Siegerland
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Siegerland is a region of Germany covering the old district of Siegen (now part of the district of Siegen-Wittgenstein in North Rhine-Westphalia) and the upper part of the district of Altenkirchen, belonging to the Rhineland-Palatinate adjoining it to the west.
Geologically, the Siegerland belongs to the Rheinschiefergebirge (Rhenish Slate Mountains). The point of highest elevation is the Riemen, at 678 metres above sea level.
The region around the cities of Siegen is one of the most populated areas of Germany. It includes the municipalities of Hilchenbach, Netphen, Kreuztal, Freudenberg and Siegen, and the communities of Wilnsdorf, Burbach and Neunkirchen, all in North Rhine-Westphalia, and in the Rhineland-Palatinate the municipalities of Kirchen, Herdorf and Betzdorf, with the community of Daaden. The population is approximately 300,000.
Iron mining and working began in Siegerland in 600 BC (cf the blast furnace at Wilnsdorf, dated to 500 BC) and continued until 1965, when the closing of Grube Georg (Georg Pit) in Willroth on March 29 ended over 2,500 years of mining. Characteristic of the area are the coppices ("Hauberge") for the production of wood for charcoal burning.
The area now promotes its tourism industry and its capacities as a source of minerals and fossils.
[edit] External links
(in German):
- Siegerland: general and tourist information
- History of the coppices, or Hauberge
- Information on and history of local mining
- Minerals in Siegerland
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This article is based on that in the German Wikipedia
