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41-579: HQM Sachsenring GmbH is a Zwickau -based company that supplies chassis and body parts to the automotive industry. The company was named after the Sachsenring race track. Founded as VEB Sachsenring after the end of World War II, and operating out of the former Auto Union factory in Zwickau, Sachsenring was one of the few manufacturers of vehicles in East Germany , its best known product being

82-401: A pietà in carved and painted wood by Peter Breuer . The late Gothic church of St. Catharine has an altar piece ascribed to Lucas Cranach the elder , and is remembered because Thomas Müntzer was once pastor there (1520–22). The city hall was begun in 1404 and rebuilt many times since. The municipal archives include documents dating back to the 13th century. Early printed books from

123-445: A depth of over 1,000 metres. In 1992 Zwickau's last coke oven plant was closed. Many industrial branches developed in the city in the wake of the coal mining industry: mining equipment, iron and steel works, textile, machinery in addition to chemical, porcelain, paper, glass, dyestuffs, wire goods, tinware, stockings, and curtains. There were also steam saw-mills, diamond and glass polishing works, iron-foundries, and breweries. In 1904

164-528: A guardrail, fell off the Wiehltalbrücke and exploded, killing the driver. The subsequent fire caused severe structural damage to the bridge. The BMW driver was jailed for 22 months. The bridge was closed for weeks until temporary repairs were completed. Permanent repairs finished on 22 August 2006, using a method never before used in Germany. Among other things a 20 m × 31 m segment was replaced while

205-818: A municipal park. Near the city are the Hartenstein area, for example, with Stein and Wolfsbrunn castles and the Prinzenhöhle cave, as well as the Auersberg peak (1019 meters) and the winter sports areas around Johanngeorgenstadt and the Vogtland. In the Old Town the Cathedral and the Gewandhaus (cloth merchants' hall) originate in the 16th century and when Schneeberg silver was traded. In the 19th century

246-585: A public airfield which takes light aircraft, and by bike along the Zwickau Mulde River on the so-called Mulderadweg. The region around Zwickau was settled by Sorbs as early as the 7th century AD. The name Zwickau is probably a Germanization of the Sorbian toponym Šwikawa , which derives from Svarozič , the Slavic Sun and fire god. In the 10th century, German settlers began arriving and

287-510: Is a bridge that carries the A4 across the valley of the river Wiehl . The A4 near Gummersbach , North Rhine-Westphalia was the site of the then-most expensive traffic accident in German history: On 26 August 2004, a BMW M3 , whose driver had no driving license and was later found to be driving under the influence , collided with a truck carrying 33,000 litres of gasoline . The truck crashed through

328-703: Is restricted to 80 km/h. The section between Refrath and the terminus at Krombach has no speed limit. Between Untereschbach and Refrath westbound the limit is 100 km/h weekdays. It is mostly 2 lanes each way, but between Untereschbach and Wiehl, several climbing lanes operate in both directions. The eastern part starts at the Kirchheim intersection (with the A ;7 ) and goes through Eisenach , Gotha , Erfurt , Weimar , Jena , Gera , Chemnitz , Dresden and Bautzen to Görlitz , where it crosses to Poland and continues as A4 . The westernmost 11 kilometers of

369-603: Is situated in the valley of the Zwickau Mulde (German: Zwickauer Mulde ; progression: Mulde → Elbe → North Sea ), and lies in a string of cities sitting in the densely populated foreland of the Elster and Ore Mountains stretching from Plauen in the southwest via Zwickau, Chemnitz and Freiberg to Dresden in the northeast. Zwickau is the seat of the Zwickau District , the most densely populated district in

410-821: The Audi Q4 e-tron began at the Zwickau-Mosel plant, marking the return of the manufacture of Audi badged cars in Zwickau for the first time in over 80 years. Two major industrial facilities of the Soviet SDAG Wismut were situated in the city: the uranium mill in Zwickau-Crossen, producing uranium concentrate from ores mined in the Erzgebirge and Thuringia, and the machine building plant in Zwickau-Cainsdorf producing equipment for

451-562: The Czech Republic . The core element of Zwickau's urban public transport system is the Zwickau tramway network ; the system is also the prototype of the so-called Zwickau Model for such systems. The closest airport is Leipzig-Altenburg , which has no scheduled commercial flights. The nearest major airports are Leipzig/Halle Airport and Dresden Airport , both of which offer a large number of national and international flights. In

