Steglitz-Zehlendorf () is the sixth

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle A ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

, formed in

Berlin's 2001 administrative reform Berlin is both a city and one of Germany’s federated states (city state). Since the 2001 administrative reform, it has been made up of twelve districts (german: Bezirke, ), each with its own administrative body. However, unlike the municipaliti ...

by merging the former boroughs of Steglitz and Zehlendorf. Home to

Free University of Berlin The Free University of Berlin (, often abbreviated as FU Berlin or simply FU) is a public research university in Berlin, Germany. It is consistently ranked among Germany's best universities, with particular strengths in political science and t ...

, the Berlin Botanical Garden, and a variety of museums and art collections, Steglitz-Zehlendorf is an important hub for research, science and culture in Berlin. It is known to be the wealthiest borough of Berlin, having the city's highest median household income.

History

The first mention of a present-day locality in the district by name was Lankwitz (Lancewitz) in 1239. It is assumed that Slavic and German settlements were established at the Schlachtensee and Krume Lanke lakes after 1200 at the latest. The first documented mention of Zehlendorf (then Cedelendorp) dates back to 1242. Here the

Lehnin Abbey Lehnin Abbey (german: Kloster Lehnin) is a former Cistercian monastery in Lehnin in Brandenburg, Germany. Founded in 1180 and secularized during the Protestant Reformation in 1542, it has accommodated the ''Luise-Henrietten-Stift'', a Protestant ...

bought the settlement and kept it until 1542.

Frederick the Great 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 S ...

donated a church to the village in 1768 during a stopover on the journey from the Berlin Palace to the Sanssouci Palace. The settlement was located halfway between the two places, which gave the village an economic boost through its function as a relay station. Steglitz also originated in the first half of the 13th century as a

Linear settlement A linear settlement is a (normally small to medium-sized) settlement or group of buildings that is formed in a long line. Many of these settlements are formed along a transport route, such as a road, river, or canal. Others form due to physical re ...

. At the end of this century the wooden church was replaced with the village church Steglitz. It stood until the 19th century, when it was replaced by Matthew's Church. Today's double district is still characterized by connecting infrastructure between Berlin and Potsdam. For example, the first section of the Reichsstraße 1 was routed through Steglitz and Zehlendorf (paved in 1792). In 1838, the Stammbahn was opened parallel to this. This development of the suburbs led to a strong growth of the settlements. Steglitz became the largest rural municipality in

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

around 1900 with 80,000 inhabitants. The former districts of Steglitz and Zehlendorf were formed in 1920 during the formation of

Greater Berlin The Greater Berlin Act (german: Groß-Berlin-Gesetz), officially Law Regarding the Creation of the New Municipality of Berlin (german: Gesetz über die Bildung einer neuen Stadtgemeinde Berlin), was a law passed by the Prussian state government i ...

from previously independent rural communities and estate districts of the Teltow district. The entire area of the present district belonged to the American Sector of Berlin after the Second World War from 1945 to 1990, together with the districts of

Tempelhof Tempelhof () is a locality of Berlin within the borough of Tempelhof-Schöneberg. It is the location of the former Tempelhof Airport, one of the earliest commercial airports in the world. The former airport and surroundings are now a park called ...

Schöneberg Schöneberg () is a locality of Berlin, Germany. Until Berlin's 2001 administrative reform it was a separate borough including the locality of Friedenau. Together with the former borough of Tempelhof it is now part of the new borough of Tempe ...

, Neukölln and

Kreuzberg Kreuzberg () is a district of Berlin, Germany. It is part of the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg borough located south of Mitte. During the Cold War era, it was one of the poorest areas of West Berlin, but since German reunification in 1990 it ha ...

. In 2001, the two formerly independent districts were merged to form the district of Steglitz-Zehlendorf as part of Berlin's administrative reform. In December 2020, the new Locality Schlachtensee was founded on the initiative of local residents.

Demographics

As of 2021, Steglitz-Zehlendorf had a population of roughly 306 000, making it the fifth most populous out of Berlin's twelve boroughs. The median age was 46,5, the highest of all Berlin boroughs. 28,8% of Steglitz-Zehlendorf residents had a migration background, lying under the Berlin average of 36%. Steglitz-Zehlendorf has the highest number of Abitur (secondary education degree) graduates in Berlin. The borough also has the highest median household income and the lowest unemployment rate in Berlin. With 15% of Steglitz-Zehlendorf households making more than 200% of the German national median income, it is the wealthiest Berlin borough.

