Markersbach is a former municipality on the river

Große Mittweida The Große Mittweida (short also Mittweida) is a river of Saxony, Germany. It is a right tributary of the Schwarzwasser, which it joins in Schwarzenberg. Its source is on the north slope of the Fichtelberg. See also *List of rivers of Saxony ...

in the district of

Erzgebirgskreis Erzgebirgskreis is a district ('' Kreis'') in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is named after the Erzgebirge ("Ore Mountains"), a mountain range in the southern part of the district which forms part of the Germany–Czech Republic border. I ...

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 ...

. Since 1 January 2008, Markersbach and

Raschau Raschau is a former municipality in the district of Erzgebirgskreis in Saxony, Germany. Since 1 January 2008, Raschau and Markersbach have formed the municipality Raschau-Markersbach.Raschau-Markersbach Raschau-Markersbach is a municipality in the district of Erzgebirgskreis in Saxony, Germany. It was formed on 1 January 2008, by the merger of the former municipalities Markersbach and Raschau.Gebietsänderungen vom 01.01. bis 31.12.2008

Statistisches Bundesamt The Federal Statistical Office (german: Statistisches Bundesamt, shortened ''Destatis'') is a federal authority of Germany. It reports to the Federal Ministry of the Interior. The Office is responsible for collecting, processing, presenting and ...

Constituent communities

Markersbach had two of these: Mittweida and Unterscheibe.

History

The forest homestead village (''

Waldhufendorf The ''Waldhufendorf'' ("forest village"; plural: -''dörfer'') is a form of rural settlement established in areas of forest clearing with the farms arranged in a series along a road or stream, like beads on a chain.Dickinson, Robert E (1964). ''G ...

'') came into being in the early 13th century and was described as ''Marckquartisdorff'' in 1240 and as ''Margerßbach'' in 1555. It belonged first to the

Cistercian The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

at Grünhain, after whose secularization it was governed by the monastery's legal successor, the ''Amt'' of Grünhain. The actual village of Markersbach consisted of only three and a half ''Hufen'' and a number of cottager plots. It has been governed at least since the 16th century together with the neighbouring, bigger village of Unterscheibe, and indeed in most old documents, the union is simply named as Unterscheibe. For justice's sake, a judge and jurymen were appointed for both villages. The village stream, parts of which are called ''Markersbach'' and other parts of which are called ''Scheibenbach'' is a right-bank tributary to the Große Mittweida. Lately, the name ''Abrahamsbach'' has become accepted, which stems from the headwaters near the once important ''Vater Abraham''

iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the fo ...

mine in Oberscheibe. Two possible meanings of the name Markersbach have been considered. It could have been named after a colonist leader named Markquart, who had the village built. On the other hand, the name could have come from the description ''Markwart'', a border post (“''Mark”'' was a common word for border areas – or

marches In medieval Europe, a march or mark was, in broad terms, any kind of borderland, as opposed to a national "heartland". More specifically, a march was a border between realms or a neutral buffer zone under joint control of two states in which diff ...

– in Saxony) The village acquired its special importance through its church consecrated to

Saints Peter and Paul Peter and Paul may refer to: * Saint Peter and Paul the Apostle considered together ** Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, 29 June in the Catholic liturgical calendar ** St. Peter and St. Paul's Church (disambiguation) * ''Peter and Paul'' (film), 1 ...

in 1250, through which Markersbach became one of the original parishes in the western Ore Mountains. It was likely run in the earliest centuries of its existence by the Grünhain Monastery. Only in 1265, however, was a vicar mentioned by name (“Paul”). In 1500, the church was mentioned in a pilgrimage bull under its modern name

St. Barbara Saint Barbara ( grc, Ἁγία Βαρβάρα; cop, Ϯⲁⲅⲓⲁ Ⲃⲁⲣⲃⲁⲣⲁ; ; ), known in the Eastern Orthodox Church as the Great Martyr Barbara, was an early Christian Lebanese and Greek saint and martyr. Accounts place her in t ...

