DORSTEN

'Dorsten' () is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, located on the northern edge of the Ruhr Area, along the Lippe River and the Wesel-Datteln Canal.

Contents

History

Main sights

Transportation

Twin towns

History

In the 1940s, as part of the Soviet Union's ethnic cleansing programme, large numbers of people identified as ethnic Germans forcibly relocated from Rybnik, in Upper Silesia, fetched up in Dorsten. In 1994 Rybnik and Dorsten became twin towns, reflecting both the enduring contacts between the two communities and the less antagonostic relationships achieved between European governments in the wake of the Gorbachev reforms.

Main sights

★ Schloss Lembeck

★ Old Town Hall
Other attractions of the town include the swimming hall "Atlantis", an ice stadium and the "Jewish Museum of Westphalia".

Transportation

Dorsten has its own airfield. The airfield has a grass strip with 800 metre long runway and one government-sponsored hangar. The airfield is home to a clubhouse, a swimming pool and a gliding club.

Twin towns

★ Crawley, United Kingdom

★ Dormans, France

★ Ernée, France

★ Hainichen, Germany

★ Hod HaSharon, Israel

★ Newtownabbey, United Kingdom

★ Waslala, Nicaragua

★ Rybnik, Poland