Burgau
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Burgau is a
town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...
in the district of Günzburg in
Swabia Swabia ; german: Schwaben , colloquially ''Schwabenland'' or ''Ländle''; archaic English also Suabia or Svebia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany. The name is ultimately derived from the medieval Duchy of ...
,
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 ...
. Burgau lies on the river
Mindel The Mindel () is a river in Bavaria, southern Germany. The Mindel originates west of Kaufbeuren, in the Allgäu region, and flows generally north. It flows into the Danube (right tributary) in Gundremmingen, east of Günzburg. The towns Mindelhei ...
and has a population of just under 10,000.


History

The territory around Burgau was originally part of the
stem duchy A stem duchy (german: Stammesherzogtum, from '' Stamm'', meaning "tribe", in reference to the Franks, Saxons, Bavarians and Swabians) was a constituent duchy of the German Empire at the time of the extinction of the Carolingian dynasty (death o ...
of
Swabia Swabia ; german: Schwaben , colloquially ''Schwabenland'' or ''Ländle''; archaic English also Suabia or Svebia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany. The name is ultimately derived from the medieval Duchy of ...
. The death of
Conradin Conrad III (25 March 1252 – 29 October 1268), called ''the Younger'' or ''the Boy'', but usually known by the diminutive Conradin (german: link=no, Konradin, it, Corradino), was the last direct heir of the House of Hohenstaufen. He was Duke ...
and the resulting extinction of the
Hohenstaufen The Hohenstaufen dynasty (, , ), also known as the Staufer, was a noble family of unclear origin that rose to rule the Duchy of Swabia from 1079, and to royal rule in the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages from 1138 until 1254. The dynasty ...
line in 1268 led to the collapse of the integrity of the duchy and its division into lands, after local nobles resisted the
Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...
Holy Roman Emperor Rudolph's attempts to annex the duchy. The Lords of Burgau are first found in documentary mention in 1147, as . Burgau was raised to a margraviate in 1212. With the death of Margrave Henry III in 1301, the margravial line fell extinct and the
Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...
claimed the fief. Albert I of Germany transferred the feudal rights to his two sons, thereby permanently adding the territory to the Habsburg dominions, with Henry III's widow purchasing the allodial rights. Four different
titles A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify either generation, an official position, or a professional or academic qualification. In some languages, titles may be inserted between the f ...
were awarded: that of allodial rights, Imperial feudal rights (german: ),
manorial rights Manorialism, also known as the manor system or manorial system, was the method of land ownership (or "tenure") in parts of Europe, notably France and later England, during the Middle Ages. Its defining features included a large, sometimes forti ...
(german: ) and guardianship (german: , usually translated as
bailiwick A bailiwick () is usually the area of jurisdiction of a bailiff, and once also applied to territories in which a privately appointed bailiff exercised the sheriff's functions under a royal or imperial writ. The bailiwick is probably modelled on th ...
). The location of the castle produced latent tensions with the Bavarian
Wittelsbach The House of Wittelsbach () is a German dynasty, with branches that have ruled over territories including Bavaria, the Palatinate, Holland and Zeeland, Sweden (with Finland), Denmark, Norway, Hungary (with Romania), Bohemia, the Electorate o ...
s, who coveted the margraviate to round off their territories. Their attempted purchase of the territory in 1418 was resisted by the
Imperial Cities In the Holy Roman Empire, the collective term free and imperial cities (german: Freie und Reichsstädte), briefly worded free imperial city (', la, urbs imperialis libera), was used from the fifteenth century to denote a self-ruling city that ...
of
Augsburg Augsburg (; bar , Augschburg , links=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swabian_German , label=Swabian German, , ) is a city in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany, around west of Bavarian capital Munich. It is a university town and regional seat of the ' ...
and Ulm, with the support of other Swabian cities. Burgau came to rely on the support of the Imperial Cities, along with the Bishopric of Augsburg and the
Fugger The House of Fugger () is a German upper bourgeois family that was historically a prominent group of European bankers, members of the fifteenth- and sixteenth-century mercantile patriciate of Augsburg, international mercantile bankers, and vent ...
lands to stem the Wittelsbachs' acquisitive desires, particularly after they won the land west of the
Lech Lech may refer to: People * Lech (name), a name of Polish origin * Lech, the legendary founder of Poland * Lech (Bohemian prince) Products and organizations * Lech (beer), Polish beer produced by Kompania Piwowarska, in Poznań * Lech Poznań, ...