Subdivision

Since December 2020, the Steglitz-Zehlendorf borough consists of eight localities:

Politics

District council

The governing body of Steglitz-Zehlendorf is the district council (''Bezirksverordnetenversammlung''). It has responsibility for passing laws and electing the city government, including the mayor. The most recent district council election was held on 26 September 2021, and the results were as follows: ! colspan=2, Party ! Lead candidate ! Votes ! % ! +/- ! Seats ! +/- , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Christian Democratic Union (CDU) , align=left, Cerstin Richter-Kotowski , 48,961 , 27.2 , 1.2 , 17 , ±0 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Alliance 90/The Greens (Grüne) , align=left, Maren Schellenberg , 40,184 , 22.4 , 2.7 , 14 , 3 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Fo ...

(SPD) , align=left, Carolina Böhm , 39,079 , 21.7 , 0.8 , 13 , ±0 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Free Democratic Party (FDP) , align=left, Mathia Specht-Habbel , 16,997 , 9.5 , 0.4 , 5 , ±0 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Alternative for Germany (AfD) , align=left, Peer Döhnert , 9,245 , 5.1 , 5.4 , 3 , 3 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, The Left (LINKE) , align=left, Pia Imhof-Speckmann , 9,007 , 5.0 , 1.0 , 3 , ±0 , - , colspan=8 bgcolor=lightgrey, , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Tierschutzpartei , align=left, , 4,503 , 2.5 , New , 0 , New , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, dieBasis , align=left, , 2,750 , 1.5 , New , 0 , New , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

Volt Germany Volt Germany (, mostly known by the abbreviated name Volt) is a social-liberal pro-European, eurofederalist political party in Germany. It is the German branch of Volt Europa, a political movement that operates on a European level. Italian And ...

, align=left, , 2,595 , 1.4 , New , 0 , New , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

Die PARTEI (''Party for Labour, Rule of Law, Animal Protection, Promotion of Elites and Grassroots Democratic Initiative''), or Die PARTEI (''The PARTY''), is a German political party. It was founded in 2004 by the editors of the German satirical magazi ...

, align=left, , 2,332 , 1.3 , New , 0 , New , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

Free Voters Free Voters (german: Freie Wähler, FW or FWG) in Germany may belong to an association of people which participates in an election without having the status of a registered political party. Usually it involves a locally organized group of voters ...

, align=left, , 1,797 , 1.0 , New , 0 , New , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

Klimaliste Klimaliste ( en, Climate List) is the name of various microparties and voter groups in Germany that advocate climate protection measures to meet the 1.5 °C IPCC and Paris Agreement warming limit target. They see themselves as a grassroots mo ...

, align=left, , 911 , 0.5 , New , 0 , New , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

Pirate Party Germany The Pirate Party Germany (german: Piratenpartei Deutschland), commonly known as Pirates (), is a political party in Germany founded in September 2006 at c-base. It states general agreement with the Swedish Piratpartiet as a party of the informa ...

, align=left, , 832 , 0.5 , 1.9 , 0 , ±0 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, The Humanists , align=left, , 503 , 0.3 , New , 0 , New , - ! colspan=3, Valid votes ! 179,696 ! 99.2 ! ! ! , - ! colspan=3, Invalid votes ! 1,431 ! 0.8 ! ! ! , - ! colspan=3, Total ! 181,127 ! 100.0 ! ! 55 ! ±0 , - ! colspan=3, Electorate/voter turnout ! 234,324 ! 77.3 ! 6.1 ! ! , - , colspan=8, Source
Elections Berlin

District government

The district mayor (''Bezirksbürgermeister'') is elected by the Bezirksverordnetenversammlung, and positions in the district government (Bezirksamt) are apportioned based on party strength. Maren Schellenberg of the Greens was elected mayor on 8 December 2021. Since the 2021 municipal elections, the composition of the district government is as follows:

Landmarks

* The '' Bierpinsel'' (literally: "Beer Brush"), a 1970s style restaurant tower in Steglitz * The

Botanical Garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

in Dahlem *

Glienicke Palace Glienicke Palace (german: Schloss Glienicke) is a historic palace located on the peninsula of Berlin- Wannsee in Germany. It was designed by Karl Friedrich Schinkel around 1825 for Prince Carl of Prussia. Since 1990, Glienicke Palace and the p ...

