Herzogenaurach is a town in the district of Erlangen-Höchstadt, in Bavaria, Germany. It is well-known for being the home of the sporting goods companies Adidas and Puma.

Geography

Herzogenaurach is situated in Middle Franconia area, approx. 23 km northwest of Nuremberg. The town is located at the Aurach river, a tributary to the Regnitz river.

History

At least 1000 years in existence, Herzogenaurach was first mentioned in a document in the year 1002 CE under the name of Uraha when king Heinrich II donated the town to the archbishopric of Bamberg.

Economy

Herzogenaurach is the birthplace of sporting goods giants adidas and Puma, founded by the two brothers Adolf Dassler and Rudolf Dassler, after an acrimonious split in 1948. Both companies' headquarters are still located in the town on opposite sides of the Aurach River, and brand loyalty is sharply divided as well. http://www.dw-world.de/popups/popup_printcontent/0,,2074427,00.html

Also the headquarters of Schaeffler Group are located in Herzogenaurach.

Sports

The Argentina national football team resided in Herzogenaurach for the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

Herzo Base

Airport Herzogenaurach

However, fighter pilots soon began training in civilian clothing. In March 1936, the Luftwaffe took official control. The airfield was mainly used as a fueling point for aircraft providing aircover for the march into Austria and Czechoslovakia. On 9 November of each year, planes took off from the airfield to fly over the party rallies staged at Zeppelinwiese (Soldier's Field) in Nuernberg.

During the Western Allied invasion of Germany in April 1945, the United States Third Army siezed the airfield. It was designated as ALG R-29. It was first occupied by a transportation unit followed by the USAAF 354th Fighter Group in May. In May 1946, the 2nd Radio Corps took over the installation and renamed it "Herzo Base". In 1947 the base was occupied by the U.S. Army security Agency up until 1971, when it was replaced by the 210th Field Artillery Group which occupied Herzo Base until 1992. Then Herzo Base was included in the base closure plan. On 4 August 1992, the installation was officially returned to the German Government.

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Notable persons

Notable people born in Herzogenaurach or residents who influenced the history of the city:

• Veit Ludwig von Seckendorff (1626?1692), statesman and scholar
• Rudolf Dassler (1898?1974), founder of Puma
• Adolf Dassler (1900?1978), founder of adidas
• Maria-Elisabeth Schaeffler (* 1941), entrepreneur and co-owner of Schaeffler KG, honorary citizen of the town of Herzogenaurach
• Lothar Matthäus (* 1961), football player. Captain of 1990 FIFA World Cup winning team (Germany)

Twin towns

• Wolfsberg, (Austria), since 1968
• Kaya, (Burkina Faso), since 1972
• Nova Gradi?ka, (Croatia), since 1980
• Sainte Luce sur Loire, (France), since 1988

Refernces

External links

• Official site
• BBC News article on the town
• Former military base Herzo-Base

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