Neumünster

Neumünster (German pronunciation: [nɔʏˈmʏnstɐ] ⓘ) is a city in the middle of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. With more than 79,000 registered inhabitants, it is the fourth-largest municipality in Schleswig-Holstein (behind Kiel, Lübeck and Flensburg). The Holstenhallen and the Stadthalle make the city an important trade fair location.

Neumünster
Town
City hall
City hall
Flag of Neumünster
Flag
Coat of arms of Neumünster
Coat of arms
Location of Neumünster
Neumünster is located in Germany
Neumünster
Neumünster
Neumünster is located in Schleswig-Holstein
Neumünster
Neumünster
Coordinates: 54°04′17″N 09°59′24″E
CountryGermany
StateSchleswig-Holstein
DistrictUrban district
Subdivisions9 Stadtbezirke
Government
 • Lord mayorTobias Bergmann (SPD)
Area
 • Total71.57 km2 (27.63 sq mi)
Elevation
22 m (72 ft)
Population
 (2021-12-31)[1]
 • Total79,496
 • Density1,100/km2 (2,900/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes
24534 - 24539
Dialling codes04321
Vehicle registrationNMS
WebsiteOfficial website
Vicelinkirche (Vicelin Church)
A view of the Neumünster pond in the city center, with the movie theater building ahead and the "Holsten-Gallery" mall on the left
The central bus station at the central train station
The "Konrad Adenauer Plaza" outside the central train station
Outside of the entrance to the Neumünster central train station
Neumünster's public outdoor swimming pool in the "Bad am Stadtwald", near the City's forest
Bust of German politician Hans Böckler in the "Hans Böckler Settlement", a neighborhood of Neumünster

History

The city was first formally mentioned as Wippendorp im Gau Faldera in 1127. In that year, the Bishop Vicelinus was sent there by the Archbishop of Bremen to perform missionary work. By 1136, Vicelinus built a new monastery there (Latin: novum monasterium, Greco-Latin: Neomonasterium, German: neues Kloster or neues Münster). The name "Novum monasterium" eventually replaced the previous names of Wippendorf and Faldera and led to the current name.[2][3]

In April 1870, Neumünster received town privileges.[4] Since 1903 Neumünster is a so-called "independent city" (German: Kreisfreie Stadt) as it is not part of a district (German: Kreis).[5]

Großflecken (English: Large spot), a large, centrally-located street and public space in the city, became a place for civil unrest several times. In March 1848, riots broke out at Großflecken as part of the German revolution and again in 1923 during a period of inflation.[6]

The city was criticized by the Rural People's Movement as part of a farmers' protest movement in northern Germany from 1928 to 1933, which was the basis for Hans Fallada's novel A Small Circus (Bauern, Bonzen und Bomben). The city's Hans Fallada Prize is named after him.[7]

The Schleswig-Holstein Nazi Party was founded in 1925 by Hinrich Lohse. The local Nazi Party group of Neumünster met at Hofbräu München, a brewery at Großflecken. In 1926, Joseph Goebbels spoke to the local members there. In 1929 there were reportedly 29 members of the local Nazi Party group, but this number increased to 400 members a year later and to over 2,000 members by 1932. Shortly after the Nazi seizure of power, Großflecken was renamed to Adolf-Hitler-Platz (English: Adolf Hitler Place).[8] On Kristallnacht in 1938, all Jewish men were arrested and sent to KZ Sachsenhausen.[9]

During World War 2, Neumünster was bombed multiple times by Allied forces in 1945, partly because of its importance as a railway junction and industrial city.[10][11] The British took control of the City in May 1945.[12]

In the fall of 1946, the state of Schleswig-Holstein was founded and postwar Neumünster held its first municipal election.[13]

Neumünster used to be a hub for the textile industry, with its first fulling mill going back to 1566. However, the industry eventually left the city due to competition from overseas and Neumünster's last cloth factory closed in the beginning of the 1990s. This, among other reasons, led to Neumünster having a relatively high rate of unemployment compared to nationwide averages.[14]

In 2012, McArthurGlen Group opened a designer outlet shopping center in the industrial section of the city, using approximately 15,000 square meters.[15]

Current infrastructure

The city is divided into nine neighborhoods: Böcklersiedlung-Bugenhagen, Brachenfeld-Rutenberg, Einfeld, Faldera, Gadeland, Gartenstadt, Stadtmitte, Tungendorf and Wittorf.[16]

Neumünster station is a major railway junction with lines running in six (formerly seven) directions, including the important Hamburg-Altona–Kiel and Neumünster–Flensburg lines.

