Hohnstein

Town in Saxony, Germany

Coat of arms

Location of Hohnstein within Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge district

(2022–29) Daniel Brade^[1]Area

• Total64.61 km² (24.95 sq mi)Elevation

330 m (1,080 ft)Population

(2022-12-31)^[2]

• Total3,201 • Density50/km² (130/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)Postal codes

01848

Dialling codes035975Vehicle registrationPIRWebsitewww.hohnstein.de

Hohnstein (German pronunciation: [ˈhoːnˌʃtaɪ̯n] ^ⓘ) is a town located in the Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge district of Saxony, in eastern Germany. As of 2020, its population numbered a total of 3,262.

Geography

It is situated in Saxon Switzerland, 12 km east of Pirna, and 28 km southeast of Dresden (centre). It is dominated by its castle, standing on a sandstone rock.

The municipal territory includes the villages (Ortsteile) of Cunnersdorf, Ehrenberg, Goßdorf, Lohsdorf, Rathewalde, Ulbersdorf and Waitzdorf.

History

In 1900, the town had a population of 1,321.^[3]

During the German invasion of Poland at the start of World War II, in September 1939, the Oflag IV-A prisoner-of-war camp for Polish officers was established at the local castle, and from 1940 it also held French and Belgian officers and orderlies.^[4] In 1941, the Oflag IV-A was dissolved, and the Stalag IV-A POW camp was relocated to Hohnstein from Elsterhorst.^[4] It held Polish, French, British, Belgian, Serbian, Dutch, Soviet, Italian, American, Slovak, Czech and Bulgarian POWs, and was liberated by the Soviets in April 1945.^[4]

Gallery

1985 stamp of the castle.
View of the town and the castle.
Town's church
Church in Rathewalde
The Amsel Falls near Rathewalde
Shelter on the Hockstein in the Saxon Switzerland National Park

References

^ Gewählte Bürgermeisterinnen und Bürgermeister im Freistaat Sachsen, Stand: 17. Juli 2022, Statistisches Landesamt des Freistaates Sachsen.
^ "Einwohnerzahlen nach Gemeinden als Excel-Arbeitsmappe" (XLS) (in German). Statistisches Landesamt des Freistaates Sachsen. 2024.
^ Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon. Vol. 9. Leipzig und Wien. 1906. p. 467.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^ ^a ^b ^c Megargee, Geoffrey P.; Overmans, Rüdiger; Vogt, Wolfgang (2022). The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Encyclopedia of Camps and Ghettos 1933–1945. Volume IV. Indiana University Press, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. pp. 236, 413. ISBN 978-0-253-06089-1.