888 – 27 December 1968) was a German art historian and writer. He taught art history in Weimar and lectured about it at the Bauhaus. Adler fled Germany after the Nazis seized power and emigrated to England, where ...

(1896–1954), Bishop of the German Christians *

Hans-Joachim Newiger Hans-Joachim Newiger (1 April 1925 – 26 December 2011) was a German classical philologist. Life Born in Königsberg, Newiger was appointed on 21 December 1953 at the University of Kiel with his Dissertation ''Metaphern und Chorpersonifikation ...

(1925–2011), philologist * H. G. Francis (1936–2011), writer *

Sabine Sinjen Sabine Sinjen (18 August 1942 – 18 May 1995) was a German film actress. She appeared in more than 50 films between 1957 and 1994. Sinjen was married to television director Peter Beauvais from 1963 to 1984. She appeared as one of 28 women ...

(1942–1995), actress * Jerzy Janeczek (1944–2021), Polish actor *

Antje Blumenthal Antje Blumenthal (born 25 December 1947 in Itzehoe) is a German politician and member of the Christian Democratic Union (Germany), CDU. From 2001 to 2009, she was a member of the Bundestag. External links Official website
1947 birt ...

(born 1947), politician * Sylvia Convey (born 1948), Latvian-Australian artist *

Olaf Berner Olaf Berner (born 31 August 1949 in Itzehoe) is a German teacher and former team handball player. Olaf Berner is member of THW Kiel since the early 1960s. He left the club two times for playing with the TSV Altenholz at the Handball-Bundesliga, b ...

(born 1949), teacher and handball player * Heiger Ostertag (born 1953), historian *

Thomas Gerull Thomas Gerull (born 2 January 1962) is a German fencer. He won a silver medal in the team épée event at the 1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as S ...

(born 1962), fencer, Olympic medalist * Sven Butenschön (born 1976), ice hockey player *

Lisa Tomaschewsky Lisa Tomaschewsky (born 22 July 1988) is a German film and television actress. She was the German Playboy Playmate of the Month for February 2009. Filmography * 2011: ''Verbotene Liebe'' * 2011: ''Hut in the Woods'' * 2013: ''Küstenwache ( ...

(born 1988), actress

References

External links

Itzehoe Notgeld
(emergency banknotes) depicting the inflation of staple prices in Germany between 1913–1921 Towns in Schleswig-Holstein Steinburg {{Steinburg-geo-stub