* Glienicke Hunting Lodge * The Philological Library at the

in Dahlem, by

Norman Foster Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Nor ...

* Prussian Privy State Archives in Dahlem * The

Wannsee Wannsee () is a locality in the southwestern Berlin borough of Steglitz-Zehlendorf, Germany. It is the westernmost locality of Berlin. In the quarter there are two lakes, the larger ''Großer Wannsee'' (Greater Wannsee, "See" means lake) and the ...

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

, villa (site of the notorious Wannsee Conference), and

lido Lido may refer to: Geography Africa * Lido, a district in the city of Fez, Morocco Asia * Lido, an area in Chaoyang District, Beijing * Lido, a cinema theater in Siam Square shopping area in Bangkok * Lido City, a resort in West Java owned by MN ...

* Liebermann Villa, former residence of the painter Max Liebermann, today a museum for his art at the Wannsee *

Pfaueninsel Pfaueninsel (, "Peacock Island") is an island in the River Havel situated in Berlin- Wannsee, in the district of Steglitz-Zehlendorf in southwestern Berlin, near the border with Potsdam in Brandenburg. The island is part of the Palaces and Par ...

''(Peacock Island)'', with the same named castle in the Wannsee * Berlin Mexikoplatz station, Art Nouveau railway station in Zehlendorf * The

Lichterfelde West Lichterfelde West is part of Lichterfelde in the Steglitz-Zehlendorf borough of Berlin. It is known for its historic mansions, tree-lined streets and green squares. Next to Dahlem and Grunewald, Lichterfelde West is one of the German capital's ...

''Villenkolonie'' – exclusive residential area from1860 with tree lined and cobbled streets

Gallery

File:2006-09-02 Botanischer Garten Haus P.jpg, Botanical Garden File:Klein-Glienicke Schloss Gartenhof nach Nordwest.jpg, Glienicke Palace File:Liebermann-Villa B-Wannsee 02-2014.jpg, Liebermann Villa File:Mexikoplatz B-Schlachtensee 06-2017.jpg, Mexikoplatz railway station File:2012BerlinWannsee1.jpg, Beach at the Wannsee

Education

Gymnasiums

* Arndt-Gymnasium Dahlem in Dahlem * Beethoven-Gymnasium in Lankwitz * Dreilinden-Gymnasium in Nikolassee * Droste-Hülshoff-Schule in Zehlendorf * Fichtenberg-Oberschule in Steglitz * Goethe-Gymnasium in Lichterfelde * Gymnasium Steglitz in Steglitz * Hermann-Ehlers-Gymnasium in Steglitz * Königin-Luise-Stiftung in Dahlem * Lilienthal-Gymnasium in Lichterfelde * Paulsen-Gymnasium in Steglitz * Schadow-Gymnasium in Zehlendorf * Werner-von-Siemens-Gymnasium in Nikolassee * Willi-Graf-Gymnasium in Lichterfelde * Freie Schule Anne-Sophie Berlin in Zehlendorf

Locations for science

American Academy in Berlin The American Academy in Berlin is a private, independent, nonpartisan research and cultural institution in Berlin dedicated to sustaining and enhancing the long-term intellectual, cultural, and political ties between the United States and Germany ...

* Biologische Bundesanstalt für Land- und Forstwirtschaft *

Centre for Modern Oriental Studies Leibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient (ZMO) is a German research institute located in Berlin, Germany. The researchers focus on a comparative and interdisciplinary study of the Middle East, Africa, Eurasia, South and Southeast Asia. Central to its current ...

* Charité – Campus Benjamin Franklin * German Federal Archives - branch office Berlin: central archive of the

German Reich German ''Reich'' (lit. German Realm, German Empire, from german: Deutsches Reich, ) was the constitutional name for the German nation state that existed from 1871 to 1945. The ''Reich'' became understood as deriving its authority and sovereignty ...

and the GDR *

Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing The Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (german: , or BAM) is a German material research institute. History Its historical origins start in 1871, a year in which Germany was unified, as the ''Mechanisch-Technische Versuchsansta ...

Freie Universität Berlin The Free University of Berlin (, often abbreviated as FU Berlin or simply FU) is a public research university in Berlin, Germany. It is consistently ranked among Germany's best universities, with particular strengths in political science and t ...