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492-581: The European Route of Industrial Heritage (EIRH). Zwickau is twinned with: Bundesautobahn 4 The western A 4 starts north-west of Aachen , where the Dutch A76 enters Germany. Initially it is 2 lanes each way with no speed limit. From Kreuz Aachen to Düren and from Kerpen to Refrath (between Refrath and Köln-Merheim) westbound the hard shoulder becomes the third lane at peak times. Between Kreuz Köln-West and Kreuz Heumar it forms

533-529: The Horch automobile plant was founded, followed by the Audi factory in 1909. In 1932 both brands were incorporated into Auto Union but retained their independent trademarks. Auto Union racing cars , developed by Ferdinand Porsche and Robert Eberan von Eberhorst , driven by Bernd Rosemeyer , Hans Stuck , Tazio Nuvolari , Ernst von Delius , became well known nationally and internationally. During World War II,

574-707: The Trabant , produced between 1957 and 1991. Following the reunification of Germany in 1990, Sachsenring transitioned from a government-owned company under a centrally-planned economy to a private corporation in a free market economy. After three years in bankruptcy, Sachsenring AG was purchased in February, 2006 by Härterei und Qualitätsmanagement GmbH (HQM) of Leipzig . Formerly the dominant major automaker in East Germany, Sachsenring has since departed from making motor vehicles. Today, it supplies, among other things,

615-695: The Volkswagen factory with parts for the Golf and Passat models. The German bitpop pioneers Welle:Erdball have been using a rotated version of the Sachsenring emblem as their band logo since 1996. Zwickau Zwickau ( German pronunciation: [ˈtsvɪkaʊ] ; Upper Sorbian : Šwikawa ; Czech : Cvikov or Zvíkov ; Polish : Ćwików ) is the fourth-largest city of Saxony , Germany, after Leipzig , Dresden and Chemnitz , with around 88,000 inhabitants,. The West Saxon city

656-535: The new states of Germany . Zwickau is the seat of the West Saxon University of Zwickau (German: Westsächsische Hochschule Zwickau ) with campuses in Zwickau, Markneukirchen , Reichenbach im Vogtland and Schneeberg (Erzgebirge) . The city is the birthplace of composer Robert Schumann . Zwickau has historically been one of the centres of the German automotive industry. It is the cradle of Audi and its forerunner Horch . Horchwerke AG Zwickau

697-636: The A4 form the most easterly stretch of the European route E314 : continuing east from the Aachen interchange (Kreuz Aachen), the A4 is part of European route E40 . European routes don't have gaps and E 40 follows A 45 and A 5 , which is a suitable route past the gap of A4. In 1927, the first ideas planned connections between Aachen and Cologne, and additional connections between Erfurt and Breslau ( Silesia ). The first sections were built from 1934 to 1937 (between Chemnitz and Dresden). Just west of Eisenach

738-932: The Middle Ages, historical documents, letters and books are kept in the City Archives (e.g. Meister Singer volumes by Hans Sachs (1494–1576)), and in the School Library founded by scholars and by the city clerk Stephan Roth during the Reformation. In 1520 Martin Luther dedicated his treatise "On the Freedom of the Christian Man" to his friend Hermann Muehlpfort, the Lord Mayor of Zwickau. The Anabaptist movement of 1525 began at Zwickau under

779-759: The Nazi government operated a satellite camp of the Flossenbürg concentration camp in Zwickau which was sited near the Horch Auto Union plant. The Nazi administration built a hard labour prison camp at Osterstein Castle . Both camps were liberated by the US Army in 1945. On 1 August 1945 military administration was handed over to the Soviet Army. The Auto Union factories of Horch and Audi were dismantled by

820-667: The Salesian Oratory in Poznań , known as the Poznań Five  [ pl ] or five of the 108 Blessed Polish Martyrs of World War II , were imprisoned in Zwickau, before being executed in Dresden. A subcamp of the Flossenbürg concentration camp was located in Zwickau, whose prisoners were mostly Poles and Russians, but also Italians, French, Hungarians, Jews, Czechs, Germans and others. On 17 April 1945, US troops entered

