Hohwald (forest area)
The Hohwald is an approx. 30 km² large contiguous wooded area on the border between Saxon Switzerland and Upper Lusatia . In terms of nature, the area is assigned to the Oberlausitzer Bergland .
Location and demarcation
The forest area lies between Putzkau and Neukirch in the north, Steinigtwolmsdorf and the Czech border in the east, Neustadt and the villages, which were united in the municipality of Hohwald until July 31, 2007 and have since belonged to Neustadt, in the west and the Czech villages Severní ( Hilgersdorf ) and Lobendava ( Lobendau ) in the south.
Natural space
geology
As the western part of the Lusatian mountainous region, the Hohwald is part of a very large intrusive complex in Central Europe that was formed in the Neoproterozoic during the Cadomian orogeny . This is connected to the crystalline massifs of the neighboring Jizera and Giant Mountains .
A biotite granodiorite is predominant, which consists mainly of feldspar, quartz and biotite. Colloquially, this rock is known as Lusatian granite . It is around 540 million years old in the Hohwald area.
In the entire Hohwald area, the Lusatian granite is traversed by various basite dikes ( diabase , basalts ) as well as andesite dykes. Due to their properties, these rocks were and are in great demand as stone and road construction material and are extracted in several quarries.
geomorphology
The Hohwald forms part of the mountain ranges of the Lausitz mountainous region. It reaches a height of 587 meters on the Valtenberg , which is also the highest mountain in the Lusatian highlands. The second highest mountain is the Hohe Hahn at 528 meters. The rest of the area has altitudes between 400 and 500 meters.
The Hohwald is characterized by a pronounced block cover . Just southeast of the Valtenberges exists one of the Wesenitz -carrying breitwannige flood plain, but due to the humid climate anmoorig is.
climate
The Hohwald forms the western flank of the Lusatian mountainous region. Due to the prevailing westerly currents, the area has a montane-shaped climate despite the comparatively low altitude of around 400 to almost 600 meters.
The annual precipitation reaches about 950 mm / a due to air mass accumulation with westerly winds. Characteristic is a high frequency of clouds, a high proportion of winter precipitation as well as heavy and continuous rain. The annual average temperatures reach values between 6 and 7 ° C.
Flora and fauna
The potential natural vegetation of the Hohwald corresponds to the vegetation of the mixed mountain forests of the Lusatian highlands. Without human influence, mixed beech forests interspersed with maples , ash and linden would be characteristic. From the year 1591 it is reported: " The Hoewaldt has beech, fir and lime wood (...). " The composition changed from the 18th century onwards with the increasing extraction of wood and the subsequent afforestation. From 1712, the Putzkauer manor owner Georg Ludwig von Haxthausen felled 11,400 wood trays (around 90,000 m³) in the Hohwald and in the following years it was fled to Dresden via Polenz and Elbe . At that time, Elector August the Strong needed large quantities of wood to expand the residential city of Dresden . In addition to commercial logging, forest damage from storms, snow breaks and ice as well as pest infestation (e.g. nuns ) favored afforestation with fast-growing species, especially spruce . In the 1950s, 78% of the trees in the Hohwald were spruce, 12% were pine and only 10% corresponded to the potentially natural hardwoods. The 513 hectare and almost completely forested FFH area "Hohwald und Valtenberg" has 332 hectares of pure and mixed spruce stands (65%) and 174 hectares of near-natural pure and mixed stands (34%). The enforcement also led to an impoverishment of the soil flora .
The moor-like valley basin southeast of the Valtenberg comprised a former 9-hectare shallow peat store , which was almost completely dismantled between 1842 and 1888 to produce fuel. Here, too, afforestation with spruce stands took place after the dismantling.
Faunistically, the Hohwald is significant as a habitat for the Bechstein bat , the great mouse-eared bat and the pug bat. In 2012, proof was also provided that a wolf family had also been founded in the Hohwald .
history
First mentions and forms of names
The landmarks of the Valtenberges and neighboring males mountain and fir mountain (436 meters) were already in the 1241 signed Oberlausitzer border certificate added that the borders between the Kingdom of Bohemia belonging Oberlausitz and the possessions of the Bishop of Meissen defined.
The first written mentions of the Hohwald itself come from the 15th century. In 1445 the office of Hohnstein received interest (including 4 squirrels) from the " Hoenwalde ". In 1451 the area is called " Hoenwalt ober der Nauestat " (meaning Neustadt ). At the beginning of the 18th century (1729) the area was described as follows: " The high forest that lies over Neustadt towards morning and midnight. It is quite large (...) almost a long mile away, and the width is just as great ." More traditional forms of the name are " Hoewalt " (1446), " high walde " (1543), " Hohenwaldt " (1547) and " Hoewaldt " (1591). The current name "Hohwald" (1817) has been used since the beginning of the 19th century.
