Bad Sassendorf is a municipality in the district of Soest, in

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inha ...

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 betwee ...

History

From the 8th century, the area around the Soester plain was under the

Merovingian dynasty The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from the middle of the 5th century until 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the Franks and northern Gauli ...

. The name “Sassendorf” indicates that it was a

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

settlement. Mention was made of salt springs in the area appear in the 10th century, and were noted by the ambassador of the

Caliphate of Cordoba A caliphate or khilāfah ( ar, خِلَافَة, ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (; ar, خَلِيفَة , ), a person considered a political-religious successor to th ...

to the court of Emperor

Otto the Great Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), traditionally known as Otto the Great (german: Otto der Große, it, Ottone il Grande), was East Frankish king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the oldest son of Hen ...

in 973. Along with the surrounding area, the village was under the control of the Archbishopric of Cologne from at least the 12th century; however exploitation of the salt springs was the right of free peasant families in the area. From the 19th century, the

brine Brine is a high-concentration solution of salt (NaCl) in water (H2O). In diverse contexts, ''brine'' may refer to the salt solutions ranging from about 3.5% (a typical concentration of seawater, on the lower end of that of solutions used for ...

produced in the area was used for bathing and medicinal purposes, and the first therapy center or spa was opened in 1852. Commercial salt production faced declining yields, and was largely discontinued in 1934, and completely discontinued by 1952. The village was renamed from “Sassendorf” to Bad Sassendorf officially in 1906. From February 15, 1944, to April 4–5, 1945, inmates of the Neuengamme concentration camp used as the ''Eisenbahnbaubrigade 11'' repaired rail tracks at the railway station Soest and between Bad Sassendorf and Soest. They slept in freight train waggons on the track between Bad Sassendorf and Soest. After an air raid end-February 1945 the inmates slept in a nearby farm. At the cemetery Bad Sassendorf a memorial plaque is installed on the burying place of the dead.Camp memorial Neuengamme
website in German

Geography

It is situated approximately 4 km northeast of Soest.

Neighbouring municipalities

Anröchte Anröchte () is a municipality in the district of Soest, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography It is situated approximately 13 km south of Lippstadt and 15 km east of Soest. Neighbouring municipalities * Bad Sassendorf * Er ...

Erwitte Erwitte () is a town in the district of Soest, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Erwitte is situated approximately 8 km south of Lippstadt and 15 km east of Soest. Neighbouring municipalities * Lippstadt * Geseke * R� ...

Lippetal Lippetal is a municipality in the district of Soest, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Lippetal is located north and south of the river Lippe between the cities of Lippstadt () and Hamm (). Lippetal is situated at the northern ...

Lippstadt Lippstadt () is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the largest town within the district of Soest. Lippstadt is situated about 60 kilometres east of Dortmund, 40 kilometres south of Bielefeld and 30 kilometres west of Paderborn. Ge ...

Möhnesee Möhnesee is a municipality in the district of Soest, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography The Möhnesee municipality is situated around the Möhne Reservoir (hence the name), approx. 10 km south of Soest. History On the night of ...

* Soest *

Warstein Warstein () is a municipality with town status in the district of Soest, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located at the north end of Sauerland. Geography Warstein is located north of the Arnsberger Wald (forest) at a brook called Wäs ...

Division of the town

Bad Sassendorf consists of 12 districts: * Bad Sassendorf * Bettinghausen * Beusingsen * Elfsen * Gabrechten * Heppen * Herringsen * Lohne * Neuengeseke * Opmünden * Ostinghausen * Weslarn

Twin towns

Gaming Gaming may refer to: Games and sports The act of playing games, as in: * Legalized gambling, playing games of chance for money, often referred to in law as "gaming" * Playing a role-playing game, in which players assume fictional roles * Playing ...

(

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 is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

) Image:Bad Sassendorf Salzesel.jpg, Image:Bad Sassendorf Gradierwerk.jpg, Image:Bad Sassendorf Sst. Simon und Judas Thaddäus außen.jpg,

Notes

External links

Official site
Spa towns in Germany Soest (district) Soest Börde {{Soest-geo-stub