Halberstadt

Infobox Ort in Deutschland
Art = Stadt
image_photo = Liebfrauenkirche Halberstadt.jpg
Wappen = Wappen Halberstadt.svg
lat_deg = 51 |lat_min = 53 |lat_sec = 45
lon_deg = 11 |lon_min = 2 |lon_sec = 48
Lageplan =
Bundesland = Sachsen-Anhalt
Landkreis = Harz
Höhe = 119
Fläche = 82.22
Einwohner = 39318
Stand = 2006-12-31
PLZ = 38820
Vorwahl = 03941
Kfz = HZ
Gemeindeschlüssel = 15 0 85 135
LOCODE = DE HST
NUTS = DEE09
Gliederung = 5
Adresse = Holzmarkt 1
38805 Halberstadt
Website = [http://www.halberstadt.de/ www.halberstadt.de]
Bürgermeister = Andreas Henke
Partei = PDS

Halberstadt is a city in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt and the capital of the district of Harz.

The city was severely damaged in World War II, but retains many important historic buildings and much of its ancient townscape. Notable places in Halberstadt include the Liebfrauenkirche and St. Stephen Cathedral, churches built in the 12th and 13th centuries, respectively. The cathedral is notable among those in northern European cities in having retained its medieval treasury in virtually complete condition. Among its treasures are the oldest surviving tapestries in Europe, dating from the 12th century.Fact|date=January 2008

Germania Halberstadt is a football club which plays in Halberstadt.

History

Halberstadt was made an episcopal see in 814 and was a popular trade point in the 13th-14th centuries. The Bishopric of Halberstadt was secularized in 1648 according to the Peace of Westphalia and became the Principality of Halberstadt within Brandenburg-Prussia.

Halberstadt became part of the Kingdom of Prussia in 1701, but became part of the Kingdom of Westphalia, a Napoleonic client-state, in 1807. After the defeat of Napoleon, the town was restored to Prussia and subsequently administered within the Province of Saxony. The town became part of Saxony-Anhalt from 1945–1952, after which it was within Regierungsbezirk Magdeburg in East Germany. After the reunification of Germany, Halberstadt became part of a restored Saxony-Anhalt.

World's slowest, longest concert

A performance of John Cage's organ piece "As Slow As Possible" began in the Burchardikirche in Halberstadt in September 2001; the performance is scheduled to take 639 years. The concert began on 5 September 2001 with a rest lasting 17 months. On the dates of the sound changes the church is usually well visited.

Jewish culture

In the 17th century, Halberstadt had one of the largest Jewish communities in central Europe. At the time, nearly one in twelve of the town's inhabitants, almost 700 people, were Jewish. Notable amongst them was Berend Lehmann.

One example of Lehmann's work was the impressive synagogue he financed in Bakenstrasse, which was completed in 1712. In 1938, after "Kristallnacht", most of the building was taken down as the attack on it was said to have left it in danger of collapsing.

A short distance from the synagogue, in the Rosenwinkel alley, Lehmann also had a house built for students of Judaism, with a collection of theological writings. This building, known as the "Klaus", was where many important students of the Talmud and rabbis were taught. The "Klaus" gave Halberstadt the reputation of being an important centre for the study of the Torah. Today the Moses Mendelssohn Academy is based there; this organises exhibitions, congresses and presentations and provides a wide range of information about the Jewish culture and way of life.

Notable residents

* Caspar Abel - theologian, historian, and poet
* Johann Christian Josef Abs - teacher and school administrator
* Martin Bormann - private secretary to Adolf Hitler
* Lily Braun - feminist writer
* Gottfried August Bürger - poet
* Johann Augustus Eberhard - theologian and philosopher
* Johann Wilhelm Ludwig Gleim - poet
* Adalbert of Hamburg - Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen
* Ferdinand Heine - ornithologist
* Azriel Hildesheimer - rabbi
* Gustav Eduard von Hindersin - general
* Johann Georg Jacobi - poet
* Israel Jacobson - philanthropist and father of Reform Judaism
* Alexander Kluge - film director and author
* Issachar Berend Lehmann - banker
* Paul Laurentius - theologian
* George Müller - Christian evangelist and administrator of orphanages
* Adolf Reubke - organ builder
* Jürgen Sparwasser - footballer and manager
* Adolf Stoecker - theologian and politician
* Walter Wislicenus - astronomer

ister cities

*flagicon|Slovakia Banská Bystrica, Slovakia

References

External links

* [http://www.moses-mendelssohn-akademie.de Moses Mendelssohn Akademie]