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57-531: VMS delivers public transport across the Chemnitz area, including the city of Chemnitz as well as the surrounding districts of Zwickau , Mittelsachsen and Erzgebirgskreis . VMS covers an area of 5,115 km² with 1.23 million residents. Verkehrsverbund Mittelsachsen currently engages with 24 separate transport companies to deliver its services, which employ around 4,000 staff. VMS was formed on 5 November 1997, after two years of planning, and seven years after

114-482: A Flossenbürg forced labor subcamp (500 female inmates) for Astra-Werke AG . The oil refinery was a target for bombers during the Oil Campaign of World War II , and Operation Thunderclap attacks included the following raids: The city was occupied by Soviet troops on 8 May 1945. The headquarters of the auto manufacturer Auto Union was based in Chemnitz from 1932 and its buildings were badly damaged. At

171-567: A centre of innovation in the kingdom of Saxony and later in Germany. In 1913, Chemnitz had a population of 320,000 and, like Leipzig and Dresden, was larger at that time than today. After losing inhabitants due to the First World War Chemnitz grew rapidly again and reached its all-time peak of 360,250 inhabitants in 1930. Thereafter, growth was stalled by the world economic crisis . As a working-class industrial city, Chemnitz

228-552: A centre of textile production and trade. More than one third of the population worked in textile production. In 1356 the Margraviate was succeeded by the Electorate of Saxony . Geologist Georgius Agricola (1494-1555), author of several significant works on mining and metallurgy including the landmark treatise De Re Metallica , became city physician of Chemnitz in 1533 and lived here until his death in 1555. In 1546 he

285-420: A chairman of the same. The local councils are to hear important matters concerning the locality. A final decision is, however, incumbent on the city council of the city of Chemnitz. The official identification of the districts by numbers is based on the following principle: Starting from the city center (neighborhoods Zentrum and Schloßchemnitz), all other parts of the city are assigned clockwise in ascending order

342-969: A famous trading and textile manufacturing town. In 1806, with the end of the Holy Roman Empire , the Electorate was renamed as the Kingdom of Saxony , and this survived until the revolutions of 1918 which followed the Armistice ending the First World War . By the early 19th century, Chemnitz had become an industrial centre (sometimes called "the Saxon Manchester ", German : Sächsisches Manchester , pronounced [ˈzɛksɪʃəs ˈmɛntʃɛstɐ] ). Important industrial companies were founded by Richard Hartmann , Louis Schönherr and Johann von Zimmermann. Chemnitz became

399-427: A joint bid from Northern Irish cities of Belfast and Derry and the town of Strabane . A new framework makes it possible for cities in candidate countries ( Albania , Bosnia and Herzegovina , Georgia , Moldova , Montenegro , North Macedonia , Serbia , Turkey , Ukraine ), potential candidates for EU membership ( Kosovo ) or EFTA member states ( Iceland , Liechtenstein , Norway , Switzerland ) to hold

456-456: A new road network. However, the original plans were not completed. In addition, the rapid development of housing took priority over the preservation of old buildings. So in the 1960s and 1970s, both in the centre as well as the periphery, large areas were built in Plattenbau apartment-block style, for example Yorckstraße . The old buildings of the period, which still existed especially in

513-523: A series of cultural events with a strong pan-European dimension. Being a European Capital of Culture can be an opportunity for a city to generate considerable cultural, social, and economic benefits, and it can help foster urban regeneration , change the city's image, and raise its visibility and profile on an international scale. Multiple cities can be a European Capital of Culture simultaneously. In 1985, Melina Mercouri , Greece 's Minister of Culture , and her French counterpart Jack Lang came up with

570-465: Is Chemnitz University of Technology . In 2017, out of its 10,482 students, 2712 were foreign students, which equals to about 25%, making Chemnitz the most internationalised of the three major universities of Saxony. European Capital of Culture A European Capital of Culture is a city designated by the European Union (EU) for a period of one calendar year during which it organises

627-423: Is 732.7 mm (28.85 in), and the precipitation in summer is about twice that in winter. The Chemnitz weather station has recorded the following extreme values: The city of Chemnitz consists of 39 neighborhoods. The neighborhoods of Einsiedel, Euba, Grüna, Klaffenbach, Kleinolbersdorf-Altenhain, Mittelbach, Röhrsdorf and Wittgensdorf are at the same time localities within the meaning of Sections 65 to 68 of