Near Neumünster at Ehndorf, there is a high-power medium wave transmission facility for transmitting the programmes of Deutschlandfunk, the Ehndorf transmitter, which is often named incorrectly as "Neumünster transmitter".

The city has an airfield[17] and a hospital.[18] The utility company, "Stadtwerke Neumünster" (SWN), also manages local inter-city bus routes.[19] In 2022, SWN ended all its inter-city bus service for Sundays and holidays, instead offering an on-demand shuttle van requiring an additional "comfort surcharge" on top of regular bus fares.[20]

Education

The University of Applied Sciences Kiel offers a bachelor's degree in nursing at its Neumünster site.

Geography

Neumünster is located at the rivers Schwale and Stör, near the geographical center of Schleswig-Holstein, 35 kilometres (22 mi) south of Kiel, 65 kilometres (40 mi) north of Hamburg and 72 kilometres (45 mi) west of Lübeck. The Aukrug Nature Park is close to the town.

Culture and Sightseeing

Museums and artists' house

The Museum Tuch + Technik shows the history of the cloth-making craft from the Iron Age to the present day as well as of the city of Neumünster. The museum, which is supported by the Foundation Museum, Art and Culture of the City of Neumünster, was reopened on October 13, 2007 with a revised exhibition in a specially constructed building.[21]

The Herbert Gerisch Foundation is an art foundation established in 2001 by Brigitte and Herbert Gerisch and based in Neumünster-Brachenfeld. The foundation serves the care, promotion and presentation of regional as well as international contemporary art. At the same time as the foundation was established, an international sculpture park was continuously built up.

The Keramikkünstlerhaus Neumünster (until 2022 Stadttöpferei Neumünster) is an artists' house in Neumünster, which has been awarding work and residency scholarships for outstanding international graduates in the field of artistic ceramics since 1987. The Keramikkünstlerhaus is located in the Fürsthof, a small street in Neumünster's historic city center. The three-story brick building was built around 1900.

  • Museum Tuch + Technik in the city center
    Museum Tuch + Technik in the city center
  • Gerisch sculpture park
    Gerisch sculpture park
  • Keramikkünstlerhaus
    Keramikkünstlerhaus

Zoo

The Tierpark Neumünster houses about 700 animals from a total of 100 species of mammals, birds and reptiles on a wooded area of 24 hectares.

Nature reserves

The raised bog Dosenmoor near Einfeld northeast of Neumünster has an area of 521 hectares and is the largest and best preserved raised bog in Schleswig-Holstein. Due to the good condition of the moor, a diverse flora and fauna can be explored here.

The nature reserve on the western shore of Einfelder See protects the near-natural shoreline landscape with siltation zones and the open water areas in front of them.


Politics

Mayor

The current mayor of Neumünster is Tobias Bergmann of the Social Democratic Party (SPD). The most recent mayoral election was held on 9 May 2021, with a runoff held on 30 May, and the results were as follows:

Candidate Party First round Second round
Votes  % Votes  %
Olaf Taurus Independent (CDU) 10,315 40.6 9,857 49.2
Tobias Bergmann Social Democratic Party 6,834 26.9 10,194 50.8
Sven Radestock Alliance 90/The Greens 5,649 22.3
Memet Celik Independent 1,799 7.1
Mark Proch National Democratic Party 786 3.1
Valid votes 25,383 99.1 20,051 99.4
Invalid votes 233 0.9 112 0.6
Total 25,616 100.0 20,163 100.0
Electorate/voter turnout 64,345 39.8 64,344 31.3
Source: City of Neumünster (1st round, 2nd round)

List of mayors and Lord mayors

In 1870 Neumünster received the town privileges.[22]

