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Home > Travel Germany > Germany Destinations > Konigstein (Sachsische Schweiz) (Saxony)
Konigstein (Sachsische Schweiz) (Saxony)
Germany or the Federal Republic of Germany is located in Central Europe with Berlin as its capital city. The German language was once the lingua franca of central, eastern and northern Europe. It is a member state of the United Nations, NATO, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the G8, Group of 8, and the G4, Group of 4, nations, and is a founding member of the European Union. It is the European Union's most populous and most economically powerful member state. Germany is one of the largest European economies and the third largest economy in the world in real terms.
Konigstein is a town in the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It lies in the Sachsische Schweiz District and had a population of 2,898 residents as of 2005. Konigstein is located in the geographical region known as the Saxon Switzerland. The town lies in between Pirna and the Czech border at the confluence of the Biela, a river in eastern Germany with the Elbe one of the major waterways of Central Europe originating in the North West Czech Republic before traversing much of Germany and finally flowing into the North Sea. Konigstein was damaged during the flooding of the Elbe in 2002.
The town of Konigstein was first mentioned in 1379 as a settlement near the castle of Konigstein. It was named after a King of Bohemia and still retains the double-tailed lion of Bohemia in its coat of arms. Near Konigstein is the Festung Konigstein fortress or the Saxon Bastille which for centuries was used as a state prison and during World War II it was Oflag IV-B, prisoner-of-war camp for Allied officers and it is one of Saxony's foremost tourist attractions, with 700,000 visitors per year.
Tourism in Germany has expanded since the end of World War II, and many tourists visit Germany to experience a sense of European history. The countryside exhibits a pastoral aura, while its cities exhibit both a modern and classical feel.
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