Weißenburg-Gunzenhausen

is a Landkreis (district) in the west of Bavaria, Germany with a population of 95,000. Neighbouring districts are (from the north clockwise) Ansbach, Roth, Eichstätt and Donau-Ries. It is located in the south of Middle Franconia, 50 kilometres south of Nuremberg. Largest city and the administrative center is Weißenburg in Bayern.

Weißenburg-Gunzenhausen
District
Flag Coat of arms
Country	Germany
State	Bavaria
Adm. region	Middle Franconia
Capital	Weißenburg
Government
• District admin.	Manuel Westphal (CSU)
Area
• Total	970.83 km2 (374.84 sq mi)
Population  (31 December 2023)
• Total	97,276
• Density	100/km2 (260/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Vehicle registration	GUN, WUG
Website	landkreis-wug.de

Geography

The district is located on the Hahnenkamm and on the Franconian Alb in the North of the Altmühltal. In the north there are several lakes of the Franconian Lake District. The highest point of the district is the Dürrenberg. The Altmühl flows through the district. From here comes the Solnhofen limestone. Among its nature reserves is the Brombachmoor.

History

The district was formed in 1972 by a merger of the districts of Gunzenhausen, Weißenburg, and the previously independent urban district of Weißenburg.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms of the district is divided into three fields: left, right and bottom. The bottom of the coat of arms (silver kettle hats on blue) derives from the Counts of Pappenheim, and was taken from the coat of arms of the former district Weißenburg. The half eagle (black on yellow) in the right stands for the city of Weißenburg, and the red-yellow horizontal bars in the left are taken from the coat of arms of the former district Gunzenhausen.

Towns and municipalities

Clickable map of towns and municipalities in the district

Towns	Verwaltungsgemeinschaften	Municipalities
Ellingen¹ Gunzenhausen Pappenheim Treuchtlingen Weißenburg in Bayern ¹ administered inside a Verwaltungsgemeinschaft Märkte Absberg Gnotzheim Heidenheim Markt Berolzheim Nennslingen Pleinfeld	Altmühltal Ellingen Gunzenhausen Hahnenkamm Nennslingen	Alesheim Bergen Burgsalach Dittenheim Ettenstatt Haundorf Höttingen Langenaltheim Meinheim Muhr am See Pfofeld Polsingen Raitenbuch Solnhofen Theilenhofen Westheim

Sights

• Gelbe Burg, a mountain and site of an old hill castle.
• Ellinger Tor, a city gate in Weißenburg in Bayern.
• Wülzburg, a fortress.
• Bürgermeister-Müller-Museum in Solnhofen
• Ellingen Residence
• Fossa Carolina

External links

• Official website (German)