Unna

Unna (ˈʊna) is a city of around 59,000 people in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, the seat of the Unna district. The newly refurbished Unna station has trains to all major cities in North Rhine Westphalia including Dortmund, Cologne, Münster, Hamm, Düsseldorf and Wuppertal. There is also the Regional-Express 7 (Rhein-Münsterland-Express), which runs from Rheine via Cologne to Krefeld. Unna is situated on an ancient salt-trading route, the Westphalian Hellweg. Trade on this route and during the period of the Hanseatic League came from as far as London. The city is located at the eastern extremity of the Ruhr district, about east of the centre of Dortmund. Unna also serves as a dormitory city, being home to many commuters who work in Dortmund and other nearby cities. Local dialects of German include Westfälisch and Ruhrpott. The recreational district of Sauerland is nearby. The River Ruhr runs just south of Unna through Fröndenberg, before heading through the main part of the Ruhr district. Unna consists of the following districts: Unna (city centre) Königsborn Massen Afferde Billmerich Kessebüren Mühlhausen and Uelzen Lünern and Stockum Hemmerde, Westhemmerde and Siddinghausen Massen and Königsborn are former industrial and mining areas; the other districts have a more rural character. The history of human settlement in what is now the city of Unna can be traced back to the Neolithic Era. In the Middle Ages, Unna gained significance as a way station on the Hellweg. It is first recorded by name in an ecclesiastical document of 1032. Around 1200, Count Friedrich von Altena-Isenberg was invested with the fiefdom of Unna, among other estates, by the archbishop-electorate of Cologne. Over the next few hundred years the town was repeatedly fought over, and burned down several times. In the 14th century the town became wealthy: a mint was established and regional trade blossomed. This is documented by the discovery of around 70 gold coins during excavation works in 1952. The coins originated from various countries and are thought to have been buried around 1375.