Siegen Wittgenstein (Germany)
Facts and figures
Origin of Link: 1951 Finchley Borough Council- Location: 70m east of Cologne & 70 m north of Frankfurt
- Area: 1,131 sq km
- History: Founded 1224 AD
- Population Size: 297,000
- Political Make-up (2003): 25 Christian Democrats, 18 Social Democrats,3 Liberal Democrats, 3 Greens, 3 VWG, 2 FWU.
Siegen Wittgenstein in detail
The Siegerland was twinned with the old Finchley Borough Council in 1951 when 20 young people left Finchley to visit Siegen. The links then were mainly educational with student exchanges taking place.
In the same way Finchley was conjoined with other areas to become Barnet, in 1971 the Siegerland was coupled to Wittgenstein to become Kreis Siegen Wittgenstein, with the historic name of Siegerland being dropped.
The Kreis is situated along the River Sieg and is about 70 miles north of Frankfurt and 70 miles east of Cologne.
The Kreis is made up of 11 municipalities of which the capital is Siegen, and is the most populous with a population of 110,000 out of a total for the Kreis of 297,200. Several contain spa towns and the area is a holiday centre for many Germans, with hiking, cycling and camping, and in the winter it is a centre for winter sports. The area is hilly and except for Siegen it is very wooded.
The town of Freudenburg is famous for it’s timbered houses and no self-respecting guidebook to Germany is complete without a photograph of them.
Siegen was founded in 1224AD and is noted for having two castles. The town’s ruling family was Orange-Nassau who eventually became the Dutch Royal Family and one of whose members was King William III of England.
In 1577, the town was the birthplace of the painter Peter Paul Rubens, and in 2000 it was the centre for an exhibition of the paintings of Sir Paul McCartney.
The area is also famous for its 2,500 year old iron industry, which, although mining ceased in the 1960s, continues in the form of steel processing and the production of machine tools. Other ancient industries include slate mining which also recently died out, although one is open as a museum. Agriculture, leisure and tourism are major elements of the local economy.
The Friends of Siegerland are the adult support organisation for the twinning. They arrange annual exchange visits with their counterparts the friends of Barnet in Siegen.
The English group raise funds during the year to entertain the visitors and arrange many interesting social activities together. From coffee mornings, theatre outings, coach trips, days out together, and group holidays away both in this country and abroad.
People interested in making new friends can make contact through one of the officers - see below.
For people wishing to holiday in the area and to obtain holiday brochures, the address is:
Touristikverband Siegerland–Wittgenstein
e.V., D-57072 Siegen
Koblenzer Straße 73
Germany Kreishaus.
Tel: 0049 271 3331020
Further information
Friends of Siegerland Wittgenstein contacts:
- Chairman, Mr Keith Dyall, Tel: 020 8959 7147
- Secretary: Mrs Eve Gilham, Tel: 020 8959 2732
- Membership Secretary: Mr Len Harvey, Tel: 020 8349 9304
