Rhein-Neckar-Kreis

:"This article is about the German district "Rhein-Neckar-Kreis". See also the greater Rhine Neckar area in Germany."

Infobox German district
name=Rhein-Neckar-Kreis
state=Baden-Württemberg
capital=Heidelberg
regierungsbezirk=Karlsruhe
region=Rhein-Neckar-Odenwald
area=1061.71
population=528,962
population_as_of=2002
density=394
carsign=HD
url=http://www.rhein-neckar-kreis.de

Rhein-Neckar-Kreis is a district ("Kreis") in the northwest of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Neighboring districts are Bergstraße, Odenwaldkreis, Neckar-Odenwald, Heilbronn, Karlsruhe, district-free Speyer, the Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, and district-free Mannheim and Heidelberg.

History

The district was created in 1973 by merging the previous districts Heidelberg, Mannheim and a big part of Sinsheim.

Geography

It's named after the two main rivers which flow through the district, Rhine and Neckar. The highest elevation is the "Stiefelhöhe" near Heiligkreuzsteinach with 583 m in the Odenwald mountains, the lowest elevation with 92 m is near Ilvesheim in the Neckar valley.

Government

The district is governed by a district assembly ("Kreistag") and a district executive ("Landrat"). The eligible voters of the district elect the Kreistag every 5 years. This body then in turn elects the Landrat every 8 years. The Landrat is the legal representative of the district as well as the speaker of the Kreistag and its committees. The Landrat manages the office of the Landrat ("Landratsamt") and is the chief official of the district. The duties of the Landrat include the preparation of the district assembly meetings and its committees. The Landrat calls the meetings, acts as speaker, and carries out the decisions made. In the Kreistag, the Landrat has no vote. The Landrat has a second, called the first district official ("Erste Landesbeamte").

Landrat of the district Heidelberg 1945-1972:
*1945 - 1946: Hermann Specht (provisional)
*1946 - 1947: Erich Reimann
*1947 - 1954: Herbert Klotz
*1954 - 1972: Georg Steinbrenner

Landrat of the district Mannheim 1945-1972:
*1945: Richard Freudenberg (appointed)
*1945 - 1946: Karl Geppert (appointed)
*1946: Dr. Valentin Gaa (appointed)
*1946 - 1948: Ernst Becherer
*1948 - 1970: Dr. Valentin Gaa
*1970 - 1972: Albert Neckenauer

Landrat of the district Sinsheim 1945-1972:
*1945 - 1946: Roman Großmann (appointed)
*1946: Gottlob Barth und Dr. Kurt von Kirchenheim (both appointed)
*1946: Wolfgang Rutschke (appointed to oversee businesses)
*1946 - 1947: Hermann Lindner (appointed)
*1947 - 1948: Dr. Johann Gutermann
*1948: Dr. Ludwig Bernheim
*1948 - 1949: Georg Steinbrenner (appointed to oversee businesses)
*1949 - 1950: Dr. Walther Reidel (appointed)
*1950 - 1972: Dr. Paul Herrmann

Landrat of Rhein-Neckar-Kreis since 1973:
*1973 Georg Steinbrenner, Amtsverweser
*1973 - 1986: Albert Neckenauer
*1986 to present: Dr. Jürgen Schütz

Coat of arms

Cities and towns

External links

* [http://www.rhein-neckar-kreis.de Official website] (German)