1.
Geographic coordinate system
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A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
2.
Germany
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Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a federal parliamentary republic in central-western Europe. It includes 16 constituent states, covers an area of 357,021 square kilometres, with about 82 million inhabitants, Germany is the most populous member state of the European Union. After the United States, it is the second most popular destination in the world. Germanys capital and largest metropolis is Berlin, while its largest conurbation is the Ruhr, other major cities include Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Düsseldorf and Leipzig. Various Germanic tribes have inhabited the northern parts of modern Germany since classical antiquity, a region named Germania was documented before 100 AD. During the Migration Period the Germanic tribes expanded southward, beginning in the 10th century, German territories formed a central part of the Holy Roman Empire. During the 16th century, northern German regions became the centre of the Protestant Reformation, in 1871, Germany became a nation state when most of the German states unified into the Prussian-dominated German Empire. After World War I and the German Revolution of 1918–1919, the Empire was replaced by the parliamentary Weimar Republic, the establishment of the national socialist dictatorship in 1933 led to World War II and the Holocaust. After a period of Allied occupation, two German states were founded, the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic, in 1990, the country was reunified. In the 21st century, Germany is a power and has the worlds fourth-largest economy by nominal GDP. As a global leader in industrial and technological sectors, it is both the worlds third-largest exporter and importer of goods. Germany is a country with a very high standard of living sustained by a skilled. It upholds a social security and universal health system, environmental protection. Germany was a member of the European Economic Community in 1957. It is part of the Schengen Area, and became a co-founder of the Eurozone in 1999, Germany is a member of the United Nations, NATO, the G8, the G20, and the OECD. The national military expenditure is the 9th highest in the world, the English word Germany derives from the Latin Germania, which came into use after Julius Caesar adopted it for the peoples east of the Rhine. This in turn descends from Proto-Germanic *þiudiskaz popular, derived from *þeudō, descended from Proto-Indo-European *tewtéh₂- people, the discovery of the Mauer 1 mandible shows that ancient humans were present in Germany at least 600,000 years ago. The oldest complete hunting weapons found anywhere in the world were discovered in a mine in Schöningen where three 380, 000-year-old wooden javelins were unearthed
3.
States of Germany
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Germany is a federal republic consisting of sixteen federal states. Since todays Germany was formed from a collection of several states, it has a federal constitution. The remaining 13 states are called Flächenländer, the creation of the Federal Republic of Germany in 1949 was through the unification of the western states created in the aftermath of World War II. West Berlin, while not part of the Federal Republic, was largely integrated and considered as a de facto state. In 1952, following a referendum, Baden, Württemberg-Baden, in 1957, the Saar Protectorate rejoined the Federal Republic as the Saarland. Federalism is one of the constitutional principles of Germany. After 1945, new states were constituted in all four zones of occupation, in 1949, the states in the three western zones formed the Federal Republic of Germany. This is in contrast to the development in Austria, where the Bund was constituted first. The use of the term Länder dates back to the Weimar Constitution of 1919, before this time, the constituent states of the German Empire were called Staaten. Today, it is common to use the term Bundesland. However, this term is not used officially, neither by the constitution of 1919 nor by the Basic Law of 1949, three Länder call themselves Freistaaten, Bavaria, Saxony, and Thuringia. He summarizes the arguments for boundary reform in Germany. The German system of dual federalism requires strong Länder that have the administrative and fiscal capacity to implement legislation, too many Länder also make coordination among them and with the federation more complicated. But several proposals have failed so far, territorial reform remains a topic in German politics. Federalism has a tradition in German history. The Holy Roman Empire comprised many petty states numbering more than 300 around 1796, the number of territories was greatly reduced during the Napoleonic Wars. After the Congress of Vienna,39 states formed the German Confederation, the new German Empire included 25 states and the imperial territory of Alsace-Lorraine. The empire was dominated by Prussia, which controlled 65% of the territory, after the territorial losses of the Treaty of Versailles, the remaining states continued as republics of a new German federation
4.
Saxony
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Its capital is Dresden, and its largest city is Leipzig. Saxony is the tenth largest of Germanys sixteen states, with an area of 18,413 square kilometres, located in the middle of a large, formerly all German-speaking part of Europe, the history of the state of Saxony spans more than a millennium. It has been a medieval duchy, an electorate of the Holy Roman Empire, a kingdom, the area of the modern state of Saxony should not be confused with Old Saxony, the area inhabited by Saxons. Old Saxony corresponds approximately to the modern German states of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Saxony is divided into 10 districts,1. After a reform in 2008, these regions - with some alterations of their respective areas - were called Direktionsbezirke, in 2012, the authorities of these regions were merged into one central authority, the Landesdirektion Sachsen. The Erzgebirgskreis district includes the Ore Mountains, and the Schweiz-Osterzgebirge district includes Saxon Switzerland, the largest cities in Saxony according to the 31 December 2015 estimate. To this can be added that Leipzig forms a metropolitan region with Halle. The latter city is located just across the border to Saxony-Anhalt, Leipzig shares for instance an S-train system and an airport with Halle. Saxony has, after Saxony Anhalt, the most vibrant economy of the states of the former East Germany and its economy grew by 1. 9% in 2010. Nonetheless, unemployment remains above the German average, the eastern part of Germany, excluding Berlin, qualifies as an Objective 1 development-region within the European Union, and is eligible to receive investment subsidies of up to 30% until 2013. FutureSAX, a business competition and entrepreneurial support organisation, has been in operation since 2002. Microchip makers near Dresden have given the region the nickname Silicon Saxony, the publishing and porcelain industries of the region are well known, although their contributions to the regional economy are no longer significant. Today the automobile industry, machinery production and services contribute to the development of the region. Saxony is also one of the most renowned tourist destinations in Germany - especially the cities of Leipzig and Dresden, new tourist destinations are developing, notably in the lake district of Lausitz. Saxony reported an unemployment of 8. 8% in 2014. By comparison the average in the former GDR was 9. 8% and 6. 7% for Germany overall, the unemployment rate reached 8. 2% in May 2015. The Leipzig area, which recently was among the regions with the highest unemployment rate, could benefit greatly from investments by Porsche. With the VW Phaeton factory in Dresden, and many part suppliers, zwickau is another major Volkswagen location
5.
