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34-534: Altena Castle was built in the early 12th century, as a stronghold of the older Counts of Berg . A short time later a village was founded beneath the hill, with the castle alongside the river Lenne , which feeds into the river Ruhr . After the distribution of the Berg family estates in 1161, Altena became the centre of the County of Altena. The first Count of Altena became Eberhard I, Count of Berg-Altena . In 1180, after

68-437: A workhouse was established there. This existed until 1840. From 1766 to 1811 there existed a criminal court and prison in the castle. By 1834 the castle was greatly deteriorated and was to be reconstructed. Due to lack of funds, however, this was not carried out. The Johanniter Orde set up a hospital in the buildings. Due to the 300th anniversary of the membership of the County of Mark to Brandenburg-Prussia in 1909 plans for

102-745: A Protestant part. The Duchy of Cleves and the counties of Mark and Ravensberg, and the Dominion of Ravenstein were inherited by the Protestant Elector of the Holy Roman Empire, Margrave of Brandenburg , and Duke of Prussia Johann Sigismund of Hohenzollern . The catholic Duchy of Jülich-Berg were inherited by the Count Palatine Wolfgang Wilhelm of Neuburg. During the Napoleonic occupation of

136-748: A district, but take on district responsibilities themselves, similar to the concept of independent cities . These are known as "urban districts" (German: kreisfreie Städte or Stadtkreise )—cities which constitute a district in their own right—and there are 106 of them, bringing the total number of districts to 400. As of 2016 , approximately 26 million people live in these 107 urban districts. In North Rhine-Westphalia , there are some cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants which are not urban districts, these being Recklinghausen , Gütersloh , Siegen , Paderborn , Bergisch Gladbach , Neuss and Moers . Nevertheless, these cities take over many district responsibilities themselves, although they are still part of

170-697: A fusion of a district-free town with its adjacent rural district: besides the Regionalverband Saarbrücken ( Saarbrücken regional association ), from 1974 until 2007 called "Stadtverband Saarbrücken" ( Saarbrücken town association ), there is the Hanover Region since 2001 and the Städteregion Aachen ( Aachen region of towns ) since 2009. Aachen, Hanover and Göttingen retain certain rights of an urban district ( Kreisfreie Stadt ); Saarbrücken has not explicitly determined

204-423: A larger rural district. Midsize towns can perform particular administrative functions of the district as well, especially to provide common services to the local citizens. The classification as "midsize" town is usually based on a town's registered population, but varies from state to state. A special type of rural districts includes the three Kommunalverbände besonderer Art ( Municipal unions of special kind ),

238-604: A mayor, in most greater cities usually by the Lord Mayor . Rural districts in some German states have an additional administrative committee called Kreisausschuss . This committee is generally led by the Landrat and includes a number of additional voluntary members. It takes over certain administrative functions for the district, following decisions of the district council. However, the exact role and regulations of this panel vary greatly between different states. The city where

272-410: A reconstruction of the castle began. In 1914 this was completed, apart from the outer bailey and lower gatehouse. There was a controversial debate about the modes of reconstruction, where the preference of historic designs over the medieval and early modern architecture was criticised. In 1918 the last works were completed. In 1914, Richard Schirrmann established the world's first youth hostel within

306-452: A residence for the county bailiff ( Amtmann ). Count Engelbert III of the Mark gave the small settlement at the base of the mountain the rights of liberty (such as self-governance). In 1455 the castle burned down and was only re-erected partially. In Brandenburg - Prussian times the castle became a garrison and was sold to the town of Altena in 1771. In the following years an almshouse and

340-498: A similar provision in its legislation. According to common federal and state laws, the districts are responsible for the following tasks: Districts can perform additional functions, based on varying local laws in each region: All these tasks are carried out by local (municipal) authorities operating together. Urban districts have these responsibilities and also those of the municipalities. The district council (German: Kreistag , pronounced [ˈkʁaɪ̯sˌtaːk] )

374-584: A yearly Medieval Festival takes place in the castle and town. Part of the castle is used as a restaurant. 51°17′56″N 07°40′31″E  /  51.29889°N 7.67528°E  / 51.29889; 7.67528 Districts of Germany In 13 German states , the primary administrative subdivision higher than a Gemeinde (municipality) is the Landkreis or Kreis . Most major cities in Germany are not part of any Kreis , but instead combine

