Bad Freienwalde is a spa town

Spa town

A spa town is a town situated around a mineral spa . Patrons resorted to spas to "take the waters" for their purported health benefits. The word comes from the Belgian town Spa. In continental Europe a spa was known as a ville d'eau...

 in the Märkisch-Oderland

Märkisch-Oderland

Märkisch-Oderland is a Landkreis in the eastern part of Brandenburg, Germany. Neighboring are the district Barnim, the country Poland, the district-free city Frankfurt , the district Oder-Spree and the Bundesland Berlin...

 district in Brandenburg

Brandenburg

Brandenburg is one of the sixteen federal-states of Germany. It lies in the east of the country and is one of the new federal states that were re-created in 1990 upon the reunification of the former West Germany and East Germany. The capital is Potsdam...

, Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. It is situated on an old branch of the Oder

Oder

The Oder is a river in Central Europe. It rises in the Czech Republic and flows through western Poland, later forming of the border between Poland and Germany, part of the Oder-Neisse line...

 river at the northwestern rim of the Oderbruch

Oderbruch

The Oderbruch is a region along the river Oder between the towns Oderberg and Bad Freienwalde in the north and Lebus in the south...

 basin, 15 km (9.3 mi) east of Eberswalde

Eberswalde

Eberswalde is a major town and the administrative seat of the district Barnim in the German Federal State of Brandenburg, about 50 km northeast of Berlin. Population 42144 , geographical location . The town is often called Waldstadt , because of the large forests around it, including the...

, and 50 km (31.1 mi) northeast of Berlin

Berlin

Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...

, near the border with Poland

Poland

Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

. The municipality includes the villages of Altranft, Altglietzen, Bralitz, Hohensaaten, Hohenwutzen, Neuenhagen and Schiffmühle.

Overview

Freienwalde was first mentioned in a 1316 deed and appeared as a town in 1364. A mineral spring

Mineral spring

Mineral springs are naturally occurring springs that produce water containing minerals, or other dissolved substances, that alter its taste or give it a purported therapeutic value...

 was recorded in 1685, named Kurfürstenquelle after Elector Frederick William I. The small Neoclassical

Neoclassical architecture

Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...

 Freienwalde Palace was built in 1799 according to plans by David Gilly

David Gilly

David Gilly was a German architect and architecture-tutor in Prussia, the father of the architect Friedrich Gilly.-Life:...

 as a summer residence of Frederika Louisa of Hesse-Darmstadt

Frederika Louisa of Hesse-Darmstadt

Frederika of Hesse-Darmstadt was Queen consort of the Kingdom of Prussia as the second wife of Frederick William II of Prussia.-Background:...

, the widow of King Frederick William II of Prussia

Frederick William II of Prussia

Frederick William II was the King of Prussia, reigning from 1786 until his death. He was in personal union the Prince-Elector of Brandenburg and the sovereign prince of the Principality of Neuchâtel.-Early life:...

. Its park was redesigned by Peter Joseph Lenné

Peter Joseph Lenné

Peter Joseph Lenné was a Prussian gardener and landscape architect from Bonn who worked in the German classicist style.-Childhood and development:...

 in 1822. The industrialist Walther Rathenau

Walther Rathenau

Walther Rathenau was a German Jewish industrialist, politician, writer, and statesman who served as Foreign Minister of Germany during the Weimar Republic...

 acquired Freienwalde Palace in 1909.

Bad Freienwalde has an Evangelical and a Roman Catholic church

Roman Catholic Church

The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...

 as well as manufactures of furniture and machinery. The neighbouring forests and its medicinal springs make it a favorite summer resort of the inhabitants of Berlin. A new tower commands a fine panoramic view over the Oder valley.

Notable people

• Hans Keilson
  Hans Keilson
  Hans Alex Keilson was a Jewish German/Dutch novelist, poet, psychoanalyst, and child psychologist. He was best known for his novels set during the Second World War, during which he was an active member of the Dutch resistance....
  
   (1909-2011), Dutch psychotherapist, novelist
• Alfred Blaschko
  Alfred Blaschko
  Alfred Blaschko was a German dermatologist who was a native of Freienwalde an die Oder. In 1881 he earned his medical doctorate at Berlin, and afterwards worked with Georg Wegner in Stettin...
  
   (1858–1922), dermatologist
• Volkmar Sigusch
  Volkmar Sigusch
  Volkmar Sigusch is a German sexologist, physician and sociologist. He was from 1973 to 2006 director of the Institut für Sexualwissenschaft [Institute for Sexual Science] at the clinic of the Goethe-University in Frankfurt am Main....
  
   (born 1940), sexologist
• Elisabeth Radziwill
  Elisabeth Radziwill
  Elisa or Elisabeth Radziwill Elisa Friederike Luise Martha was a member of Polish-Lithuanian high nobility of royal ancestry who was the desired bride of the Prince who later became Wilhelm I, German Emperor.-Relationship with Prince Wilhelm of Prussia:Elisa was a daughter of Prince Anton...
  
  , beloved of Wilhelm I of Prussia died at Freienwalde on 27 August 1834.

International relations

Bad Freienwalde is twinned

Town twinning

Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...

 with: Bad Pyrmont

Bad Pyrmont

-External links:* * -Multimedia:*...

, Germany Międzyrzecz

Miedzyrzecz

Międzyrzecz is a town in western Poland with 18,584 inhabitants . The capital of Międzyrzecz County, it was part of the Gorzów Wielkopolski Voivodeship from 1975–1998. Since the Local Government Reorganization Act of 1998, Międzyrzecz has been situated in the Lubusz Voivodeship...

, Poland

External links