Districts of Germany
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A German district is an administrative subdivision known as Landkreis, except in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Schleswig-Holstein where it is known simply as Kreis. Most major cities in Germany are not part of a rural district, in this context, those cities are referred to as Kreisfreie Stadt or Stadtkreis. Rural districts are at a level of administration between the German states and the municipal governments. They correspond to level 3 administrative units of the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics, previously, the similar title Reichskreis was given to groups of states in the Holy Roman Empire. The related term Landeskommissariat was used for administrative divisions in some German territories until the 19th century. The majority of German districts are rural districts of which there are 295, cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants do not usually belong to a district, but take over district responsibilities themselves, similar to the concept of independent cities. These are known as urban districts —cities which constitute a district in their own there are currently 107 of them. As of 2011, approximately 25 million people live in these 107 urban districts, in North Rhine-Westphalia, there are some cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants which are not urban districts, for example Recklinghausen, Siegen, Paderborn, Bergisch Gladbach, Neuss and Moers. Nevertheless, these cities take over many district responsibilities themselves, although they are part of a larger rural district. Midsize towns can perform particular administrative functions of the district as well, the classification as midsize town is usually based on a towns registered population, but varies from state to state. Aachen, Hanover and Göttingen retain certain rights of an urban district, urban districts have these responsibilities and also those of the municipalities. The district council is the highest institution of a district and is responsible for all fundamental guidelines of regional self-administration. This council is elected every five years, except in Bavaria where it is elected every six years. Usually the administrative seat of a district is located in one of its largest towns. However, district council and administrative seat of rural districts are not situated within the district proper. Most of those districts are named after this central city as well. Moers is the biggest city in Germany that is neither an urban district, in parts of northern Germany, Landrat is also the name of the entire district administration, which in southern Germany is known as Kreisverwaltung or Landratsamt. In urban districts similar administrative functions are performed by a mayor, rural districts in some German states have an additional administrative commission called Kreisausschuss
6.
Leipzig (district)
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Leipzig is a district in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is named after the city Leipzig, which is surrounded by the district. It borders the state Saxony-Anhalt, the urban district Leipzig, the districts Nordsachsen and Mittelsachsen, the district is located in the Leipzig Bay and is rather flat. Individual hills are found in the north and south of the district and its larger rivers are the Mulde, Pleiße and White Elster. Also worth mentioning are the lakes of the Leipzig Neuseenland in the west of the county. The district was established by merging the former districts Muldentalkreis and Leipziger Land as part of the reform of August 2008. The district is located in the lowlands around Leipzig, the main rivers of the district are the Mulde, the Weiße Elster and the Pleiße. Media related to Landkreis Leipzig at Wikimedia Commons Official website
7.
Burgomaster
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The name in English was derived from the Dutch burgemeester. In some cases, Burgomaster was the title of the head of state and head of government of a sovereign city-state, contemporary titles are commonly translated into English as mayor. Bürgermeister, in German, in Germany, Austria, and formerly in Switzerland, in Switzerland, the title was abolished mid-19th century, various current titles for roughly equivalent offices include Gemeindepräsident, Stadtpräsident, Gemeindeamtmann, and Stadtamtmann. Oberbürgermeister is the most common version for a mayor in a big city in Germany, the Ober- prefix is used in many ranking systems for the next level up including military designations. The mayors of cities, which comprise one of Germanys 112 urban districts usually bear this title. Urban districts are comparable to independent cities in the English-speaking world, however, also the mayors of some cities, which do not comprise an urban district, but often used to comprise one until the territorial reforms in the 1970s, bear the title Oberbürgermeister. In the Netherlands nominated by the council but appointed by the crown. In theory above the parties, in practice a high-profile party-political post, bourgmestre in Belgium, Luxembourg and the Democratic Republic of the Congo Bürgermeister Burmistras, derived from German. Burmistrz, a title, derived from German. The German form Oberbürgermeister is often translated as Nadburmistrz, the German-derived terminology reflects the involvement of German settlers in the early history of many Polish towns. Borgmästare, kommunalborgmästare, the title is not used in Sweden in present times, boargemaster Pormestari In history in many free imperial cities the function of burgomaster was usually held simultaneously by three persons, serving as an executive college. One of the three being burgomaster in chief for a year, the second being the prior burgomaster in chief, präsidierender Bürgermeister is now an obsolete formulation sometimes found in historic texts
8.
Central European Summer Time
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It corresponds to UTC + two hours. Other names which have been applied to Central European Summer Time are Middle European Summer Time, Central European Daylight Saving Time, and Bravo Time. Since 1996 European Summer Time has been observed between 1,00 UTC on the last Sunday of March and 1,00 on the last Sunday of October, the following countries and territories use Central European Summer Time. In addition, Libya used CEST during the years 1951–1959, 1982–1989, 1996–1997, European Summer Time Other countries and territories in UTC+2 time zone Other names of UTC+2 time zone
9.