; ''see Swabian League''. Throughout the 14th century, the Habsburgs were compelled to mortgage the margraviate or its parts; the last such mortgage being to the Bishopric of Augsburg, ending in 1559. Further Austria fell to Emperor Ferdinand I in 1522, passing to his second son Ferdinand II, Archduke of Austria, on his death. In the
German Peasants' War The German Peasants' War, Great Peasants' War or Great Peasants' Revolt (german: Deutscher Bauernkrieg) was a widespread popular revolt in some German-speaking areas in Central Europe from 1524 to 1525. It failed because of intense oppositio ...
in 1525, Burgau supported the against Ulm, but was defeated by the Swabian League. The city suffered badly during both 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 the
War of the Spanish succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...
. Ferdinand II's successor, his nephew Emperor Rudolph II, entrusted the margraviate to Charles von Österreich, Ferdinand II's second son by his morganatic wife Philippine Welser, daughter of a wealthy Augsburg burgher. Charles was the last holder of the margraviate, from 1609–18; on his death, the land returned to the senior Austrian Habsburg line. When that archducal line expired, with the death of Sigismund Francis, the
Viennese Viennese may refer to: * Vienna, the capital of Austria * Viennese people, List of people from Vienna * Viennese German, the German dialect spoken in Vienna * Music of Vienna, musical styles in the city * Viennese Waltz, genre of ballroom dance * V ...
court took responsibility for the margraviate. A significant Jewish community existed in Burgau from early medieval times to the beginning of the 17th century and reached its pinnacle in the 1500s. In 1617, after being accused of "excessive
usury Usury () is the practice of making unethical or immoral monetary loans that unfairly enrich the lender. The term may be used in a moral sense—condemning taking advantage of others' misfortunes—or in a legal sense, where an interest rate is ch ...
," the Jewish community was officially expelled. In 1805, by the Peace of Pressburg,
Napoléon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
forced a defeated
Emperor Francis II Francis II (german: Franz II.; 12 February 1768 – 2 March 1835) was the last Holy Roman Emperor (from 1792 to 1806) and the founder and Emperor of Austria, Emperor of the Austrian Empire, from 1804 to 1835. He assumed the title of Emperor of ...
to cede Further Austria to French allies on his abdication and the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, with Burgau passing to the new
kingdom of Bavaria The Kingdom of Bavaria (german: Königreich Bayern; ; spelled ''Baiern'' until 1825) was a German state that succeeded the former Electorate of Bavaria in 1805 and continued to exist until 1918. With the unification of Germany into the German E ...
. In September 1853, the
Ulm–Augsburg railway The Ulm–Augsburg line is a German railway line. It was constructed as part of the Bavarian Maximilian's Railway. It was built for the Royal Bavarian State Railways as part of the east-west connection between Neu-Ulm in the west via Augsburg, Mu ...
was built as part of the Bavarian Maximilian's Railway () through Burgau, with the station officially opening on 1 May 1854. Bavarian administrative reforms in 1862 established a court, a notary, and a tax office; the following year, a large fire resulted in the creation of a volunteer fire service. Towards the end of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, two subcamps of
Dachau concentration camp , , commandant = List of commandants , known for = , location = Upper Bavaria, Southern Germany , built by = Germany , operated by = ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) , original use = Political prison , construction ...
— one for men, and one for women — were established in Burgau. More than 1000 prisoners, including 500 Jewish women and girls from Poland and Hungary, were transported from Dachau, Bergen-Belsen, and Ravensbrück. They were forced to work in miserable conditions in an aircraft hangar in Scheppach Forest; 18 died and were buried in the
Jewish cemetery A Jewish cemetery ( he, בית עלמין ''beit almin'' or ''beit kvarot'') is a cemetery where Jews are buried in keeping with Jewish tradition. Cemeteries are referred to in several different ways in Hebrew, including ''beit kevarot'' ...
in
Ichenhausen Ichenhausen is a town in the district of Günzburg, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated on the river Günz, 9 km south of Günzburg. History Early history The Lords of Roth had been feudal lord of the village since the early 14th centur ...
.''Gedenkstätten für die Opfer des Nationalsozialismus. Eine Dokumentation, Band 1. Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung, Bonn 1995, , S. 149 After the war, some 1600 were resettled in Burgau. Bavarian regional reforms in 1978 merged the previously-independent municipalities of Oberknöringen, Unterknöringen, Großanhausen, Kleinanhausen and Limbach into Burgau.


