Senftenberg ( wen, Zły Komorow) is a town in

Lower Lusatia Lower Lusatia (; ; ; szl, Dolnŏ Łużyca; ; ) is a historical region in Central Europe, stretching from the southeast of the German state of Brandenburg to the southwest of Lubusz Voivodeship in Poland. Like adjacent Upper Lusatia in the sou ...

Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 sq ...

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 ...

, capital of the

Oberspreewald-Lausitz Oberspreewald-Lausitz ( dsb, Wokrejs Górne Błota-Łužyca, hsb, Wokrjes Hornje Błóta-Łužica) is a ''Kreis'' (district) in the southern part of Brandenburg, Germany. Neighboring districts are (from the north clockwise) Dahme-Spreewald, Spree- ...

district.

Geography

Senftenberg is located in the southwest of the historic

region at the border with

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

. Its town centre is situated north of the river

Black Elster The Black Elster or Schwarze Elster () is a long river in eastern Germany, in the states Saxony, Brandenburg and Saxony-Anhalt, right tributary of the Elbe. Its source is in the Upper Lusatia region, near Elstra. The Black Elster flows through t ...

and the artificial

Senftenberger Lake Lake Senftenberg (german: Senftenberger See, formerly called ''Speicherbecken Niemtsch''—Niemtsch reservoir, hsb, Złykomorowski jězor, dsb, Złykomorowski jazor) is an artificial lake in Landkreis Oberspreewald-Lausitz, Brandenburg, German ...

, part of the

Lusatian Lake District The Lusatian Lake District (german: Lausitzer Seenland, dsb, Łužyska jazorina, hsb, Łužiska jězorina) is a chain of artificial lakes under construction in Germany across the north-eastern part of Saxony and the southern part of Brandenburg ...

chain, approximately northwest of

Hoyerswerda Hoyerswerda () or Wojerecy () is a major district town in the district of Bautzen in the German state of Saxony. It is located in the Sorbian settlement area of Upper Lusatia, a region where some people speak the Sorbian language in addition to ...

, and southwest of

Cottbus Cottbus (; Lower Sorbian: ''Chóśebuz'' ; Polish: Chociebuż) is a university city and the second-largest city in Brandenburg, Germany. Situated around southeast of Berlin, on the River Spree, Cottbus is also a major railway junction with exte ...

. Senftenberg station is north of the centre and a major railway freight yard is located to its north-east, with a locomotive depot.

History

Senftenberg was first mentioned in a 1279 deed issued by Henry III the Illustrious of Wettin, then margrave of Lusatia. With Lower Lusatia, the settlement was acquired by the

Kingdom of Bohemia The Kingdom of Bohemia ( cs, České království),; la, link=no, Regnum Bohemiae sometimes in English literature referred to as the Czech Kingdom, was a medieval and early modern monarchy in Central Europe, the predecessor of the modern Czec ...

under Charles IV of Luxembourg in 1368. Elector Frederick II of

acquired Senftenberg in 1448, whereafter the area as a border stronghold of the

House of Wettin The House of Wettin () is a dynasty of German kings, prince-electors, dukes, and counts that once ruled territories in the present-day German states of Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. The dynasty is one of the oldest in Europe, and its ori ...

was separated from Bohemian Lusatia, until in 1635 all Lusatian territories fell to

by the Peace of Prague. According to the 1815

Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna (, ) of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon B ...

, Lower Lusatia was annexed by

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 ...

and incorporated into the

Province of Brandenburg The Province of Brandenburg (german: Provinz Brandenburg) was a province of Prussia from 1815 to 1945. Brandenburg was established in 1815 from the Kingdom of Prussia's core territory, comprised the bulk of the historic Margraviate of Brandenburg ...

. From 1952 to 1990, it was part of the

Bezirk Cottbus Cottbus was a district () of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). The administrative seat and main town was Cottbus. History The district was established, along with the other 13, on 25 July 1952, ''de facto'' replacing the East German ...

