Fürstenwalde

Fürstenwalde/Spree is a town in eastern Germany. It is in the Oder-Spree District, which is part of the state of Brandenburg. The town is the largest in the district, so it is an important place for the area. People have lived in this region for a long time, and Fürstenwalde has grown to be a center for the community.

Geography

Fürstenwalde is a town in eastern Germany. It is in a valley shaped long ago by glaciers, close to the Spree River. The town is about 60 km east of Berlin and 30 km west of Frankfurt (Oder).

Fürstenwalde has a train station that connects it to Berlin and Frankfurt (Oder). There is also a major highway nearby. The town has a solar park that provides electricity for the area.

History

Fürstenwalde was first mentioned in a document from the year 1272. It was built when many people from Germany moved eastward and settled near a river crossing. The area had been part of Poland before it became part of Brandenburg.

Later, the town was controlled by different rulers, including those from Bohemia. An important church was moved to Fürstenwalde and became a cathedral. During a big change in religious beliefs called the Reformation, the church was closed down.

In the 18th century, Fürstenwalde became part of Prussia. A group of French people who had to leave their homes also settled there. During World War II, the town was used for holding people. After the war, Fürstenwalde was part of East Germany before returning to Brandenburg in 1990.

Demography

This section shows how the number of people in Fürstenwalde has changed over time. It compares the town's population to the whole state of Brandenburg. The graphs also show guesses about how many people might live there in the future.

Politics

In 2014, the people of Fürstenwalde chose leaders for their town assembly. Here are the groups and the seats they got:

• The Left: 7 seats
• Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU): 6 seats
• Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD): 6 seats
• Free Voters (BFZ): 5 seats
• Free Democratic Party (FDP): 3 seats
• Alternative for Germany (AfD): 2 seats
• Alliance 90/The Greens: 2 seats
• Pirate Party Germany: 1 seat

Twin towns – sister cities

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Germany

Fürstenwalde has friendly partnerships with these towns:

• [Choszczno], Poland
• [Reinheim], Germany
• [Sulechów], Poland

Notable people

Fürstenwalde has been home to many interesting people throughout history. Some of these include Karl Friedrich Schulz, a Protestant composer and music teacher, and Julius Pintsch, who founded the former industrial company Julius Pintsch AG Berlin-Fürstenwalde.

Other notable individuals from the town are Ernst Laas, a pedagogue and philosopher, and Wilhelm Burgdorf, a general of the infantry. More recent figures include Wolfgang Götze, a theoretical physicist, and Hans-Michael Rehberg, an actor and film director. The town has also seen notable athletes like footballer Burkhard Reich and boxer Axel Schulz.