, the patron saint of miners. When the name was changed is unknown. To the parish belonged Markersbach, Unterscheibe, Mittweida and Schwarzbach. In older times

Raschau Raschau is a former municipality in the district of Erzgebirgskreis in Saxony, Germany. Since 1 January 2008, Raschau and Markersbach have formed the municipality Raschau-Markersbach.Scheibenberg Scheibenberg is a town in the district of Erzgebirgskreis in Saxony in Germany. It is situated in the Ore Mountains, 8 km southwest of Annaberg-Buchholz, and 9 km east of Schwarzenberg. History From 1952 to 1990, Scheibenberg was pa ...

had been founded. In 1837, Schwarzbach was separated from the parish after its own church had been built in 1835, and that after a protracted disagreement. Since 2006, the parish has had a “sister church relationship” with the “All Hallows Parish” of Raschau as holder of the communal parish posts, and the “Saint Anne’s Parish” of

Grünstädtel Schwarzenberg is a town in the district of Erzgebirgskreis in Saxony’s Ore Mountains, near the German–Czech border. The town lies roughly 15 km southeast of Aue, and 35 km southwest of Chemnitz. Founded in the 12th century to pr ...

. The first schoolteacher in the village known to history appeared in 1535. The school building that stands today dates from 1862. A further school building was built in 1982, which is now used as a

kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cent ...

. The state primary school was shut down in 2001. Only the Jena Plan school, a state-recognized

middle school A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school. ...

in free sponsorship, maintains school services in the community. In the 19th century, with the community council’s and the people’s efforts, the name Markersbach was accepted as a name for the community of Markersbach and Unterscheibe. In 1889, Markersbach was connected to the

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

line from Schwarzenberg to Annaberg, which was closed to passenger transport on 27 September 1997. The station lay in Mittweida’s municipal area and the platform signs read ''Mittweida-Markersbach''. To overcome the great elevation differential, the railway's alignment takes it along a broad bow through the community. Furthermore, three bridges are needed to cross narrow dales. After negotiations lasting more than twenty years, the neighbouring industrial community of Mittweida was amalgamated with Markersbach on 1 July 1935, bringing the community to the extent that it still enjoys now. Beginning in 1968, the inhabitants of the constituent community of Obermittweida were moved to make room for a hydroelectric power station. Since 1991, the

Middle Franconia Middle Franconia (german: Mittelfranken, ) is one of the three administrative regions of Franconia in Bavaria, Germany. It is located in the west of Bavaria and borders the state of Baden-Württemberg. The administrative seat is Ansbach; however, ...

n market community of

Obernzenn Obernzenn is a municipality in the district of Neustadt (Aisch)-Bad Windsheim in Bavaria in Germany. Personalities * Johann Michael Zeyher (1770-1843), Baden director of the theater * Johann Appler (1892-1978), NSDAP politician, SA and SS man ...

has been a partner community. Since 1990, the chief mayor has been Manfred Meyer (born 1950). At the last election in 2001 he won 97.2% of the vote, and no candidates stood against him. By municipal council's resolution on 28 February 2007, the community of Markersbach is seeking the restructuring of the administrative community that has hitherto existed into a unified community through the amalgamation of the communities of Markersbach, Raschau and Pöhla by 1 January 2008. Fighting for another plan for amalgamation with Schwarzenberg rather than the plan envisaged by Markersbach is the community of Pöhla, a stand legitimized by plebiscite held there on 26 November 2006. The municipal council's decision needed to remove Pöhla from the administrative community so that this might be done was expected in October 2007. The creation of the

Raschau-Markersbach Raschau-Markersbach is a municipality in the district of Erzgebirgskreis in Saxony, Germany. It was formed on 1 January 2008, by the merger of the former municipalities Markersbach and Raschau.Markersbach Pumped Storage Power Plant with its two man-made upper and lower water basins. * The 37-m-high ''Markersbacher Viadukt'', known as the ''Streichholzbrücke'' or “Matchstick Bridge”, on the Schwarzenberg–Annaberg railway line * Construction site of the Markersbach bypass (completion date Nov. 2008)

Sons and daughters of the community

* Manfred Günther (1942–2005?),

East German East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

racecar driver * Jürgen Escher (b. 1951), former player and coach for

Wismut Aue Fußball Club Erzgebirge Aue e.V., commonly known as simply FC Erzgebirge Aue or Erzgebirge Aue (), is a German football club based in Aue-Bad Schlema, Saxony. The former East German side was a founding member of the 3. Liga in 2008–09, ...

References

External links

Evangelical Lutheran parish of Markersbach
{{Authority control Former municipalities in Saxony Erzgebirgskreis

Constituent communities

History

Sons and daughters of the community

Further reading

References

External links