  • 1870–1894: Eduard Schlichting
  • 1894–1919: Max Röer
  • 1919–1933: Detlef Schmidt
  • 1933–1945: Max Stahmer (NSDAP (Nazi Party))
  • 1945–1946: Gustav Bärwald (Oberstadtdirektor)
  • 1946–1948: Ludolf Behnke (CDU)
  • 1948–1950: Hugo Voß (SPD)
  • 1950–1970: Walther Lehmkuhl (SPD)
  • 1970–1988: Uwe Harder (SPD)
  • 1988–1991: Franz-Josef Pröpper (SPD)
  • 1991–2009: Hartmut Unterlehberg (SPD)
  • 2009–2021: Olaf Tauras (CDU)
  • 2021–present: Tobias Bergmann (SPD)[23]

City council

The Neumünster city council governs the city alongside the Mayor. The most recent city council election was held on 6 May 2018, and the results were as follows:

Party Votes  % +/- Seats +/-
Christian Democratic Union (CDU) 7,665 34.0 Decrease 2.5 15 Decrease 1
Social Democratic Party (SPD) 6,163 27.4 Decrease 6.6 12 Decrease 2
Alliance 90/The Greens (Grüne) 3,686 16.4 Increase 3.9 7 Increase 2
Free Democratic Party (FDP) 1,318 5.9 Increase 1.7 2 Decrease 1
Alliance for Citizens in Schleswig-Holstein (BfB) 1,293 5.7 Decrease 0.4 2 ±0
The Left (Die Linke) 959 4.3 Increase 1.3 2 Increase 1
National Democratic Party (NPD) 879 3.9 Increase 2.3 2 Increase 1
Liberal Conservative Reformers (LKR) 440 2.0 New 1 New
Pirate Party Germany (Piraten) 120 0.5 Decrease 1.5 0 Decrease 1
Valid votes 22,523 98.8
Invalid votes 263 1.2
Total 22,786 100.0 43 ±0
Electorate/voter turnout 64,839 35.1 Decrease 4.7
Source: City of Neumünster[24][25][26]

Population development
Year Total population[27][28][29][30] German citizens # German citizens % Other citizens # Other citizens %
1803 2,588
1835 3,732
1871 8,628
1875 10,100
1880 11,600
1885 13,659
1890 17,539
1895 22,489
1900 27,335
1905 31,439
1910 34,555
1916 31,658
1917 31,034
1919 36,173
1925 39,844
1933 40,332
1939 54,094
1945 57,473
1946 66,185
1950 73,481
1956 72,134
1961 75,045
1965 74,542
1970 86,013
1975 84,777
1980 80,145
1985 78,280
1987 79,771
1990 80,743
1995 82,028
2000 79,831 73,959 92,6 % 5,872 7,4 %
2001 79,646 73,934 92,8 % 5,712 7,2 %
2002 79,544 73,945 93,0 % 5,599 7,0 %
2003 78,951 73,370 92,9 % 5,581 7,1 %
2004 78,555 73,086 93,0 % 5,469 7,0 %
2005 78,072 72,711 93,1 % 5,361 6,9 %
2006 77,936 72,493 93,0 % 5,443 7,0 %
2007 77,595 72,300 93,2 % 5,295 6,8 %
2008 77,100 72,291 93,8 % 4,809 6,2 %
2009 76,897 72,124 93,8 % 4,773 6,2 %
2010 76,830 72,087 93,8 % 4,743 6,2 %
2011 77,201 72,492 93,9 % 4,709 6,1 %
2012 76,951 72,437 94,1 % 4,514 5,9 %
2013 77,058 72,370 93,9 % 4,688 6,1 %
2014 77,588 72,107 92,9 % 5,481 7,1 %
2015 79,197 71,786 90,6 % 7,411 9,4 %
2016 79,680 71,182 89,3 % 8,498 10,7 %
2017 79,335 70,602 89,0 % 8,733 11,0 %
2018 79,487 70,271 88,4 % 9,216 11,6 %
2019 80,196 69,976 87,3 % 10,220 12,7 %
2020 79,905 69,382 86,8 % 10,523 13,2 %
2021 79,496 68,760 86,5 % 10,736 13,5 %

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

Neumünster is twinned with:[31]

Notable people
Memorial plate Eduard Müller in Neumünster
Aminata Touré
Panik in 2008

