Königsbrück (

Upper Sorbian Upper Sorbian (), occasionally referred to as "Wendish", is a minority language spoken by Sorbs in Germany in the historical province of Upper Lusatia, which is today part of Saxony. It is grouped in the West Slavic language branch, together ...

: ''Kinspork'') is a town in the

Bautzen Bautzen () or Budyšin () is a hill-top town in eastern Saxony, Germany, and the administrative centre of the district of Bautzen. It is located on the Spree river. In 2018 the town's population was 39,087. Until 1868, its German name was ''Budi ...

district, in

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

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 ...

. It is situated west of

Kamenz Kamenz () or Kamjenc ( Sorbian) is a town (''Große Kreisstadt'') in the district of Bautzen in Saxony, Germany. Until 2008 it was the administrative seat of Kamenz District. The town is known as the birthplace of the philosopher and poet Gotthol ...

, and northeast of the Saxon capital

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...

. Königsbrück is known as the western gate of the historic

Upper Lusatia Upper Lusatia (german: Oberlausitz ; hsb, Hornja Łužica ; dsb, Górna Łužyca; szl, Gōrnŏ Łużyca; pl, Łużyce Górne or ''Milsko''; cz, Horní Lužice) is a historical region in Germany and Poland. Along with Lower Lusatia to the ...

region.

History

First mentioned in 1248 the settlement arose around a fortress in the Bohemian crown land of Upper Lusatia where the ''

Via Regia The Via Regia (Royal Highway) is a European Cultural Route following the route of the historic road of the Middle Ages. There were many such ''viae regiae'' associated with the king in the medieval Holy Roman Empire. History Origins The V ...

'' trade route crossed the border with the Margraviate of Meissen. First mentioned as a town in 1331, Königsbrück from 1562 was the administrative centre of a Bohemian state country (''Freie Standesherrschaft''), which passed under the suzerainty of the Saxon Electorate according to the 1635 Peace of Prague. In 1906 the

Kingdom of Saxony The Kingdom of Saxony (german: Königreich Sachsen), lasting from 1806 to 1918, was an independent member of a number of historical confederacies in Napoleonic through post-Napoleonic Germany. The kingdom was formed from the Electorate of Saxon ...

had large proving grounds laid out for the

XII (1st Royal Saxon) Corps The XII (1st Royal Saxon) Army Corps / XII AK (german: XII. (I. Königlich Sächsisches) Armee-Korps) was a Saxon corps level command of the Saxon and German Armies before and during World War I. The Corps was formed as the Royal Saxon Corps on ...

stationed at Dresden, that after

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 ...

were used by the

Soviet Army uk, Радянська армія , image = File:Communist star with golden border and red rims.svg , alt = , caption = Emblem of the Soviet Army , start_date ...

and finally closed in 1992.

Transport

Königsbrück railway station is located south of the town centre. There are hourly passenger services to

Ottendorf-Okrilla Ottendorf-Okrilla is a municipality in the Bautzen district, Saxony, Germany. It is located 20 km northeast of Dresden. Geography The area of the municipality is 25.88 km², of which 1.58 km² are commercially used. The length from ...

and

Notable people

Georg Bartisch Georg Bartisch (1535–1607) was a German physician who was a native of Königsbrück, Saxonia. At the age of thirteen he began his medical career as an apprentice to a barber surgeon, and for a considerable portion of his life Bartisch was a ...

(1535–1607), physician, ophthalmologist and urologist *

Marvin Stefaniak Marvin Stefaniak (born 3 February 1995) is a German professional Association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder for club FC Erzgebirge Aue, Erzgebirge Aue. Career Beginnings and Dynamo Dresden Stefaniak began his career as a youth ...

(born 1995), footballer

References

West Lusatia Populated places in Bautzen (district) {{Bautzen-geo-stub