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60-573: The town is situated on a bend of the river Zwickauer Mulde and at the foot of Rochlitzer Berg , 26 km northwest of Chemnitz and 45 km from Leipzig or Zwickau . Rochlitz is situated in the Natural Region Sächsisches Lössgefilde ("Saxon Loess country") and its sub-region Mulde-Lösshügelland ("Mulde Loess hill country"). Rochlitzer Berg (ca. 349 m ( NHN )) is of Rotliegend volcanic origin (latest Carboniferous to Guadalupian ) and consists to

120-411: A fee for its usage. The miller Schlobach took it over later and leased it out. In 1936 the bridge came under municipal management. The toll booth remained standing for a long time. At Christmas 1940 the users welcomed a reduction of the toll , and at Easter 1942 the usage of the bridge became free. Soldiers of United States Army blocked and guarded the bridge from 14 April 1945, it was reopened after

180-638: A Protestant and anti-imperial uprising in Bohemia , John Frederick took the decision to split his forces and he deployed a large portion of his troops there. He had also left some small detachments to protect the most vulnerable Saxon cities in order to prevent the entry of Charles' army from the south. With the intention of reaching the well-defended stronghold of Wittenberg , the Elector then marched northwards, abandoning his position in Meissen and camping at

240-538: A complete defeat of the Saxon army which suffered severe losses, estimated at around 2000–3000 men. In addition, the Protestants suffered the almost complete capture of their artillery, ammunition, and banners; many soldiers also ended up prisoners. On the imperial side, around fifty soldiers were killed. John Frederick was responsible for not preparing an adequate defense on the river Elbe; that could have prevented

300-806: A few years. In 1544 the signing of the Treaty of Crépy ended after decades the conflicts between the Emperor and Francis I of France for the control of the Italian peninsula. After the treaty the League lost the support of the French. Martin Luther 's death in 1546 and the temporary cessation of the Turkish threat from the east also put Charles in the best possible condition to focus on the internal enemy that endangered

360-521: A large extent of so-called Rochlitzer Porphyr , a rhyolitic tuff or ignimbrite . Due to its colour and structure, this rock is used in representative buildings in the wider region like the Old Town Hall in Leipzig and is mined in deep quarries. Pleistocene sediments (sand, gravel) are excavated in the surroundings of the town. Slavic villages have existed in the area of the town since

420-697: A man being executed, while the outcome of the others is not known any more. During the Thirty Years' War town and castle of Rochlitz were besieged and taken several times. Fires damaged the town in 1632 and in 1682. Following the latter, houses were rebuilt with the eaves of the roofs parallel to the streets. From 1682 an infantry unit was stationed in the town. The travelling barber-surgeon and oculist Johann Andreas Eisenbarth plied his trade in Rochlitz in early 1691. The three-towered front of St Cunigunde's church dates from 1688/1689, its baroque porch

480-413: A possible encirclement by the imperial cavalry and to have a safer escape route in case of retreat. The emperor Charles V also reached the battlefield and exhorted his troops to fight the Protestants. Due to gout, he was carried to the battle in a litter, rather than mounted in armour on the great warhorse as depicted by his court painter, Titian and assisted to the battle from the rear. The imperial army

540-407: A regional monopoly for bleaching cloth. In 1430 Rochlitz suffered from an invasion of hussitic troops , but experienced a boom afterwards, marked by the awarding of the right to execute higher justice and the expansion of other rights in 1464. St. Cunigunde's church was rebuilt in late Gothic style from 1416 to 1476, and obtained a new altar , carved in wood, in 1513. The Protestant Reformation

600-405: A wooden bridge along the ford in 1502 which was garded from nearby Hohes Haus . It was destroyed by floods in 1534, 1573, 1595, 1618, 1656, and 1661, and had then been replaced by a ferry for more than 200 years. When a boat capsized in 1855, three of its eleven passengers drowned. In 1889 a farmer from Zaßnitz on the opposite bank of the river had built a bridge suspended from a rope and charged

660-484: Is evinced by the remains of artifacts left behind by Old Stone Age hunters, as well as Bronze Age and Iron Age discoveries as far as the higher regions of the Ore Mountains. Later, the western Ore Mountains became the territory of Germanic and Slavic tribes. Paths, trade routes and military roads, linked the old settlement areas around Leipzig and Altenburg with Bohemia. The mule tracks, however, avoided

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720-481: Is supported by archeological findings and preserved Romanesque architectural features of the church which originated in a short basilica without transept . Despite the central location of St. Cunigunde's church, the older St. Peter's church which was situated extra muros remained the parish church for the western parts of Rochlitz until the Protestant reformation . A town wall was first mentioned in 1288 on

