Porta Westfalica (Stadt)

Porta Westfalica is a town in the district of Minden-Lübbecke, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.The name "Porta Westfalica" is Latin and means "gate to Westphalia". Coming from the north, the gorge is the entry to the region of Westphalia. The name was coined by scholars of the 19th century.HistoryThe town Porta Westfalica was established in 1973 by merging fifteen villages surrounding the gorge. The centre of the modern town is the former village of Hausberge, which was first mentioned in 1096.The Emperor William Monument was erected near the town by the then Prussian Province of Westphalia between 1892 and 1896 The monument, which is around 88 metres high, is classified as one of Germany’s national monuments.From March 18, 1944 until April 1, 1945 a concentration camp was established in the Barkhausen quarter. From February 1, 1945 until April 1, 1945 a camp was used in the Hausberge quarter. In the Lerbeck quarter also was a concentration camp in use from October 1, 1944 until April 1, 1945. In the Neesen quarter was a location for the forced labour for some of the inmates. All of these camps were subcamps of the Neuengamme concentration camp.On 10 January 2015, Belgian footballer Junior Malanda died in a car accident near the town, aged 20.