Weiden in der Oberpfalz (official name: Weiden i.d.OPf.;

Northern Bavarian Northern Bavarian is a dialect of Bavarian, together with Central Bavarian and Southern Bavarian. Bavarian is mostly spoken in the Upper Palatinate, although not in Regensburg, which is a primarily Central Bavarian–speaking area, according to ...

: ''Weidn in da Owapfalz'') is a district-free city in

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

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 located east of

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

and west of the Czech border. A branch of the

German Army The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...

is located here.

History

Weiden in der Oberpfalz was first mentioned in a document in 1241 as Weiden. It is assumed that the first settlements in Weiden are dated the year 1000. Located at the intersection of two major trading routes (Goldene Strasse and Magdeburger Strasse), Weiden soon became an important trading center with a population of 2,200 in 1531. An economic boom came along in 1863 when Weiden was connected to the railroad network. Some major companies of the glass and china industry settled in Weiden and the population increased.

Districts

Incorporations into Weiden in der Oberpfalz

*January 1, 1914, Moosbürg, district of Moosbürg, Ermersricht, Fichtenbühl, Leihstadtmühle *February 1, 1915, Tröglersricht and Zollhaus *July 1, 1972, Frauenricht, district of Frauenricht, Halmesricht, Latsch, Spitalöd *July 1, 1972, Muglhof, district of Muglhof, Matzlesrieth, Mitterhöll, Unterhöll, Oedentahl, Trauschendorf *July 1, 1972, Neunkirchen bei Weiden, district of Neunkirchen, Brandweiher, Wiesendorf *May 1, 1978, Rothenstadt, district of Rothenstadt, Maierhof, Mallersricht, Neubau Ullersricht *May 1, 1978, Moosöd

Main sights

Historical buildings

*''St. Josef''. Catholic church, built 1899–1900, Neo Romanesque style with

art nouveau Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...

interior. *''Marktplatz'', the market square stretched between Upper and Lower Gates with numerous

renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

buildings. *''Altes Rathaus'' ("Old Town Hall"), built between 1539 and 1545 by Hans Nopl. *'' St. Michael''. A

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

church, rebuilt several times. The church got its present baroque appearance from 1627, the tower from 1761. *''Alte Stadtmauer'', partially preserved old city walls from the 14th century. *''St. Sebastian Kirche''. Catholic chapel, built around 1480.

Museums

International Ceramic Museum
- exhibits art, furniture and porcelain from the early 16th century to the 19th century. There is a room dedicated to composer Max Reger, who lived and studied in Weiden.

Twin towns – sister cities

Weiden in der Oberpfalz is twinned with: *

Issy-les-Moulineaux Issy-les-Moulineaux () is a commune in the southwestern suburban area of Paris, France, lying on the left bank of the river Seine. Its citizens are called ''Isséens'' in French. It is one of Paris' entrances and is located from Notre-Dame Cath ...

, France (1962) *

Macerata Macerata () is a city and ''comune'' in central Italy, the county seat of the province of Macerata in the Marche region. It has a population of about 41,564. History The historical city centre is on a hill between the Chienti and Potenza ri ...

, Italy (1963) *

Weiden am See Weiden am See ( hu, Védeny) is a town in the district of Neusiedl am See in the Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It ...

, Austria (1990) *

Annaberg-Buchholz Annaberg-Buchholz () is a town in Saxony, Germany. Lying in the Ore Mountains, it is the capital of the district of Erzgebirgskreis. Geography The town is located in the Ore Mountains, at the side of the ''Pöhlberg'' ( above sea level). Hi ...

, Germany (1990) *

Mariánské Lázně Mariánské Lázně (; german: Marienbad) is a spa town in Cheb District in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 12,000 inhabitants. Most of the town's buildings come from its Golden Era in the second half of the 19th centu ...

, Czech Republic (2008)

Geography

Climate

This area is characterized by equable climates with few extremes of temperature and ample precipitation in all months. The

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

subtype for this climate is " Cfb". (Marine West Coast Climate).

Notable people

Erhard Weigel Erhard Weigel (16 December 1625 – 20 March 1699) was a German mathematician, astronomer and philosopher. Biography Weigel earned his M.A. (1650) and his habilitation (1652) from the University of Leipzig. From 1653 until his death he was profe ...

(1625–1699), astronomer and mathematician *

Franz Ferdinand von Rummel Franz Ferdinand von Rummel (28 October 1644, Weiden in der Oberpfalz, – 15 March 1716, Vienna) was educator and religious tutor of Emperor Joseph I, Bishop of Tinin, Provost of Ardagger and Wroclaw, and was from 1706 to 1716 the Prince-Bishop ...

(1644–1716), Prince-Bishop in Vienna *

Max Reger Johann Baptist Joseph Maximilian Reger (19 March 187311 May 1916) was a German composer, pianist, organist, conductor, and academic teacher. He worked as a concert pianist, as a musical director at the Paulinerkirche, Leipzig, Leipzig University ...

(1873–1916), composer and organist *

Eduard Zintl Eduard Zintl (21 January 1898 – 17 January 1941) was a German chemist. He gained prominence for research on intermetallic compounds. Family background After his family moved from Weiden and Bayreuth to Munich and after he had finished school ...

(1898–1941), chemist *

Otto Ambros Otto Ambros (19 May 1901 – 23 July 1990) was a German chemist and Nazi war criminal. He is known for his wartime work on synthetic rubber ( polybutadiene, or "Buna rubber") and nerve agents ( sarin and tabun). After the war he was tried at Nu ...

(1901–1990), chemist *

Martin Gottfried Weiss Martin Gottfried Weiss, alternatively spelled Weiß ( – 29 May 1946), was the commandant of the Dachau concentration camp in 1945 at the time of his arrest. He also served from April 1940 until September 1942 as the commandant of Neuengamme ...

(1905–1946), SS Commander of German concentration camps executed for war crimes * Elisabeth Schärtel (1919–2012), mezzo-soprano * Erich Bäumler (1930–2003), footballer *

Marga Schiml Marga Schiml (born 29 November 1945) is a German opera singer who sings mezzo-soprano and alto. She has appeared at major European opera houses and festivals, such as the Vienna State Opera, the Deutsche Oper Berlin, the Hamburg State Opera an ...

(born 1945), opera singer *

Monika Henzinger Monika Henzinger (born as Monika Rauch, 17 April 1966 in Weiden in der Oberpfalz) is a German computer scientist, and is a former director of research at Google. She is currently a professor at the University of Vienna. Her expertise is mainly o ...

(born 1966), computer scientist * Michael Brenner (born 1964), historian * Benedikt Schopper (born 1985), ice hockey player * Nadine Kraus (born 1988), footballer * Sven Kopp (born 1995), footballer *

Dennis Lippert Dennis Lippert (born 20 February 1996) is a German professional footballer who plays as a left-back for FC 08 Homburg. Honours SpVgg Bayreuth * Regionalliga Bayern The Regionalliga Bayern, ( en, Regional league Bavaria), is the highest associa ...

(born 1996), footballer

Notes

External links

*
Webcams in Weiden

Website on St. Josef Church, including pictures and a guide
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