Settlement and traffic development
The natural conditions, especially the comparatively harsh climate with high levels of precipitation and the extensive block cover, have prevented the large-scale utilization of the Hohwald area for settlements and agricultural uses up to the present day. The mining industry, which has been around the Hohwald since at least the 15th century, also proved to be so unproductive that it did not have a settlement-forming effect. Thus, small spaces (ie cleared areas) for grassland use were created only at individual marginal places in the forest area.
It was not until the 18th century that individual buildings were built far away from the surrounding settlements in connection with the emerging forestry, quarrying, peat extraction, tourism and spa services. On the western edge of the Hohwald, the forester's house Klunker was built in 1712 by the Putzkau manor owner Georg Ludwig von Haxthausen as an accommodation house for lumberjacks, carters and raftsmen. The house, which was later used as an inn and holiday camp, is now empty. In the course of the expansion of the Hohwaldstraße, the Hohwaldschänke, located almost 500 meters above sea level, was built around 1830. From 1857 there was a lookout tower with an inn on the summit of the Valtenberg. Between 1902 and 1905 the Hohwaldklinik was built right on the Czech border.
As a border area between the Sorbian Gau Milsca and Nisan and later between Electoral Saxony and Bohemia , the Hohwald was criss-crossed by various paths early on:
- South of the Hohwald there was a path from Neustadt to Lobendava that was part of a salt road that connected central Germany with Bohemia.
- Wing F and Gießhübelweg mark an old route leading from Neustadt via Neukirch and on to Bautzen , which are already noted on Matthias Oeder's maps .
- In a north-south direction, the Naßweg led from Bischofswerda to the Bohemian Hainspach (Lipová u Šluknova).
- The most important road today is the Hohwaldstrasse, which runs through the forest area south of the Valtenberg for a length of almost 8 kilometers. Already on the Oedersche maps of the early 17th century a " Steinichtwolmsdorfer Weg " is recorded as a connection from Neustadt to the Bohemian Schluckenau (Šluknov). However, this route had a different course than the road that was built at the beginning of the 19th century. Today, Hohwaldstraße connects Neustadt with Steinigtwolmsdorf as state road 154 and represents an important regional connection between Saxon Switzerland on the right bank of the Elbe and southern Upper Lusatia.
The northern part of the Hohwald is affected or cut through by the Bautzen – Bad Schandau railway line . The line was opened in the section from Bautzen to Neustadt in 1877. Since December 12, 2004, the continuous passenger train service between Bautzen and Neustadt has been discontinued. However, ITL freight trains serve the siding at the Oberottendorf quarry as required.
Hohwaldklinik
The Hohwaldklinik, located directly on the Czech border, is located southeast of Hohwaldstrasse. The clinic was built by the State Insurance Institution of Saxony (LVA Sachsen) between 1902 and 1905 with 270 beds as a cure for lung diseases. When choosing a location, attention was paid to a location that is sheltered from the wind and open to the south. The buildings were built in Art Nouveau style and were a popular picture postcard motif. The construction costs amounted to around 2.5 million gold marks. The sanatorium was run as an independent manor district. At the time of commissioning, the sanatorium was the largest men's sanatorium in Germany. In particular, people suffering from tuberculosis were treated .
In 1925, the LVA Sachsen also acquired Langburkersdorf Castle and used it as a retirement home. The manor belonging to the castle supplied the clinic with agricultural products. Between 1947 and 1966, Langburkersdorf Castle was used for post-treatment courses. At the beginning of the 1930s, renovations took place, during which the number of beds was reduced to 220. In the 1970s, the clinic was re-profiled as a specialist clinic for orthopedics and rehabilitation .
The clinic has been part of the Asklepios Clinic Group since 1998 . The clinic has 105 beds and in 2011 almost 3,400 patients were treated. With over 240 employees (as of 2012), the Hohwaldklinik is one of the largest employers in Neustadt.
Mining
Mining played a role early on in the history of the Hohwald. The " goltwerke zuo der Nuwenstad " (Neustadt), mentioned in a document as early as 1333, can probably be located on the western foothills of the Hohwald. In 1472, the Schneeberg miner Heinrich von Starschedel and his trades were awarded " etzliche nuwe bergwerck (...) bynnen half a meylen wegis umb das Nuwestetlin layin ".
The surroundings of the Valtenberg in particular have always been of interest to the mining experiments. In 1573 the Grube Gottes Gabe was mentioned here as a treasure trove with hereditary tunnels. In 1668, the mine Neue Segen Gottes " ... aufn Hohenwaldt below Falckenberg ... " (Valtenberg) was mentioned. The pit was located on the western slope of the Valtenberg not far from the ridge mountain (478 meters). In 1748 the " Goldgrube, Erbstollen am Hohen Walde bey Steinigtswolmsdorf " was muted on the Goldberg west of Steinigtwolmsdorf , from whose ore 17 pounds of cooked copper and 1/4 lot were extracted. In 1752 the Valentin Erbstolln " am Falckenberge, in the Hohwalde near Steinigtwolmsdorf, near Neustadt bey Stolpen " was muted in the area of the Wesenitzquelle , which opened up a quartz passage . However, due to the strong water inflow and the outbreak of the Seven Years' War , the tunnel could only be excavated 30 puddles (about 60 meters). In 1756 the mining efforts were therefore stopped here again. The rolled-up tunnel mouth hole marks the Wesenitz spring today. The last unsuccessful mining attempts took place in 1787/88 and 1846.