East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

Names

* cs, Zlý Komorov *german: Senftenberg * pl, Zły Komorów * hsb, Zły Komorow * dsb, Zły Komorow

Lake Senftenberg

Lake Senftenberg is a popular tourist destination. In 1973, the former open cast mine, was officially opened to the public. Today, the lake is known for its excellent water quality. It is part of the so-called Lusatian Lakeland, a group of 23 artificial lakes.

Demography

After the second half of the 19th century the inhabitants increased because of workers coming to Senftenberg to work in the coal mines. After the German Reunion, many inhabitants moved to the western part of Germany. Bevölkerungsentwicklung Senftenberg.pdf, Development of Population since 1875 within the Current Boundaries (Blue Line: Population; Dotted Line: Comparison to Population Development of Brandenburg state; Grey Background: Time of Nazi rule; Red Background: Time of Communist rule) Bevölkerungsprognosen Senftenberg.pdf, Recent Population Development and Projections (Population Development before Census 2011 (blue line); Recent Population Development according to the

Census in Germany A national census in Germany (german: Volkszählung) was held every five years from 1875 to 1910. After the World Wars, only a few full population censuses have been held, the last in 1987. The most recent census, though not a national census, wa ...

in 2011 (blue bordered line); Official projections for 2005–2030 (yellow line); for 2017–2030 (scarlet line); for 2020–2030 (green line)

Sports

In Senftenberg is the soccer club

FSV Glückauf Brieske-Senftenberg FSV Glückauf Brieske-Senftenberg is a German football club from Senftenberg in Brandenburg, currently playing in the Landesliga Brandenburg-Süd (VII). History FSV Glückauf Brieske-Senftenberg was founded on 19 January 1919 as ''Fußballve ...

Twin towns – sister cities

Senftenberg is twinned with: *

Fresagrandinaria Fresagrandinaria (locally ''Frò-išë'') is a ''comune'' and town in the province of Chieti in the Abruzzo region of southern Italy. Twin towns * Nowa Sól, Poland * Püttlingen, Germany * Saint-Michel-sur-Orge, France * Senftenberg Senftenb ...

, Italy *

Nowa Sól Nowa Sól is a city on the Oder River in Lubusz Voivodeship, western Poland. It is the capital of Nowa Sól County and had a population of 38,763 (2019). History The first settlement in the region of modern Nowa Sól dates to the 14th century, w ...

, Poland *

Püttlingen Püttlingen () is a town in Saarland, Germany, 10 km northwest of Saarbrücken. Geography The town lies in the Köller Valley, approximately 20 km to the northwest of Saarbrücken and 5 km north of Völklingen. Going in a clockwi ...

, Germany *

Saint-Michel-sur-Orge Saint-Michel-sur-Orge (, literally ''Saint-Michel on Orge'') is a commune in the Essonne ''département'' of France. It is in the southern suburbs of Paris, from the center of Paris. Inhabitants of Saint-Michel-sur-Orge are known as ''Saint-M ...

, France * Senftenberg, Austria * Veszprém, Hungary *

Žamberk Žamberk (; german: Senftenberg in Böhmen) is a town in Ústí nad Orlicí District in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 6,000 inhabitants. In lies on the Divoká Orlice river. The town centre is well preserved and is pr ...

, Czech Republic

Notable people

* Hermann Kuhnt (1850–1925), ophthalmologist * Herbert Windt (1894–1965), composer * Joachim Sauer (born 1949), chemist and professor

Gallery

Senftenberg kirchplatz.JPG, Old Town Senftenberg rekonsruiert.JPG, Estate housing Senftenberg selk.JPG,

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

church
in "Jüttendorf" Senftenberg Postmeilensäule 3.jpg, Coats of Arms of

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

and

on a postal milestone

References

External links

* {{Authority control Populated places in Oberspreewald-Lausitz