Hitzacker

Hitzacker is a town in the Lüchow-Dannenberg district of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Elbe, approx. 8 km north of Dannenberg, and 45 km east of Lüneburg. The 2007 population of Hitzacker was 4,982, and its postal code is 29456. The mayor is Karl Guhl. The town is located on the German Timber-Frame Road and is part of the Samtgemeinde ("collective municipality") of Elbtalaue.The famous library now in Wolfenbüttel was founded here by Augustus the Younger, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (who died in 1666) and was moved to its present location in 1643.GeographyLocationHitzacker is situated at the confluence of the River Jeetzel with the Elbe. Whilst the so-called Elbe Heights (Elbhöhen, also Klötzie), at the southeastern foot of which Hitzacker lies, belong to the natural region of the Lüneburg Heath (c.f. the Drawehn), the lowland areas of the old town belong to the Elbe valley water meadows (Elbtalaue).Its height varies from at the Jeetzel confluence to on the hill of Weinberg in the Klötzie. Further down the Elbe, the hill of Kniepenberg near Drethem attains and offers a panoramic view over the Elbe valley depression.