Upper Palatinate (Oberpfalz)


The Upper Palatinate (German: Oberpfalz) is one of the seven administrative regions of Bavaria, Germany, located in the east of Bavaria.

The region took its name first in the early 16th century, because it was by the Treaty of Pavia one of the main portions of the territory of the Wittelsbach Elector Palatine, who also ruled over the Lower Palatinate in the Rhineland, now normally just called the Palatinate, or Pfalz. The capital of the Upper Palatinate was Amberg. Cadet branches of the Wittelsbach also ruled over smaller territories in Neuburg and Sulzbach. As a result of the Elector Palatine Frederick V's abortive claim to the Bohemian throne in 1619–1620, the Upper Palatinate, along with the rest of his lands, were declared forfeit to the Emperor and, along with the Electoral title, given to the Duke of Bavaria. Although the Lower Palatinate was restored to Frederick's son by the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, the Upper Palatinate remained under the Elector of Bavaria, and has remained a part of Bavaria ever since. The smaller territories of Sulzbach and Neuburg came to Bavaria in 1742, while the city of Regensburg, an Imperial Free City, was not joined with the rest of the region until the end of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806.

Landkreise
Amberg-Sulzbach
Cham
Neumarkt
Neustadt (Waldnaab)
Regensburg
Schwandorf
Tirschenreuth

Towns
Amberg
Regensburg
Weiden in der Oberpfalz











Bad Kötzting (before 2005: Kötzting) is a town in the district of Cham, in Bavaria, Germany, near the Czech border. It is situated in the Bavarian Forest, 15 km (9 miles) southeast of Cham.

Bad Kötzting has the charming character of a small town and offers quite a variety of attractions for tourists. The locals pride themselves with having one of the largest mounted religious processions in the world, the "Kötztinger Pfingstritt". Legend has it that in the year 1412, a man who got injured during forestry was asking for the last rites before dying in a village approximately 7 km away from Kötzting. The local priest was unable to comply with the wishes of the man because he needed protection from bears, wolves, and other dangers luring along the way. After asking the young men of the village to protect him, they accompanied the priest to the dying man. After a safe journey, the participants vowed to repeat the ride every year. That is how it remained ever since. Every Whit Monday, the ride of over 900 horses and riders is repeated. The horses wear ornaments and the riders wear traditional Bavarian clothes. The ride starts in Kötzting and goes to the village "Steinbühl", where according to the legend, the man asking for anointment, was dying. Only men from the region are allowed to participate in the procession, the participating horses, however, come from all over Bavaria. The annual fair is also in town when the procession takes place. A local "Bierzelt" and numerous rides invite the public.

Berching is a town in the district of Neumarkt in Bavaria, Germany.

Historic altstadt tower converted into an apartment buildingBerching is a historical town with a fully preserved town wall and low streamlet. The first settlement was registered in 883, so that it is more than 1100 years old. Berching is located in the district of Neumarkt in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated on the Rhine-Main-Danube Canal, 20 km south of Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz. The old city or altstadt is surrounded by a large wall interspaced with towers. One of the towers has been converted into a 6-story apartment. A small inn called the Blaue Traube is also located in the city center.



Regensburg is a city in Bavaria, Germany, located at the confluence of the Danube and Regen rivers, at the northernmost bend in the Danube. To the east lies the Bavarian Forest. Regensburg is the capital of the Bavarian administrative region Upper Palatinate. The large medieval center of the city is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Unlike most other major German cities, Regensburg had little damage from the Strategic bombing during World War II and the nearly intact medieval city center is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The most important cultural loss was the Romanesque church of Obermünster, which was destroyed in a March 1945 air raid and never rebuilt (the belfry survived). Also Regensburg's slow economic recovery after the war ensured that historic buildings were not torn down to be replaced by newer buildings. When the upswing came to Regensburg in the late 1960s, the mindset had turned in favor of preserving the heritage.

The Dom (Cathedral) is a very interesting example of pure German Gothic and counts as the main work of Gothic architecture in Bavaria. It was founded in 1275 and completed in 1634, with the exception of the towers, which were finished in 1869. The interior contains numerous interesting monuments, including one of Peter Vischer's masterpieces. Adjoining the cloisters are two chapels of earlier date than the cathedral itself, one of which, known as the old cathedral, goes back perhaps to the 8th century. The official choir for the liturgical music at St Peter's Cathedral are the famous Regensburger Domspatzen.

A first bishop's church was built around 700, at the site of the present-day cathedral parish church Niedermünster (St. Erhard's tomb). Around 739, St. Boniface chose the area of the Porta Praetoria (North Gate of the old Roman fort) for the bishop's seat, and the site of the cathedral has remained there since. The Cathedral was rebuilt in Carolingian times and expanded in the early 11th century , with an approximately 15-meter-wide transept, two towers and an atrium.