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684-742: Is a municipal botanical garden , and the Arktisch-Alpiner Garten der Walter-Meusel-Stiftung is a non-profit garden specializing in arctic and alpine plants . Near the city center is the "Villa Esche" located (Henry-van-de-Velde-museum). This historical house was built in 1902 in art-nouveau-style by van de Velde. The City is home of the SCHLINGEL International Film Festival, a yearly festival created in 1996 and that focuses on cinema for young audiences. Chemnitz has an oceanic climate ( Köppen : Cfb ; Trewartha : Dobk ). The annual precipitation

741-433: Is characterized by medium-sized companies, with the heavy industrial sectors of mechanical engineering, metal processing, and vehicle manufacturing as the most significant industries. About 100,000 people are employed, of whom about 46,000 commute from other municipalities. 16.3% of employees in Chemnitz have a university or college degree , twice the average rate in Germany. Chemnitz has a population of 246,000 people and

798-516: Is in charge of assessing the proposals of cities for the title according to criteria specified by the European Union. For two of the capitals each year, eligibility is open to cities in EU member states only. From 2021 and every three years thereafter, a third capital will be chosen from cities in countries that are candidates or potential candidates for membership, or in countries that are part of

855-733: Is now provided by the transport companies within the VMS area. [1] This article about transport in Germany is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article about government in Germany is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Chemnitz 037200 (Wittgensdorf) 037209 (Einsiedel) 03722 (Röhrsdorf) Chemnitz ( German: [ˈkɛmnɪts] ; from 1953 to 1990: Karl-Marx-Stadt [kaʁlˈmaʁksˌʃtat] ( lit.   ' Karl Marx City ' ); Upper Sorbian : Kamjenica ; Czech : Saská Kamenice ; Polish : Kamienica Saska )

912-512: Is the 3rd largest city in Saxony . The population of Chemnitz grow rapidly since the early 1900s due to its industrialization. Chemnitz reached its highest peak of population in 1930 with population of about 362,000. Chemnitz in the East Germany era when the city was called "Karl-Marx-Stadt", it became a significant industrial city known for it textile and leather industries. Chemnitz was also

969-476: Is the largest city of the Chemnitz-Zwickau urban area and is one of the most important economic areas of Germany's new federal states. Chemnitz had a GDP of €8.456 billion in 2016, with GDP per capita at €34,166. Since about 2000, the city's economy has recorded high annual GDP growth rates; Chemnitz is among the top ten German cities in terms of growth rate. The local and regional economic structure

1026-466: Is the red tower built in the late 12th or early 13th century as part of the city wall . The Chemnitz petrified forest is located in the courtyard of Kulturkaufhaus Tietz . It is one of the very few in existence, and dates back several million years (details shown in the Museum of Natural Sciences "Museum für Naturkunde Chemnitz", founded 1859). Also within the city limits, in the district of Rabenstein,

1083-556: Is the smallest castle in Saxony, Rabenstein Castle . The city has changed considerably since German reunification. Most of its industry is now gone and the core of the city has been rebuilt with many shops as well as huge shopping centres. Many of these shops are international brands, including Zara , H&M , Esprit, Galeria Kaufhof , Leiser Shoes, and Peek & Cloppenburg. The large Galerie Roter Turm (Red Tower) shopping centre

1140-546: Is the third-largest city in the German state of Saxony after Leipzig and Dresden , and the fourth-largest city in the area of former East Germany after ( East ) Berlin , Leipzig, and Dresden. The city lies in the middle of a string of cities sitting in the densely populated northern foreland of the Elster and Ore Mountains , stretching from Plauen in the southwest via Zwickau , Chemnitz and Freiberg to Dresden in

1197-608: Is very popular with young people. The Chemnitz Industrial Museum is an Anchor Point of ERIH, the European Route of Industrial Heritage . Additional unique industrial monuments are located at the "Schauplatz Eisenbahn" ( Saxon Railway Museum and Museum of Technology Cable Running System) in Chemnitz-Hilbersdorf. The State Museum of Archaeology Chemnitz opened in 2014 and is located in the former Schocken Department Stores (architect: Erich Mendelsohn; opening of

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1254-550: The Potsdamer Platz in Berlin. Numerous internationally renowned architects such as Hans Kollhoff , Helmut Jahn and Christoph Ingenhoven provided designs for a new city centre. The mid-1990s began the development of the inner city brownfield around the town hall to a new town. In Chemnitz city more than 66,000 square meters of retail space have emerged. With the construction of office and commercial building on

