Luckenwalde (;

Upper Upper may refer to: * Shoe upper or ''vamp'', the part of a shoe on the top of the foot * Stimulant, drugs which induce temporary improvements in either mental or physical function or both * ''Upper'', the original film title for the 2013 found fo ...

and dsb, Łukowc) is the capital of the Teltow-Fläming district in the German state of Brandenburg. It is situated on the

Nuthe The Nuthe is a river in Brandenburg, Germany, left tributary of the Havel. Its total length is . The Nuthe originates in the Fläming region, near Niedergörsdorf. It flows north through Jüterbog, Luckenwalde, Trebbin and Saarmund. The Nuthe jo ...

river north of the Fläming Heath, at the eastern rim of the Nuthe-Nieplitz Nature Park, about south of Berlin. The town area includes the villages of Frankenfelde and Kolzenburg.

Overview

The former Slavic settlement of ''Lugkin'' was conquered by Margrave Conrad Wettin of Meissen in the course of the 1147 Wendish Crusade. ''Lukenwalde'' Castle was first mentioned in a 1216 deed as a burgward of the Bishopric of Brandenburg, it was acquired by Zinna Abbey in 1285. Together with Zinna it remained under the rule of the

Archbishopric of Magdeburg The Archbishopric of Magdeburg was a Roman Catholic archdiocese (969–1552) and Prince-Archbishopric (1180–1680) of the Holy Roman Empire centered on the city of Magdeburg on the Elbe River. Planned since 955 and established in 968, the Roma ...

and its successor, the Prussian Duchy of Magdeburg until it was attached to the Margraviate of Brandenburg in 1773. Originating in the 17th century, Luckenwalde's cloth and wool factories did not spring up till the reign of King

Frederick II of Prussia Frederick II (german: Friedrich II.; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was King in Prussia from 1740 until 1772, and King of Prussia from 1772 until his death in 1786. His most significant accomplishments include his military successes in the Sil ...

and soon were among the most extensive in Germany. Other traditional industries were cotton printing and a dye works, brewing, and the making of metal and bronze goods. In 1808 Luckenwalde officially received town privileges. By the turn of the 20th Century Luckenwalde became renowned as a key manufacturer of hats. In 1921 the two biggest hat ateliers, Herrmann and Steinberg, merged and set up their factory on an industrial estate in Luckenwalde. The factory was designed by German architect

Erich Mendelsohn Erich Mendelsohn (21 March 1887 – 15 September 1953) was a German architect, known for his expressionist architecture in the 1920s, as well as for developing a dynamic Functionalism (architecture), functionalism in his projects for department ...

in 1923, the factory is considered a milestone of Expressionist architecture. The hat factory fell into disrepair during and after the war period and was restored in 2001, but as of 2013 the building remains empty. During World War II, there was a ''Stalag'' for prisoners of war ( Stalag III-A). There was also a work camp for civilians. The

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...

forced people to work for their war effort or else the families of people who worked there would perish. Lack of food and hard work killed thousands. Among them were Poles, Italians, French and many more. There were several places in the town and surrounding areas where they worked. Luckenwalde was taken by the Red Army on 22 April 1945.

Demography

File:Bevölkerungsentwicklung Luckenwalde.pdf, Development of Population since 1875 within the Current Boundaries (Blue Line: Population; Dotted Line: Comparison to Population Development of Brandenburg state; Grey Background: Time of Nazi rule; Red Background: Time of Communist rule) File:Bevölkerungsprognosen Luckenwalde.pdf, Recent Population Development and Projections (Population Development before Census 2011 (blue line); Recent Population Development according to the Census in Germany in 2011 (blue bordered line); Official projections for 2005-2030 (yellow line); for 2017-2030 (scarlet line); for 2020-2030 (green line)

Politics

Seats in the municipal assembly (''Stadtverordnetenversammlung'') as of 2014 elections: * The Left: 10 *

Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been the ...

(SPD): 9 * Christian Democratic Union (CDU): 6 * Bauernverband (BV): 1 *

Free Democratic Party Free Democratic Party is the name of several political parties around the world. It usually designates a party ideologically based on liberalism. Current parties with that name include: *Free Democratic Party (Germany), a liberal political party in ...

(FDP): 1 * National Democratic Party of Germany (NPD): 1

Transport

Luckenwalde station is located on the Berlin–Halle railway.

Notable people

* Marianne Adam (born 1951), shot putter * Carl (Carlos) Anwandter (1801–1889), 1848 revolutionary, emigre to Chile * Ilka Bessin (born 1971), comedian (Cindy aus Marzahn) * Rudi Dutschke (1940–1979), spokesman of the German 1968 student movement, attended school in Luckenwalde * Hans Freudenthal (1905–1990), mathematician * Hans Grohe (1871–1955), industrialist *

Michael Hanack Georg Michael Hanack (22 October 1931 – 6 November 2019) was a professor of chemistry at the University of Tübingen in Germany. Life and career Hanack was born in Luckenwalde on 22 October 1931. From 1949 to 1954 he studied chemistry, philo ...

(1931–2019), chemist *

Carl Harries Carl Dietrich Harries (5 August 1866 – 3 November 1923) was a German chemist born in Luckenwalde, Brandenburg, Prussia. He received his doctorate in 1892. In 1900, he married Hertha von Siemens, daughter of the electrical genius Werner von Sie ...

(1866–1923), chemist * Hans-Joachim Hecht (born 1939 ), chess master * David Hollwitz (born 1989), footballer * Bernhard Kadenbach (born 1933), biochemist * Paul Koebe (1882–1945), mathematician *

Niklas Kohrt Niklas Kohrt (born 21 March 1980 in Luckenwalde, Bezirk Potsdam) is a German actor. Life Niklas Kohrt spent his childhood and youth in Berlin]. In 1999 he got his "Abitur" at the Karl-Schiller-Oberschule and began his one-year national service ...

(born 1980), actor * Hans Krueger (1909–1988), Gestapo officer and Holocaust perpetrator, attended school in Luckenwalde * Susanne Lahme (born 1951), volleyball player *

Werner Lamberz Werner Lamberz (14 April 1929 – 6 March 1978) was a senior politician in the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). In a system under which political advancement was generally achieved only slowly and the men who reached the higher levels ...

(1929–1978), senior politician in the GDR, apprenticed in Luckenwalde *

Carla Nelte Carla Nyenhuis ( Nelte, born 21 September 1990) is a German badminton player. She started playing badminton at 5 years old in her hometown and became a national team member in 2009. In 2014, she took double victories at the Brasil Open in the ...

(born 1990), badminton player * Maria Nicklisch (1904–1995), stage actress * Katherina Reiche (born 1973), politician (CDU) * Heinz-Joachim Rothenburg (born 1944), shot putter * Herbert Schoen (1929–2014), footballer *

Franz Urbig Franz Urbig (23 January 1864 – 28 September 1944) was a German banker. He joined the Disconto-Gesellschaft as a trainee on 15 July 1884 and built much of his career and reputation within this bank in Southeast Asia during the final part of the ...

(1864–1944), banker

International relations

Luckenwalde is

twinned Twinning (making a twin of) may refer to: * In biology and agriculture, producing two offspring (i.e., twins) at a time, or having a tendency to do so; * Twin towns and sister cities, towns and cities involved in town twinning * Twinning inst ...

with: * Dieppe, Seine-Maritime, France * Bad Salzuflen, Germany

References

External links

Notgeld (emergency banknotes) depicting th
industries Luckenwalde was known for
in the early 20th century. http://webgerman.com/Notgeld/Directory/L/Luckenwalde.htm {{Authority control Localities in Teltow-Fläming