Markersbach

Markersbach
Village of Raschau-Markersbach
Markersbach
Coordinates: 50°31′56″N 12°52′17″E / 50.53222°N 12.87139°E / 50.53222; 12.87139Coordinates: 50°31′56″N 12°52′17″E / 50.53222°N 12.87139°E / 50.53222; 12.87139
Country	Germany
State	Saxony
District	Aue-Schwarzenberg
Town	Raschau-Markersbach
Area
• Total	18.32 km2 (7.07 sq mi)
Elevation	394 m (1,293 ft)
Population (2006-12-31)
• Total	1,894
• Density	100/km2 (270/sq mi)
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes	08352
Dialling codes	03774
Vehicle registration	ASZ
Website	www.markersbach.de

Markersbach is a former municipality on the river Große Mittweida in the district of Aue-Schwarzenberg in Saxony, Germany. Since 1 January 2008, Markersbach and Raschau have formed the municipality of Raschau-Markersbach.

Markersbach had two of these: Mittweida and Unterscheibe.

The forest homestead village (Waldhufendorf) came into being in the early 13th century and was described as Marckquartisdorff in 1240 and as Margerßbach in 1555. It belonged first to the Cistercian monastery at Grünhain, after whose secularization it was governed by the monastery’s legal successor, the Amt of Grünhain. The actual village of Markersbach consisted of only three and a half Hufen and a number of cottager plots. It has been governed at least since the 16th century together with the neighbouring, bigger village of Unterscheibe, and indeed in most old documents, the union is simply named as Unterscheibe. For justice’s sake, a judge and jurymen were appointed for both villages.

The village stream, parts of which are called Markersbach and other parts of which are called Scheibenbach is a right-bank tributary to the Große Mittweida. Lately, the name Abrahamsbach has become accepted, which stems from the headwaters near the once important Vater Abraham iron ore mine in Oberscheibe.

Two possible meanings of the name Markersbach have been considered. It could have been named after a colonist leader named Markquart, who had the village built. On the other hand, the name could have come from the description Markwart, a border post (“Mark” was a common word for border areas – or marches – in Saxony)

The village acquired its special importance through its church consecrated to Saints Peter and Paul in 1250, through which Markersbach became one of the original parishes in the western Ore Mountains. It was likely run in the earliest centuries of its existence by the Grünhain Monastery. Only in 1265, however, was a vicar mentioned by name (“Paul”). In 1500, the church was mentioned in a pilgrimage bull under its modern name St. Barbara, the patron saint of miners. When the name was changed is unknown. To the parish belonged Markersbach, Unterscheibe, Mittweida and Schwarzbach. In older times Raschau supposedly belonged to Markersbach as a branch church, and likewise, Oberscheibe was assigned to Markersbach’s church, by the favour of the Lords of Schönburg, once the mining town of Scheibenberg had been founded. In 1837, Schwarzbach was separated from the parish after its own church had been built in 1835, and that after a protracted disagreement. Since 2006, the parish has had a “sister church relationship” with the “All Hallows Parish” of Raschau as holder of the communal parish posts, and the “Saint Anne’s Parish” of Grünstädtel.

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Wikipedia