Witten
{{#invoke:other uses|otheruses}} Template:More citations needed Template:Infobox German location Witten ({{#invoke:IPA|main}}) is a city with almost 100,000 inhabitants in the Ennepe-Ruhr-Kreis (district) in North Rhine-Westphalia, in western Germany.
GeographyEdit
Witten is situated in the Ruhr valley, in the southern Ruhr area.
Bordering municipalitiesEdit
BoroughsEdit
Witten is divided into eight boroughs and each borough is further divided into two or more city-districts. Every district has its own district-number:
- Witten-Mitte: 11 Innenstadt, 12 Oberdorf-Helenenberg, 13 Industriegebiet-West, 14 Krone, 15 Crengeldanz, 16 Hauptfriedhof, 17 Stadion, 18 Industriegebiet-Nord, 19 Hohenstein
- Düren: 21 Düren-Nord, 22 Düren-Sued
- Stockum: 31 Stockum-Mitte, 32 Dorney, 33 Stockumer Bruch, 34 Wilhelmshöhe
- Annen: 41 Tiefendorf, 42 Wullen, 43 Annen-Mitte-Nord, 44 Annen-Mitte-Süd, 45 Kohlensiepen, 46 Wartenberg, 47 Gedern
- Rüdinghausen: 51 Industriegebiet-Ost, 52 Rüdinghausen-Mitte, 53 Buchholz, 54 Schnee
- Bommern: 61 Steinhausen, 62 Bommerbank, 63 Bommerfeld, 64 Wettberg, 65 Buschey, 66 Bommeregge
- Heven: 71 Papenholz, 72 Hellweg, 73 Wannen, 74 Heven-Dorf, 75 Lake
- Herbede: 81 Herbede-Ort, 82 Vormholz, 83 Bommerholz-Muttental, 84 Durchholz, 85 Buchholz-Kaempen
Population 1739–2020Edit
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HistoryEdit
Witten was first mentioned in historic sources in 1214, however the borough Herbede (which was incorporated into the city in 1975) dates back to 851. The city was a mining town from 1578.
In the late 19th century Witten was known for the Roburit dynamite. This dynamite was once used by coal mines around the world. In 1906 an explosion occurred, resulting in the deaths of 41 people.Template:Citation needed
During World War II, forced laborers of the 3rd SS construction brigade were dispatched in the town by the Nazis in 1943.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
In 1946, it was included in North Rhine-Westphalia on its establishment. In 1975 Witten was included in the administrative district Ennepe-Ruhr-Kreis and it is now its biggest city. 1975 was also the year Witten was first counted to have more than 100,000 inhabitants, the threshold to be considered a large city ("Großstadt") in Germany.
PoliticsEdit
In the local elections of 2004 the Social Democratic Party (SPD) was the largest party on the council with 24 seats. It was followed by the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) with 18 and the Alliance 90/The Greens with 7, the WBG (a conservative lis) and Free Democrats with four each, FLW (also a conservative list) with three, National Democratic Party two, and the PDS/WAL (socialists) and AUF Witten (a left wing list) with one each.
From 2004 to 2020, for the first time in its history, the council was led by a female mayor: Sonja Leidemann (SPD). In the election of 2020 she lost her mandate to Lars König (CDU).
