Seelitz is a municipality in the district of
Mittelsachsen
Mittelsachsen ("Central Saxony") is a district ('' Kreis'') in the Free State of Saxony, Germany.
History
The district was established by merging the former districts of Döbeln, Freiberg and Mittweida as part of the district reform of August ...
, 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 part of the administrative partnership based in the eponymous town.
Geography
The village of Seelitz is situated about 2 km south-east of
Rochlitz
Rochlitz (; hsb, Rochlica) is a major district town (Große Kreisstadt) in the district of Mittelsachsen, in Saxony, Germany. Rochlitz is the head of the "municipal partnership Rochlitz" (Verwaltungsgemeinschaft Rochlitz) with its other members ...
and 13 km north-east of
Mittweida
Mittweida () is a town in Saxony, Germany, in the Mittelsachsen district.
Geography
Mittweida is situated on the river Zschopau, 18 km north of Chemnitz, and 54 km west of Dresden. Embedded within the steep hills and valleys of the riv ...
, above the river
Zwickauer Mulde
The Zwickauer Mulde () is a river in Saxony, Germany. It is the left tributary of the Mulde and in length.
The source of the river is in the Ore Mountains, near Schöneck, in the Vogtlandkreis. It runs northeast to Aue, then northwest to Z ...
. The following communities have been incorporated:
History
Local history
Seelitz and the neighbouring villages are of
Slavic origin. Although there is no written evidence, this is proven by archeological finds, mostly pottery shards, by
Slavic burgwalls such as those near Fischheim and Köttern, by the names of populated places and landscape features, and by the layout and size of the historic land parcels in the communities.
The place is first mentioned in writing as ''Seliz'' in an 1174 deed of donation, according to which
margrave
Margrave was originally the medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or of a kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain feudal families in the Emp ...
Dedo the Fat of
Lusatia
Lusatia (german: Lausitz, pl, Łużyce, hsb, Łužica, dsb, Łužyca, cs, Lužice, la, Lusatia, rarely also referred to as Sorbia) is a historical region in Central Europe, split between Germany and Poland. Lusatia stretches from the Bóbr ...
gave four
Hufen Hufen was a broad region along northwestern Königsberg, Germany, which developed into the quarters of Ratshof, Amalienau, Mittelhufen, and Vorderhufen. The territory is now part of the Tsentralny District of Kaliningrad, Russia.
History
Hufen's ...
of Land in Seelitz to the newly founded
Zschillen monastery.
The spelling of the place name has changed little since then:
* 1174: Seliz
* 1205 and 1378: Selicz
* 1489: Zelitcz
* 1548: Selietz
* 1791: Seelitz
The name had
Old Sorbian origins, but its original meaning is unclear. It may be derived from a person's name ''Želidrog'', shortened to ''Žel'', or from ''zel'', which means 'green'
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 ...
and in later conflicts Seelitz suffered from
marauding troops and
epidemic
An epidemic (from Ancient Greek, Greek ἐπί ''epi'' "upon or above" and δῆμος ''demos'' "people") is the rapid spread of disease to a large number of patients among a given population within an area in a short period of time.
Epidemics ...
s.
Seelitz belonged administratively to
Amt
Amt is a type of administrative division governing a group of municipalities, today only in Germany, but formerly also common in other countries of Northern Europe. Its size and functions differ by country and the term is roughly equivalent to ...
Rochlitz.
Since the population of the neighbouring villages had to attend church services in Seelitz, it became an ecclesiastical centre of the region.
Following the incorporation of other communities during the 20th century, Seelitz now has 24 constituent parts.
Ecclesiastical history
According to the ('Misnian Chronicle'), the church of Seelitz dates back into the
8th century
The 8th century is the period from 701 ( DCCI) through 800 ( DCCC) in accordance with the Julian Calendar. The coast of North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula quickly came under Islamic Arab domination. The westward expansion of the Umayyad Empi ...
.
[(digitalisation))] The parish of Seelit was formed around the year 1000 and became part of the
diocese
In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop.
History
In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, pro ...
of
Meißen
Meissen (in German orthography: ''Meißen'', ) is a town of approximately 30,000 about northwest of Dresden on both banks of the Elbe river in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. Meissen is the home of Meissen porcelain, the Albrechts ...
,
after the country around Rochlitz had been occupied by
German settlers who had come from
Franconia
Franconia (german: Franken, ; Franconian dialect: ''Franggn'' ; bar, Frankn) is a region of Germany, characterised by its culture and Franconian dialect (German: ''Fränkisch'').
The three administrative regions of Lower, Middle and Upper Fr ...
. By this time, the
Sorbian population had formally converted to Christianity. Violent acts in connection with the
Christian mission
A Christian mission is an organized effort for the propagation of the Christian faith. Missions involve sending individuals and groups across boundaries, most commonly geographical boundaries, to carry on evangelism or other activities, such ...
are not reported from this area.