861-647: The Soviets; Auto Union relocated to Ingolstadt , Bavaria, evolving into the present day Audi company. In 1948 all large companies were seized by the East German government. With the founding of the German Democratic Republic in 1949 in East Germany, post-war reconstruction began. In 1958 the Horch and Audi factories were merged into the Sachsenring plant. At the Sachsenring automotive plant

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902-492: The automobile industry. The former VEB Sachsenring manufacturing site was acquired by Volkswagen in 1990 and has since been redeveloped as an engine and transmission manufacturing facility. Nowadays the headquarters of Volkswagen-Saxony Ltd. (a VW subsidiary) is in the northern part of Zwickau. Audi together with the city of Zwickau operates the August Horch Museum in the former Audi works. In 2021, production of

943-482: The city and the nearby Ore Mountains . Zwickau is the birthplace of the composer Robert Schumann . The house where he was born in 1810 still stands in the marketplace. This is now called Robert Schumann House and is a museum dedicated to him. The histories of the Audi and Horch automobile factories are presented at the August Horch Museum Zwickau . The museum is an Anchor Point of

984-473: The city centre there are three museums: an art museum from the 19th century and the houses of priests from 13th century, both located next to St. Mary's church. Just around the corner there is the Robert-Schumann museum. The museums offer different collections dedicated to the history of the city, as well as art and a mineralogical, palaeontological and geological collection with many specimens from

1025-482: The city in a south to north direction. It enters Zwickau between Zwickau-Cainsdorf and Zwickau-Bockwa, and leaves at Zwickau-Schlunzig near the Volkswagen plant, and is spanned by 17 bridges within the city. The Silver Road , Saxony's longest tourist route, connects Dresden with Zwickau. Zwickau can be reached by car via the nearby Autobahn s A4 and A72 , the main railway station ( Zwickau Hauptbahnhof ), via

1066-825: The city of Glauchau . Zwickau is home to the University of Applied Sciences Zwickau , with about 4,700 students and two campuses within the boundaries of Zwickau. Dr. Martin Luther School (German: Dr. Martin Luther Schule ) is a grade 1–4 school of the Evangelical Lutheran Free Church in Zwickau. The first freely elected mayor after German reunification was Rainer Eichhorn of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), who served from 1990 to 2001. The mayor

1107-631: The city's economy was driven by industrial coal mining and later by automobile manufacturing. During World War II , in 1942, a Nazi show trial of the members of the Czarny Legion  [ pl ] Polish underground resistance organization from Gostyń was held in Zwickau, after which 12 members were executed in Dresden , and several dozen were imprisoned in Nazi concentration camps , where 37 of them died. In May 1942, five Polish students of

1148-468: The city. They withdrew on 30 June 1945 and handed Zwickau to the Soviet Red Army . Between 1944 and 2003, the city had a population of over 100,000. A major employer is Volkswagen which assembles its ID.3, ID.4 and ID.5 models, as well as Audi and Cupra EV's in the Zwickau-Mosel vehicle plant. Coal mining is mentioned as early as 1348. However, mining on an industrial scale first started in

1189-460: The compact Trabant cars were manufactured. These small cars had a two-cylinder, two-stroke engine. The car was the first vehicle in the world to be industrially manufactured with a plastic car body. The production of the Trabant was discontinued after German reunification, but Volkswagen built a new factory in the nearby Mosel area to the north of the city and Sachsenring is now a supplier for

1230-577: The discovery of silver in the Schneeberg in 1470. Because of the silver ore deposits in the Erzgebirge, Zwickau developed in the 15th and 16th centuries and grew to be an important economic and cultural centre of Saxony. Its nine churches include the Gothic church of St. Mary (1451–1536), with a spire 285 ft (87 m) high and a bell weighing 51 tons . The church contains an altar with wood carvings, eight paintings by Michael Wohlgemuth and

1271-449: The early 19th century. The coal mines of Zwickau and the neighbouring Oelsnitz-Lugau coalfield contributed significantly to the industrialisation of the region and the city. In 1885 Carl Wolf invented an improved gas-detecting safety mining-lamp. He held the first world patent for it. Together with his business partner Friemann he founded the "Friemann & Wolf" factory. Coal mining ceased in 1978. About 230 million tonnes had been mined to