780-814: The Electorate of Saxony in 1547, during the Schmalkaldic War . The Catholic princes of the Holy Roman Empire led by the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V decisively defeated the Lutheran Schmalkaldic League of Protestant princes under the command of Elector John Frederick I of Saxony and Landgrave Philip I of Hesse . The battle ended the Schmalkaldic war and led to the dissolution of

840-550: The Isenburg remain. Fortifications constructed in the side valleys include Hartenstein  [ de ] , Wildenfels  [ de ; fr ] and Schwarzenberg . With the discovery of the rich silver deposits in the late Middle Ages, settlements grew up around the source streams in the upper Ore Mountains and the mining towns emerged. Battle of M%C3%BChlberg Schmalkaldic League : Empire of Charles V : The Battle of Mühlberg took place near Mühlberg in

900-635: The Kingdom of Saxony was re-districted in 1835, Amt Rochlitz was renamed into Amtshauptmannschaft Rochlitz and became part of the so-called Kreisdirektion Leipzig . By law of 21 April 1873, the Kreisdirektion was again called Kreishauptmannschaft from 1874 on. In 1939 the town became the administrative seat of Landkreis Rochlitz within Regierungsbezirk Leipzig. Name and territory of Landkreis Rochlitz changed, when in 1952

960-473: The Red Army took over. The flood of July 1954 destroyed the bridge, and a ferry operated again for some months. While inhabitants of Rochlitz and Zaßnitz built a temporary bridge on their own, the Rochlitz council held back material saved from the old bridge. A new, higher suspension bridge was built in 1958 about 30 m from the old location. It was extensively rehabilitated after the 2002 European floods and

1020-623: The 1990s, the population of Rochlitz has been declining steadily since then. Additionally, the inhabitants of Rochlitz have a mean age of 48 years and 8 months, the highest value in Mittelsachsen. Rochlitz had been a seat of territorial and judiciary administrations for some centuries. By government order of 22 June 1816 the town became the seat of Amt Rochlitz within the IInd Amtshauptmannschaft (district) of Kreishauptmannschaft (administrative region) Leipzig. When

1080-532: The 9th and 10th century, and the name of the town is derived from Old Sorbian Rochelinzi . A market settlement below Rochlitz Castle and east of St Peter's church, near today's square Mühlplatz , formed presumably in the 11th century, likely connected with a ford across the Zwickauer Mulde near the village of Zaßnitz. A farming estate which supplied the castle was built at the same time in Poppitz in

1140-691: The Americal withdrawal on 30 June 1945, the Zwickauer Mulde was part of the demarcation line between the American and Soviet occupied territories. Troops of Red Army had already established themselves in Döhlen on the east bank of the river in mid-May 1945. Beginning in July 1945, the larger enterprises were expropriated and transformed into the publicly owned operations VEB Elektroschaltgeräte Rochlitz, VEB Stern Radio Rochlitz, and VEB Orsta-Hydraulik, who were

1200-651: The Emperor's attempt to restore religious and political unity in the German lands through the re-proposal of the Worms Edict . This led to the formation of the Schmalkaldic League (named after the town of Schmalkalden in Thuringia where the pact was stipulated), a militarily defensive alliance with a markedly anti-Habsburg and anti-Catholic stance. Although the birth of a Protestant coalition inside

1260-462: The Empire imperilled his power, Charles V did not initially attack the League. The League meanwhile received support from several free cities ( Bremen , Hamburg , Lübeck , Ulm and Strasbourg ), wishing to affirm their independence from the central power. The Protestant princes could also count on the support of the Kingdom of France , Charles' main foreign enemy. In need of the military support of

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1320-591: The German states in his war against the Ottoman Turks in the eastern regions of his lands, the Emperor chose not to oppose the League and to grant wide autonomy to it. The Protestant leaders were therefore left free to support the Reformation and to fight the power of the Catholic bishops in the lands they controlled. The conditions that forced Charles V to accept the actions of the League changed after

1380-567: The League. With the beginning of spring Charles then marched toward Saxony to help Maurice's army and to end his clash with John Frederick, the last Protestant prince still opposing him. Charles was suffering from gout at that time and his army had to face the desertion of the Papal soldiers that had helped him in the first part of the campaign. In addition the Saxon Elector's army was larger than Charles' forces. However, hoping to encourage

