Porta Westfalica
Town
View over Porta Westfalica to the Weser hills
View over Porta Westfalica to the Weser hills
Flag of Porta Westfalica
Flag
Coat of arms of Porta Westfalica
Coat of arms
Location of Porta Westfalica within Minden-Lübbecke district
Porta Westfalica is located in Germany
Porta Westfalica
Porta Westfalica
Porta Westfalica is located in North Rhine-Westphalia
Porta Westfalica
Porta Westfalica
Coordinates: 52°13′N 8°56′E / 52.217°N 8.933°E / 52.217; 8.933
CountryGermany
StateNorth Rhine-Westphalia
Admin. regionDetmold
DistrictMinden-Lübbecke
Subdivisions15
Government
 • Mayor (2020–25) <vacant>
Area
 • Total105 km2 (41 sq mi)
Highest elevation
303 m (994 ft)
Lowest elevation
46 m (151 ft)
Population
 (2021-12-31)[1]
 • Total35,658
 • Density340/km2 (880/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes
32457
Dialling codes0571, 05706, 05722, 05731, 05751
Vehicle registrationMI
Websitewww.portawestfalica.de

Porta Westfalica (German: [ˈpɔʁta vɛstˈfaːlɪka] ⓘ) is a town in the district of Minden-Lübbecke, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

The name "Porta Westfalica" is Latin and means "gate to Westphalia". Coming from the north, the gorge is the entry to the region of Westphalia. The name was coined by scholars of the 19th century.

History

Porta Westfalica on a postcard from 1904

The town Porta Westfalica was established in 1973 by merging fifteen villages surrounding the gorge. The centre of the modern town is the former village of Hausberge, which was first mentioned in 1096.

The Emperor William Monument was erected near the town by the then Prussian Province of Westphalia between 1892 and 1896[2] The monument, which is around 88 metres[2] high, is classified as one of Germany's national monuments.

From 18 March 1944 until 1 April 1945 a concentration camp was established in the Barkhausen quarter.[3] From 1 February 1945 until 1 April 1945 a camp was used in the Hausberge quarter.[4] In the Lerbeck quarter also was a concentration camp in use from 1 October 1944 until 1 April 1945.[5] In the Neesen quarter was a location for the forced labour for some of the inmates.[6] All of these camps were subcamps of the Neuengamme concentration camp.

On 10 January 2015, Belgian footballer Junior Malanda died in a car accident near the town, aged 20.[7]

Geography

Porta Westfalica is situated on the right bank of the Weser (except for the Barkhausen quarter), near the Porta Westfalica gorge, where the river runs through the passage between the mountain chains of the Wiehen Hills in the west and the Weser Uplands in the east. The gorge appears like a gate to the region Westphalia, which lies to the south of it. It is overlooked by the Jakobsberg and Wittekindsberg hills.

Neighbouring places

Division of the town

The town of Porta Westfalica consists of 15 districts:

  • Hausberge (5,064 inhabitants)
  • Lohfeld (1,350 inhabitants)
  • Barkhausen (4,253 inhabitants)
  • Neesen (2,319 inhabitants)
  • Lerbeck (3,727 inhabitants)
  • Nammen (2,208 inhabitants)
  • Wülpke (606 inhabitants)
  • Kleinenbremen (2,245 inhabitants)
  • Eisbergen (3,401 inhabitants)
  • Veltheim (2,539 inhabitants)
  • Möllbergen (1,643 inhabitants)
  • Holtrup (1,048 inhabitants)
  • Vennebeck (983 inhabitants)
  • Costedt (508 inhabitants)
  • Holzhausen (4,284 inhabitants)

Buildings and structures

Monument of Kaiser Wilhelm I

Twin towns – sister cities

Porta Westfalica is twinned with:[8]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Bevölkerung der Gemeinden Nordrhein-Westfalens am 31. Dezember 2021" (in German). Landesbetrieb Information und Technik NRW. Retrieved 20 June 2022.
  2. 1 2 Information board with the title Emperor William Monument at the northern approach to the monument at commons.wikimedia.org
  3. ↑ The camp is listed as No. 77 Barkhausen official German list.
  4. ↑ The camp is listed as No. 585 Hausberge a.d. Porta in the official German list.
  5. ↑ The camp is listed as No. 843 Lerbeck/Westfalen in the official German list.
  6. ↑ The location is listed as No. 1024 Neesen, Kreis Minden, in the official German list.
  7. ↑ de Menezes, Jack (10 January 2015). "Junior Malanda dies: 20-year-old Wolfsburg midfielder 'killed in car accident' on German motorway". The Independent. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  8. ↑ "Partnerstädte". portawestfalica.de (in German). Porta Westfalica. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
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