Crossen an der Elster is a village and municipality in the district Saale-Holzland, in Thuringia, in east-central Germany. The White Elster is the name of the small river which flows through the municipality, so 'Crossen on the Elster' would be the English equivalent.
It is home to the Crossen Palace, a Baroque building with an Italian-style decorated ballroom.
History The first documented mention of Crossen was from 31 March 995.Wolfgang Kahl: Ersterwähnung Thüringer Städte und Dörfer. Ein Handbuch. 5., verbesserte und wesentlich erweiterte Auflage. Rockstuhl, Bad Langensalza 2010, ISBN 978-3-86777-202-0, S. 50.
In 1937 the name of the town was changed to Krossen/Elster. From 1 January 1991 it was officially renamed to Crossen an der Elster.
Culture and sights The main attraction is the baroque castle; however it is not open to the public.
In addition, there is the revamped church Michaelis's Church, which was first documented in 1320.
Monuments
There is a monument in the graveyard by an old linden tree in memory of the revolutionaries of 1848. It was erected in the year 1948.
Beside the school there is a memorial for the victims of fascism. It commemorates the resistance fighters of the area, including Communist Party member Willy Graumüller, who was murdered in Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. The Teisker-Siedlung street name is also named for him.Thüringer Verband der Verfolgten des Naziregimes – Bund der Antifaschisten und Studienkreis deutscher Widerstand 1933–1945 (Hrsg.): Heimatgeschichtlicher Wegweiser zu Stätten des Widerstandes und der Verfolgung 1933–1945. Band 8: Thüringen. VAS – Verlag für Akademische Schriften, Frankfurt am Main 2003, ISBN 3-88864-343-0, S. 206.
In November 2016 a 'stumbling block' memorial was laid for Willy Graumüller.
Historical Population 1994: 2222 1995: 2204 1996: 2176 1997: 2219 1998: 2167 1999: 2150 2000: 2077 2001: 2049 2002: 2007 2003: 1957 2004: 1941 2005: 1923 2006: 1892 2007: 1851 2008: 1828 2009: 1810 2010: 1753 2011: 1723 2012: 1710 2013: 1685 2014: 1623 2015: 1581 2016: 1564 2017: 1528 2018: 1510 2019: 1515 2020: 1545 2021: 1541 Source: Central Statistics Office of Thuringia
Mayor The honorary mayor Uwe Berndt (The Left) was elected in June 2014.
References