1440-539: The Rochlitz area (a mere historical construct), but in reality as a means of attracting business and tourism. The arms industry established itself in Rochlitz in 1938 as Mechanik GmbH . During World War II, a subcamp of Flossenbürg concentration camp was located in the town from September 1944 to March 1945. The camp held about 600 Jewish women who were forced to labour for Mechanik GmbH . Units of 76th Infantry Division and 6th Armored Division of Third United States Army liberated Rochlitz on 14 April 1945. Until

1500-580: The Saxons, that was immediately used by the Imperial cavalry to pass safely to the other shore. According to some sources John Frederick had considered an attack from Charles so unlikely that he would have ordered several commanders of his army to go to Mass just when the enemy army was about to complete the crossing of the Elbe. The Saxon forces were completely taken by surprise. As soon as he became aware of

1560-691: The Schmalkaldic League. The spread of the Protestant Reformation in Germany after 1517 represented a major obstacle to the universalistic projects of Charles V , the Habsburg emperor. Attempts at reconciliation between Lutherans and Catholics at the diets of Speyer of 1526 and 1529 had failed, sharpening the mutual opposition between the two opposing sides. The Reformation offered to most independent German states

1620-526: The adjacent forest. The Elector of Saxony showed great courage on the battlefield, but was wounded in the face and captured by the imperial troops. The main part of his soldiers were chased and killed or captured. Some sources report that Emperor Charles V commented on the victory with the sentence Vine, vi y venció Dios (in Spanish "I came, I saw, and God won"), a paraphrase of the famous exclamation pronounced by Julius Caesar . The battle ended with

1680-711: The control of the Electorate of Saxony. John Frederick was later released in 1552, two years before his death. The surrender of Philip of Hesse soon afterwards ended the Schmalkaldic War , but the Protestant problem remained unresolved. Many of the princes and key reformers, such as Martin Bucer , fled to England , where they directly influenced the English Reformation . The peace reached between Catholic and Protestants in Germany ( Augsburg Interim , 1548)

1740-410: The east and dating in its current form from 1417 to 1476, is a late Gothic hall church , as is St Peter's church (1470-1499) which is situated to the south-west of the town centre towards the castle. Rochlitz Castle with its two towers and its Gothic chapel has externally maintained its appearance from the 14th and 15th century . The observation tower on Rochlitzer Berg was built in 1860 from

1800-456: The end of April at the town of Mühlberg , leaving only a few troops as guards on the bank of the Elbe river, that he considered too wide to be easily crossed by the imperial forces. At the head of his army, Charles V arrived at the Elbe on the evening of 23 April. Despite the contrary opinion of his generals, he decided to attack the enemy forces, resting just a few miles away. At dawn on 24 April

1860-399: The fact, the Elector's first thought was to retreat towards Wittenberg. He soon realized though that his army would be too slow to be prepared to march in a short while; moreover, he was convinced that only a vanguard of the main imperial army was attacking. So he ordered his troops to prepare for battle. John Frederick chose to deploy his troops along the edge of a forest, in order to prevent

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1920-450: The fate of the clash. The emperor had placed his cavalry on the two wings of his army. The right wing, under the direct command of the Duke of Alba, was heavier than the left one, led by Maurice of Saxony. Once the fragile wings of the Saxon army were defeated, the infantry tercios , placed at the center, had a good game in breaking enemy resistance, forcing the Protestants to retreat through

1980-421: The first avant-gardes of the imperial army advanced, looking for a way for all the army to cross the river. Helped by the surprise and by the dense fog that had risen from the river, small groups of Spanish and Italian veteran soldiers managed to swim across the river and eliminate the few Saxon troops that were guarding the other side. Meanwhile, some troops of the tercios of Lombardy and Naples , that were

2040-409: The former stone having been renewed in 1820 using parts of a stone which stood in nearby Zettlitz . A quarter mile stone is fixed in a wall on Chemnitzer Straße 1 . There also stands a reconstructed distance post of 1722, and a partly reconstructed milestone of 1860 stands near the road bridge across Zwickauer Mulde. A 1628 view of the town already shows a simple bridge across the river. Farmers built

2100-532: The government of the GDR dissolved the federal states and replaced them by Bezirk|Bezirke , and the subdivision in districts was reformed. From then until 1994 there existed a smaller Kreis Rochlitz which was part of Bezirk Karl-Marx-Stadt until 1990 and became then Landkreis Rochlitz within Regierungsbezirk Chemnitz . The incorporation of Landkreis Rochlitz into Landkreis Mittweida ended

2160-455: The imperial troops from crossing it. His surrender symbolically sanctioned the end of the Schmalkaldic League. Charles decided to spare his life, but he had to exchange it with the capitulation of the stronghold of Wittenberg . He was condemned as a heretic and imprisoned, and was forced to leave the electoral privilege to his cousin Maurice, who for his help in the imperial victory, was given