Vehicle registration plate
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A vehicle registration plate, also known as a number plate or a license plate, is metal or plastic plate attached to a motor vehicle or trailer for official identification purposes. The registration identifier is a numeric or alphanumeric ID that uniquely identifies the owner within the issuing regions database. The first two letters indicate the state to which the vehicle is registered, the next two digit numbers are the sequential number of a district. Due to heavy volume of vehicle registration, the numbers were given to the RTO offices of registration as well, the third part indicates the year of registration of the vehicle and is a 4 digit number unique to each plate. In some countries, the identifier is unique within the entire country, whether the identifier is associated with a vehicle or a person also varies by issuing agency. In the vast majority of jurisdictions, the government holds a monopoly on the manufacturing of vehicle registration plates for that jurisdiction. Thus, it is illegal for private citizens to make and affix their own plates. Alternately, the government will merely assign plate numbers, and it is the owners responsibility to find an approved private supplier to make a plate with that number. In some jurisdictions, plates will be assigned to that particular vehicle for its lifetime. If the vehicle is destroyed or exported to a different country. Other jurisdictions follow a policy, meaning that when a vehicle is sold the seller removes the current plate from the vehicle. Buyers must either obtain new plates or attach plates they already hold, as well as register their vehicles under the buyers name, a person who sells a car and then purchases a new one can apply to have the old plates put onto the new car. One who sells a car and does not buy a new one may, depending on the laws involved, have to turn the old plates in or destroy them. Some jurisdictions permit the registration of the vehicle with personal plates, in some jurisdictions, plates require periodic replacement, often associated with a design change of the plate itself. Vehicle owners may or may not have the option to keep their original plate number, alternately, or additionally, vehicle owners have to replace a small decal on the plate or use a decal on the windshield to indicate the expiration date of the vehicle registration. Plates are usually fixed directly to a vehicle or to a frame that is fixed to the vehicle. Sometimes, the plate frames contain advertisements inserted by the service centre or the dealership from which the vehicle was purchased. Vehicle owners can also purchase customized frames to replace the original frames, in some jurisdictions licence plate frames are illegal
10.
Mulde
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The Mulde is a river in Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is a tributary of the Elbe and is 124 kilometres long. The river is formed by the confluence, near Colditz, of the Zwickauer Mulde, from here the river runs northwards through Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt. The Mulde flows into the Elbe 3 kilometres north of Dessau, in August 2002 a flood caused severe damage, that even endangered the UNESCO World Heritage Site Dessau-Wörlitzer Gartenreich and the city Dessau. Especially the cities of Döbeln and Grimma suffered from the damages of the flood and its name could be derived from Old German Mulda, meaning dust and a cognate of English mould). But more possibly it is related to the German mahlen which means to mill, therefore, Mulde probably means the milling river and corresponds to the great number of water mills driven by the river in former times. Nowadays, there are power stations in use
11.
Leipzig
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Leipzig is the largest city in the federal state of Saxony, Germany. With a population of 570,087 inhabitants it is Germanys tenth most populous city, Leipzig is located about 160 kilometres southwest of Berlin at the confluence of the White Elster, Pleisse, and Parthe rivers at the southern end of the North German Plain. Leipzig has been a city since at least the time of the Holy Roman Empire. The city sits at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, Leipzig was once one of the major European centers of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing. Leipzig became an urban center within the German Democratic Republic after the Second World War. Leipzig later played a significant role in instigating the fall of communism in Eastern Europe, through events which took place in, Leipzig today is an economic center and the most livable city in Germany, according to the GfK marketing research institution. Since the opening of the Leipzig City Tunnel in 2013, Leipzig forms the centerpiece of the S-Bahn Mitteldeutschland public transit system, Leipzig is currently listed as Gamma World City and Germanys Boomtown. Outside of Leipzig the Neuseenland district forms a lake area of approximately 300 square kilometres. Leipzig is derived from the Slavic word Lipsk, which means settlement where the linden trees stand, an older spelling of the name in English is Leipsic. The Latin name Lipsia was also used, the name is cognate with Lipetsk in Russia and Liepāja in Latvia. In 1937 the Nazi government officially renamed the city Reichsmessestadt Leipzig, the common usage of this nickname for Leipzig up until the present is reflected, for example, in the name of a popular blog for local arts and culture, Heldenstadt. de. Leipzig was first documented in 1015 in the chronicles of Bishop Thietmar of Merseburg as urbs Libzi and endowed with city, Leipzig Trade Fair, started in the Middle Ages, became an event of international importance and is the oldest remaining trade fair in the world. During the Thirty Years War, two battles took place in Breitenfeld, about 8 kilometres outside Leipzig city walls, the first Battle of Breitenfeld took place in 1631 and the second in 1642. Both battles resulted in victories for the Swedish-led side, on 24 December 1701, an oil-fueled street lighting system was introduced. The city employed light guards who had to follow a schedule to ensure the punctual lighting of the 700 lanterns. The Leipzig region was the arena of the 1813 Battle of Leipzig between Napoleonic France and a coalition of Prussia, Russia, Austria and Sweden. It was the largest battle in Europe prior to the First World War, in 1913 the Monument to the Battle of the Nations celebrating the centenary of this event was completed. The railway station has two entrance halls, the eastern one for the Royal Saxon State Railways and the western one for the Prussian state railways
12.
Wurzen
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Wurzen is a town in the Leipzig district, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Mulde, here crossed by two bridges,25 km east of Leipzig, by rail N. E. of Leipzig on the line via Riesa to Dresden. The village has a history since the 70s. Nazis fought youngsters who cared for a liberal democracy. The then authorities blamed the violent far-right attacks on immigrants and asylum - seekers on the political left, victims of violence were hospitalized, some sustaind long lasting injuries. Today, the local parliament hosts two members of the neo-nazi NPD party, founded after 600 by the Slavs, Wurzen is first mentioned in the act of donation from Otto I in 961 as a Burgward civitas vurcine. Situated in the anderen Gau Neletici, it was an early in the twelfth century when Herwig, bishop of Meissen. In 1581 it passed to the elector of Saxony, during the Thirty Years War it was sacked by the Swedish army and almost burned down completely. In 1768 Goethe travelled from Leipzig to Dresden and back through Wurzen, the long waiting for the ferry inspired him later a passage in his first edition of Faust. On 31 July 1838 Wurzen was connected with Wurzen railway station to the first German long distance railway, therefore the first German railway bridge was constructed to cross the Mulde. Wurzen is twinned with, Barsinghausen, Germany Warstein, Germany Tamási, furthermore there are several high-performance medium-sized businesses in mechanical engineering and some specialty companies in town. Romanesque up to late Gothic architecture, large ensemble of bronze sculptures from Georg Wrba Lutheran Church St. Wenceslai Catholic Church Herz-Jesu, in Neo-Romanesque style. Castle of Wurzen, an example of late Gothic architecture House Lossow, mannerism/ Baroque Birthplace of the fabulist Magnus Gottfried Lichtwer at Cathedrals square Birthplace of Joachim Ringelnatz. Fountain at the marketplace in honour of Joachim Ringelnatz, it shows Ringelnatz on a Seahorse, former post-office of the Electorate of Saxony with emblem adorned gate. Today library and gallery of the town, former Gymnasium with mural paintings from Max Seliger. Memorial for the soldiers of World War I in the former old cemetery. Pesthäuschen, memorial for the victims of the Bubonic plague 1607 in the old cemetery. Memorial for the victims of Fascism and the deads of the march in the new cemetery
13.