In 1156-1172 the edifice burnt twice, and was also rebuilt starting from 1273 in High Gothic style. The three choirs of the new cathedral were ready for use in 1320, while the old cathedral was demolished at the same time. In 1385-1415 the elaborate main entrance to the west was completed, with the most of the new edifice being finished around 1520; the cloister was constructed in 1514-1538.

The cupola at the transept crossing and other sectors were renovated in Baroque style in the 17th century. In 1828-1841 the cathedral underwent a neo/Gothic restoration commissioned by King Ludwig I of Bavaria. The Baroque frescoes were relocated and the cupola demolished, being replaced by a quadripartite rib vault. The towers and their spires were built in 1859-1869. Three years later the cathedral was finally finished, with the completion of the transept gable and the spire (at the crossing), after some 600 years of construction.

The state-run Dombauhütte (Cathedral building workshop) was founded in 1923, for the ongoing oversight, maintenance, and restoration of the cathedral. In the 1980s construction of the crypt mausoleum and archeological exploration of the center nave (partial exposure of a former southern arcade entrance to the atrium of a precursor Roman structure) were carried on. The cathedral was restored during the 2000s.

Examples of the Romanesque basilica style are the church of Obermünster, dating from 1010, and the abbey church of St. Emmeram, built in the 13th century, remarkable as one of the few German churches with a detached bell tower. The beautiful cloisters of the ancient abbey, one of the oldest in Germany, are still in fair preservation. In 1809 the conventual buildings were converted into a palace for the prince of Thurn and Taxis, hereditary postmaster-general of the Holy Roman Empire.








Near Regensburg there are two very imposing Classical buildings, erected by Ludwig I of Bavaria as national monuments of German patriotism and greatness. The more imposing of the two is the Walhalla, a costly reproduction of the Parthenon, erected as a Teutonic temple of fame on a hill rising from the Danube at Donaustauf, 15 km to the east. The interior, which is as rich as coloured marble, gilding, and sculptures can make it, contains the busts of more than a hundred German worthies. The second of King Ludwig's buildings is the Befreiungshalle at Kelheim, 30 km above Regensburg, a large circular building which has for its aim the glorification of the heroes of the 1813 War of Liberation.



.
Waldsassen is a town in the district of Tirschenreuth bordering the Czech Republic in the Upper Palatinate, Bavaria.

Waldsassen Abbey is a Cistercian nunnery, formerly a Cistercian monastery The monastery, the first Cistercian foundation in Bavaria, was founded by Gerwich of Wolmundstein, a Benedictine monk of Sigeberg Abbey, with the permission of his former abbot Kuno, then Bishop of Regensburg, and built between 1128 and 1132. The original community was sent to Waldsassen from Volkenroda Abbey in Thuringia, of the line of Morimond Abbey. The first abbot was elected in 1133.

In 1863, the remains of the old abbey were bought by the Cistercian nuns of Seligenthal, who in the following year took possession, established monastic enclosure, and opened an institute for the education of girls. At first a priory, the nunnery was raised to the status of an abbey in 1925.

The church was declared a basilica minor in 1969.

Amberg is a town in Bavaria, Germany. It is located in the Upper Palatinate (German: Oberpfalz), roughly halfway between Regensburg and Bayreuth. Population: 44,756 (2008).

The town was first mentioned in 1034, at that time under the name Ammenberg. It became an important trading centre in the Middle Ages, exporting mainly iron ore and iron products. In 1269, together with Bamberg, the town became subordinate to the Wittelsbach dynasty that ruled Bavaria.

In 1329 the town and the entire Upper Palatinate fell to a branch line of the Wittelsbach family and was no longer part of the duchy of Bavaria. Although in geographic terms it was regarded as Bavarian and the region was part of the Bavarian circle in the organization of the Imperial Circles. The rulers of Upper Palatinate were open-minded towards Protestantism. In the 16th century the town turned to Lutheranism, but attempts of the ruling family to introduce the more radical Calvinism failed due to the reluctance of its citizens.

Market Square (Germ. Marktplatz), which contains the Gothic town hall (built in 1358) and the late-Gothic Parish Church of St. Martin

In 1628 Amberg and Upper Palatinate became part of the electorate of Bavaria. The inhabitants were given the choice: return to Catholicism or leave the town forever. Many families left the town and fled to the Free Imperial Cities of Regensburg and Nuremberg.

After the Second World War, when Bavaria fell into the American Sector, Amberg was home to Pond Barracks, a United States Army post. The post was closed in 1992 and the facility turned over to the local community for housing, most of it for social housing.

A defining feature of the town is the Stadtbrille (literally "town spectacles") – a bridge, originally a part of the town fortifications, whose arches reflected on the river waters resemble a pair of glasses.

One of the most famous and beautiful landmarks of Amberg is the ”town spectacles” - a water gate construction spanning the Vils River, which formerly served to fortify the town and to connect the new castle to the armoury (”Zeughaus”). Next to it, the town wall encircling the ancient centre with a double fortification, its towers and gates, the Gothic town hall with its renaissance wing, mighty churches and many other historical buildings are characteristic of the unique image of the town.