Today some field names still remind us that there have been repeated attempts to mine gold in this area. For example the Goldgrund near Langburkersdorf or the Goldbergwiesen near Steinigtwolmsdorf. There you can still find quartz crystals on old heaps and in shafts . The accompanying mineral is deceptive here, however, gold was and is only found here in the form of small tinsel (0.1 to 5 mm).
In the past, the stones of the Hohwald were extracted in several quarries as decorative stones and building materials. South of the Valtenberg were the two granodiorite structures "Valtengrund" and "Snowflake" (also referred to as Bruch "Waldabteilung 15") as well as the lamprophyr and granodiorite structures "Grenzland". During the GDR era, the "Grenzland" opencast mine covered half of the country's lamprophyr production. All three quarries have now been abandoned and partially flooded. On the north-western edge of the Hohwald near Oberottendorf there is an active opencast mine, in which grit is extracted as aggregate for concrete and asphalt works, track ballast and large rubble stones.
tourism
The tourist development of the Hohwald began in the first half of the 19th century with the expansion of the Hohwaldstrasse from Neustadt to Steinigtwolmsdorf. In 1857 a stone lookout tower was built on the highest point of the forest, the Valtenberg, and soon afterwards an inn.
Today the Hohwald is crossed by several hiking and cycling routes. These trails also include the German Unity hiking trail , the Oberlausitzer Bergweg and the long- distance cycle path "Saxon Central Mountains". In winter there are also several ski routes and winter hiking trails.
Web links
- Photos and information about the Hohwaldklinik
- History of the area
- Photos and information on gold mining in the Hohwald area
Individual evidence
- ^ Karl Mannsfeld, Olaf Bastian: Saxon landscapes. Between Düben Heath and Zittau Mountains. Edition Leipzig, Leipzig 2012, p. 262
- ↑ Alfred Meiche: Historical-topographical description of the Pirna administration. Dresden 1927, p. 123
- ↑ The former forester's house in Klunker in the Hohwald
- ↑ To Stolpen and Neustadt (= values of our homeland . Volume 17). 1st edition. Akademie Verlag, Berlin 1970., p. 127
- ↑ Summary management plan FFH area 92E "Hohwald und Valtenberg" ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ( ZIP ; 23.2 MB)
- ^ Dietrich Graf: The Hohwald . in: Calendar Sächsische Gebirgsheimat 1983
- ↑ Ruth Petermann: Bat Conservation in Europe II. Year of the Bat 2011-2012. BfN script 296, Bonn 2011, p. 150 (PDF; 6.8 MB)
- ↑ Wolfsbüro Lausitz - current pack territories ( memento of October 2, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) (as of November 27, 2012)
- ↑ Alfred Meiche: Historical-topographical description of the Pirna administration. Dresden 1927, p. 123
- ↑ Alfred Meiche: Historical-topographical description of the Pirna administration. Dresden 1927, p. 123
- ↑ The former forester's house in Klunker in the Hohwald
- ↑ To Stolpen and Neustadt (= values of our homeland . Volume 17). 1st edition. Akademie Verlag, Berlin 1970., p. 137
- ↑ To Stolpen and Neustadt (= values of our homeland . Volume 17). 1st edition. Akademie Verlag, Berlin 1970., p. 124ff.
- ↑ http://de.wikisource.org/wiki/Dresdner_Journal,_1906,_Nr._1,_Dienstag,_den_2._Januar_nachmittags
- ↑ - Chronicle of the history of the clinic
- ↑ Hohwaldklinik - Annual Report 2011 ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 1.9 MB)
- ↑ " Hohwald-Klinik figurehead for Neustadt ", Sächsische Zeitung dated February 11, 2012
- ^ Alfred Meiche: Historical-Topographical Description of the Pirna Administrative Authority, Dresden 1927, p. 199
- ↑ Mineralienatlas - Goldberg at Steinigwolsmdorf
- ^ Markus Schade, Thomas Birke: Gold in the Lausitzer Bergland. Locations - Origin - History , Theuern 2002, p. 20f.
- ↑ Mineralienatlas - Grenzland quarry I
- ↑ Homepage SachsenNetz Rad ( Memento from July 2, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ Skiing in the Hohwald area ( Memento from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 3.2 MB)
Coordinates: 51 ° 3 ′ 47 ″ N , 14 ° 17 ′ 1 ″ E