Weißenfels
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| Weißenfels | |
| Coat of arms | Location |
 |
  |
| Administration | |
| Country |  Germany |
|---|---|
| State | Saxony-Anhalt |
| District | Burgenlandkreis |
| Municipal assoc. | Weißenfelser Land |
| Mayor | Manfred Rauner (CDU) |
| Basic statistics | |
| Area | 24.74 km² (9.6 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 100 m (328 ft) |
| Population | 29,669 (31/12/2006) |
| - Density | 1,199 /km² (3,106 /sq mi) |
| Other information | |
| Time zone | CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2) |
| Licence plate | BLK |
| Postal code | 06667 |
| Area code | 03443 |
| Website | www.weissenfels.de |
Weißenfels is the largest town of the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the river Saale, approx. 30 kilometers (19 mi) south of Halle (Saale). Weißenfels is the seat of the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft Weißenfelser Land.
[edit] History
The city received municipal rights in 1185. It was the capital of Saxe-Weissenfels from 1656 to 1746. Until 2007 it was the capital of the Weißenfels district.
[edit] Persons
- Joachim Wilhelm von Brawe (1738-1758), playwright
- Konrad Dannenberg (1912- ), rocket scientist
- Hermann Eilts (1922-2006), diplomat and adviser to Kissinger on Mideast
- Horst P. Horst (1906-1999), photographer
- Novalis, penname of poet Friedrich von Hardenberg (1772-1801)
- Heinrich Schütz (1585-1672), German composer and organist
[edit] Economy
Shoe manufacture was its primary industry until 1991 when the factory shut down. The factory buildings were either torn down partially or rented out.
The local dairy company is Frischli. Not far from Weißenfels are two natural springs, the Leißlinger Mineralwasser and the Saskia-Quelle.
TönniesFleisch, Europe's third biggest meat group, runs one of their three meat processing plants in Weißenfels.
[edit] Sports
Basketball and Unihockey are the two most popular sports in town. Mitteldeutscher Basketballclub (MBC) was playing in the German national basketball league in between 1999 and 2003. Unihockey Club Kreissparkasse Weißenfels won the German Unihockey championship six times, from 2003 to 2008. The Unihockey European Cup, organized every year in order to establish the best team in Europe, was held in Weißenfels and neighbouring cities Hohenmölsen and Merseburg in January 2004.
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