Bautzen facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Bautzen Budyšin
Town
Clockwise from top: view of Bautzen, view over the city hall to the Czorneboh (Lusatian Highlands), historicizing bilingual Bautzen street signage, view of the city at dusk, Reichenturm, Main Market Square with town hall
Coat of arms
Location of Bautzen Budyšin within Bautzen district
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Country	Germany
State	Saxony
District	Bautzen
Subdivisions	15
Area
• Total	66.62 km2 (25.72 sq mi)
Elevation	204 m (669 ft)
Population  (2022-12-31)
• Total	38,140
• Density	572.50/km2 (1,482.77/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes	02625
Dialling codes	03591
Vehicle registration	BZ, BIW, HY, KM

Bautzen (also called Budyšin in Sorbian) is a historic town in eastern Saxony, Germany. It's the main city of the Bautzen district. The town is located on the Spree River. It's the eighth largest town in Saxony and the center of Saxony's biggest district.

Bautzen is in an area where two languages are spoken: German and Sorbian. This area is called Lusatia. Bautzen is the third largest town in Lusatia, after Cottbus and Görlitz. It's also the second largest town in Upper Lusatia.

The town sits in a hilly area called the Upper Lusatian Gefilde. This area is part of the Sudetes mountains. Bautzen is the first big town you reach on the Spree River. The Bautzen Reservoir is just north of the town. In 2021, about 38,000 people lived in Bautzen.

Even though Görlitz is bigger, Bautzen is seen as the historical capital of Upper Lusatia. It's the main place for the Sorbs, a Slavic minority group in Germany. About 10% of people in Bautzen speak Upper Sorbian. The Sorbian language is used more in the countryside around the town than in the town itself. Bautzen is home to many Sorbian groups, like the Domowina (a Sorbian organization), the German-Sorbian People's Theater, and Sorbian Broadcasting.

From 1346 to 1815, Bautzen was part of the Lusatian League, a group of six important towns. Bautzen also has "Germany's oldest Christmas market mentioned in a chronicle," called the Wenceslaus' Market. There's even an Asteroid named after the city, 11580 Bautzen.

Town Names

Like many places in Lusatia, Bautzen has different names in different languages. Its German name was officially changed in 1868.

Besides Bautzen (German) and Budyšin (Upper Sorbian), the town has also been called:

• In German: Budissin (used until 1868)
• In Lower Sorbian: Budyšyn
• In Czech: Budyšín
• In Polish: Budziszyn

Where is Bautzen?

Location

The town is on the Spree River. It's about 50 kilometers (31 miles) east of Dresden. Bautzen is located between the Lusatian highlands and the flatlands to the north. It's right in the middle of the Upper Lusatia region. To the north, you'll find the Bautzen Reservoir, which was created in 1974. This reservoir covers the old villages of Malsitz and Nimschütz.

How the Town Grew

The oldest part of Bautzen is on a high area above the Spree River. The Ortenburg castle sits at the very top of this area. The old town is surrounded by city walls. Newer parts of the town were built later to the east. After the city walls were removed, the town grew even more to the east and across the river. However, not much of the town is west of the Spree River. In the 1970s, new areas like "Gesundbrunnen" and "Allendeviertel" were built. After 1990, several nearby villages became part of Bautzen.

Neighboring Towns

Bautzen is surrounded by several towns and villages. To the north are Radibor, Großdubrau, and Malschwitz. To the east is Kubschütz. To the south are Großpostwitz, Obergurig, and Doberschau-Gaußig. To the west is Göda. All these places are in the Bautzen district.

The city districts

Town Parts

Bautzen is divided into 15 city districts. Here are some of them:

Bautzen's History

Bautzen town hall

The leaning Reichenturm

People have lived in the Bautzen area since the late Stone Age. In the 3rd century AD, a Germanic group settled here. Then, in the 6th century AD, the Sorbs arrived.

The first time Bautzen was mentioned in writing was in 1002, under the name Budusin. In 1018, an important agreement called the Peace of Bautzen was signed here. This agreement kept the town under Polish rule. Over time, Bautzen was ruled by different groups, including the Duchy of Bohemia and later the Kingdom of Bohemia. In 1635, it became part of Saxony. One of the main roads connecting Warsaw and Dresden used to go through Bautzen.

From 1346 to 1815, Bautzen was a member of the Lusatian League, a group of six important towns in Upper Lusatia.

In the 1400s, the town was attacked by the Hussites but they couldn't capture it. In 1634, during the Thirty Years' War, the town was badly damaged by the Swedes. Bautzen was also a battlefield during the Napoleonic War in 1813. In 1868, the town's name was officially changed from Budissin to Bautzen.

In 1839, a Sorbian student group was started in Bautzen. In 1845, the Sorbian national anthem was performed publicly for the first time in the city. The Sorbian House, a center for Sorbian culture, opened in Bautzen in 1904.

