Map of Germany showing Iserlohn

Iserlohn is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located at the north end of the Sauerland near the Ruhr river, at . Population: 102,456 (2001). Area: 125.50 km². It's the biggest city in the Märkischer Kreis, both by area and population.

History

Around 985 the Pancratius church (also called Bauernkirche) the founded, however the first written document mentioning lon dates back to 1150. In 1278 the Count of the Mark did give Iserlohn the city rights. In 1975 the city was merged with Letmathe, Hennen, Sümmern and Kesbern, and was integrated into the Märkischer Kreis.

Points of interest

The Dechenhöhle in Letmathe was discovered in 1868 during the construction of the railway line Hagen-Iserlohn. 360m are accessible for visitors, and lots of stalactites make it a spectacular sight.

Coat of arms

In the middle of the coat of arms is the St. Pancratius , patron of the oldest church in Iserlohn. He is depicted between two towers of the historic city wall. The checked bordure below is derived from the sign of the Counts of the Mark.

Twinning

Iserlohn is twinned with:

• Nyíregyháza, Hungary.
• Almelo, Netherlands.

External link

• Official Webpage
• Homepage of the newspaper Iserlohner Kreisanzeiger und Zeitung

"Iserlohn" is also the name of a giant Death Star-like space fortress in the Japanese science fiction novel series Legend of the Galactic Heroes (or Ginga Eiyu densetsu in Japanese), written by Tanaka Yoshiki. This series has also been adapted into Anime and Manga form.