Eder

Eder, river, c.110 mi (180 km) long, rising near Siegen, central Germany, and flowing E to the Fulda River. The Eder dam, at Hemfurth, impounds one of the largest reservoirs in Germany; it has a hydroelectric power plant. The reservoir supplies water to the Ems-Weser Canal.

Schwalm-Eder is a Kreis (district) in the north of Hesse, Germany. Neighboring districts are Kassel, Werra-Meißner, Hersfeld-Rotenburg, Vogelsbergkreis, Marburg-Biedenkopf, Waldeck-Frankenberg.

History

In 1821 districts were created in Hesse, including the districts Fritzlar, Homberg, Melsungen and Ziegenhain. In 1932 the districts Fritzlar and Homberg were merged; in 1974 the three districts Fritzlar-Homberg, Melsungen and Ziegenhain were merged into the Schwalm-Eder district.

The district has partnership with the Finnish city Kajaani, the British district Sedgemoor, the Polish district Pila and the Rayon Rostov (Yaroslavl Oblast) in Russia.

Geography

The two rivers Schwalm and Eder gave the district its name. After they merge near Felsberg the Eder enters the Fulda at the north of district. In the southeast of the district are the hills of the Knüll, with the highest elevation being 634 m. North of it are the hills of the Homberger Hochland. The center of the district is mostly rural area, and is surrounded by the mountains of the Knüll, the Stölzinger Gebirge and the Kellerwald with the 675 meter-high Wüstegarten mountain.

Coat of arms

	The coat of arms shows the lion of Hesse in the top. Below are wavy lines which symbolize the three main rivers in the district, Schwalm, Eder and Fulda.

Towns and municipalities

Towns	Municipalities
Borken Felsberg Fritzlar Gudensberg Homberg Melsungen Neukirchen Niedenstein Schwalmstadt Schwarzenborn Spangenberg	Bad Zwesten Edermünde Frielendorf Gilserberg Guxhagen Jesberg Knüllwald Körle Malsfeld	Morschen Neuental Oberaula Ottrau Schrecksbach Wabern Willingshausen

External links

• Official website (German)