Forst (Lausitz)
Baršć (Łužyca)
Town
View from St Nicholas' Church
From top: water tower
St Nicholas' Church
church in Naundorf (Glinsk)
Ostdeutscher Rosengarten
Forst (Lausitz) station
view from St Nicholas' Church
Flag of Forst (Lausitz)
Flag
Coat of arms of Forst (Lausitz)
Coat of arms
Location of Forst (Lausitz) within Spree-Neiße district
Forst (Lausitz) is located in Germany
Forst (Lausitz)
Forst (Lausitz)
Forst (Lausitz) is located in Brandenburg
Forst (Lausitz)
Forst (Lausitz)
Coordinates: 51°44′N 14°38′E / 51.733°N 14.633°E / 51.733; 14.633
CountryGermany
StateBrandenburg
DistrictSpree-Neiße
Government
 • Mayor (2018–26) Simone Taubenek[1]
Area
 • Total109.91 km2 (42.44 sq mi)
Elevation
72 m (236 ft)
Population
 (2021-12-31)[2]
 • Total17,545
 • Density160/km2 (410/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes
03141–03149
Dialling codes03562
Vehicle registrationSPN
Websitewww.forst-lausitz.de

Forst (Lausitz) (German) or Baršć (Łužyca) (Lower Sorbian, pronounced [ˈbarɕtɕ ˈwuʒɨtsa]) is a town in Lower Lusatia, Brandenburg, in eastern Germany. It lies east of Cottbus, on the Lusatian Neisse river which is also the German-Polish border. It is the capital of the Spree-Neiße district. It is known for its rose garden and textile museum. The town's population is 18,651. In Forst, there is a railway bridge across the Neiße belonging to the line Cottbus–Żary which is serviced by regional trains and a EuroCity train between Hamburg and Kraków (2011). There is also a road bridge across the river north of Forst.

Incorporated villages

  • Forst (Lausitz) – Baršć (Łužyca)
    • Domsdorf – Domašojce
    • Eigene Scholle – Swójske Grunty
    • Eulo – Wiłow
    • Försterei Keune – Gólnikaŕnja Chójna
    • Keune – Chójna
    • Mexiko
    • Noßdorf – Nosydłojce
  • Bohrau – Bórow
  • Briesnig – Rjasnik
  • Groß Bademeusel – Wjelike Bóžemysle
  • Groß Jamno – Jamne
  • Horno – Rogow
  • Klein Bademeusel – Małe Bóžemysle
    • Försterei Bademeusel – Bóžemyslańska Gólnikaŕnja
  • Klein Jamno – Małe Jamne
  • Mulknitz – Małksa
  • Naundorf – Glinsk
    • Neu Sacro – Nowy Zakrjow
  • Sacro – Zakrjow

History

A short distance to the south of the old Sorbian village of Altforst, the town probably originated around 1150 at a river crossing point on the important west–east trade route. Known as the "Salt Road", it was used to transport salt from Halle to Lusatia and further east to Poland.[3] By 1265 it was developing into a permanent trading settlement round the Church of St Nicholas. The commercial importance of Forst increased with the development of a north–south route connecting to Guben, downstream along the Neisse River. In the fourteenth century the council was able to take on responsibility for the lower courts locally. In 1352 of Ileburg took over the overlordship of Forst from Frederick III of Meissen. At various times the town was under the suzerainty of Bohemian, Hungarian, Saxon and Polish monarchs. In 1628, clothiers from Leszno, Międzyrzecz and Wschowa in Poland settled in the town.[4] In 1746, it was purchased by Heinrich von Brühl, minister of Augustus III of Poland.[4] In 1749, a new postal route was established from Warsaw and Poznań to Dresden, which led through the town.[5]

Forst was awarded to the Kingdom of Prussia in the 1815 Congress of Vienna.[4] The town was administered as a part of the Province of Brandenburg from 1815 to 1947. During World War II, in 1942–1943, the Germans operated a forced labour camp for Jewish men in the town.[6] After the war it became part of the State of Brandenburg, which became one of the constituent parts of the German Democratic Republic in 1949. From 1952 to 1990, it was part of the East German Bezirk Cottbus. Since German reunification in 1990, it is again part of Brandenburg.

Forst has experienced severe problems as a result of the 1990 German reunification, most notably from extreme unemployment. In the past, the town was known for textile manufacturing, but all of the textile plants and factories have closed down.

Demography

Forst (Lausitz): Population development
within the current boundaries (2020)[7]
YearPop.±% p.a.
1875 19,084—    
1890 27,494+2.46%
1910 31,594+0.70%
1925 32,977+0.29%
1939 36,771+0.78%
1950 33,339−0.89%
1964 32,342−0.22%
YearPop.±% p.a.
1971 31,471−0.39%
1981 28,870−0.86%
1985 28,031−0.73%
1990 27,214−0.59%
1995 25,701−1.14%
2000 24,309−1.11%
2005 22,391−1.63%
YearPop.±% p.a.
2010 20,618−1.64%
2015 18,773−1.86%
2016 18,651−0.65%
2017 18,353−1.60%
2018 18,164−1.03%
2019 17,902−1.44%
2020 17,691−1.18%

Notable people

See also

References

  1. ↑ Landkreis Spree-Neiße Wahl der Bürgermeisterin / des Bürgermeisters, accessed 2 July 2021.
  2. ↑ "Bevölkerungsentwicklung und Flächen der kreisfreien Städte, Landkreise und Gemeinden im Land Brandenburg 2021" (PDF). Amt für Statistik Berlin-Brandenburg (in German). June 2022.
  3. ↑ Pieradzka, Krystyna (1949). "Związki handlowe Łużyc ze Śląskiem w dawnych wiekach". Sobótka (in Polish). Wrocław. IV (4): 90.
  4. 1 2 3 "Chronik der Stadt Forst (Lausitz)". Stadt Forst (Lausitz) (in German). Retrieved 17 November 2023.
  5. ↑ Rafał Zgorzelski. "Polska Poczta w dobie saskiej – panowanie Augusta III Wettina" (in Polish). Archived from the original on 15 March 2016. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
  6. ↑ "Zwangsarbeitslager für Juden Forst (Lausitz)". Bundesarchiv.de (in German). Retrieved 17 November 2023.
  7. ↑ Detailed data sources are to be found in the Wikimedia Commons.Population Projection Brandenburg at Wikimedia Commons
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