The lapidary inscriptions of the year dates 1516 and 1529 on the village church St Anna indicate that at this time a
romanesque church dating from the
11th century
The 11th century is the period from 1001 ( MI) through 1100 ( MC) in accordance with the Julian calendar, and the 1st century of the 2nd millennium.
In the history of Europe, this period is considered the early part of the High Middle Ages. Th ...
had been replaced by the extant
hall church
A hall church is a church with a nave and aisles of approximately equal height, often united under a single immense roof. The term was invented in the mid-19th century by Wilhelm Lübke, a pioneering German art historian. In contrast to an archi ...
in
late gothic style.
Around 1430 Seelitz suffered from the invasion of
Hussitic troops, during which time the church was destroyed. Seelitz joined the
Protestant Reformation
The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
comparatively early, the local school which was erected in 1527 was probably already Protestant from the beginning.
From 1769 to 1761, the local church was rebuilt in
baroque
The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
style under the direction of
Wiederau carpenter
Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, Shipbuilding, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. ...
Michael Mäßig and was fitted with
matronea.
Altar
An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paga ...
and
pulpit
A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, access ...
(1770/1771) as well as the
baptismal font
A baptismal font is an article of church furniture used for baptism.
Aspersion and affusion fonts
The fonts of many Christian denominations are for baptisms using a non-immersive method, such as aspersion (sprinkling) or affusion (pouring). ...
in
rococo
Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...
style were made by
Penig
Penig () is a town in the district of Mittelsachsen, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Zwickauer Mulde, 19 km northwest of Chemnitz. The old and the new castle were owned by the House of Schönburg from 1378 u ...
sculptor
Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
Johann Gottfried Stecher (1718–1776).
Over time, Seelitz became a regional ecclesiastical centre, and with 23 constituting villages it forms the largest territorial
parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...
in Saxony.
Annenkirche Seelitz 1840.jpg, St. Anna, ca. 1840
Annenkirche Seelitz.jpg, St. Anna, 2012
Annenkirche Seelitz Tür.jpg, Gothic door frame
Annenkirche Seelitz Inneres.jpg, Interior view
Municipal council
The communal elections in Saxony on 25 May 2014 resulted in the following distribution of seats in the municipal council:
* Bürgerbewegung Kirche (BBW): 8 seats (46.7% of votes)
* Bürgergemeinschaft FFw (BG FFw): 3 seats (21.2%)
*
LINKE: 2 seats (17.1%)
*
CDU: 1 seat (10.2%)
*
SPD
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 ...
: no seat (4.7%)
* total: 14 seats
Voter turnout was 57.4%.
Sights
![See-Biesern](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e8/See-Biesern.jpg)
* St. Anna church
*
Rochlitzer Berg
Rochlitzer Berg is a mountain of volcanic origin in Saxony, southeastern Germany. It is situated south-west of the town of Rochlitz on the river Zwickauer Mulde. Its elevation is variously given as 348.9 m NHN, 348 m HN or 353 m NN. The mount ...
* Valley of Zwickauer Mulde
* Fischheimer Borstel and Kötterner Porschel, Slavic burgwalls, built around the year 1000
* former sand pit Biesern: recreational water body for bathing and fishing
Infrastructure
The eastern part of the communal area is crossed by ''
Bundesstraße
''Bundesstraße'' (German for "federal highway"), abbreviated ''B'', is the denotation for German and Austrian national highways.
Germany
Germany's ''Bundesstraßen'' network has a total length of about 40,000 km.
German ''Bundesstraßen'' ...
'' 107, the northern part by ''
Bundesstraße
''Bundesstraße'' (German for "federal highway"), abbreviated ''B'', is the denotation for German and Austrian national highways.
Germany
Germany's ''Bundesstraßen'' network has a total length of about 40,000 km.
German ''Bundesstraßen'' ...
'' 175 (section between Rochlitz and
Geringswalde
Geringswalde () is a town in the district of Mittelsachsen, in Saxony, Germany. It is situated 12 km northwest of Mittweida, and 27 km north of Chemnitz.
History
The town was first mentioned in 1233 in a document confirming the esta ...
). The railway lines
Glauchau–Großbothen and
Waldheim–Rochlitz with stations in Steudten and Döhlen, respectively, have been closed down in 2002 and 1998. The official
bicycle route ''Mulderadweg'' passes through Seelitz.
Literature
* William Clemens Pfau: ''Grundzüge der älteren Geschichte des Dorfes Seelitz und seiner Kirche.'' Verlag Bode, 1902.
* ''Neue Sächsische Kirchengalerie.'' Band: ''Die Parochie Seelitz.'' Verlag Strauch, Leipzig 1909
(Digitalisat)*
External links
*
* Official home page
*
* History of Seelitz church
References
{{Authority control
Mittelsachsen