Weißenburg in Bayern | |
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 The old town hall of Weißenburg is one of the icons of the city | |
 Coat of arms | |
Location of Weißenburg in Bayern within Weißenburg-Gunzenhausen district  | |
 Location of Weißenburg in Bayern | |
  Weißenburg in Bayern  Weißenburg in Bayern | |
| Coordinates:49°01′50″N10°58′19″E / 49.03056°N 10.97194°E /49.03056; 10.97194 | |
| Country | Germany |
| State | Bavaria |
| Admin. region | Middle Franconia |
| District | Weißenburg-Gunzenhausen |
| Subdivisions | 27Ortsteile |
| Government | |
| • Lord mayor(2020–26) | Jürgen Schröppel[1] (SPD) |
| Area | |
• Total | 97.58 km2 (37.68 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 422 m (1,385 ft) |
| Population (2023-12-31)[2] | |
• Total | 18,931 |
| • Density | 194.0/km2 (502.5/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| Postal codes | 91781 |
| Dialling codes | 09141 |
| Vehicle registration | WUG |
| Website | www.weissenburg.de |
Weißenburg in Bayern (German pronunciation:[ˈvaɪsn̩bʊʁkʔɪnˈbaɪɐn],lit. 'Weißenburg inBavaria'), formerly known asWeißenburg imNordgau andWeißenburg am Sand, is atown inMiddle Franconia, Germany. It is the capital of the districtWeißenburg-Gunzenhausen, with a population of 18,345 as of 2024. Weißenburg was afree imperial city for 500 years.
Weißenburg is located in centralBavaria, in the south of theadministrative regionMittelfranken. Large nearby cities areIngolstadt (55.5 km),Nuremberg (61.7 km),Augsburg (85 km),Munich (134.6 km), andWürzburg (150.4 km).
The municipality is divided into 27Ortsteile: the main town and the 26 villages of Dettenheim, Emetzheim, Gänswirtshaus, Haardt, Hagenbuch, Hammermühle, Hattenhof, Häuser am Wülzburger Berg, Heuberg, Holzingen, Kattenhochstatt, Kehl, Laubenthal, Markhof, Niederhofen, Oberhochstatt, Potschmühle, Rohrwalk, Rothenstein (Weißenburg), Schleifer am Berg, Schmalwiesen, Stadelhof, Suffersheim, Weimersheim, Weißenhof and Wülzburg.
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The history of Weißenburg is generally traced back to theRoman fort that was built in the area towards the end of the first century. The settlement, which includedThermae, lay on theborder of theRoman Empire and on theTabula Peutingeriana from the 4th century it had the name Biriciana.Germanic tribes destroyed the fort and settled in what is still the city centre. The first mention of the name Weißenburg is in a deed dating from 867. The city became the seat of a royal residence during the reign of theFranks and according to legend,Charlemagne stayed there to supervise the construction ofFossa Carolina.
The city became aFree Imperial City in 1296 and continued to grow until theReformation. Following the example of Nuremberg the city joined theProtestant side but it suffered heavily in the ensuingwars. However, the rights of the city as a Free Imperial City and anImperial Estate were restored in the final peace treaty and some growth resumed. Despite its insignificant size and economic importance, the city, like the other 50-odd free imperial cities, was virtually independent.
Weißenburg lost its independence in 1802 and became part of theBavarian kingdom in 1806. It was however saved from insignificance with the construction of a railway between Nuremberg and Augsburg which goes through the city and which supported industrialisation. FollowingWorld War II over 6,000 refugees and people expelled from the territories which Germany lost settled in the city and have since played an important role in its industry and culture.
The many stages in the history of Weißenburg can still be seen today. There are many ruins from the Roman times. One of the finest is the remains of a Roman bath which was excavated in 1977 and has been turned into a museum. The city wall from the Middle Ages has survived almost intact with its towers and in the Gothic Town Hall the city's elected members have held their meetings from 1476.
Wülzburg is a historic fortress about 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) east of the centre of Weißenburg. It stands on a hill 200 metres (660 ft) above Weißenburg, at an elevation of 630.5 metres (2,069 ft), and was originally aBenedictinemonastery dating from the 11th century. It was converted into a fortress from 1588 to 1605 and is one of the best-preserved Renaissance fortresses in Germany. Today it is part of the city of Weißenburg.
DuringWorld War I, the future French leaderCharles De Gaulle was imprisoned at the Wülzburg. The Nazis also used it as a prison camp duringWorld War II; it was here that the Czech composerErwin Schulhoff was held for over a year before he died ofTB.
| Climate data for Weißenburg in Bayern (1991–2020 normals) | |||||||||||||
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| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 3.1 (37.6) | 5.0 (41.0) | 9.8 (49.6) | 15.1 (59.2) | 19.4 (66.9) | 22.9 (73.2) | 24.9 (76.8) | 24.8 (76.6) | 19.7 (67.5) | 13.9 (57.0) | 7.5 (45.5) | 3.8 (38.8) | 14.2 (57.6) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 0.3 (32.5) | 1.1 (34.0) | 4.9 (40.8) | 9.4 (48.9) | 13.8 (56.8) | 17.2 (63.0) | 19.0 (66.2) | 18.7 (65.7) | 14.0 (57.2) | 9.4 (48.9) | 4.5 (40.1) | 1.3 (34.3) | 9.5 (49.1) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −2.5 (27.5) | −2.4 (27.7) | 0.4 (32.7) | 3.5 (38.3) | 7.8 (46.0) | 11.2 (52.2) | 13.0 (55.4) | 12.8 (55.0) | 8.9 (48.0) | 5.5 (41.9) | 1.7 (35.1) | −1.2 (29.8) | 4.9 (40.8) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 44.3 (1.74) | 37.3 (1.47) | 44.5 (1.75) | 38.1 (1.50) | 69.0 (2.72) | 75.9 (2.99) | 83.9 (3.30) | 71.7 (2.82) | 49.2 (1.94) | 51.3 (2.02) | 48.8 (1.92) | 52.5 (2.07) | 666.5 (26.24) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 1.0 mm) | 15.9 | 13.5 | 14.5 | 12.5 | 14.0 | 14.5 | 15.1 | 13.7 | 12.7 | 14.3 | 14.2 | 17.0 | 171.9 |
| Average snowy days(≥ 1.0 cm) | 10.6 | 9.8 | 3.7 | 0.4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.1 | 8.0 | 34.6 |
| Averagerelative humidity (%) | 83.0 | 79.1 | 73.6 | 66.5 | 67.7 | 68.5 | 67.6 | 69.2 | 75.4 | 81.7 | 85.6 | 85.3 | 75.3 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 57.2 | 85.7 | 135.2 | 188.5 | 219.4 | 229.1 | 239.6 | 228.2 | 165.9 | 109.9 | 54.0 | 45.4 | 1,749 |
| Source:World Meteorological Organization[3] | |||||||||||||
Media related toWeißenburg in Bayern at Wikimedia Commons
Weißenburg in Bayern travel guide from WikivoyageTowns and municipalities inWeißenburg-Gunzenhausen | ||
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Circles est. 1500:Bavarian,Swabian,Upper Rhenish,Lower Rhenish–Westphalian,Franconian,(Lower) Saxon Circles est. 1512:Austrian,Burgundian,Upper Saxon,Electoral Rhenish · Unencircled territories | ||
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