2002 European floods
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The flood was of a magnitude expected to occur roughly once a century. Flooding resulted from the passage of two Genoa low pressure systems which brought warm moist air from the Mediterranean northwards, the effects of El Niño are believed to have possibly contributed although others disagree. The floods started with heavy rainfall in the Eastern Alps, which resulted in floods in Northern Italy, Bavaria and the Austrian states of Salzburg and Upper Austria. The floods gradually moved eastwards along the Danube, although the damage in the cities on its shores was not as severe as in the areas affected by the floods later. Rivers changed their courses in unexpected ways, catching residents off guard, several villages in Northern Bohemia, Thuringia and Saxony were more or less destroyed by rivers changing their courses or massively overflowing their banks. The floods that hit Europe during August 2002 were part of a system that was also affecting Asia. Within Europe, however, the areas that sustained significant damage included the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Italy, Spain, Germany, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, several rivers in the region, including the Vltava, Elbe and Danube reached record highs. Prague received significant damage from what were deemed to be the worst floods ever to hit the capital, the flow of Vltava culminated at 5300 m³/s, 20% more than during the flood of 1845. Among the regions of the city most severely affected were, Karlín, Kampa and Holešovice. Most of Pragues art work was saved due to warning of high water levels, however there was significant damage to the Prague Metro subway system. The evacuations before the worst of the flooding have been cited as one of the reasons for relatively little loss of life in the capital, an estimated 40,000 people were evacuated from Prague. One of the most visible victims of the flood was Gaston. For some time, it was believed he would survive, however he died following capture in Dresden, in total,17 people lost their lives in the Czech Republic due to the floods, and damage from the flood was estimated at between 70 and 73 billion CZK. In Germany, the 10 years of work that had been carried out since reunification in 1990 in the town of Grimma. Dresden received significant damage when the Elbe River reached a high of 9.4 meters. More than 30,000 people were evacuated from various neighborhoods throughout the city, dresdens Zwinger Palace, home to a significant number of Europes artistic treasures including Raphaels Sistine Madonna was at risk from the flooding Elbe, however all of the art works could be saved. The Semper Opera House also suffered damage, the Black Sea Coast region was among the most severely hit regions of Russia with significant loss of life due to a tornado that hit the tourist region and destroyed homes. This was after earlier summer floods in southern Russia, all told, damage in the region was calculated at more than $400 million
14.
Sorbs
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Sorbs, known also by their former autonyms Lusatians and Wends, are a West Slavic ethnic group predominantly inhabiting their homeland in Lusatia, a region divided between Germany and Poland. They traditionally speak the Sorbian languages, closely related to Polish, Kashubian, Czech, Sorbian is an officially recognized minority language of Germany. The Sorbs are linguistically and genetically closest to the Czechs and Poles, the community is divided religiously between Roman Catholicism and Lutheranism. An indicator of the degree of assimilation is the fact that the Prime Minister of Saxony is at present a Sorb, the ethnonym Sorbs derives from the medieval tribe, Sorbs. The original ethnonym, Srbi, was retained by the Sorbs and Serbs in the Balkans, by the 6th century, Slavs occupied the area west of the Oder formerly inhabited by Germanic peoples. The Sorbs are first mentioned in the 7th century, in the 19th century the autonym of the Slavic population of Lusatia was Lusatians. According to a study published in May 2011, Sorbs show the greatest genetic similarity to Poles, followed by Czechs. They show subtle evidence of genetic isolation but less than Sardinians, demographic history of the Sorb population since 1700, Sorbs are divided into two ethnographical groups, Upper Sorbs, who speak Upper Sorbian. Lower Sorbs, who speak Lower Sorbian, the dialects spoken vary in intelligibility in different areas. Sorbs arrived in the area extending between the Bober, Kwisa, and Oder rivers to the East and the Saale and Elbe rivers to the West during the 6th century, in the north, the area of their settlement reached Berlin. The earliest surviving mention of the tribe was in 631 A. D. when Fredegars Chronicle described them as Surbi and as under the rule of a Dervan, an ally of Samo. The Annales Regni Francorum state that in 806 A. D. Sorbian Duke Miliduch fought against the Franks and was killed, in 840, Sorbian Duke Czimislav was killed. In 932, Henry I conquered Lusatia and Milsko, gero II, Margrave of the Saxon Ostmark, reconquered Lusatia the following year and, in 939, murdered 30 Sorbian princes during a feast. As a result, there were many Sorbian uprisings against German rule, a reconstructed castle, at Raddusch in Lower Lusatia, is the sole physical remnant from this early period. Lusatian tribes are noted in the work of the Bavarian Geographer, the document contains a list of the tribes in Central-Eastern Europe east of the Elbe and north of the Danube to the Volga rivers to the Black and Caspian Sea most of them of Slavic origin. Having settled by the Elbe, Spree and Neisse in the 6th century, Sorbs living on the swampy broads of the Lower Spree have taken their name from the word marsh. The Milceni settled on fertile soil around Upper Spree, the name derives from the word měl’, the two groups were separated from each other by a wide and uninhabited forest range. The rest of the tribes settled themselves between the Elbe and Saale, among the many Slavic tribes, the Bavarian Geographer also noted a few Lusatian tribes, Glomacze - Dolomici, Milceni, Chutizi and Sitice
15.
