Untergriesbach
Untergriesbach () is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany. Geography. Untergriesbach is located in the southern Bavarian Forest and extends high above the deep valley of the Danube. The height of the market town is 565 meters above sea level. Via the Bundesstraße 388 it is connected to Passau (22 km) and in the opposite direction to the Upper Austrian Haslach (32 km). History. The name comes from the nobles of Griesbach. These were a rich noble family with numerous possessions in the "land of the Abbey" (Passauer Abbey Country). Nothing remains from the former  castle. Originally it was named "Griespach", then "Griesbach on high market" (to distinguish it from "Griesbach in the cell" = Obernzell) and finally renamed in 1806 to Untergriesbach (to distinguish it from Bad Griesbach in the Rott Valley). The nobles of Griesbach died out in the early 13th century. Their successors were the "Wessenberger" who possessed an extended property as a fief of the Bishopric Passau. The castle was probably destroyed after the death of the last Wessenberger around 1240. 1260 Bishop Otto of Lonsdorf (approx. 1200–1265) gave the rights to hold a market and other privileges. During the Passau  citizens revolt against Bishop Albert III. von Winkel (died 1380) Untergriesbach was burned down 1367 by insurgents from Passau. In 1456 Bishop Ulrich of Nussdorf confirmed and extended the rights and freedoms of the market. Untergriesbach was largely spared from Thirty Years' War, but the Bavarian and Imperial troops, who were billeted here, imported in 1648 the plague during the last year of the war, which raged until early 1650 with great violence. The late Gothic parish church of St. Michael was remodeled baroque in several stages during the 18th century. In 1803 the market Griesbach came to Ferdinand III , Grand Duke of Tuscany (1769–1824) and 1806 to Kingdom of Bavaria. The trader Georg Saxinger was elected the first mayor. 1829 a new school building was erected, from 1829 to 1830 was built a new road to Obernzell, which was much more comfortable to drive than the old mountain road. In 1903 the name of the municipality Griesbach was officially changed to Untergriesbach. 1956 was built in the area of the municipality the water power plant Jochenstein. Municipality arrangement. Untergriesbach has 106 districts: Incorporations. On 1 October 1971, the previously independent municipality Lambsdorf was incorporated. On 1 January 1972 Gottsdorf  and Schaibing were added. Oberötzdorf followed on 1 March 1972. Transport. A railway terminal was built in 1904 in Schaibing, located at the Passau-Hauzenberg railway. On this route the passenger transport ended in 1970, the freight transport ended in 1997. There are efforts to reactivate this route. In 1912 Untergriesbach got connected to the Passau–Hauzenberg railway by a Rack railway. Rail traffic ceased in 1965, in 1975 the track Obernzell-Wegscheid was removed. Town council. The town council has been elected in the local elections on 2 March 2008 as follows: Crest. Blazon: "Argent, a left-facing rising  red wolf."