Döbeln

Döbeln is a town in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, part of the Mittelsachsen district, on both banks of the river Freiberger Mulde.

For the Swedish war hero, see Georg Carl von Döbeln.

Döbeln
View on the old town
Coat of arms
Location of Döbeln within Mittelsachsen district
Döbeln
Döbeln
Coordinates: 51°7′10″N 13°6′46″E
CountryGermany
StateSaxony
DistrictMittelsachsen
Subdivisions19
Government
 • MayorSven Liebhauser (CDU)
Area
 • Total84.55 km2 (32.64 sq mi)
Highest elevation
262 m (860 ft)
Lowest elevation
159 m (522 ft)
Population
 (2019-12-31)[1]
 • Total23,583
 • Density280/km2 (720/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes
04720
Dialling codes03431
Vehicle registrationFG, BED, DL, FLÖ, HC, MW, RL
Websitewww.doebeln.de

History
  • 981: First written written mention of Döbeln (Margravate of Meissen).[2]
  • Around 1220: Döbeln is described as a town ("civitas").
  • 1293: First mention of Church of St. Nicholas
  • 1296: Castle and town are occupied by Adolf of Nassau.
  • 1330: Monastery buildings are completed.
  • 1333: A serious fire incinerates the entire town.
  • 1360: Knight Ulmann of Staupitz builds castle Reichenstein.
  • 1429: Looting of the town and destruction of the castle by the Hussites.
  • 1450: Döbeln is raided by Bohemians in the service of duke Wilhelm of Wettin, severely damaging the castle (see Saxon Fratricidal War). After that, the castle declined in its importance.
  • 1567: Döbeln was mentioned as "deserted palace" and afterwards only used as a quarry.
  • 1637: Plundered by the Swedes
  • 1730: Another serious fire hit Döbeln. As a result, the remains of the castle were used as building material for rebuilding. In this fire, 266 homeowners and 400 renters lost their homes.
  • 12 May 1762 (during the Seven Years' War): Battle of Döbeln between the Prussians and the Austrians. The troops of Prince Henry of Prussia defeated the Austrian troops and took prisoners including the commander General von Zedtwitz.
  • 1754–1810: Döbeln is a garrison of the infantry regiment Lubomirsky.
  • 1847: Döbeln was connected to the railway from Riesa.
  • 1857: The railway was extended to Chemnitz.
  • 1868: The Dresden-Döbeln-Leipzig railway line was opened.
  • 1945: Döbeln was occupied by the Soviet Army without a shot being fired.

Population history

From 31 December 1960 unless otherwise noted:[3][4]

1694 to 1946

  • 1694: 1,300
  • 1834: 5,677
  • 1859: 10,078
  • 1875: 10,969
  • 1880: 11,802
  • 1890: 13,892
  • 1910: 19,627
  • 1925: 22,508
  • 1933: 24,714
  • 1939: 25,339
  • 1946: 28.841[5]

1950 to 1998

  • 1950: 31,037[6]
  • 1960: 28,904
  • 1964: 28,641
  • 1981: 26,812
  • 1984: 26,998
  • 1986: 27,706
  • 1990: 27,112
  • 1995: 25,046
  • 1997: 24,396
  • 1998: 24,045

1999 to 2006

  • 1999: 23,610
  • 2000: 23,128
  • 2001: 22,653
  • 2002: 22,201
  • 2003: 21,816
  • 2004: 21,365
  • 2005: 21,236
  • 2006: 20,943

2007 to 2017

  • 2007: 20,726
  • 2008: 20,527
  • 2009: 20,337
  • 2010: 20,242
  • 2011: 21,077
  • 2012: 21,016 (May)
  • 2016: 23,823
  • 2017: 23,769 (September)[7]

Note that the town of Ebersbach, Mittelsachsen, with its population of approximately 1,000 was merged into Döbeln in 2011. On 1 January 2016, the former municipality Mochau became part of Döbeln.

Memorials
  • Memorial in front of the Crematorium in the graveyard for 21 Polish and Russian men and women who were transported to Germany during World War II and died as slave laborers.
  • Memorial at Wettinplatz for all victims of fascism.
  • Memorial in front of the Lessing School for the victims of war and dictatorship between the years 1933 and 1989.

Transport

Döbeln Central Station is on the Borsdorf–Coswig and Riesa–Chemnitz lines.

It has two connections to the A14 motorway (Autobahn).

Döbeln has the last remaining horse-drawn tram line in Germany, in the form of the Döbeln Tramway. This line originally ran from 1892 to 1926, and was reopened in 2007.

Schlegelbrunnen (fountain) with St Nicholas's Church in background

Notable people

Twin towns

Döbeln is twinned with:

References
  1. "Bevölkerung des Freistaates Sachsen nach Gemeinden am 31. Dezember 2019". Statistisches Landesamt des Freistaates Sachsen (in German). July 2020.
  2. gifted to Memleben Abbey as "Doblin in partibus Sclavonie" (transl. "in the Slavic lands") Wattenbach, Wilhelm (1888). "Volume 2, part 1 - Legal documents of Otto II.". Die Urkunden der deutschen Könige und Kaiser [Legal documents of German kings and emperors]. Monumenta Germaniae Historica. Hannover: Gesellschaft für ältere deutsche Geschichtskunde. document 195.
  3. Source from 1998: Statistisches Landesamt Sachsen
  4. Digitales Historisches Ortsverzeichnis von Sachsen - Döbeln
  5. Census 29 October 1946
  6. Census 31 August 1950
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