Elector of Saxony
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Upon the extinction of the House of Ascania, it was enfeoffed to the Margraves of Meissen from the Wettin dynasty in 1423, who moved the residence up the Elbe river to Dresden. After the Empires dissolution in 1806, the Wettin electors raised Saxony to a kingdom, when Emperor Frederick Barbarossa deposed the Saxon duke Henry the Lion in 1180, the Wittenberg lands belonged to Alberts youngest son Count Bernhard of Anhalt, who assumed the Saxon ducal title. Bernards eldest son, Albert I, ceded Anhalt to his younger brother Henry, retained the ducal title and his sons divided the possessions into the duchies of Saxe-Wittenberg and Saxe-Lauenburg. Louis was succeeded by the Luxembourg king Charles of Bohemia, after being crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 1355, Charles issued the Golden Bull of 1356, the fundamental law of the Empire settling the method of electing the German King by seven Prince-electors. In this way, the country, though small in area, the electoral dignity was connected with it the obligation of male primogeniture, that is, only the eldest son could succeed as ruler. This forbade the division of the territory among several heirs, preventing the disintegration of the country, the importance of this stipulation is shown by the history of most of the fragmented German principalities which were not electorates. Late Alberts Ascanian relative Duke Eric V of Saxe-Lauenburg protested in vain, thus, in 1423, Saxe-Wittenberg, the Margraviate of Meissen and Thuringia were united under one ruler, and the unified territory gradually received the name of Saxony. The partition decisively enfeebled the Wettin dynasty in the rivalry with the rising House of Hohenzollern, the Protestant movement of the 16th century was largely effected under the protection of the Saxon rulers. The Elector did not become at once an adherent of the new opinions, owing to his intervention, Pope Leo X decided against summoning Luther to Rome in 1518, and the Elector secured for Luther Imperial safe-conduct to the 1521 Diet of Worms. When Luther was declared to be under the ban of the empire by Emperor Charles V. Lutheran doctrines spread first in Ernestine Saxony, in 1525, Frederick died and was succeeded by his brother, John the Constant. John was followed in 1532 by his son, John Frederick the Magnanimous, in 1542, he seized the Diocese of Naumburg-Zeitz, and confiscated the secular possessions of the Dioceses of Meissen and Hildesheim. The Catholic faith was forcibly suppressed, after the outbreak of the Schmalkaldic War, Elector John Frederick was placed under the Imperial ban and finally defeated and captured by Emperor Charles V at the Battle of Mühlberg on 24 April 1547. In the Capitulation of Wittenberg of May 19, he was obliged to yield former Saxe-Wittenberg with the dignity to his Albertine cousin Duke Maurice. The Saxon Electorate after the Wittenberg Capitulation consisted of former Saxe-Wittenberg and Meissen together, Maurice secretly shared in all the princely conspiracies against the Emperor, who only escaped capture by flight. During the same year, Charles V was obliged by the Peace of Passau to grant freedom of religion to the Protestant Estates, Maurice died in 1553 at the age of 32. His brother and successor Elector Augustus seized the Catholic dioceses of Merseburg, the last Bishop of Merseburg, Michael Helding called Sidonius, died at Vienna in 1561. In the same manner after the death of Julius von Pflug, the last Catholic Bishop of Naumburg, in 1564 and those cathedral canons who were still Catholic were only permitted to exercise their religion for ten years more
16.
Witch-hunt
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A witch-hunt is a search for people labelled witches or evidence of witchcraft, often involving moral panic or mass hysteria. Including illegal and summary executions estimate 200,000 or more witches were tortured, the last executions of people convicted as witches in Europe took place in the 18th century. The wide distribution of the practice of witch-hunts in geographically and culturally separated societies since the 1960s has triggered interest in the background of this behaviour. The belief in magic and divination, and attempts to use magic to influence personal well-being are human cultural universals, Belief in witchcraft has been shown to have similarities in societies throughout the world. It presents a framework to explain the occurrence of otherwise random misfortunes such as sickness or death, One study finds that witchcraft beliefs are associated with antisocial attitudes, lower levels of trust, charitable giving and group participation. Another study finds that income shocks lead to a increase in the murder of witches in Tanzania. Punishment for malevolent sorcery is addressed in the earliest law codes preserved, if the holy river overcome him and he is drowned, the man who put the spell upon him shall take possession of his house. If the holy river declares him innocent and he remains unharmed the man who laid the spell shall be put to death and he that plunged into the river shall take possession of the house of him who laid the spell upon him. In 451 BC, the Twelve Tables of Roman law had provisions against evil incantations, in 331 BC,170 women were executed as witches in the context of an epidemic illness. Livy emphasizes that this was a scale of persecution without precedent in Rome, in 186 BC, the Roman senate issued a decree severely restricting the Bacchanals, ecstatic rites celebrated in honor of Dionysus. Persecution of witches continued in the Roman Empire until the late 4th century AD, the Lex Cornelia de sicariis et veneficiis promulgated by Lucius Cornelius Sulla in 81 B. C. became an important source of late medieval and early modern European law on witchcraft. This law banned the trading and possession of drugs and poisons, possession of magical books. In A. D.354, whilst Tiberius Claudius was emperor,45 men and 85 women, later the womens relatives took revenge by bringing false witnesses against Simeons son and causing him to be executed in turn. The 6th century AD Getica of Jordanes records a persecution and expulsion of witches among the Goths in an account of the origin of the Huns. The ancient fabled King Filimer is said to have found among his people certain witches, suspecting these women, he expelled them from the midst of his race and compelled them to wander in solitary exile afar from his army. The Councils of Elvira, Ancyra, and Trullo imposed certain ecclesiastical penances for devil-worship and this mild approach represented the view of the Church for many centuries. The Lombard code of 643 states, Let nobody presume to kill a foreign serving maid or female servant as a witch, for it is not possible, Other examples include an Irish synod in 800, and a sermon by Agobard of Lyons. King Kálmán of Hungary, in Decree 57 of his First Legislative Book, banned witch hunting because he said, the Decretum of Burchard, Bishop of Worms, and especially its 19th book, often known separately as the Corrector, is another work of great importance
17.
