Saxony-Anhalt

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Sachsen-Anhalt
Saxony-Anhalt
Flag Coat of arms
Coat of arms of Saxony-Anhalt
Details
Location
Map of Germany, location of Saxony-Anhalt highlighted
Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Administration
Country Germany
NUTS Region DEE
Capital Magdeburg
Largest city Halle
Minister-President Wolfgang Böhmer (CDU)
Governing parties CDU / SPD
Votes in Bundesrat 4 (of 69)
Basic statistics
Area  20,445 km² (7,894 sq mi)
Population 2,389,859 (04/2009)[1]
 - Density 117 /km² (303 /sq mi)
Other information
GDP/ Nominal € 48 billion (2005)
ISO region DE-ST
Website sachsen-anhalt.de

Coordinates: 51°58′16″N 11°28′12″E / 51.971°N 11.470°E / 51.971; 11.470

Saxony-Anhalt (German: Sachsen-Anhalt) is one of the sixteen Bundesländer (federal states) that make up the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of 20,447 square kilometres (7,895 sq mi), and a population of 2.45 million (more than 2.8 million in 1990). Its capital is Magdeburg.

Contents

[edit] Geography

Saxony-Anhalt is one of 16 states in the Federal Republic of Germany. It covers a total area of 20,445 km² (12,676 sq. miles). By size, it is the 8th largest state in Germany, and by population, the 10th largest. It borders the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony.

The capital of Saxony-Anhalt is Magdeburg. It is the second largest city in the state, after Halle. Nearby is the city of Dessau, where the "Bauhaus" is located. The Bauhaus provided a basis for the field of architecture and fine arts in the area. Dessau is also home to the opulent Dessau-Wörlitz Garden Realm. The city’s main attraction is the Wörlitzer Park which is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The landscape of Saxony-Anhalt is quite varied. From the region of Altmark in the north, the state extends from the Magdeburg region, a vast lowland, through the Harz, a low mountain range, until one comes to Thuringia. The highest mountain in the vicinity is Brocken, with an elevation of 1,141 meters (3,735 ft). Below the summit, the National Park Harz forms an extensive wildlife sanctuary.

See also List of places in Saxony-Anhalt.

[edit] Administrative subdivision

Map of Saxony-Anhalt showing the district boundaries after the 2007 reform.

From 1994 to 2003, Saxony-Anhalt was divided into 21 districts ("Landkreise"). Above this level, there were three governmental districts (Regierungsbezirke): Dessau, Halle and Magdeburg. On January 1, 2004 these three governmental districts were abolished.

A further reform, effective from July 2007, reduced the 21 districts to 11 districts (Landkreise):

and three urban districts (Stadtkreise):

[edit] History

Saxony-Anhalt was formed as a province of Prussia in 1945, from the territories of the former Prussian Province of Saxony (except the Regierungsbezirk Erfurt), the Free State of Anhalt, the Free State of Brunswick (Calvörde and the eastern part of the former Blankenburg district) and the formerly Thuringian town Allstedt. See the respective articles for the history of the area before 1945.

When Prussia was disbanded in 1947, the province became the state Saxony-Anhalt. It became part of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) in 1949. From 1952 to 1990 Saxony-Anhalt was divided into the East German districts of Halle and Magdeburg. In 1990, in the course of German reunification, the districts were reintegrated as a state.

[edit] Politics

[edit] List of minister presidents of Saxony-Anhalt

[edit] 1945–1952

  1. 1945–1949: Erhard Hübener (LDPD)
  2. 1949–1952: Werner Bruschke (SED)

[edit] 1990 to date

  1. 1990–1991: Gerd Gies (CDU)
  2. 1991–1993: Werner Münch (CDU)
  3. 1993–1994: Christoph Bergner (CDU)
  4. 1994–2002: Reinhard Höppner (SPD)
  5. since 2002: Wolfgang Böhmer (CDU)

[edit] March 26, 2006 state election

See also: Saxony-Anhalt state election, 2006

Minister-president Wolfgang Böhmer (CDU) could not continue his coalition with the FDP and negotiated a grand coalition with the SPD instead.

Party Party List votes Vote percentage Total Seats Seat percentage
Christian Democratic Union (CDU) 326,712 36.2% 40 41.2%
The Left Party (Die LINKE(PDS/WASG)) 217,285 24.1% 26 26.8%
Social Democratic Party (SPD) 192,754 21.4% 24 24.7%
Free Democratic Party (FDP) 60,207 6.7% 7 7.2%
Alliance '90/The Greens 32,118 3.6% 0 0.0%
German People's Union (DVU) 26,894 3.0% 0 0.0%
All Others 46,235 5.0% 0 0.0%
Totals 902,205 100.0% 97 100.0%


[edit] Economy

Saxony Anhalt is famous for its good soil. The "Magdeburger Börde" contains the best soil in all of Germany and some of the best of Europe. It is often said by the local populace that the smoothness of the soil is more luxurious than balls of silk. The food industry has an important role in this state. Some of the best known products are "Baumkuchen" from Salzwedel (Altmark) or "Hallorenkugeln" from Halle.

In the industrial sector the chemical industry is quite important. One of the biggest chemical producing areas can be found around the cities of Wolfen and Bitterfeld. Because of the chemical industry, Saxony Anhalt is the largest receiver of foreign direct investments in all of eastern Germany.

Saxony Anhalt is also the location of numerous "wind farms" throughout the state producing wind-turbine energy.

[edit] Anthem

[edit] External links

[edit] References

 This 2007-10-03: Surely we can do better than one cited reference on such important pages!
Saxony-Anhalt needs additional citations for verification.
Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (October 2007)
  1. ^ "State population". Portal of the Federal Statistics Office Germany. http://www.statistik-portal.de/Statistik-Portal/de_zs01_sxa.asp. Retrieved on 2007-04-25. 
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