''(Free University of Berlin)'' in Dahlem ** Philological Library of Freie Universität Berlin ** Otto Suhr Institute for Political Science *

German Archaeological Institute The German Archaeological Institute (german: Deutsches Archäologisches Institut, ''DAI'') is a research institute in the field of archaeology (and other related fields). The DAI is a "federal agency" under the Federal Foreign Office of Germany ...

* Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie *

Institute for Museum Research The Institute for Museum Research (german: Institut für Museumsforschung (IfM)) is a national organization which provides services to museums in the Federal Republic of Germany in the areas of research, application-oriented teaching and document ...

* Japanische Internationale Schule zu Berlin, a Japanese international school, is in the

community in Steglitz-Zehlendorf. * Krankenhaus Waldfriede * Max Planck Society ** Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society ** Max Planck Institute for Human Development ** Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics **

Max Planck Institute for the History of Science The Max Planck Institute for the History of Science (German: Max-Planck-Institut für Wissenschaftsgeschichte) is a scientific research institute founded in March 1994. It is dedicated to addressing fundamental questions of the history of knowledg ...

* Prussian Privy State Archives *

Zuse Institute Berlin The Zuse Institute Berlin (abbreviated ZIB, or ''Konrad-Zuse-Zentrum für Informationstechnik Berlin'') is a research institute for applied mathematics and computer science on the campus of Freie Universität Berlin in Dahlem, Berlin, Germany ...

Twin towns – sister cities

Steglitz-Zehlendorf is twinned with: * Brøndby, Denmark (1968) * Cassino, Italy (1969) * Hagen, Germany (1967) * Industrialnyi (Kharkiv), Ukraine (1990) *

Kazimierz Dolny Kazimierz Dolny () is a small historic town in eastern Poland, on the right (eastern) bank of the Vistula river in Puławy County, Lublin Voivodeship. Historically it belongs to Lesser Poland, and in the past it was one of the most important citi ...

, Poland (1993) *

Kiryat Bialik Kiryat Bialik ( he, קִרְייַת בְּיַאלִיק, also Qiryat Bialik) is a city in the Haifa District in Israel. It is one of the five Krayot suburbs to the north of Haifa. In it had a population of . The city was named after the poet H ...

, Israel (1966) *

Königs Wusterhausen Königs Wusterhausen () is a town in the Dahme-Spreewald district of the state of Brandenburg in Germany a few kilometers outside Berlin. Geography Geographical location Königs Wusterhausen – or "KW" () as it is often called locally – ...

, Germany (1988) *

Lüchow-Dannenberg Lüchow-Dannenberg is a district in Lower Saxony, Germany, which is usually referred to as Hanoverian Wendland (''Hannoversches Wendland'') or Wendland. It is bounded by (from the west and clockwise) the districts of Uelzen and Lüneburg and the s ...

, Germany (1979) *

Nałęczów Nałęczów is a spa town (population 4,800) situated on the Nałęczów Plateau in Puławy County, Lublin Voivodeship, eastern Poland. Nałęczów belongs to Lesser Poland. History In the 18th century, the discovery there of healing waters i ...

, Poland (1993) * Nentershausen, Germany (1966) *

Poniatowa Poniatowa is a town in southeastern Poland, in Opole Lubelskie County, in Lublin Voivodship, with 10,500 inhabitants (2006). It belongs to the historic province of Lesser Poland. During the existence of the 17th-century Polish–Lithuanian Common ...

, Poland * Rendsburg-Eckernförde, Germany (1964) * Ronneby, Sweden (1976) *

Sderot Sderot ( he, שְׂדֵרוֹת, , lit. ''Boulevards'', ar, سديروت) is a western Negev city and former development town in the Southern District of Israel. In it had a population of . Sderot is located less than a mile from Gaza (the ...

, Israel (1975) *

Sochos Sochos ( el, Σοχός, , bg, Сухо) is a community and a former municipality in the Thessaloniki regional unit, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Lagkadas, of which it is a municipal unit. The com ...

, Greece (1993) * Songpa (Seoul), South Korea (2013) * Szilvásvárad, Hungary (1989) *

Westerwald The Westerwald (; literally 'Western forest') is a low mountain range on the right bank of the river Rhine in the German federal states of Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia. It is a part of the Rhenish Massif ( or Rhenish ...

, Germany (1970) * Zugló (Budapest), Hungary (2008) In 2020 Steglitz-Zehlendorf dissociated itself from its twin town of

in Poland because the latter declared itself an LGBT free zone. There is a debate about terminating the partnership.

References

External links

Official homepage

Official homepage of Berlin
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