2220-469: The late Middle Ages, and residential buildings from the Renaissance era have been conserved. The historical configuration of the town, consisting of a market square with surrounding buildings, but without a network of streets, is rare for Saxony. The neoclassicist town hall from 1828 forms the eastern termination of the market square with its patrician houses. St Cunigunde's church, situated to

2280-424: The local " porphyry " stone and is named after King Frederick Augustus II of Saxony . A Soviet memorial, built in 1958, stands on the former Platz der Deutsch-Sowjetischen Freundschaft where Soviet prisoners of war and forced labourers had been buried and whose remains were later moved to Chemnitz . Two Saxon post milestones , dated 1722, are located on the location of the former upper and lower town gates,

2340-464: The most experienced soldiers in Charles' army, followed a plan set by Don Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, Duke of Alba and commander-in-chief of the Imperial troops in Germany and with the help of a local farmer, they managed to spot a ford to use that would allow all the army to cross the Elbe. In addition to this, some veteran soldiers were able to prevent the demolition of a pontoon bridge built by

2400-546: The name), and further north through Glauchau , Rochlitz and Colditz . A few kilometers north of Colditz, the Zwickauer Mulde is joined by the Freiberger Mulde to form the united Mulde . The Mulde is a tributary of the Elbe . The valleys in the catchment area of the Mulde were presumably used from the end of the last cold stage as access routes into the Ore Mountains that was covered in dense, ancient forests. This

2460-597: The northern part of the modern town area the same time. It was later moved to Königsfeld . Rochlitz as a town in its own right with its town church St Cunigunde's was founded around 1200 by Dedo the Fat of Lusatia or one of his sons Dietrich (1190–1207) or Konrad (1207–1210), possibly only after 1210 by margrave Dietrich the Oppressed . A characteristic feature of the town is the elongated street market which has an analogue in nearby Geithain . The approximate founding date

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2520-410: The occasion of a partial collapse. It was apparently preceded by a combination of earth wall , ditch , and hedge , and was renewed and extended between 1367 and 1373. The town itself is first mentioned in writing in 1336, its council in 1360, and the first seal of the town is found on a document from 1364. The council obtained the right to execute low justice before 1379, and in 1380 the town obtained

2580-404: The pretext to affirm their autonomy not only on the religious level, but also on the political one. For some of these small states, belonging to the Holy Roman Empire (a political reality that had been fragmented for centuries) was indeed considered not much more than a mere formal act. In 1531 some princes (most notably Philip I of Hesse and John Frederick, Elector of Saxony ) were opposed to

2640-449: The principal employers for much of the population of the town. During the existence of the GDR , Rochlitz expanded further, and its population increased. New residential quarters were built: Am Friedenseck 1955–1961, Am Regenbogen 1960–1965, Wilhelm-Pieck-Straße 1977/1978, and Am Eichberg from 1982/1983. Rochlitz suffered major damage during the 2002 European floods . Despite the incorporation of several neighboring communities in

2700-534: The religious and territorial unity of Imperial Germany. The opportunity to begin the conflict was given by the rivalry between the elector of Saxony John Frederick I and his cousin Maurice , both belonging to the House of Wettin . Despite his Protestant faith, Maurice had in 1542 refused to join the Schmalkaldic League. In 1546, with the assistance of Ferdinand I , the younger brother of Charles V, Maurice invaded

2760-472: The rivers in favour of the ridges. At unavoidable river crossings, ( fords , later ferries and bridges) and at intersections castles, villages and monasteries were established. Of the palaces and manor houses, Rochsburg , Rochlitz , Wolkenburg  [ de ] , Waldenburg  [ de ] , Forderglauchau, Hinterglauchau and Osterstein have survived. Of the castles, Wiesenburg , Stein Castle and

2820-401: The role of Rochlitz as an administrative centre. According to the oldest surviving documents judiciary documents from 1436, the town council possessed the right to execute higher and lower justice , and held the rights to patrimonial justice in the so-called Ratsdörfer (villages subjected to the council) Köttern, Poppitz, and Spernsdorf. In 1834 the municipal court of justice ( Stadtgericht )

2880-529: The territory of John Frederick. When the attack begun John Frederick's armies were in Württemberg , but they managed to move to the occupied lands and repel Maurice's forces. The Emperor decided to take advantage of the divisions between the Protestant armies, and he joined the war in 1547. He occupied Ulm and Württemberg and defeated the Palatine Elector , forcing him to surrender and to leave