1311-658: The East German era and after German reunification . Today over 50 % of the city´s buildings date back to before 1950. After the dissolution of the Länder (states) in the GDR in 1952, Chemnitz became seat of a district ( Bezirk ). On 10 May 1953, the city was renamed by decision of the East German government to Karl-Marx-Stadt (German: Karl Marx City ) after Karl Marx , in recognition of its industrial heritage and

1368-656: The European Capital of Culture of 2025. Chemnitz is named after the river Chemnitz , the main tributary of the Zwickau Mulde . The word "Chemnitz" derives from the Slavic expression for "stone" ( Upper Sorbian : kamjeń ), which is the root of the Upper Sorbian designations for the river ( Kamjenica ; "stony [brook]"), as well as for the city itself (also Kamjenica ). The term is composed of

1425-562: The European Economic Area (EEA) – an example of the latter being Stavanger , Norway , which was a European Capital of Culture in 2008. A 2004 study conducted for the Commission, known as the "Palmer report", demonstrated that the choice of European Capital of Culture served as a catalyst for cultural development and the transformation of the city. Consequently, the beneficial socio-economic development and impact for

1482-522: The Karl Marx Year marking the 135th anniversary of his birth and the 70th anniversary of his death. GDR Prime Minister Otto Grotewohl said: The people who live here do not look back, but look forward to a new and better future. They look at socialism. They look with love and devotion to the founder of the socialist doctrine, the greatest son of the German people, to Karl Marx. I hereby fulfill

1539-470: The Kassberg , Chemnitz-Sonnenberg  [ de ] and Chemnitz-Schloßchemnitz  [ de ] quarters, were neglected and fell increasingly into dereliction. On 23 April 1990, a referendum on the future name of the city was held: 76% of the voters voted for the old name " Chemnitz ". On 1 June 1990, the city was officially renamed. After the reunification of Germany on 3 October 1990,

1596-408: The 2010s due to its immigration from mostly war active countries like Syria but it faced a problem due to many right-wing extremists and active Neo-Nazi groups where many foreigners experience racism and moved away from Chemnitz. The city had a fertility rate of 1.64 in 2015. Foreign population in Chemnitz by nationality as of 31 December 2022: A large contributor to the city's foreign population

1653-521: The 4th largest city in then East Germany after East Berlin , Leipzig and Dresden . After the German Reunification Chemnitz faced a significant population decrease. Since 1988 Chemnitz has lost about 20 percent of its inhabitants. Chemnitz's population decreased from 300,000 in 1989 to under 250,000 in 2003, which made Chemnitz one of the cities with most population loss in Germany. Chemnitz's population started to grow again in

1710-587: The Kassberg neighborhood with 18th and 19th century buildings and the Karl Marx Monument by Lev Kerbel , nicknamed Nischel (a Saxon dialect word for head) by the locals. Landmarks include the Old Town Hall with its Renaissance portal (15th century), the castle on the site of the former monastery, and the area around the opera house and the old university. The most conspicuous landmark

1767-519: The Middle East were arrested in connection with the murder of Daniel H., a 35 year old German man, the son of a German mother and a Cuban father, which had happened on 26 August. Violent clashes occurred between far-right protesters and far-left counter protesters, leading to injuries. The mobs outnumbered the local police presence. There were reports that rightist protesters chased down dark skinned bystanders and those that appeared to be foreigners on

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1824-492: The Saxon Municipal Code. These neighborhoods came in the wake of the last incorporation wave after 1990 as formerly independent municipalities to the city of Chemnitz and therefore enjoy this special position compared to the other parts of the city. These localities each have a local council, which, depending on the number of inhabitants of the locality concerned, comprises between ten and sixteen members as well as

1881-681: The chosen city are now also considered in determining the chosen cities. Bids from five United Kingdom cities to be the 2023 Capital of Culture were disqualified in November 2017, because the UK was planning to leave the EU before 2023. The European Capital of Culture programme was initially called the European City of Culture and was conceived in 1983, by Melina Mercouri , then serving as minister of culture in Greece . Mercouri believed that at

1938-429: The city of Chemnitz faced several difficult tasks. Many inhabitants migrated to the former West Germany and unemployment in the region increased sharply; in addition Chemnitz did not have adequate shopping facilities, but this was increasingly demanded. Large shopping centers were constructed on the city periphery to the early 1990s. Chemnitz is the only major German city whose centre was re-planned after 1990, similar to