During the time of the Nazi Party in Germany (starting in 1933), many people were held in Bautzen's prisons, Bautzen I and Bautzen II. These prisons were built in 1904 and 1906. In 1938, during a difficult time called Kristallnacht, Jewish people in Bautzen faced hardship, and their businesses were destroyed. During World War II, from 1942 to 1943, some members of the Polish resistance were tried in Bautzen, and some were sentenced to death. A subcamp of the Groß-Rosen concentration camp also operated in Bautzen. Many people, mostly Poles, were held there, and some died. In April 1945, many prisoners were moved from Bautzen on foot, but some were freed in Bautzen by Soviet forces. The town also saw fighting in April 1945 during the Battle of Bautzen.

From 1952 to 1990, Bautzen was part of East Germany. The two prisons, "Bautzen I" and "Bautzen II," became well-known. "Bautzen I" was an official prison, sometimes called "Yellow Misery" because of its color. "Bautzen II" was a more secret prison used to hold people who disagreed with the government. Today, Bautzen I is still a prison. Bautzen II is now a public memorial since 1993. Visitors can learn about the difficult experiences of the prisoners there.

In 2002, the city celebrated its 1000th birthday. In 2010, Bautzen was affected by a flood.

How Bautzen's Population Changed

In the early Middle Ages, Bautzen was one of the biggest cities in Central Germany. But around the 1400s, its population stopped growing. When industries started to develop later, the population began to grow again. It even grew during the time of East Germany. However, after 1990, the population went down from 52,000 (in 1989) to about 38,000. This was because people moved away and fewer babies were born. Since the 2000s, the population decline has slowed down a lot. Today, Bautzen is the 10th largest city in Saxony by population.

As of December 31, 2011, most of Bautzen's population (98.3%) were Germans. About 6.1% of them had a family background from another country.

Population development of Bautzen from 1871 to 2017

Here's how the population changed over the years (as of December 31, unless noted):

• 1849 – 10,518
• 1868 – 12,623
• 1875 – 14,709
• 1890 – 21,516
• 1933 – 41,951
• 1950 – 41,592 (as of August 31)
• 1960 – 41,613
• 1984 – 51,208
• 1995 – 44,763
• 2000 – 43,353
• 2005 – 42,150
• 2010 – 40,573
• 2015 – 40,501
• 2020 – 38,006
• 2021 - 38,360
• 2022 - 38,682

What to See in Bautzen

Old Waterworks and Church of St. Michael

Bautzen has a very old and well-kept town center from the Middle Ages. It has many churches, towers, and a city wall along the steep bank of the Spree River. You can also see one of the oldest working waterworks in central Europe, built in 1558.

Some interesting places to visit are:

• The Reichenturm: This is one of the steepest leaning towers north of the Alps that you can still climb.
• Ortenburg Castle
• The Old Waterworks: This is an old building that is now a museum.
• Saint Peter's Cathedral: This is the only historic church in Eastern Germany where both Protestants and Catholics have held services.
• Hexenhaus (Witch's House): This is the oldest house still standing in Bautzen, built in 1604.

Bautzen also has six museums. These include the Stadtmuseum Bautzen (Bautzen City Museum), the Sorbisches Museum (Sorbian Museum), and the Senfmuseum (Mustard Museum).

Sorbian Centers

Sorbian House (Serbski dom), headquarters of various Sorbian organizations

Sorbian Museum (Serbski muzej)

Sorbian gymnasium (Serbski gymnazij)

Sorbian Institute (Serbski institut)

Bautzen is home to many important organizations for the Sorbian people and their culture:

• Foundation for the Sorbian People (Załožba za serbski lud)
• Domowina: This is the main organization that connects all the Sorbian cultural groups.
• Sorbian Institute
• Sorbian Radio (Serbski rozhłós)
• Sorbian National Ensemble and the German-Sorbian People's Theater
• Bautzen Sorbian Boarding School

Economy

Alstom Transportation has a big factory in Bautzen. They make railway locomotives, carriages, and trams there. This factory used to be called VEB Waggonbau Bautzen.

The famous mustard Bautz'ner Senf is made in Bautzen. It's the most popular mustard in the eastern parts of Germany, with 65% of the market share.

Famous People from Bautzen

Hermann Lotze

Hans Unger self-portrait

Many interesting people were born or lived in Bautzen, including:

• Hermann Lotze (1817–1881), a German philosopher.
• Hans Unger (1872–1936), a painter.
• Stefanie Kloß (born 1984), the lead singer of the pop rock band Silbermond.
• Handrij Zejler (1804–1872), who is known as the founder of modern Sorbian poetry.

Sister Cities

Bautzen has special friendships with other cities around the world. These are called twin towns:

• Worms, Germany (since 1990)
• Heidelberg, Germany (since 1991)
• Dreux, France (since 1992)
• Jablonec nad Nisou, Czech Republic (since 1993)
• Jelenia Góra, Poland (since 1993)

Panorama of Bautzen viewed from the Peace Bridge [de; hsb]

See also

In Spanish: Bautzen para niños