Eichsfeld (district)


Eichsfeld is a district in Thuringia, Germany, and part of the historical region of Eichsfeld. It is bounded by the districts of Nordhausen, Kyffhäuserkreis and Unstrut-Hainich-Kreis, and by the states of Hesse and Lower Saxony.

History

In medieval times the Eichsfeld region, which is larger than the current district Eichsfeld, was property of the Archbishops of Mainz.
Eichsfeld was the only region of Thuringia not to accept the Protestant Reformation, largely due to the efforts of the Archbishops of Mainz.
In 1801, the clerical states were dissolved, and the Kingdom of Prussia gained the region, only to lose it again in the Napoleonic Wars. In the Congress of Vienna Prussia as well as the Kingdom of Hanover raised claims for the Eichsfeld. The region was divided between both states. Although Hanover was annexed by Prussia in 1866, this border remained the boundary between two Prussian provinces, later between East and West Germany, and today between Thuringia and Lower Saxony.
The present district was established in 1994 by merging the former districts of Worbis and Heiligenstadt.

Geography

The district is named after the historical region of Eichsfeld, which covers the northern portions of the present district and parts of Lower Saxony, the area around Duderstadt, called "Untereichsfeld". It is a hilly countryside, that is attached to the Harz hills in the north. Incidentally it is the geographical centre of Germany. The Leine and Unstrut rivers both rise in the Eichsfeld.
The name is believed to be derived from Eichenfeld, which means "field of oaks". A less popular theory is the origin in the word Eisfeld.

Coat of arms

Towns and municipalities