1995-585: The city of Chemnitz. Chemnitz was one of the big German industrial centers. Due to the export traffic a modern marshalling yard was erected 1929 in Chemnitz-Hilbersdorf. At that time it was a leading city in the European textile market. Auto Union (today Audi) was founded 1932 in Chemnitz. Allied bombing destroyed 41 per cent of the built-up area of Chemnitz during the Second World War . Chemnitz contained factories that produced military hardware and

2052-631: The construction site "B3" at the Düsseldorf court, the last gap in 2010 was closed in city centre image. The intensive development included demolition of partially historically valuable buildings from the period and was controversial. Between 1990 and 2007 more than 250 buildings were leveled. In late August 2018 the city was the site of a series of protests that attracted at least 8,000 people. The protests were attended by far-right and Neo-Nazi groups. News outlets reported about mob violence and riots. The protests started after two immigrants from

2109-547: The department store: 1930). The Museum Gunzenhauser , formerly a bank, opened on 1 December 2007. Alfred Gunzenhauser , who lived in Munich, had a collection of some 2,500 pieces of modern art , including many paintings and drawings by Otto Dix , Karl Schmidt-Rottluff and others. The other great art museum in Chemnitz is located near central railway station, it is called "Museum am Theaterplatz" (erected 1909 as "König-Albert-Museum"). The Botanischer Garten Chemnitz

2166-520: The end of the war, the company's executives fled and relocated the company in Ingolstadt , Bavaria, where it evolved into Audi , now a brand within the Volkswagen group. The World War II bombings left most of the city centre in ruins and post-war , the East German reconstruction included large low-rise (and later high-rise Plattenbau ) housing. Some tourist sites were reconstructed during

2223-474: The government's decision. I carry out the solemn act of renaming the city and declare: From now on, this city bears the proud and mandatory name Karl-Marx-Stadt . After the city centre was destroyed in World War II , the East German authorities attempted to rebuild it to symbolise the conceptions of urban development of a socialist city. The layout of the city centre at that time was rejected in favour of

2280-812: The idea of designating an annual City of Culture to bring Europeans closer together by highlighting the richness and diversity of European cultures and raising awareness of their common history and values. The Commission of the European Union manages the title, and each year the Council of Ministers of the European Union formally designates European Capitals of Culture: more than 40 cities have been designated so far. The current European Capitals of Culture for 2024 are Tartu in Estonia , Bad Ischl in Austria and Bodø in Norway . An international panel of cultural experts

2337-516: The names of the rivers are of Slavic origin. Chemnitz is the third-largest city in the Thuringian - Upper Saxon dialect area after Leipzig and Dresden. The city's economy is based on the service sector and manufacturing industry . Chemnitz University of Technology has around 10,000 students. Chemnitz was the richest city in Germany at the beginning of the 20th century, is known for its many industrial age buildings and monuments, and will be

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2394-765: The northeast, and is part of the Central German Metropolitan Region . Located in the Ore Mountain Basin , the city is surrounded by the Ore Mountains to the south and the Central Saxon Hill Country to the north. The city stands on the Chemnitz River , which is formed through the confluence of the rivers Zwönitz and Würschnitz in the borough of Altchemnitz. The name of the city as well as

2451-403: The original proposals to join the area under one transport authority. The first common timetable for the area covered by VMS was introduced from 24 May 1998. Common fares for the entire area were introduced from 1 January 2002. From 2004 to 2014, VMS published the customer magazine "vbs mobil", with originally three, then later six, editions per year. Relevant service information in the magazine

2508-412: The participating bands. The city won the bid to be one of the two European Capitals of Culture (in 2025) on 28 October 2020, beating Hanover, Hildesheim, Magdeburg and Nuremberg. Theater Chemnitz offers a variety of theatre: opera (opera house from 1909), plays, ballet and Figuren (puppets), and runs concerts by the orchestra Robert-Schumann-Philharmonie (founded 1832). Tourist sights include

2565-434: The reconstruction of several other German cities in the immediate post-war years. Plans for the recovery of a compressed city centre around the historic town hall in 1991 led to an urban design competition. This was announced internationally by the city and carried out with the help of the partner city of Düsseldorf . The mooted project on an essentially unused area of the former city would be comparable in circumference with

2622-469: The same conclusion: "there were no mobs and man hunts". One week after the protests, a free "Concert against the Right" under the motto "We are more" (#wirsindmehr) attracted an audience of some 65,000 people. A one-minute silence commemorated the murdered Daniel H., the son of a German mother and a Cuban father. The concert itself has been criticized for far-left activities and violent song texts of some of