MayorEdit
The current mayor of Witten is Lars König of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). The most recent mayoral election was held on 13 September 2020, with a runoff held on 27 September, and the results were as follows:
Template:Election table ! rowspan=2 colspan=2| Candidate ! rowspan=2| Party ! colspan=2| First round ! colspan=2| Second round |- ! Votes ! % ! Votes ! % |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Sonja Leidemann | align=left| Social Democratic Party | 12,365 | 34.5 | 11,365 | 40.0 |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Lars König | align=left| Christian Democratic Union | 10,595 | 29.6 | 17,036 | 60.0 |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Stefan Borggraefe | align=left| Pirate Party Germany | 4,005 | 11.2 |- | | align=left| Martin Strautz | align=left| Citizens' Forum | 2,276 | 6.4 |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Ursula Weiß | align=left| The Left | 2,227 | 6.2 |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Richard Surrey | align=left| Witten Citizen's Association/Free Voters | 1,793 | 5.0 |- | | align=left| Michael Hasenkamp | align=left| CityClimate Witten | 1,110 | 3.1 |- | | align=left| Hans-Peter Skotarzik | align=left| Witten.Direct | 1,052 | 2.9 |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Norman Kerner | align=left| Independent | 397 | 1.1 |- ! colspan=3| Valid votes ! 35,820 ! 98.1 ! 28,401 ! 98.7 |- ! colspan=3| Invalid votes ! 709 ! 1.9 ! 369 ! 1.3 |- ! colspan=3| Total ! 36,529 ! 100.0 ! 28,770 ! 100.0 |- ! colspan=3| Electorate/voter turnout ! 78,110 ! 46.8 ! 77,920 ! 36.9 |- | colspan=7| Source: City of Witten (1st round, 2nd round) |}
City councilEdit
The Witten city council governs the city alongside the Mayor. The most recent city council election was held on 13 September 2020, and the results were as follows:
Template:Election table ! colspan=2| Party ! Votes ! % ! +/- ! Seats ! +/- |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Social Democratic Party (SPD) | 9,052 | 25.2 | Template:Decrease 10.0 | 16 | Template:Decrease 9 |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Christian Democratic Union (CDU) | 8,349 | 23.2 | Template:Decrease 0.3 | 15 | Template:Decrease 2 |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Alliance 90/The Greens (Grüne) | 7,404 | 20.6 | Template:Increase 7.6 | 13 | Template:Increase 4 |- | | align=left| Citizens' Forum (BF) | 2,182 | 6.1 | Template:Decrease 4.4 | 4 | Template:Decrease 3 |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Alternative for Germany (AfD) | 1,681 | 4.7 | New | 3 | New |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Pirate Party Germany (Piraten) | 1,536 | 4.3 | Template:Increase 2.2 | 3 | Template:Increase 1 |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| The Left (Die Linke) | 1,441 | 4.0 | Template:Decrease 2.0 | 3 | Template:Decrease 1 |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Witten Citizens' Association/Free Voters (WGB-FW) | 1,120 | 3.1 | Template:Increase 0.9 | 2 | ±0 |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Free Democratic Party (FDP) | 838 | 2.3 | Template:Increase 0.1 | 2 | ±0 |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Die PARTEI | 739 | 2.1 | New | 1 | New |- | | align=left| CityClimate Witten (SKW) | 631 | 1.8 | New | 1 | New |- | | align=left| Witten.Direct (W.D) | 535 | 1.5 | New | 1 | New |- | colspan=7 bgcolor=lightgrey| |- | | align=left| Alternative Independent Progressive Witten (AUF) | 227 | 0.6 | Template:Decrease 0.6 | 0 | Template:Decrease 1 |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Ecological Democratic Party (ÖDP) | 139 | 0.4 | New | 0 | New |- | | align=left| Grassroots Democratic List Witten (BLW) | 87 | 0.2 | New | 0 | New |- | bgcolor=Template:Party color| | align=left| Independent Norman Kerner | 13 | 0.0 | New | 0 | New |- ! colspan=2| Valid votes ! 35,974 ! 98.5 ! ! ! |- ! colspan=2| Invalid votes ! 547 ! 1.5 ! ! ! |- ! colspan=2| Total ! 36,521 ! 100.0 ! ! 64 ! Template:Decrease 8 |- ! colspan=2| Electorate/voter turnout ! 78,108 ! 46.8 ! Template:Decrease 0.4 ! ! |- | colspan=7| Source: City of Witten |}
State LandtagEdit
In the Landtag of North Rhine-Westphalia, Witten is part of the Ennepe-Ruhr-Kreis II constituency. Nadja Büteführ of the SPD was elected as representative in the 2017 state election. Verena Schäffer of the Greens also ran in the constituency and was elected to the Landtag on her party's state list.
Federal parliamentEdit
In the Bundestag, Witten is part of the Ennepe-Ruhr-Kreis II constituency. Axel Echeverria of the SPD was elected as representative in the 2021 German federal election.
TransportEdit
Witten is connected to the Autobahn network by the A 43 and A 44 motorways. It has a central station, connecting the city to the regional-train-network of Deutsche Bahn with direct connections to Hagen, Bochum, Essen, Siegen, Wuppertal, Düsseldorf, Aachen or Dortmund. Local service is carried out by the BOGESTRA, a joint venture between the cities of Bochum and Gelsenkirchen, to which most of the bus lines in Witten belong. There is a tram line connecting to Bochum. From mid-December on, there will be two tram lines, which will run in Witten (lines 309 and 310). When the new track to Langendreer is completed (September 2020), the tram lines will ride to the station of Bochum-Langendreer (309) or to Wattenscheid-Höntrop via Bochum main station (310). Public transport in the city is carried out according to the fare system of the VRR transport association.
