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DEUTSCHLAND GERMANY
Bundesland: Freistaat Sachsen Saxony
Landkreis: Görlitz  

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Niesky

dsb, hsb, pl: Niska lv: Nīski cs: Nízké
bg, mk, ru, sr: Ниски be, uk: Ніскі

2358 Niesky Niesky is situated at an elevation of 172 m in the centre of the former district Niederschlesischer Oberlausitzkreis (Lower Silesian Upper Lusatia District) in the very east of Germany's state of Saxony. The municipality has a population of about 10,800 (2006).

Niesky was founded only in 1742 as a colony of the Moravian Church (Herrnhuter Brüdergemeinde, Evangelische Brüder-Unitat, Bohemian Brethren). As such it is the youngest town in the whole region but nevertheless soon became its most important city. The emigrants had to leave their native Bohemia and, after joining the communities in Herrnhut (now Ochranov), settled on the Trebus estate whose owner also was a member of the Bohemian Brethren. The early settlement was designed on the ground plan of the early Moravians' settlements in the USA. The name of the town comes from the Czech níský, meaning the low one, refering to the low elevation of the settlement compared to the average elevations of Bohemia but also to the low status of man compared to the Lord. From 1816 until 1950 Niesky was part of the district Rothenburg (Oberlausitz) (until 1919 in the Prussian province Silesia, then until 1945 in the province Lower Silesia). In 1929 Niesky was merged with the communities of Neuhof, Neusärichen and Neuödernitz. In 1935 it was granted the formal status of a city. In 1945 the eastern part of the district became part of Poland and the distric town Rothenburg now was located directly at the border. In 1950 the seat of the district's administration was transfered to Niesky as this town was located in the centre of the district. At the same time the district was also renamed Niesky. In 1952 smaller parts of the district were transfered to the districts Weißwasser and Görlitz-Land. The districts Niesky, Weißwasser and parts of Görlitz-Land were merged to the new district Niederschlesischer Oberlausitzkreis in 1994; the district is more or less identical to the district Niesky of 1950. In 1974 the community of See was incorporated into the municipality of Niesky. The seat of the district's administration was transfered from Görlitz to Niesky in 1996. On 1st August 2008 the district was dissolved and together with the district Löbau-Zittau and the city of Görlitz was merged into the new district Görlitz.

The church of the Bohemian Brethren was built in 1874–1875 on the site of the previous prayer and community house of 1756.

The monument depicted in front of the church is the soldiers' monument, a memorial to the French-German War of 1870/1871.


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