Licensed from Columbia University Press
Eisleben is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is famous as the hometown of Martin Luther, hence its official name is Lutherstadt Eisleben. As of 2005, Eisleben had a population of 24,552. It lies midway along the rail line from Kassel to Halle.
Eisleben is divided into old and new towns (Altstadt and Neustadt); the latter of which was created for Eisleben's miners in the 14th century.
Eisleben was the capital of the district Mansfelder Land and is the seat of the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft ("collective municipality") Lutherstadt Eisleben.
History
Eisleben was first mentioned in 997 as a market called Islebia and in 1180 as a town. It belonged to the counts of Mansfeld until it passed to the Electorate of Saxony in 1780. It was assigned to the Kingdom of Prussia in 1815 and was administered within the Prussian Province of Saxony. It became part of the new state of Saxony-Anhalt after World War II.
Martin Luther
The Protestant reformer Martin Luther was born in Germany on November 10, 1483. His father, Hans Luther, was a miner like many of Eisleben's citizens. Luther's family moved to Mansfeld when he was only a year old and he lived in Wittenberg most of his life, but by chance he was in Eisleben when he preached his last sermons and died (1546).
Eisleben was a pioneer of "heritage tourism" — it took steps to preserve its Luther memorials as far back as 1689.
Together with the Luther sites in Wittenberg, the "Birth House" and "Death House" of Martin Luther in Eisleben were designated a World Heritage Site in 1997. Also in Eisleben is the St. Peter and Paul Church, where Luther was baptized (the original font survives) and St. Andreas Church, where he preached his last sermons.
People
- Martin Luther (1483-1546), reformer
- Johannes Agricola (1494–1566), reformer
- Friedrich Koenig (1774-1833), printer
- Gudrun Berend (born 1955), hurdler
- Thomas Lange (born 1964), rower
- Timo Hoffmann (born 1974), boxer
External links
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Last updated on Monday September 15, 2008 at 11:41:32 PDT (GMT -0700)
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