The Liebenwerda Heath (german: Liebenwerdaer Heide), formerly also the ''Liebenwerda District Heath'' (''Liebenwerdaer Amtsheide''), is a

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

region in the south of the German state of

Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a states of Germany, state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an ar ...

Elbe-Elster Land Elbe-Elster Land (german: Elbe-Elster-Land), also called the Elbe-Elster region (''Elbe-Elster-Gebiet'') is a region around the tripoint of the German states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt and Saxony. It is part of the North German Plain and is ...

that in earlier times was mainly used for

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. Th ...

and

hunting Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...

. It is located east of the spa town of

Bad Liebenwerda Bad Liebenwerda () is a spa town in the Elbe-Elster district, in southwestern Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated on the river Schwarze Elster, 57 km northwest of Dresden, and 28 km east of Torgau. History The first written mention is ...

between the villages of Dobra in the west and

Gorden Gorden is an English variant of ''Gordon''. Notable people with the name include: given name; * Gorden Kaye, English actor * Gorden Kelley, American football player * Gorden Moyo, Zimbabwean politician * Gorden Tallis, Australian rugby player * Go ...

in the east. To the north it extends as far as the village of Oppelhain in the municipality of Rückersdorf and in the south to the northern boundary of

Haida Haida may refer to: Places * Haida, an old name for Nový Bor * Haida Gwaii, meaning "Islands of the People", formerly called the Queen Charlotte Islands * Haida Islands, a different archipelago near Bella Bella, British Columbia Ships * , a 1 ...

. In 1557, the

Electoral Saxon The Electorate of Saxony, also known as Electoral Saxony (German: or ), was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire from 1356–1806. It was centered around the cities of Dresden, Leipzig and Chemnitz. In the Golden Bull of 1356, Emperor Charle ...

mine surveyour (''Markscheider'') and state land surveyor (''Landvermesser''), Georg Öder, gave the dimensions of the heath as three miles long and one mile wide. It was once part of the Margrave Heath (''Markgrafenheide'') to which large parts of the region between Uebigau and

Sonnewalde Sonnewalde is a town in the Elbe-Elster district, in Lower Lusatia, Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated 8 km northwest of Finsterwalde. History From 1815 to 1947, Sonnewalde was part of the Prussian Province of Brandenburg. From 1952 to 199 ...

belonged. On the Liebenwerda Heath was one of the largest contiguous

sessile oak ''Quercus petraea'', commonly known as the sessile oak, Cornish oak, Irish Oak or durmast oak, is a species of oak tree native to most of Europe and into Anatolia and Iran. The sessile oak is the national tree of Ireland, and an unofficial embl ...

forests of

Central Europe Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the area' ...

. Large parts of the terrain were used for decades as a military training area. The Forsthaus Prösa Nature Reserve, which lies on the heath and has an area of 3,695 hectares, is the heart of the

Lower Lusatian Heath Nature Park The Lower Lusatian Heath Nature Park (german: Naturpark Niederlausitzer Heidelandschaft) is a nature park and reserve in the state of Brandenburg, Germany. It covers an area of 490 km2 (189 sq mi). It was established on May 24, 1996. In th ...

, which covers 484 square kilometres.Der Naturpark Niederlausitzer Heidelandschaft auf der Homepage vom brandenburgischen Landesumweltamt

External links

References

{{coord, 51, 30, 52.32, N, 13, 31, 6.64, E, region:DE-BB_type:landmark, display=title Forests and woodlands of Brandenburg Geography of Brandenburg Nature reserves in Brandenburg Geography of Lusatia Elbe-Elster Land Elbe-Elster