Coat of armsEdit
The coat of arms of Witten with its two lions once belong to the Everhards von Witten-Steinhausen and was first mentioned in 1283. The family of Witten-Steinhausen belongs to the founders of the town of Witten. Their slogan was: "Sigillum Hermanni de Wittene". Because of its long history this coat of arms was the only one in the Ruhr area, that was not forbidden by the Allies in May 1945, after the end of the Second World War.
CultureEdit
- Hebezeug-Museum – a museum dedicated to cranes and hoist founded by J. D. Neuhaus and is located on the Route der Industriekultur.
- Wittener Tage für neue Kammermusik, festival for contemporary chamber music, held annually at the end of April
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Twin towns – sister citiesEdit
Template:See also Witten is twinned with:<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Template:Div col
- Template:Flagicon Beauvais, France (1975)
- Template:Flagicon Barking and Dagenham, England, United Kingdom (1979)
- Template:Flagicon Mallnitz, Austria (1979)
- Template:Flagicon Lev HaSharon, Israel (1979)
- Template:Flagicon Bitterfeld-Wolfen, Germany (1990)
- Template:Flagicon Kursk, Russia (1990)
- Template:Flagicon Tczew, Poland (1990)
- Template:Flagicon San Carlos, Nicaragua (1990)
- Template:Flagicon Mekelle, Ethiopia (2016)
ReligionsEdit
Roman CatholicEdit
When Witten was first mentioned in historical documents, it was part of the Archdiocese of Cologne. Since 1821 it has been a part of the Diocese of Paderborn; however, the borough of Herbede belongs to the Diocese of Essen. In the 19th century the Ruhr area drew up to 500,000 Poles from East Prussia and Silesia, most of whom were Catholic. Hundreds settled in Witten, leading to a growth in the Catholic community. Today, between 30 and 40 per cent of the population is Catholic.
ProtestantEdit
In the 16th century Witten was influenced by Martin Luther's Reformation, and until the late 19th century, Witten was a predominantly Protestant town with just a few Catholic inhabitants. Between 30 and 40 per cent of the population is Protestant today.
MuslimsEdit
There are four mosques in Witten, Annen and Herbede today, founded by immigrants from Turkey who arrived in the 1970s and 1980s. Between five and eight per cent of the population is Muslim.
JewsEdit
In 1815 the first Jewish community was mentioned in Witten. In 1938 the synagogue was destroyed during the so-called "Reichspogromnacht" (also known as Kristallnacht) of 9–10 November 1938. Today, only about a dozen Jews live in Witten. They belong to the Jewish community in Dortmund.
Since 1994 the place of the former synagogue is marked with a memorial.
Notable peopleEdit
- Ingeborg Danz (born 1961), concert singer
- Theodor Detmers (1902–1976), officer
- Felix Dornebusch (born 1994), football player
- Mirko Englich (born 1978), wrestler
- Dennis Eilhoff (born 1982), football player
- Robert Graf (1923–1966), actor
- Martin Geck (1936–2019), musicologist
- Ralf Kapschack (born 1954), politician (SPD)
- Carsten Keuler (born 1971), football player
- Jochen Nickel (born 1959), actor
- Sorina Nwachukwu (born 1987), sprinter
- Paul Pleiger (1899–1985), industrialist and corporate executive (NSDAP)
- Alexandra Popp (born 1991), football player
- Andreas Reckwitz (born 1970), sociologist
- Stephan Remmler (born 1949), singer
- Moritz Römling (born 2001), football player
- Otto Schlüter (1872–1959), geographer
- Joseph Schmidt-Görg (1897–1981), musicologist and composer
- Otto Schott (1851–1935), chemist
- Erich Schöppner (1932–2005), boxer
- Michael Schulz (born 1961), football player
- Josef Sieber (1900–1962), film actor
- Wilhelm Utermann (1912–1991), writer and journalist
- Willi Veller (1896–1941), politician (NSDAP)
- Tanja Wedhorn (born 1971), actress
- Charles Paul Wilp (1932–2005), artist and photographer
- Rosi Wolfstein (1888–1987), politician (KPD)
ReferencesEdit
Template:Sister project Template:Cities in Germany Template:Cities and towns in Ennepe-Ruhr (district) Template:Authority control