Stolpen

Stolpen
Coat of arms
Stolpen
Location of Stolpen within Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge district
Coordinates: 51°2′56″N 14°4′58″E / 51.04889°N 14.08278°ECoordinates: 51°2′56″N 14°4′58″E / 51.04889°N 14.08278°E
Country	Germany
State	Saxony
District	Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge
Government
• Mayor	Uwe Steglich (FDP)
Area
• Total	60.85 km^2 (23.49 sq mi)
Population (2014-12-31)[1]
• Total	5,674
• Density	93/km^2 (240/sq mi)
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes	01833
Dialling codes	035973
Vehicle registration	PIR
Website	www.stolpen.de

Stolpen is a town in the district of Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge, in Saxony, Germany. It is a historical town, that grew at the foot of the Schloßberg with the castle Burg Stolpen.

Burg Stolpen

Burg Stolpen is a castle built on top of the Schloßberg. The first defensive works were built about 1100 and it was first documented in 1222. Owned by the Bishop of Meißen for nearly 350 years, it passed to the Electorate of Saxony and was expanded in Renaissance style. In 1675 it was further expanded as a fortress. Anna Constantia von Brockdorff, Countess of Cosel, was imprisoned in the castle from 1716 until her death in 1765. The castle fell into disrepair towards the end of the 18th century. It became a museum in 1875, and has been partly restored since then.^[2]

Schloßberg

Schloßberg is a hill just to the south of the town formed of prominent basalt columns. It is the formation referred to by Georgius Agricola when he coined the term basalt.^[3]

Historical Population

ca. 1330 – 500 ca. 1550 – 725 1559 – 122 (property owners) 1748 – 146 (property owners) 1799 – 706^* 1834 – 1220 1871 – 1383 1890 – 1401 1910 – 1741

1925 – 1833 1950 – 2913 1964 – 2705 1970 – 2549 1990 – 5890 1998 – 6217 2004 – 6196 2007 – 5988 2010 – 5793

^* over 10 years old

Upper Lusatian house in Helmsdorf

Twin towns — Sister cities

Stolpen is twinned with:

• Hilzingen, Germany
• Amöneburg, Germany
• Garching an der Alz, Germany
• Jockgrim, Germany
• Sipplingen, Germany
• Sloup v Čechách, Czech Republic

People

• The Doll Family, a famous circus sideshow act, were born in Stolpen

References

1. "Aktuelle Einwohnerzahlen nach Gemeinden 2014] (Einwohnerzahlen auf Grundlage des Zensus 2011)" (PDF). Statistisches Landesamt des Freistaates Sachsen (in German). 7 September 2015.
2. "Chronik" [Timeline]. Burg Stolpen – Schlösserland Sachsen (in German). Retrieved 23 January 2014.
3. "Naturdenkmal Stolpener Basalt" [Stolpen Basalt Natural Monument]. Burg Stolpen – Schlösserland Sachsen (in German). Retrieved 7 October 2012.

External links

• Media related to Stolpen at Wikimedia Commons
• Media related to Burg Stolpen at Wikimedia Commons
• Official website (in German and English)
• Burg Stolpen (in German)