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1312-590: The inspiration of the " Zwickau prophets ". After Wittenberg, it became the first city in Europe to join the Lutheran Reformation . The late Gothic Gewandhaus (cloth merchants' hall), was built in 1522–24 and is now converted into a theatre. The city was seriously damaged during the Thirty Years' War . The old city of Zwickau, perched on a hill, is surrounded by heights with extensive forests and

1353-551: The native Slavs were Germanized. A trading place known as terretorio Zcwickaw (in Medieval Latin ) was mentioned in 1118. The settlement received a town charter in 1212, and hosted Franciscans and Cistercians during the 13th century. Zwickau was a free imperial city from 1290 to 1323, but was subsequently granted to the Margraviate of Meissen . Although regional mining began in 1316, extensive mining increased with

1394-664: The new tunnel at Königshain Hills (near Görlitz) was opened. In 2014, the section of A 4 between Cologne and Aachen was rerouted on a new 17 km highway section near Kerpen. The abandonment of the old route was due to the expansion of coal mining in the Hambach open-pit mine. Reconstruction of the last section in Thuringia between Eisenach and Gotha near the former Inner German Border began in 2007 and required building 25 km (16 mi) of new road. The " Wiehltalbrücke "

1435-495: The southern part of the Cologne Beltway ( Kölner Autobahnring). The rest of the section between Kreuz Aachen and Kreuz Köln-West has a variable speed limit. Between Merzenich and Elsdorf, the speed limit is 130 km/h. Between Kreuz Köln-West and Kreuz Heumar the speed limit is 120 km/h. From Kreuz Köln-Ost to Refrath the maximum speed is 100 km/h. The westbound section between Köln-Merheim and Kreuz Köln-Ost

1476-452: The uranium mines and mills of East Germany. Uranium milling ended in 1989, and after the unification the Wismut machine building plant was sold to a private investor. Zwickau is bounded by Mülsen , Reinsdorf , Wilkau-Hasslau , Hirschfeld ( Verwaltungsgemeinschaft Kirchberg ), Lichtentanne , Werdau , Neukirchen , Crimmitschau , Dennheritz ( Verwaltungsgemeinschaft Crimmitschau ), and

1517-514: Was closed and fell into decay during the Cold War . It was bypassed by B 400. Ironically, that section, built in 1943, was the last Reichsautobahn section built before the end of World War II. The Wildeck-Obersuhl interchange was built only after the war, due to the Gerstungen interchange being exactly on the border. Repairs of those parts were scheduled to be completed in 2007. In 1999,

1558-597: Was elected. The most recent city council election was held on 9 June 2024, and the results were as follows: The city is close to the A4 (Dresden-Erfurt) and A72 (Hof-Chemnitz) Autobahn s. Zwickau Hauptbahnhof is on the Dresden–Werdau line , part of the Saxon-Franconian trunk line , connecting Nuremberg and Dresden. There are further railway connections to Leipzig as well as Karlovy Vary and Cheb in

1599-623: Was founded there in 1904 and was renamed to Audiwerke Zwickau AG in 1909. Zwickau was also the seat of VEB Sachsenring (now Sachsenring GmbH), which produced East Germany 's most popular car, the Trabant , in Zwickau. Since 1990, there is a large Volkswagen plant in Zwickau-Mosel . The 167-kilometre (104-mile)-long Zwickau Mulde River, originating in Schöneck/Vogtl. in the Western Ore Mountains , traverses

1640-524: Was originally chosen by the city council, but since 1994 has been directly elected. Dietmar Vettermann , also of the CDU, served from 2001 until 2008. He was succeeded by Pia Findeiß of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), who was in office until 2020. The most recent mayoral election was held on 20 September 2020, with a runoff held on 11 October, at which Constance Arndt (Bürger für Zwickau)

1681-399: Was the Wartha - Herleshausen border checkpoint between East and West Germany . Eight kilometers down the road, after the Wommen interchange, the road crosses back into the former East Germany into Gerstungen (today in Thuringia ) for seven kilometers before crossing back to the former West Germany at Wildeck . Because of that, the section between Wommen and Wildeck-Obersuhl interchanges

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