2940-487: The town significantly with new residential buildings and a new tower of St Cunigunde's church (1804). A first masonry bridge across the Zwickauer Mulde was erected in 1816, a new town hall between 1826 and 1828, and a new hospital in 1854. Beginning in 1830, the town fortifications were removed. During the Founder Epoch the town boomed and increased in size. The first railway connection opened in 1872. A new school

3000-493: The villages were joined in 1856 into a single judiciary office ( Justizamt , formed in 1856, then Gerichtsamt ), that was succeeded by Amtsgericht Rochlitz in 1879. The district court of justice ( Kreisgericht ), formed in 1952 as successor of the Amtsgericht that had been re-established after World War II on 6 December 1945, moved out of the castle into the former building of the district committee of SED in 1990, and

3060-402: Was added in 1709. It housed the first public library in the town. In the mid-18th century Rochlitz was connected to the Saxon postal system, which is attested by two Saxon post milestones (reconstructed since). A post office was established in 1734 or 1743, when regular services were introduced. A woolen mill was founded in 1769. Reconstruction after a fire in 1802 changed the appearance of

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3120-402: Was built in 1933/1934. The Nazi Party managed early to establish themselves in the town council, and in 1934 they deposed the non-partisan mayor by means of a political intrigue. On the initiative of the president of the local historical society and honorary director of the museum, Albert Bernstein, celebrations were held in 1936 ostensibly in honour of the 1000th anniversary of German control of

3180-467: Was built near the Mulde river between 1874 and 1876, a new post and telegraph office in 1889/1891. From 1889 the town was extended towards the station. A further extension in the shape of a garden town was built during the Golden Twenties , a second gas works was built in 1922/1923. The market fountain was created by the sculptor Georg Wrba in 1929. Today's bridge across the Zwickauer Mulde

3240-524: Was closed temporarily after the 2013 European floods . The first masonry bridge across Zwickauer Mulde in Rochlitz was built in 1816. It was replaced by today's bridge in 1933/1934. A 243 m long railway viaduct near the castle and a 98 m long lattice truss bridge north of the town were opened for the Glauchau–Wurzen railway in 1875, another lattice truss bridge for the Waldheim–Rochlitz railway

3300-515: Was dissolved in the course of the district reform in 1994. The communal elections in Saxony on 25 May 2014 resulted in the following distribution of seats in the town council: Voter turnout was 50.8%. Rochlitz is twinned with: Rochlitz did not suffer damage in World War II. Therefore, despite some fires in past centuries, the historical structure of the town, many sacred buildings from

3360-598: Was finished in 1563. The central part of the former lower market square (east of today's town hall) was built over in the first half of the 16th century ( Mittelzeile ). In the Battle of Rochlitz on 2 March 1547, Protestant troops won their most important victory during the Schmalkaldic War before their defeat in the Battle of Mühlberg . Three witch trials are documented between 1556 and 1608, ending in one case with

3420-521: Was institutionally separated from the town council, in 1835 a separate court of justice ( Ratslandgericht ) was established for the Ratsdörfer . Judiciary premises were established in Rochlitz Castle around 1850 and remained until 1990. Detention facilities were built in 1852 and remained in use until 1961. The most prominent detainee was August Bebel . The courts of justice for the town and

3480-495: Was introduced in Rochlitz by Elisabeth of Rochlitz in 1537. After the so-called "old" cemetery with its ossuary had been founded in 1534 on the site of today's square Clemens-Pfau-Platz , a Latin school (demolished in 1876, now library) was built on the grounds of former St Cunigunde's cemetery. It was rebuilt in 1595 at the expense of Electress Sophie . A new hospital church (Church of the Holy Spirit, demolished in 1904)

3540-471: Was made up of about 16–20,000 men. Among them there were the tercio of Lombardy, that of Naples, and that of Hungary , led by Álvaro de Sande . The battle began in the evening; the Saxon army, mainly made up of peasants, succeeded in repelling the first assaults of the Hungarian cavalry, but the greater number and better preparedness of Charles' soldiers, among the best in the world at that time, decided

3600-706: Was opened in 1893. The worn-out state of the latter contributed to the closure of the line in 1998. Zwickauer Mulde The Zwickauer Mulde ( German pronunciation: [ˈtsvɪkaʊɐ ˈmʊldə] ) is a river in Saxony , Germany. It is the left tributary of the Mulde and 166 km (103 mi) in length. The source of the river is in the Ore Mountains , near Schöneck , in the Vogtlandkreis . It runs northeast to Aue , then northwest to Zwickau (hence

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