Iserlohn

Infobox German Location
Art = Stadt
Name = Iserlohn
image_photo = Iserlohn-Bauernkirche1-Asio.jpg
imagesize = 250px
image_caption = "Bauernkirche"
Wappen = Stadtwappen der Stadt Iserlohn.pnglat_deg = 51 |lat_min = 23 | lat_sec=0
lon_deg = 07 |lon_min = 40 | lon_sec=0
Lageplan =
Bundesland = Nordrhein-Westfalen
Regierungsbezirk = Arnsberg
Kreis = Märkischer Kreis
Höhe = 106 - 494
Fläche = 125.5
Einwohner = 99539
Stand = 2006-12-31
PLZ = 58636–58644
PLZ-alt = 5860
Vorwahl = 02371 (Iserlohn) 02374 (Iserlohn-Letmathe)
02304 (Schwerte,Iserlohn-Hennen)
02352 (Altena,parts of Iserlohn-Kesbern)
02378 (Fröndenberg- Langschede, Iserlohn-Drüpplingsen)
Kfz = MK,
IS "until 1974"
LS "bis 1979"
Gemeindeschlüssel = 05 9 62 024
Gliederung = 5
Adresse = Schillerplatz 7
58636 Iserlohn
Website = [http://www.iserlohn.de/ www.iserlohn.de]
Bürgermeister = Klaus Müller
Partei = CDU

Iserlohn (IPA2|iːzɐˈloːn) is a city in the Märkischer Kreis district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the largest city by population and area within the district and the Sauerland region. Also the police headquarters of the district are in Iserlohn.

Geography

Iserlohn is located at the north end of the Sauerland near the Ruhr river.

History

The Pancratius church (also called Bauernkirche) was founded in around 985, but the first written document mentioning "lon" dates only from 1150. In 1237 the Count of the Mark gave Iserlohn municipal rights. In 1975 the city, which had been an urban district before, incorporated the surrounding ex-municipalities of Letmathe, Hennen, Sümmern and Kesbern, and became part of the district "Märkischer Kreis". As a larger mid-sized city, Iserlohn, however, still has a special status as compared to most other municipalities in the district. This means that the city takes on tasks more usually performed by the district (e.g. social and youth affairs) so that in some ways it is comparable to an urban district.

As an important industrial city in the Ruhr region, during the post-WWII era starting in 1953 Canadian and British military under NATO were garrisoned here and in surrounding municipalities (Hemer, where a large Canadian Army housing area was located to house Canadian Army personnel and their families, and Deilinghofen where two of the Canadian Army barracks were located (Fort Prince of Wales and Fort McLeod). There were also garrisons stationed at Werl and Soest/Bad Sassendorf).

Within Iserlohn itself the Canadian Army had barracks in former Panzer barracks and renamed the Barracks Fort Beausejour and Fort Qu'Appelle.

After 1970, following the transfer of Canadian troops to the Black Forest Region, these barracks in Iserlohn and Deilinghofen, as well as the barracks located in Werl and Soest, were either transferred to British, back to the Bundeswehr, or converted to civilian use. The Canadian housing in Hemer (Private Married Quarters or "PMQs") was converted to civilian housing.

Points of interest

The Dechenhöhle was discovered in 1868 during the construction of the railway line Hagen-Iserlohn. 360m are accessible for visitors, and lots of stalactites make it a spectacular sight.

The Danzturm, located atop the southern hill overlooking the old city, is a landmark and featured on the logo of the local brewery (Iserlohner Pilsner). The tower features spectacular views of the valley and surrounding hills and is open to the public with a small 'stube' at the base.

chuetzenfest

Every year a part of the Iserlohner culture is the Schuetzenfest at Alexanderhöhe with its Parkhalle and the Friedensfest at Bauernkirche.

Coat of arms

In the middle of the coat of arms is Saint Pancras ("St. Pancratius"), patron of the oldest church in Iserlohn. He is depicted between two towers of the historic city wall. The checked fess below is derived from the arms of the Counts of the Mark.

Twin towns

Iserlohn is twinned with:
* Almelo, Netherlands since 1954
* Biel/Bienne, Switzerland - since 1959
* Hall in Tirol, Austria - since 1967
* flagicon|Wales Wrexham, Wales, United Kingdom - since 1970
* Auchel, France - since 1975
* Laventie, France - since 1975
* Nyíregyháza, Hungary since 1989
* Novocherkassk, Russia - since 1990
* Glauchau, Germany, Saxony - since 1991
* Chorzów, Poland - since 2004

Others

"Iserlohn" is also the name of a giant Death Star-like space fortress in the Japanese science fiction novel series Legend of the Galactic Heroes (or "Ginga Eiyu densetsu" in Japanese), written by Yoshiki Tanaka. This series has also been adapted into Anime and Manga form.

Literature

* Götz Bettge: "Iserlohn-Lexikon." Iserlohn 1987. ISBN 3-922885-37-3
* Ernst Dossmann: "Iserlohner Tabaksdosen erzählen." Ein Einblick in die wirtschaftlichen, gesellschaftlichen, politischen und militärischen Verhältnisse und das Aufblühen von Gewerbe, Industrie und Handel im märkisch-westfälischen Wirtschaftsraum während der Regierungszeit Friedrichs des Großen, dargestellt an bekannten Iserlohner Industrieerzeugnissen. 1981. ISBN 3-922885-01-2
*Margret Kirchhoff: "Pulsschläge einer Stadt." Die Oberste Stadtkirche Iserlohn - Zeitbilder und Momentaufnahmen. 2003. Eigenverlag Dr. Margret Kirchhoff.
*Fritz Kühn: "Liebes altes Iserlohn." (released about 1956). Westfalenverlag Dortmund
* Peter Müller und Günter Stalp: "Unsere gute alte Straßenbahn." Eine Reise in die Vergangenheit. Iserlohn 1995. ISBN 3-922885-78-0
* Hans-Herbert Mönnig Verlag Iserlohn (no author mentioned): "Iserlohn - unsere lebendige Stadt." Ein Bildband von Iserlohnern für Iserlohner. Iserlohn 1997. ISBN 3-922885-93-4
* Heinz Stoob (†): "Westfälischer Städteatlas"; Band: I; 9 Teilband (Stadtmappe Iserlohn). Im Auftrage der Historischen Kommission für Westfalen und mit Unterstützung des Landschaftsverbandes Westfalen-Lippe; edited by Heinz Stoob and Wilfried Ehbrecht. Dortmund-Altenbeken, 1975. ISBN 3-89115-336-8

External links

* [http://www.iserlohn.de/englisch/index.php?lang=en Official site] en icon
* [http://www.iserlohn.de Official site] de icon
* [http://www.ikz-online.de Newspaper "Iserlohner Kreisanzeiger und Zeitung"] de icon