Harburg

Harburg
Map of Lower Saxony highlighting the district of Harburg
State	Lower Saxony
District seat	Winsen (Luhe)
Area	1245 km²
Population	237,200 (2002)
Pop. density	191 /km²
Licence plate code	WL
Web page	http://www.lkharburg.de

Harburg is a district (Landkreis) in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is bounded by (from the east and clockwise) the districts of Lüneburg, Soltau-Fallingbostel, Rotenburg and Stade, by the City of Hamburg and the State of Schleswig-Holstein (District of Lauenburg).

History

In 1885 the Prussian government established three districts in this region: the District of Harburg, the District of Winsen and the district-free City of Harburg. In 1932 the districts of Winsen and Harburg were merged; the City of Harburg-Wilhelmsburg (which had been renamed in 1927) became the capital of the district, although it remained district-free and hence was not a part of the district.

In 1937 the City of Harburg-Wilhelmsburg was incorporated into the City of Hamburg with the Greater Hamburg Act. Harburg and Wilhelmsburg became two boroughs of Hamburg. The District of Harburg remained with the State of Prussia and retained its autonomy. Winsen became the new capital of the District in 1944.

Geography

The District is located south of Hamburg and includes several suburbs of the Hamburg metropolitan area. In the south of the district part of the Lüneburg Heath (Lüneburger Heide) is found.

Coat of arms

The lion was the heraldic animal of the Welfen family and the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg, to which the region belonged before it became part of Prussia. The key is from the arms of the Archbishopric of Bremen, to which the region belonged earlier.

Cities and municipalities

External links

• Official site (German)

v • d • e    Urban and rural districts in the state of Lower Saxony in Germany    Region Hanover Urban districts Braunschweig · Delmenhorst · Emden · Oldenburg · Osnabrück · Salzgitter · Wilhelmshaven · Wolfsburg Rural districts Ammerland · Aurich · Bentheim · Celle · Cloppenburg · Cuxhaven · Diepholz · Emsland · Friesland · Gifhorn · Goslar · Göttingen · Hamelin-Pyrmont · Harburg · Helmstedt · Hildesheim · Holzminden · Leer · Lüchow-Dannenberg · Lüneburg · Nienburg · Northeim · Oldenburg · Osnabrück · Osterholz · Osterode · Peine · Rotenburg · Schaumburg · Soltau-Fallingbostel · Stade · Uelzen · Vechta · Verden · Wesermarsch · Wittmund · Wolfenbüttel

Coordinates: 53°20′N 10°05′E / 53.33°N 10.08°E / 53.33; 10.08