SPANGENBERG

'Spangenberg' is a small town in northeastern Hesse, Germany.

Contents

Geography

History

Historic sights

Coat of arms

Constituent communities

Partnerships

Reference

External links

Geography

Spangenberg lies in the Schwalm-Eder district some 35 km southeast of Kassel, west of the Stölzinger Gebirge, a low mountain range.

History

The town of Spangenberg had its first documentary mention in 1261, at about the time when the Treffurt family ruled Spangenberg.

Historic sights

The town is known best of all for its Schloss Spangenberg, a stately home built in 1253 and the town's landmark. Also worth seeing are the half-timbered buildings in the Old Town and the remains of the town's old wall, several of whose towers are still standing.

Coat of arms

Spangenberg's civic coat of arms is based on the town's oldest known seal from 1317. The object on the right (heraldically speaking, left) side is a kind of fossilized plant locally known as a ''Spange'' (also German for "brooch" or "clip"), the town's namesake. The current colours – red and gold – have been in use since 1621.[1]

Constituent communities

In alphabetical order, these are Bergheim, Bischofferode, Elbersdorf, Herlefeld, Kaltenbach, Landefeld, Metzebach, Mörshausen, Nausis, Pfieffe, Schnellrode, Vockerode-Dinkelberg and Weidelbach.

Partnerships

Spangenberg maintains partnerships with the following places:

★ Treffurt, Thuringia since 1990

★ Saint-Pierre-d'Oléron, France since 1997

★ Pleszew, Poland since 1997

Reference

External links

★ Spangenberg