Lichtenberg (Upper Franconia)

Basic data
State :	Bavaria
Administrative region :	Upper Franconia
County :	court
Management Community :	Lichtenberg
Height :	564 m above sea level NHN
Area :	9.47 km 2
Residents:	1037 (Dec. 31, 2019)
Population density :	110 inhabitants per km 2
Postal code :	95192
Area code :	09288
License plate :	HO , MÜB , NAI, REH , SAN
Community key :	09 4 75 146
City structure:	8 districts
; City administration address :	Marktplatz 16 ; 95192 Lichtenberg
Website :	www.stadt-lichtenberg.de
Mayor :	Kristan von Waldenfels ( CSU / Independent Citizens of Lichtenberg)
Location of the city of Lichtenberg in the Hof district

Lichtenberg is a town in the Upper Franconian district of Hof . The picturesque old town is directly connected to the ruins of Lichtenberg Castle .

Lichtenberg is one of the smallest cities in Germany in terms of population (12th place, as of December 31, 2015) and the second smallest city in Bavaria.

geography

Lichtenberg is located on a mountain above the Höllental , through which the Selbitz river flows. The city is part of the Franconian Forest Nature Park . The neighboring town of Blankenstein is in Thuringia .

City structure

The following districts belong to the city of Lichtenberg:

City of Lichtenberg
Blechschmidtenhammer
Dörflas
Cod mill
Peace pit
Friedrich Wilhelm Stollen
Höllenthal
Selbitzmühle

Neighboring communities

	Rosenthal on the Rennsteig
		Issigau
Bad Steben	Naila

history

View of Lichtenberg

View of the old town with the castle ruins

Until the church is planted

The origins of the castle go back to 814. The new building and expansion in the 12th century by the Dukes of Merania are documented . In 1248 the place and castle came to the Counts of Orlamünde by inheritance . In 1337 Lichtenberg was first mentioned in a document and attested as a town. In 1427 Lichtenberg was bought by Caspar von Waldenfels , then margravial Brandenburg captain in Hof , from Count Sigismund von Orlamünde into the possession of the barons of Waldenfels , who made it their family seat. In the fourth crusade of the Hussites , Lichtenberg was successfully defended under Caspar von Waldenfels. Caspar's sons Hans and Fritz triggered the Waldenfels feud in 1441 , in the course of which Lichtenberg withstood the siege by a Nuremberg army in 1444 and was finally able to force them to withdraw. Subsequently, however, in 1446 Hans and Fritz had to recognize the Brandenburg fiefdom over Lichtenberg. Hans' son Heinz inherited the Lichtenberg estate in 1481. Heinz 'great-grandchildren Hans Rudolf and Christoph sold the Lichtenberg estate in 1618 for 100,000 guilders to Prince Janusz Radziwiłł . The Waldenfels coat of arms, a silver jumping unicorn on a blue background, is still part of the Lichtenberg city coat of arms. From the late Middle Ages until 1792 the city belonged to the Zoller Principality of Brandenburg-Bayreuth . In 1792 the former Lichtenberg Treasury Department fell to Prussia together with the Principality of Bayreuth . In the Peace of Tilsit in 1807, Prussia ceded the Principality of Bayreuth to France under Napoleon Bonaparte , and in 1810 the Principality of Bayreuth and with it the city of Lichtenberg became part of Bavaria . Lichtenberg has had city rights for more than 670 years.

Population development

In the period from 1988 to 2018, the population decreased from 1080 to 1051 by 29 or 2.7%. On December 31, 1999, the city had 1200 inhabitants.