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408-419: Is an officer known as Landrat or Landrätin , who is responsible for the district's day-to-day administration and acts as its representative for official purposes. In parts of northern Germany, Landrat is also the name of the entire district administration, which in southern Germany is known as Kreisverwaltung or Landratsamt . In urban districts similar administrative functions are performed by

442-456: Is one of the several legends of the establishment of the county of Altena and the building of the castle. After the acquisition of the parish land of Mark near the city of Hamm in 1198, the counts of Altena took Mark Castle as their primary residence and called themselves the Counts of the Mark. They continued to only occasionally inhabit Altena Castle and from 1392 onward it was only used as

476-481: Is the highest institution of a rural district and is responsible for all fundamental guidelines of regional self-administration. This council is elected directly every five years, except in Bavaria where it is elected every six years. Usually the administrative seat of a rural district is located in one of its largest towns. However, district council and administrative seat of some rural districts are not situated within

510-635: The Märkischer Kreis . The castle was erected by the early Counts of Berg in the early 12th century. Eventually, the House of Berg abandoned Altena and moved their residence to Hamm . Supposedly, the castle was built by the brothers Adolf and Everhard von Berg around the year 1108 after Henry V granted them land in Sauerland for their loyal services. On Wulfseck Mountain they built their castle, which they named Wulfeshagen, later Altena. This

544-543: The Nienbrügge Castle and about seven kilometers southeast of Hövel Castle . Today, about a 1,5 kilometers to the east of the centre of the city of Hamm . Before or in 1198 he built the Castle of Mark. His son Adolf I. named himself in 1202 puer comes de marca and became the first Count of Mark . He sometimes used the old title Altena in combination with Mark. His principal residence was the Castle of Mark. After

578-528: The 15th century already depicts the same elements. In its current design it was created by Otto Hupp in 1938. Altena is twinned with: Altena is a friendship city with: Altena Castle Altena Castle ( German : Burg Altena ) is a medieval hill castle in the town of Altena in North Rhine-Westphalia . Built on a spur of Klusenberg hill, the castle lies near the Lenne in

612-583: The Castle and town of Nienbrügge (Novus Ponte) on the Lippe riverbanks. His family branch renamed themselves after selling their half of Altena to the Archbishop of Cologne as de Nienbrügge or de Novus Ponte , their new principal residence about forty kilometers to the north. The heir of Arnold was Friedrich de Novus Ponte (Nienbrügge) who changed his title to Isenberg after his new castle in Hattingen . He

646-512: The Counts of Altena, was founded by Friedrich de Altena. He was provided with the other half of Altena and a vassal to his brother the Archbishop of Cologne. In or around 1170 he bought the Oberhof Mark or was rewarded with it by the Archbishop. The Oberhof was a mayor manor without fortifications in the village of Mark, between the Lippe and Ahse rivers less than five kilometers to the east of

680-760: The Rhineland and Westphalia, Altena was re-joined with the now elevated Grand Duchy of Berg . After the Congress of Vienna the County of Mark was incorporated into the Kingdom of Prussia and reorganized as a district ( Kreis ) and government district ( Regierungsbezirk ). Altena became part of the Regierungsbezirk Hamm and was seat of the Kreis Altena. Within the year 1815 the Government moved

714-413: The castle, which is still in use today ( Jugendherberge Burg Altena ). The original rooms are a museum today. The youth hostel continues to run at a location on the lower castle court yard, opened in 1934. Today the castle is symbol of the town of Altena and a tourist attraction. The entry ticket is also valid for the nearby Deutsche Drahtmuseum (German Wire Museum). During the first weekend of August

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748-559: The celebrations were then held at Hohensyburg Castle. In 1912 the world's first youth hostel was created by Richard Schirrmann inside the castle. The old rooms are still on display, and new rooms inside the castle area are still part of the hostel today. The dominant industry in Altena was wire production, and thus it has a museum dedicated to this industry only, the Drahtmuseum . The coat of arms shows Catherine of Alexandria ,

