Pegau

Coat of arms

Pegau

Location of Pegau within Leipzig district

Coordinates: 51°10′0″N 12°15′0″E / 51.16667°N 12.25000°ECoordinates: 51°10′0″N 12°15′0″E / 51.16667°N 12.25000°E

Country

Pegau

Government

• Mayor

Peter Bringer

Area

• Total

48.61 km² (18.77 sq mi)

Population (2015-12-31)

• Total

6,251

• Density

130/km² (330/sq mi)

CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)

04523

03 42 96

Website

Pegau is a town in the Leipzig district in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, situated in a fertile plain, on the White Elster, 18 m. S.W. from Leipzig by the railway to Zeitz.

It has two Evangelical churches, that of St. Lawrence being a fine Gothic structure, a 16th-century town-hall; a very old hospital and an agricultural school. In the 19th Century its industries included the manufacture of felt, boots and metal wares.

The Rathaus (town hall) is located in the middle of the city and has a distinctive character. It was built from 1559 to 1561 by Paul Widemann and Hieronymus Lotter in the style of the German Renaissance. It is extremely similar to Leipzig's Alten Rathaus (built in 1556/57), which Widemann and Lotter had previously worked on. The Rathausturm (town hall tower) can be climbed during the summer season. At a height of 30 meters, the tower offers a panoramic view in which the viewer can sometimes see all the way to Leipzig. The town hall is the seat of the city administration and has a large meeting hall, which is used for youth consecration, graduation parties, and other festivities.

Pegau grew up round a Benedictine monastery founded in 1096, but does not appear as a town before the close of the 12th century. Markets were held here and its prosperity was further enhanced by its position on a main road running east and west. In the monastery, which was dissolved in 1539, a valuable chronicle was compiled, the Annales pegavienses, covering the period from 1039 to 1227.

The town hosted witch trials in 1604-1605.

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Wikipedia