Population development of Lichtenberg from 1840 to 2016

1840: 0989
1871: 0832
1900: 0961
1925: 0978
1939: 0949
1950: 1481
1960: 1259
1970: 1281
1980: 1142
1990: 1168

1995: 1172
2000: 1199
2003: 1169
2004: 1160
2005: 1154
2006: 1136
2007: 1121
2008: 1107
2009: 1120
2010: 1101

2011: 1099
2012: 1080
2013: 1040
2014: 1023
2015: 1012
2016: 1036
2017: 1053

(Source: Bavarian State Office for Statistics and Data Processing)

politics

City council

The city council for the 2020–2026 electoral period consists of twelve council members and the first mayor. After the local elections on March 15, 2020, the city council will consist of:

CSU / Independent Citizens of Lichtenberg: 6 seats
SPD : 5 seats
List 4: 1 seat

mayor

1980– Herbert Heinel
–2004 Dieter Köhler († November 13, 2004)
2005–2014 Elke Beyer (SPD / Free Voters)
2014–2020 Holger Knüppel (CSU / Independent Citizens of Lichtenberg, † February 16, 2020)
2020– Kristan von Waldenfels (CSU / Independent Citizens of Lichtenberg)

Mayoral election 2020

In the runoff election on March 29, 2020, 19-year-old law student Kristan von Waldenfels (CSU) was elected as the youngest mayor in Bavaria with 52.5 percent of the vote.

Town twinning

Austria Austria : Lichtenberg has had a town partnership with Lichtenberg in Upper Austria since 1994 .

Administrative community

Lichtenberg is the seat of the administrative community Lichtenberg to which the neighboring municipality of Issigau belongs.

Culture and sights

music

House Marteau

The Marteau House International Music Meeting Center is located in Lichtenberg and is sponsored by the Upper Franconian district . Masterclasses are offered all year round and the Henri Marteau International Violin Competition is held every three years .

Castle Festival

Northeast view of the castle

Every year in September a medieval castle festival takes place in the old town and in the ruins of the castle. The organization is taken over every two years by Burgfreunde Lichtenberg e. V. and BurgKultur Lichtenberg e. V. (2013). The 13th Castle Festival on 7./8. September 2013 had about 8000 visitors.

Buildings

The Friedrich Wilhelm tunnel near Blechschmidtenhammer is now a visitor mine . The Blechschmidtenhammer information center of the Franconian Forest Nature Park is located in the station , which was used until 1945 . The castle ruins on Waldenfelsplatz dominate the cityscape. Many buildings in the old town date from the Middle Ages and are listed buildings.

Recreation center at the Frankenwaldsee

The Frankenwaldsee is located south of Lichtenberg. The recreation center on the shores of the lake offered a wide range of leisure activities: a lido with a restaurant, the multi-purpose hall, the campsite and the holiday village. Since the city of Lichtenberg cannot cover the maintenance costs for the recreation center, it has not been in operation since 2000.

Economy and Infrastructure

traffic

The Lichtenberg (Ofr) station in the Blechschmidtenhammer district was on the Triptis – Marxgrün railway line . The Bavarian part is closed.

Established businesses

The company LIROS (Lichtenberg Rosenberger, formerly Rosenberger Tauwerk GmbH) had its headquarters in Lichtenberg until 2011. After moving the main production to Berg , the company headquarters was relocated to Berg with the name change to LIROS GMbH. A branch will remain in Lichtenberg.

Hans Schmidt Kartonagen und Druck GmbH

City view of the Lichtenberg old town from the south, spiers from the left: town hall, Johannes church , keep

Personalities

Honorary citizen

Henri Marteau (1874–1934), violinist and composer
Otto Freiherr von Waldenfels (1889–1974), Royal. Bavarian Rittmeister a. D., State Archives Director a. D.

Son of the city

Erhard Bodenschatz (1576–1636), pastor , cantor and composer .

People connected to the city

Caspar von Waldenfels (* around 1380–1441), captain of the mountains , acquired Lichtenberg in 1427.
Hans von Waldenfels († 1470), son of Caspar, triggered the Waldenfels feud .
Fritz von Waldenfels († 1450), son of Caspar, triggered the Waldenfels feud .
August Greim (1895–1975), politician (NSDAP), member of the Reichstag .
Rudolf von Waldenfels (born 1965), actor and writer.