2679-971: The stem kamjeń , and the Slavic feminine suffix -ica . The city is known in Czech as Saská Kamenice and in Polish as Kamienica Saska . Chemnitz is the worldwide largest of all cities, towns and villages stemming their name from the Slavic root kamen —of which exist many others in areas with a current or past Slavic-speaking population—followed by Kamensk-Uralsky and Kamensk-Shakhtinsky in Russia, as well as by many other smaller places like Kamenica (Kosovo), Kamienna Góra (Poland), Kamenz (Kamjenc) (Germany), Kamień Pomorski (Poland), Kamieniec Ząbkowicki (Poland), Kamenický Šenov (Czech Republic), Kamieńsk (Poland), Kamenskoye (Russia), and Kamenac (Croatia). An early Slavic tribe's settlement

2736-534: The streets before more police arrived and intervened. The riots were widely condemned by media outlets and politicians throughout Germany, and were "described as reminiscent of civil war and Nazi pogroms." The reports of mob violence and riots were criticized as incorrect later on. The German language Swiss newspaper Neue Zürcher Zeitung corrected its earlier reports, stating that there had evidently been no mob violence but there have been sporadic encroachments. Minister President of Saxony Michael Kretschmer came to

2793-514: The tenth place of their index, the one-digit is awarded in the direction of city periphery in ascending order. ¹ also a locality The city area does not include a unified, closed settlement area after numerous incorporations. The rural settlements of mainly eastern districts are separated from the settlement area of the Chemnitz city center, whereas this partly continues over the western city limits to Limbach-Oberfrohna and Hohenstein-Ernstthal. The first freely elected mayor after German reunification

2850-412: The time, culture was not given the same attention as politics and economics and a project for promoting European cultures within the member states should be pursued. The European City of Culture programme was launched in the summer of 1985 with Athens being the first title-holder. In 1999, the European City of Culture program was renamed to European Capital of Culture. The European Capital of Culture

2907-614: Was Dieter Noll of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), who served from 1990 to 1991, followed by Joachim Pilz (CDU) until 1993. The mayor was originally chosen by the city council, but since 1994 has been directly elected. Peter Seifert of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) served from 1993 until 2006. Between 2006 and 2020 Barbara Ludwig (SPD) has served as mayor. Sven Schulze (SPD) was elected mayor in 2020. The most recent mayoral election

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2964-617: Was a powerful center of socialist political organization after the First World War. At the foundation of the German Communist Party the local Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany voted by 1,000 votes to three to break from the party and join the Communist Party behind their local leaders, Fritz Heckert and Heinrich Brandler . In March 1919 the German Communist Party had over 10,000 members in

3021-473: Was due to be in the UK in 2023. However, due to its decision to leave the European Union , UK cities would no longer be eligible to hold the title after 2019. The European Commission's Scotland office confirmed that this would be the case on 23 November 2017, only one week before the UK was due to announce which city would be put forward. The candidate cities were Dundee , Leeds , Milton Keynes , Nottingham and

3078-539: Was elected a Burgher of Chemnitz and in the same year also was appointed Burgomaster (lord mayor), serving again in 1547, 1551, and 1553. In spite of having been a leading citizen of the city, when Agricola died in 1555 the Protestant Duke denied him burial in the city's cathedral due to Agricola's allegiance to his Roman Catholic faith. Agricola's friends arranged for his remains to be buried in more sympathetic Zeitz , approximately 50 km away. Chemnitz became

3135-548: Was held on 20 September 2020, with a runoff held on 11 October, and the results were as follows: The most recent city council election was held on 9 June 2024, and the results were as follows: Heavy destruction in World War II as well as post-war demolition to erect a truly socialist city centre left the city with a vast open space around its town hall where once a vibrant city heart had been. Because of massive investment in out-of-town shopping right after reunification, it

3192-560: Was located at Kamienica , and the first documented use of this name was in 1143, as the location of a Benedictine monastery around which a settlement grew. Around 1170, Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor granted this the rights of a free imperial city . Kamienica was later Germanised as Chemnitz. In 1307, the town became subordinate to the Margraviate of Meissen , the predecessor of the Saxon state. In medieval times , Chemnitz became

3249-457: Was not until 1999 that major building activity was started in the centre. Comparable to Potsdamer Platz in Berlin, a whole new quarter of the city was constructed in recent years. New buildings include the Kaufhof department store by Helmut Jahn , Galerie Roter Turm with a façade by Hans Kollhoff and Peek & Cloppenburg clothing store by Ingenhofen and Partner. Chemnitz

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