Lichtenfels is a ''Landkreis'' (district) 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 bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the districts of

Coburg Coburg () is a town located on the Itz river in the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Long part of one of the Thuringian states of the Wettin line, it joined Bavaria by popular vote only in 1920. Until the revolution of 1918, it was ...

Kronach Kronach ( East Franconian: ''Gronich'') is a town in Upper Franconia, Germany, located in the Frankenwald area. It is the capital of the district Kronach. Kronach is the birthplace of Lucas Cranach the Elder and Maximilian von Welsch, as well ...

Kulmbach Kulmbach () is the capital of the district of Kulmbach in Bavaria in Germany. The town is famous for Plassenburg Castle, which houses the largest tin soldier museum in the world, and for its sausages, or ''Bratwürste''. Geography Location Ku ...

Bayreuth Bayreuth (, ; bar, Bareid) is a town in northern Bavaria, Germany, on the Red Main river in a valley between the Franconian Jura and the Fichtelgebirge Mountains. The town's roots date back to 1194. In the 21st century, it is the capital of U ...

and

Bamberg Bamberg (, , ; East Franconian: ''Bambärch'') is a town in Upper Franconia, Germany, on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main. The town dates back to the 9th century, when its name was derived from the nearby ' castle. C ...

History

In medieval times the Main river was a border between the two main states possessing lands in this territory: the

Bishopric of Bamberg The Prince-Bishopric of Bamberg (german: Hochstift Bamberg) was an ecclesiastical State of the Holy Roman Empire. It goes back to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bamberg established at the 1007 synod in Frankfurt, at the behest of King Henry II ...

, and the County of

Andechs Andechs is a municipality in the district of Starnberg in Bavaria in Germany. It is renowned in Germany and beyond for Andechs Abbey, a Benedictine monastery that has brewed beer since 1455. The monastery brewery offers tours to visitors. The ...

. The castle of Lichtenfels was property of Andechs, which later fell under the Duchy of

Merania The Duchy of Merania, it, Ducato di Merania, sl, Vojvodina Meranija, hr, Vojvodina Meranije was a fiefdom of the Holy Roman Empire from 1152 until 1248. The dukes of Merania were recognised as princes of the Empire enjoying imperial immediacy ...

. In 1248 the Dukes of Merania became extinct, and the entire region was annexed by the clerical state of Bamberg. In 1803 the clerical states of Germany were dissolved, and the Bishopric of Bamberg fell to Bavaria. The district was established in 1972 by merging the former districts of Lichtenfels and Staffelstein.

Geography

The district is situated on both banks of the river

Main Main may refer to: Geography * Main River (disambiguation) **Most commonly the Main (river) in Germany * Main, Iran, a village in Fars Province *"Spanish Main", the Caribbean coasts of mainland Spanish territories in the 16th and 17th centuries ...

in the hills of the

Franconian Jura The Franconian Jura ( , , or ) is an upland in Franconia, Bavaria, Germany. Located between two rivers, the Danube in the south and the Main in the north, its peaks reach elevations of up to and it has an area of some 7053.8 km2. Emil Meyne ...

(''Fränkische Alb'').

Coat of arms

Yellow and blue were the colours of

resp.

. The bishopric of Bamberg is symbolised by the heraldic lion of Bamberg. On the left side there are the orb and the crown of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...

Towns and municipalities

References

External links

Official website
(German) {{DEFAULTSORT:Lichtenfels (District) Districts of Bavaria