782-650: The death of the first count, the county was divided between the two oldest sons: Arnold of Altena and Friedrich of Altena. The third son, Adolf of Altena, became Archbishop of Cologne . Arnold was provided with on half of the Castle and County of Altena, the Castle Hövel and some estates as fiefdoms of the Archbishops of Cologne and bailiwicks of the Abbey Essen. Near the Village and Castle of Hövel, he built

816-412: The district proper, but in an adjacent district-free city. Most of those rural districts are named after this central city as well (e.g. Bamberg and Karlsruhe ). Moers is the biggest city in Germany (and at present time the only one with more than 100,000 inhabitants) that is neither an urban district, nor the district seat of its rural district. The highest administrative position of a rural district

850-678: The execution of his cousin Friedrich de Isenberg in Cologne, he destroyed the Castle of Neinbruegge and took over the possessions of the senior family branch. After 1202, Altena Castle was only one of several Stronghold of the family of Altena-Mark. During a feud in 1323 between the Prince-Bishop of Münster and the Count of Mark, the Bishop was captured and held for ransom in Altena. In 1367

884-473: The functions of a municipality and a Kreis ; such a city is referred to as a kreisfreie Stadt or Stadtkreis . (Land-)Kreise stand at an intermediate level of administration between each state ( Länder ) and the municipalities ( Gemeinden ) within it. These correspond to level-3 administrative units in the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS 3). Previously,

918-423: The office of the district's administration is located is called Kreisstadt ("district city"), or Kreishauptort ("district main community") if it is not a city. Often the district is named after its district city. Linguistically, any city within a district could be called a "Kreisstadt", especially those that aren't district-free to distinguish them from district-free cities. This term has to be distinguished from

952-461: The patron saint of the church built in 1310. She is depicted with a sword and a wheel, as she was killed in 307 by these two items. The choice of patron saint goes back to a vow made by Count Engelbert III of the Mark made at the burial place of Catherine in Jerusalem. The red and white checked fess refers to the coat of arms of the Counts of the Mark. The coat of arms is quite old: a seal from

986-528: The quarters from Hamm to Arnsberg , and changed the name into Regierungsbezirk Arnsberg . With the start of the year 1969, the Kreis Altena and the town Lüdenscheid were merged to form the new Kreis Lüdenscheid. Lüdenscheid became the new administrative center of the district. Only six years later the Kreis Lüdenscheid was reformed and enlarged. In reminiscence of the County of Mark it

1020-464: The settlement below the castle received limited town rights through Engelbert III. Count de la Mark. Since 1392 Altena remained only the seat of the bailiff for bailiwick Altena. The castle was also used as an archive for documents and patents for the county. In 1609, the last count died childless. His realm, the United Duchies of Jülich-Cleves-Berg were practically divided into a Catholic and

1054-593: The similar title Imperial Circle ( Reichskreis ) referred to groups of states in the Holy Roman Empire . The related term Landeskommissariat was used for similar administrative divisions in some German territories until the 19th century. The majority of German districts are "rural districts" (German: Landkreise , pronounced [ˈlantˌkʁaɪ̯zə] ), of which there are 294 as of 2017 . Cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants (and smaller towns in some states) do not usually belong to

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1088-488: The town. Number of inhabitants (December 31) The town's biggest attraction is the castle: Burg Altena . After being un-used for centuries it was in ruins, although part of the buildings was used as a hospital. A complete restoration was undertaken in 1909 to celebrate the 300th anniversary of the Prussian incorporation of the county of Mark into Prussia (Brandenburg). However, most of the work did not finish before 1914;

1122-437: Was renamed as Märkischer Kreis . In May 2017, Chancellor Merkel awarded Altena Mayor Andreas Hollstein the "National Prize for Integration" for taking in 370 refugees, i.e. 100 more than the mandatory quota. Six months later, even though Mayor Hollstein had been stabbed by a man with a knife who reportedly was upset over his immigration policy, he remained determined to promote policies aimed at helping refugees assimilate into

1156-425: Was sentenced to death as head of a conspiracy to murder Engelbert I. Archbishop of Cologne, Chancellor of the Holy Roman Empire, Duke of Westphalia and Count of Berg, a close relative, in 1226. The Archbishop was ambushed and slain on his way from his City of Soest to City of Cologne by Friedrich and his men near Gevelsberg in a hollow way. Both had a dispute over the bailiwicks of Essen Abbey . The junior branch of

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