Politics

Since May 2022, the mayor has been Carlos Pinto (
CSU CSU may refer to: * Channel service unit, a Wide area network equivalent of a network interface card * Chari Aviation Services, Chad, by ICAO airline code * Christian Social Union (UK), an Anglican social gospel organisation * Christian Social Un ...
). The city council has 20 members, currently distributed as below. Burgau also has two partnerships with other towns: * Burgau,
Styria Styria (german: Steiermark ; Serbo-Croatian and sl, ; hu, Stájerország) is a state (''Bundesland'') in the southeast of Austria. With an area of , Styria is the second largest state of Austria, after Lower Austria. Styria is bordered to ...
,
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 ...
— officially twinned since 1982, but informal partnerships for a decade before that. *
Knöringen Knöringen is a municipality in Südliche Weinstraße district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, western Germany. References

Municipalities in Rhineland-Palatinate Südliche Weinstraße {{SüdlicheWeinstraße-geo-stub ...
,
Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...
,
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 ...
— informal partnerships, particularly with the municipalities of Ober- and Unterknöringen.


Attractions and culture

Attractions in Burgau include: * the only remaining town gate, the , built in 1614 * a fountain in honour of the
Blessed Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jews, Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Jose ...
with a figure designed by
Franz Schäfferle Franz may refer to: People * Franz (given name) * Franz (surname) Places * Franz (crater), a lunar crater * Franz, Ontario, a railway junction and unorganized town in Canada * Franz Lake, in the state of Washington, United States – see Fran ...
in 1696 designed, 1731 * the chapel of
St Leonard Leonard of Noblac (also Leonard of Limoges or Leonard of Noblet; also known as Lienard, Linhart, Leonhard, Léonard, Leonardo, Annard; died 559), is a Frankish saint closely associated with the town and abbey of Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat, in Hau ...
, built in 1667 with a
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 ...
façade A façade () (also written facade) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a Loanword, loan word from the French language, French (), which means 'frontage' or 'face'. In architecture, the façade of a building is often t ...
* the town parish church, built between 1788 and 1791 * the castle, high above the Mindeltal * the former Capuchin monastery. In its
apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an ''exedra''. In ...
there was
Leonardo da Vinci Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (15 April 14522 May 1519) was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, Drawing, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially res ...
's ''
Madonna of the Carnation The ''Madonna of the Carnation'', also known as the ''Madonna with Vase'', ''Madonna with Child'' or ''Virgin with Flower'', is a Renaissance oil painting by Leonardo da Vinci created around 1478–1480. It is permanently displayed at the Alte P ...
'', now in Munich's Alte Pinakothek * the oldest domestic house in Burgau, which dates from 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 ...
In 1997, the city celebrated the 850-year anniversary of its first documentary mention in a complex . In a slightly reduced form, further festivities were celebrated in 2001 and 2005 for the 700th anniversary of joining Further Austria and the 200th anniversary of joining
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 ...
, respectively. The next Historic Festival is scheduled for July 2009. Since the Thirty Years' War, there had been an annual custom of the (literally: ''feeding children bread''); this custom was revived by Albert Vogele in the 1950s. Now on Rosenmontag, disguised as a town soldier, his son ''Drummer Albert'' leads the children out of their schools and through the streets with his drum. The children call out traditional carnival sayings in front of the shops, demanding the shopkeepers distribute presents. This is the start of a day-long street carnival, which attracts thousands of spectators annually.


Transport

The town has a railway station, , on the Ulm–Augsburg line.


Sons and daughters of the city

*
Anton Eggstein Anton Eggstein (3 March 1780, Burgau - 13 March 1819, Munich) was a German brewer and politician, most notable as a member of the first-ever Landtag of Bavaria. Life Eggstein lived and worked as a brewer in his home town of Burgau. He was married, ...
(1780-1819), brewer and deputy of the first
Bavarian Landtag The Landtag of Bavaria, officially known in English as the Bavarian State Parliament, is the unicameral legislature of the German state of Bavaria. The parliament meets in the Maximilianeum in Munich. Elections to the Landtag are held every f ...
*
Andreas Mayer (footballer, born 1972) Andreas Mayer (born 13 September 1972) is a German former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He played for clubs in Germany, Norway and Scotland. Career Mayer was a youth player with Bayern Munich, but never appeared for the fi ...
, footballer * Otto Meyer (1926-2014), educator and politician (CSU) * Sven Müller (born 1980), soccer player


See also

*
Günzburg (district) Günzburg is a ''Landkreis'' (district) in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany. Its capital is the town Günzburg. It is bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the districts of Dillingen, Augsburg, Unterallgäu and Neu-Ulm, and by the state of Baden-Wür ...


References


External links

*
History of the coat of arms of Burgau
{{Authority control Populated places in Günzburg (district) Former states and territories of Bavaria Marches of the Holy Roman Empire