Nordhausen

Nordhausen in Thuringia has been twinned with Bochum since June 17, 1990. However, there was contact between the two cities long before the official partnership: Over a 100 years ago, on September 1, 1892, Bochum's first Lord Mayor, Karl Hahn who hailed from Nordhausen, took office. Hahn had held the same position in Nordhausen since 1886. Nordhausen was founded in 927 and was granted town status in 1220. Today, the town has a population of c. 50,000 and covers an area of 34 square km.

Situated between the Kyffhäuser hills and the Harz mountains, on the fertile lowlands known as Goldene Aue or Golden Meadows, Nordhausen is the political, economic and cultural centre of the district of Nordhausen in the north of the new federal state Thuringia. The town is well known for spirits and liqueurs, particularly for the medal-winning "Nordhäuser Doppelkorn" (schnapps with an alcohol content of at least 38%), for its chewing tobacco and cigarette factories, and for its diesel engine production. Since the unification of the two German states, Nordhausen has gradually evolved into a significant supra-regional service centre.

Nordhausen also became known for another reason: During World War II, more than 60,000 prisoners from 21 countries were forced to make Nazi Germany's V2 rockets in the grim underground tunnels of the nearby "Mittelbau-Dora" concentration camp. In retaliation, Nordhausen was the target of massive air raids by allied bombers on April 3 and 4, 1945. 8,800 lives were lost and 70 per cent of the town was destroyed. Today, Nordhausen boasts neatly kept parks and woodland, a historical "old town" and uniform, socialist-style apartment block complexes. Very near to the historical town centre are the promenade and the public park with rose garden. Of historical interest are the Renaissance-style town hall with a statue of Roland, the symbol of civic autonomy, and the "old town" with its many half-timbered houses some of which have been carefully restored. Two churches are of particular interest, these being the Cathedral "Zum Heiligen Kreuz" (Holy Cross), a Gothic church with three naves and the remains of a Romanesque cloister, and the Church of St. Blasius, a late-Gothic church with three naves and a section dating from the late-Romanesque period.

We should also mention the well-known civic theatre and the excellent Meyenburg Museum which traces Nordhausen's social and cultural history.

It takes its name from Michael Meyenburg (1491-1555), who was one-time mayor of Nordhausen and close friend of Martin Luther.

The famous Harzquerbahn, Germany's longest narrow-gauge railway, starts from Nordhausen and goes through the valleys of the Southern Harz mountains; in other words, it crosses the Harz mountain range in a South-North direction and terminates in Wernigerode, with a junction to the Brocken, the highest peak in the Harz. The well-known Salza spring with a maximum production of 1,435 litres per second is the largest spring in the "new" member states.

• Nordhausen Homepage
• Town twinning associations
• Other twin towns