Editing Altmarkkreis Salzwedel

{{Infobox District DE
| name=Altmarkkreis Salzwedel
| state=Saxony-Anhalt
| image_flag=Flagge Altmarkkreis Salzwedel.svg
| image_coa=DE-ST 15-0-81 Altmarkkreis Salzwedel COA.svg
| capital=[[Salzwedel]]
| area=2294.6
| Kreisschlüssel    = 15081
| carsign= SAW, GA, KLZ
| url=[http://www.altmarkkreis-salzwedel.de/ altmarkkreis-salzwedel.de]
| map={{Germany district OSM map |parent_subdivision = Q1206}}
| district_admin = Steve Kanitz
| admin_party = SPD
| coordinates = {{coord|52|41|N|11|13|E |region:DE-ST_scale:300000_type:adm2nd |display=it}}
}}
[[File:Salzwedel - Holzmarktstrasse.jpg|thumb|Salzwedel - Holzmarktstrasse]]
'''Altmarkkreis Salzwedel''' is a district in [[Saxony-Anhalt]], [[Germany]]. It is bounded by (from the west and clockwise) the districts [[Gifhorn (district)|Gifhorn]], [[Uelzen (district)|Uelzen]], [[Lüchow-Dannenberg]] in [[Lower Saxony]], and the districts of [[Stendal (district)|Stendal]] and [[Börde (district)]].

== History ==
The [[Altmark]] is a historical region that covers the territory of this district as well as parts of the neighbouring district of [[Stendal (district)|Stendal]]. In the 10th century [[AD]], it was the eastern border province of the [[Holy Roman Empire]]; castles were built here in order to move the borders eastwards. The Altmark was a swampy and heavily contested region for centuries. In the 12th century, many swamps were drained, and the strongholds became small towns. In the [[Late Middle Ages]], many towns were members of the [[Hanseatic League]]. Due to the [[Thirty Years' War]] the Altmark was completely devastated in the 17th century. It never regained its importance and remains sparsely populated to date.

The district was established in 1994 by merging the former districts of Gardelegen, Klötze, Salzwedel and (partially) Osterburg.

== Geography ==
The area of the district is {{cvt|2294.6|km2}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://statistik.sachsen-anhalt.de/themen/gebiet-und-wahlen/gebiet/tabellen-bodenflaeche|title=Tabellen Bodenfläche|publisher=[[Statistisches Landesamt Sachsen-Anhalt]]|access-date=20 November 2022}}</ref> The Altmark is a plain countryside, which once was full of fens and ponds. Today it is mainly covered with forests and heaths. It is generally dry, although some swampy regions survived. The largest of those is the [[Drömling]], a large wetland in the southwest, which is a nature park shared with the neighbouring [[Börde (district)]].

The largest lake of the district is the '''[[Arendsee (lake)|Arendsee]]''' (5.54&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>); the town of [[Arendsee]] is named after this lake.

== Coat of arms ==
The coat of arms displays:
* The heraldic eagle of [[Brandenburg]], which was also part of the arms of [[Salzwedel]]
* The lion of [[Lüneburg]], since the town of Klötze belonged to the duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg in medieval times
* The symbol of the Altmark, that was used during the 11th and 12th centuries

==Towns and municipalities==

{{Imagemap Germany district SAW|Municipalities in SAW.png|300px{{!}}thumb{{!}}Clickable map of towns and municipalities in the district}}

The district Altmarkkreis Salzwedel consists of the following subdivisions:<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.statistik.sachsen-anhalt.de/gk/fms/fms1li.html |title=Statistisches Landesamt Sachsen-Anhalt |access-date=2009-08-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170515132459/http://www.statistik.sachsen-anhalt.de/gk/fms/fms1li.html |archive-date=2017-05-15 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
{|
|-----
!Free towns!![[Verbandsgemeinde]]
|-
|valign=top|
# [[Arendsee]]
# [[Gardelegen]]
# [[Kalbe, Saxony-Anhalt|Kalbe]]
# [[Klötze]]
# [[Salzwedel]]
||
'''[[Beetzendorf-Diesdorf]]'''
# [[Apenburg-Winterfeld]]
# [[Beetzendorf]]<sup>1</sup>
# [[Dähre]]
# [[Diesdorf]]
# [[Jübar]]
# [[Kuhfelde]]
# [[Rohrberg, Saxony-Anhalt|Rohrberg]]
# [[Wallstawe]]
|}
{{Further|topic=the village and former municipality|Gieseritz|Liesten}}

==References==
<References/>

== External links ==
{{commons category|Altmarkkreis Salzwedel}}
* [http://www.altmarkkreis-salzwedel.de/ Official Website] (German)
* [http://www.altmarktourismus.de/ Tourism website for the Altmark region] (German)
* [http://www.naturpark-droemling.de/ Drömling Nature Park] (German, English)

{{Germany districts saxony-anhalt}}


{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Altmarkkreis Salzwedel| ]]
[[Category:Districts of Saxony-Anhalt]]