Zwönitz

Zwönitz is a town in the district Erzgebirgskreis, in Saxony, Germany. It is situated 9 km south of Stollberg, and 24 km southwest of Chemnitz.

Parts of the town
Zwönitz consists of:



Population

 * 1542 – 570
 * 1697 – 741
 * 1780 – 863
 * 1800 – 1,242
 * 1840 – 1,883
 * 1890 – 2,931
 * 1926 – 3,760
 * 1933 – 3,852
 * 1946 – 7,500
 * 1950 – 10,617
 * 1960 – 8,307
 * 1965 – 9,690
 * 1981 – 11,362
 * 1990 – 13,105
 * 1995 – 12,318
 * 2000 – 12,175
 * 2005 – 11,696
 * 2010 – 11,193
 * 2012 – 12,519

Local council
The elections in May 2014 showed the following results:
 * CDU: 16 Seats
 * The Left: 4 Seats
 * Unabhängige Wählervereinigung Zwönitz (UWZ): 3 Seats
 * Freie Wähler Gemeinschaft e. V. (FWG) (Free voters): 2 Seats
 * SPD: 1 Seat

Mayors

 * Uwe Schneider (CDU), 1990–2008
 * Wolfgang Triebert (CDU), since 2008

History
The town was founded by Slavs. The monastery Grünhain owned the area since 1286. Zwönitz received its town charter around the turn of the 13th century. It was a customs and trading point with market rights since 1545. From 1952 to 1990, Zwönitz was part of the Bezirk Karl-Marx-Stadt of East Germany.

Twin towns – sister cities
Zwönitz is twinned with:
 * 🇩🇪 Heiligenhaus, Germany
 * 🇨🇿 Kopřivnice, Czech Republic
 * 🇭🇺 Magyarpolány, Hungary
 * 🇵🇱 Myszków, Poland
 * 🇩🇪 Obermichelbach, Germany
 * 🇩🇪 Puschendorf, Germany

Notable people

 * Samuel von Pufendorf (1632–1694), natural law philosopher and historian (born in Dorfchemnitz)
 * Joachim Meischner (born 1946), biathlete
 * Sepp Wiegand (born 1991), rally driver