Sport

See also

References
  1. "Bevölkerung der Gemeinden in Schleswig-Holstein 4. Quartal 2021" (XLS) (in German). Statistisches Amt für Hamburg und Schleswig-Holstein.
  2. "Neumünster / Vicelinweg". www.vicelinweg.de. Retrieved 2022-08-28.
  3. "Caeso Gramm: Chilonium. Novus Holsatiae Parnassus". Wachholtz Verlag – Murmann Publishers, Kiel/Hamburg. Archived from the original on 28 August 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  4. "Route der Industriekultur Neumünster" (PDF). Stadt Neumünster, Der Oberbürgermeister. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  5. "Ort". Kollmeier Pflegeheime (in German). Retrieved 2021-09-20.
  6. "40 City Spots: A walk through Neumünster's inner city" (PDF). Stadt Neumünster, Der Oberbürgermeister. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 August 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  7. Neumünster, Stadt. "Hans-Fallada-Preis". Stadt Neumünster (in German). Retrieved 2022-08-27.
  8. Bluhm, Jens (2022-05-12). "Statt Hitler kam nur ein Dr. Gröbler | SHZ". shz.de (in German). Retrieved 2022-08-27.
  9. "Neumünster", Wikipedia (in German), 2021-09-13, retrieved 2021-09-20
  10. "Luftangriffe auf Neumünster", Wikipedia (in German), 2021-02-08, retrieved 2021-09-20
  11. Ziehm, Rolf. "Zweiter Weltkrieg: Am 25. Oktober 1944 fielen die Bomben auf Neumünster | shz.de". shz. Retrieved 2021-09-20.
  12. "Befreiung Städte | Das Jahr 1945" (in German). Retrieved 2021-09-20.
  13. Norden, Lebensart im (2016-10-03). "Schwerer Start in die Demokratie". Lebensart im Norden (in German). Retrieved 2021-09-20.
  14. vkshadmin (2020-02-26). "Schleswig-Holsteins "Manchester"". Lebensart im Norden (in German). Retrieved 2022-07-11.
  15. WELT (2012-09-19). "Eröffnung: Umstrittenes Designer Outlet verschärft Wettbewerb". DIE WELT (in German). Retrieved 2022-08-27.
  16. "Vorbereitende Untersuchungen und integriertes Entwicklungskonzept (IEK) "Stadtteil West" Stadt Neumünster" (PDF). Stadt Neumünster. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  17. "Flugplatz Neumünster", Wikipedia (in German), 2020-10-16, retrieved 2021-09-20
  18. "Friedrich-Ebert-Krankenhaus Neumünster", Wikipedia (in German), 2021-07-22, retrieved 2021-09-20
  19. "Stadtwerke Neumünster", Wikipedia (in German), 2021-07-01, retrieved 2021-09-20
  20. NDR. "Kein Bus wird kommen: Neumünster setzt sonntags auf den Shuttle-Service". www.ndr.de (in German). Retrieved 2022-08-07.
  21. "Über das Museum | Museum Tuch + Technik Neumünster". www.tuchundtechnik.de. Retrieved 2023-02-20.
  22. Bürgermeister auf neumünster.de
  23. Lipovsek, Christian (September 2021). "Anstoßen um Mitternacht: So sah der erste Arbeitstag von Oberbürgermeister Tobias Bergmann in Neumünster aus | shz.de". shz. Retrieved 2021-09-20.
  24. Bekanntmachung
  25. Sitzverteilung
  26. Ergebnis
  27. "Neumünster", Wikipedia (in German), 2021-12-13, retrieved 2021-12-24
  28. "Statistikamt Nord: Meine Region - Zeitreihe für Neumünster". region.statistik-nord.de. Retrieved 2021-12-23.
  29. "Statistikamt Nord: Meine Region - Zeitreihe für Neumünster". region.statistik-nord.de. Retrieved 2021-12-23.
  30. "Statistikamt Nord: Meine Region - Zeitreihe für Neumünster". region.statistik-nord.de. Retrieved 2022-08-27.
  31. "Städtepartnerschaften und Patenschaften". neumuenster.de (in German). Neumünster. Retrieved 2021-03-01.
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