2013 European floods
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Extreme flooding in Central Europe began after several days of heavy rain in late May and early June 2013. Flooding and damages primarily affected south and east German states, western regions of the Czech Republic, in addition, Switzerland, Slovakia, Belarus, Poland, Hungary and Serbia were affected to a lesser extent. The flood crest progressed down the Elbe and Danube drainage basins and tributaries, leading to high water and flooding along their banks. The spring weather preceding the flooding had been wet in the region, Austria saw twice as much rainfall as average during the month, resulting in the ground in the region becoming saturated. Soils in Germany were showing record levels of prior to the rains. The already saturated soils led to greater runoff when the rains began, late May saw a blocking high Sabine located over the Sole sea area to the west of the UK and France. This split the jet stream over Europe which maintained the pattern in Central Europe. Though later analysis found this flooding did not fit into this type, low pressure areas Frederik and Günther formed over the northern Adriatic and tracked north towards central Europe. The high pressure Sabine and low pressure brought a airflow from the north across Germany. The air mass was pushed to the south west by the flow, where it was lifted as it moved south from the North European Plain over the Thuringian Forest, Ore Mountains. The air was then lifted along the side of the Alps in Austria as the air masses were pushed into the Alps by the northerly flow. Heavy rain was reported in the Austrian states of Vorarlberg and Tyrol and the area of Salzburg, and to the mountains of Upper Austria and Lower Austria and Upper Styria in a short time. On 30 May to 1 June,150 to 200 mm of rain fell, in places reaching around 250 mm, the rainfall experienced in Austria has an expected return period of between 30 and 70 years. The bulk of the fell in only two days in Salzburg, Tyrol, and Vorarlberg, which is thought to have a return period of more than 100 years. Following the intense rain, sporadic showers and rainfall continued to raise the risk of further flooding, some Flash flooding occurred in the Polish capital Warsaw on 9 June, as a result of thunderstorms. The flood waters were expected to exceed the levels seen during the disastrous once in a century Central European floods of 2002 in some areas, in Bavaria and eastern Germany water levels significantly exceeded those of 2002 in many places on the Danube and Elbe. In Passau, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Inn and Ilz, in Dresden, by contrast, the old city centre was largely spared, unlike in 2002. Thanks to better control, fewer dykes on the upper reaches of the Elbe broke than in 2002
18.
Augustinians
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The term Augustinians, named after Augustine of Hippo, applies to two distinct types of Catholic religious orders and some Anglican religious orders. Within Anglicanism the Rule of St Augustine is followed only by women, Augustine, a brief document providing guidelines for living in a religious community. The largest and most familiar, originally known as the Hermits of Saint Augustine, two other Orders, the Order of Augustinian Recollects and the Discalced Augustinians, were once part of the Augustinian Order under a single Prior General. The Recollect friars, founded in 1588 as a movement of the Augustinian friars in Spain, became autonomous in 1612 with their first Prior General. The Discalced friars became an independent congregation with their own Prior General in 1592 and they generally form one large community, which might serve parishes in the vicinity, and are organized into autonomous congregation, which normally are distinct by region. In a religious community, charism is the contribution that each religious order, congregation or family. The teaching and writing of Augustine, the Augustinian Rule, and it does not unduly single out the exceptional, especially favour the gifted, nor exclude the poor or marginalised. Love is not earned through human merit, but received and given freely by Gods free gift of grace and these same imperatives of affection and fairness have driven the order in its international missionary outreach. This balanced pursuit of love and learning has energised the various branches of the order into building communities founded on mutual affection, Augustine spoke passionately of Gods beauty so ancient and so new, and his fascination with beauty extended to music. He taught that to sing once is to pray twice and music is also a key part of the Augustinian ethos, the Canons Regular follow the more ancient form of religious life which developed toward the end of the first millennium and thus predates the founding of the friars. They represent a clerical adaptation of life, as it grew out of an attempt to organize communities of clerics to a more dedicated way of life. Historically it paralleled the lay movement of monasticism or the life from which the friars were later to develop. In their tradition, the added the commitment of religious vows to their primary vocation of pastoral care. As the canons became independent of the structures, they came to form their own monastic communities. The official name of the Order is the Canons Regular of St. Augustine, like the Order of Saint Benedict, it is not one legal body, but a union of various independent congregations. Though they also follow the Rule of St. Augustine, they differ from the friars in not committing themselves to corporate poverty, which is a defining element of the mendicant orders. Unlike the friars and like monks, the canon are generally organized as one community to which they are attached for life with a vow of stability. Their houses are given the title of an abbey, from which the canons then serve various surrounding towns, the religious superior of their major houses is titled an abbot
19.
Albert III, Duke of Saxony
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Albert III was a Duke of Saxony. He was nicknamed Albert the Bold or Albert the Courageous and founded the Albertine line of the House of Wettin. Albert was born in Grimma as the third and youngest son of Frederick II the Gentle, Elector of Saxony, later, he was a member of the Order of the Golden Fleece. After escaping from the hands of Kunz von Kaufungen, who had abducted him together with his brother Ernest, he spent some time at the court of the emperor Frederick III in Vienna. In Eger on 11 November 1464 Albert married Zdenka, daughter of George of Podebrady, King of Bohemia, but failed to obtain the Bohemian Crown on the death of George in 1471. He was successful in restoring the authority of Maximilian in Holland, Flanders, and Brabant and his services were rewarded in 1498 when Maximilian bestowed upon him the title of Hereditary Governor of Friesland, but he had to make good his claim by force of arms. He had to a great extent succeeded, and was paying a visit to Saxony, the duke recaptured Groningen, but soon afterwards he died at Emden. Albert, who was a man of strength and considerable skill in feats of arms, delighted in tournaments. His loyalty to the emperor Frederick, and the expenses incurred in connection, aroused some irritation among his subjects. Frederick, Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights
20.
