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Bautzen [Sorbian: Budyšin] City (Germany)

Stadt Bautzen, Landkreis Bautzen, Sachsen

Last modified: 2022-12-03 by klaus-michael schneider
Keywords: bautzen | budyssin | wall(masoned) | embattlements(3) |
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[Bautzen city banner] 5:2 image by Jörg Majewski, 29 Nov 2022
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Bautzen City

Bautzen Banner

It is a yellow-blue vertical bicolour. The greater coat of arms is shifted towards the top or the banner is without coat of arms.
Source: this online catalogue
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 29 Nov 2022

Bautzen Bicolour 1896

[Bautzen plain city banner 1896] 5:2 image by Jörg Majewski, 29 Nov 2022

It was a yellow-blue vertical bicolour.
Source: information provided by Jörg Majewski per email
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 29 Nov 2022

Bautzen Coat of Arms

Shield Azure issuant from base a wall masoned Sable having three embattlements.
Meaning:
The area between Kamenz and Löbau was populated since the Neolithic Age. The area was populated by East Germanic tribes in the 3rd century, followed by the Slavic Milceni since the 7th century. They built a castle as centre of the Milska Shire. German expansion incorporated the area into the German kingdom since the end of the 10th century. Since 1002, finally 1031 it had been a Polish fiefdom. Since the middle of the century it belonged to the Wettin kin, afterwards to Duke Vratislav II of Böhmen, later appointed to a king, between 1084 and 1135 to the Counts of Groitzsch, followed by the Kingdom of Böhmen and as an imperial fiefdom to Germany since 1158. Local rulers remained the Kings of Böhmen until 1635, despite of a intermezzo under the rule of the Margraves of Brandenburg between 1253 and 1319. The Slavic castle was replacd by the German Ortenburg Castle, known since 1400, ruled by a reeve as representative of the Bohemian kings. A German city around the market square developed since 1150. The city grew and incorporated the neighbouring villages of Broditz and Goschwitz around 1250. The city acquired the local cognisance in 1319 and became a member of the Alliance of six Upper Lusatian Cities, also known as Lusatian League. The cognisance of the city was extended over a huge area with acceptance of the king. Until 1547 the city became manorial lord of 28 villages. For lack of support the city lost its privileges and much land and had to pay a fee of 220,000 florins. Most privileges were regained during the following decades. During the 30-Years-War (1618 – 1648) the city was besieged by the Elector of Sachsen in 1620 and burnt to ashes by imperial troops in 1634. In 1635 the city was acquired by the electorate. In 1912 Domowina, the Sorbian umbrella organisation, was established in the city. In times of the GDR the city had been seat of the infamous special prison for political prisoners and dissidents. The pattern of the arms should have been used already in 1080 by Count Wiprecht of Groitzsch. And an Augsburgian chronicle reports the existence of a banner of arms on occasion of the funeral of Emperor Karl IV in Prag in 1378, representing the Budissin Country. The arms are in use on city seals since the 15th century. On the greater arms the shield is topped by a helmet, topped by a bulge of blue and yellow with a coronet Or, topped by a golden wall masoned black, topped by a blue wing, all flanked by scarves of blue and yellow. The arms are basically the same as those of Oberlausitz (Upper Lusatia), which uses the same symbols in flag version. As a distinguishing mark the city chose the greater arms.
Source: Bensing et alii 1984, pp.33-35
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 29 Nov 2022

The banner was approved and the arms were confirmed in 1993.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 29 Nov 2022


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