Catherine of Saxony, Archduchess of Austria
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Catherine of Saxony was the second wife of Sigismund, Archduke of Austria and Regent of Tyrol. Catherine was the eldest child of Albert III, Duke of Saxony and her paternal grandparents were Frederick II, Elector of Saxony and Margaret of Austria, daughter of Ernest, Duke of Austria. Her maternal grandparents were George of Poděbrady and his first wife Kunigunde of Šternberk, Catherine had three surviving brothers George, Henry and Frederick. At the age of 16, in 1484 in Innsbruck, Catherine became the wife of the Archduke Sigismund. The Archduke had previously married to Eleanor of Scotland, who had left him no surviving children. Catherine and Sigismund had no children, Catherine played little part in the politics of Tyrol. A former lover Sigismund who was against the young bride falsely claimed in 1487 that Catherine was trying to poison her husband, the political style of the Archduke was no longer tenable, he was losing control of his Tyrolean Estate to Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor. Therefore, constant quarrels with the Emperor followed because of the newly introduced limitations that the Archduke made, by 1490, Catherine had significantly less budget than before the limitations. Catherine married soon after the Archdukes death in 1496/97 to Eric I, the marriage produced one short-lived daughter, Anna Maria. Catherine died in 1524 and was buried in Minden, Eric remarried and had surviving children
21.
Diethard Hellmann
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Diethard Hellmann was a German Kantor and an academic in Leipzig, Mainz and Munich. Born in Grimma, Dietmann Hellmann was a member of the Thomanerchor and he studied church music in Leipzig with Günther Ramin. Hellmann was the organist for early recordings of Bach cantatas by Ramin and he was Kantor at the Friedenskirche in Leipzig from 1948 to 1955. At the same time, he was a teacher for organ at the Musikhochschule Leipzig, conducting the choir of the Hochschule, and until 1951, in 1950, he won a prize for organ at the first International Bach Competition. He started teaching choral conducting in 1952 and was appointed director of the department for church music in 1954. In 1955, he became Kantor of the Christuskirche in Mainz, where he conducted the Kantorei, in November 1955, he performed a concert of Bach cantatas. In 1958, he was awarded a prize by German broadcaster Südwestfunk for his composition Musik auf Christi Himmelfahrt, Hellmann was a teacher for Protestant church music at the Peter Cornelius Conservatory of Mainz, and from 1963, at the Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz as well. He published sheet music, including reconstructions of Bachs Ärgre dich, o Seele, nicht, BWV 186a for the Third Sunday in Advent, Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied, BWV190, Hellmann took the Bachchor on concert tours to France, Poland and Israel. They recorded more than 100 Bach cantatas, broadcast by SWF once a week, Hellmann conducted the Requiem of Jean Gilles, Haydns Harmoniemesse, the Oratorio de Noël of Saint-Saëns, Beethovens Missa Solemnis, the four Choralkantaten of Max Reger, and Frank Martins Golgotha. In 1974, he was appointed professor at the Musikhochschule München, among his students were Gabriel Dessauer and Pierre Even. Hellmann died in 1999 in Deisenhofen
22.
Olaf Beyer
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Olaf Beyer was an East German 800 metres runner. He won the medal at the 1978 European Championships in Prague. In that race he beat the future world-record holder Sebastian Coe, Beyers time of 1,43.84 made him temporarily the fourth-fastest 800m runner of all time. He also ran intelligently, not taking the lead until the final tens of metres, ultimately, in Beyers opinion, he was in a good shape that day and could thus defeat even Ovett, who was known as a sharp kicker. In the 1978 European Athletics Championships, he participated in 1,500 metres where he placed ninth. After 1978, he continued his running career until at least 1982. In the 1980 Moscow Olympics, he was eliminated in the 800-metre semifinals. Beyer has remained a keen and successful fun runner since the end of his track career
23.
Matthias Lindner (footballer born 1965)
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Matthias Lindner is a former football defender. He started playing football at the age of seven, with BSG Lokomotive Naunhof, after making his debut in May 1983 in the Oberliga he spent another eight seasons with the first team, making 156 league appearances and stayed with the club after they were renamed to VfB Leipzig. In 1997/98 he spent a season with FC Carl Zeiss Jena, Lindner won 22 caps for East Germany between 1987 and 1990. Matthias Lindner at Fussballdaten Matthias Lindner at weltfussball. de Matthias Lindner at National-Football-Teams. com
24.
Devon, Alberta
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Devon is a town in the province of Alberta, Canada, situated 26 kilometres southwest of Edmonton, the provincial capital, and located along the banks of the North Saskatchewan River. Devon owes its existence to one of the largest oil discoveries in the world, on 1947 February 13, the Imperial Leduc #1 well struck oil, and the new town of Devon was constructed shortly thereafter by Imperial Oil to accommodate its workers. The company was determined that the town would be well-planned, the oil industry remains a major player in the towns business sector, though the economy has diversified to include tourism, manufacturing, and research. Devon is named after the Devonian formation, which in turn is named for Devon county, with a land area of 14.3 km2, it had a population density of 460. 0/km2 in 2016. The population of the Town of Devon according to its 2014 municipal census is 6,650, a 1. 8% change from its 2009 municipal census population of 6,534. In the 2011 Census, the Town of Devon had a population of 6,510 living in 2,387 of its 2,471 total dwellings, with a land area of 11.72 km2, it had a population density of 555. 5/km2 in 2011. Devon is amply served by schools, community services such as the Devon General Hospital and it is only ten minutes away from the Edmonton International Airport, and is close to major rail routes and highways. It is located close to a sports park, a bird sanctuary, a botanical garden. Devon Christian School Holy Spirit Catholic School John Maland High School Riverview Middle School Robina Baker Elementary List of communities in Alberta List of towns in Alberta Official website
25.
Theodore Low De Vinne
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Theodore Low De Vinne was an American printer and scholarly author on typography. De Vinne did much for the improvement of American printing, De Vinne was born at Stamford, Connecticut, and educated in the common schools of the various towns where his father had pastorates. He developed the ability to be a printer while employed in a shop at Fishkill and he worked at the Newburgh, New York Gazette, then moved to New York City. In 1849 he entered the establishment of Francis Hart, and worked there until 1883 when the business was renamed Theodore L. De Vinne & Co, in 1886 he moved to a model plant designed by him on Lafayette Place, which still stands. De Vinne either commissioned Linn Boyd Benton, or co-designed in conjunction with Benton, the hugely popular Century Roman typeface for use by The Century Magazine, which his firm printed. For use at his own press, he also commissioned Linotype to produce De Vinne, an updated Elzevir type, and the Bruce Typefoundry to produce Renner, a Venetian face. However, his biographer Irene Tichenor notes that De Vinnes private correspondence shows he was not closely involved with the design of De Vinne and he ultimately was somewhat unhappy with the type. He was one of nine men who founded the Grolier Club and he was also a founder and the first president of the United Typothetae of America, a predecessor of the Printing Industries of America. A prolific author in the printing trade press, De Vinne was also responsible for a number of books on the history. For years his publications ranked at the head of American presswork
26.
Encyclopedia Americana
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Encyclopedia Americana is one of the largest general encyclopedias in the English language. Following the acquisition of Grolier in 2000, the encyclopedia has been produced by Scholastic, the encyclopedia has more than 45,000 articles, most of them more than 500 words and many running to considerable length. The works coverage of American and Canadian geography and history has been a traditional strength, most articles are signed by their contributors. Long available as a 30-volume print set, the Encyclopedia Americana is now marketed as an online encyclopedia requiring a subscription, in March 2008, Scholastic said that print sales remained good but that the company was still deciding on the future of the print edition. The company did not produce an edition in 2007, a change from its previous approach of releasing a revised print edition each year, the most recent print edition of the Encyclopedia Americana was published in 2006. The online version of the Encyclopedia Americana, first introduced in 1997, continues to be updated and this work, like the print set from which it is derived, is designed for high school and first-year college students along with public library users. Grolier Online is not available to individual subscribers, francis Lieber, a German political exile, who came to Boston, Massachusetts in 1827, began publication of Encyclopedia Americana in 1829. The 13 volumes of the first edition were completed in 1833, just before the beginning of the 20th century Richard S. Some of the old material was carried over into the new encyclopedia, the short article method of Brockhaus was continued. Thus in 1902 a new version in 16 volumes that carried some of the old material was published. The magazines editor, Frederick Converse Beach, was editor-in-chief, and was said to be assisted by hundreds of eminent scholars, the relationship with Scientific American was terminated in 1911. From 1907 to 1912, the work was published as The Americana, a major new edition appeared in 1918–20 in 30 volumes, with George Edwin Rines as editor-in-chief. An Annual or Yearbook was also published each year beginning in 1923, the encyclopedia was purchased by Grolier in 1945. Sales during this period were accomplished primarily through mail-order and door-to-door operations, telemarketing and third-party distribution through their Lexicon division added to sales volumes in the 1970s. By the late 1970s, Grolier had moved its operations to Danbury, in 1988 Grolier was purchased by the French media company Hachette, which owned a well-known French-language encyclopedia, the Hachette Encyclopedia. Hachette was later absorbed by the French conglomerate the Lagardère Group, a CD-ROM version of the encyclopedia was published in 1995. Although the text and images were stored on separate disks, it was in keeping with current at the time. More importantly, the work had been digitized, allowing for release of a version in 1997
27.
Bad Lausick
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Bad Lausick is a town in the Leipzig district, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated 12 km southwest of Grimma, and 29 km southeast of Leipzig, in 1096 Bad Lausick was mentioned for the first time as Luzke. In later documents the names Luzic, Luzich and Lußigk were used, in 1497 the place was described as Laussigk for the first time. In 1106 the construction of the St. Kilian church was begun under the supervision of Pegau monastery and it is known as the oldest preserved church in Saxony. In 1158 Luzeche was mentioned as a place with market rights. Following the Treaty of Leipzig, Laussigk became part of the Duchy of Saxe-Wittenberg, a school started work in 1529. In 1605 the place was awarded town privileges, but was destroyed in a fire in the same year, more fires causing major damages occurred in 1649,1667,1693, and 1719. During the Thirty Years War the plague caused the death of the part of the population in 1633. The old schoolhouse near the church was first mentioned in 1736, in 1739 the old town hall and the current church tower were built. A crop failure in 1772 caused a famine in the town, lignite mining in the vicinity of the town started in 1813, supplying fuel for lime kilns. In the course of the operations, a medicinal spring was discovered in 1820. One year later, the first spa opened, named Hermannsbad after its founder, in 1840 a new school with four classrooms and four teachers quarters was built, serving 500 pupils. 1878 can be considered as the zenith of the mining and lime burning industries. In 1882 the spa was acquired by the town, and textile merchant Johann Gottfried Becker established his business in the town centre, construction of the Bügerschule for 900 pupils started in 1886, and in 1887 the Leipzig–Geithain railway via Lausick opened. A fire in the hall in 1890 destroyed a large inventory of documents. 25 felt-making businesses in the town in 1890 signified the heyday of this industry, starting around 1895, clay processing developed and gave later rise to the silicate factory. A new town hall and a post office were built in 1897, in 1913, after almost 100 years of spa operations, the town was awarded the title Bad Lausick. In 1920 construction of the section of the Borna–Großbothen railway, known as Querbahn
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Grimma". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "
