Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)/Brandenburg

BRANDENBURG, a province of Prussia, surrounded mainly by Mecklenburg and the provinces of Pomerania, Posen, Silesia, and Prussian Saxony. The soil consists in many parts of barren sands, heaths, and moors; yet the province produces much grain, as well as fruits, hemp, flax, tobacco, etc., and supports many sheep. The forests are very extensive. The principal streams are the Elbe, the Oder, the Havel, and the Spree. Berlin is located in Brandenburg. Area 15,400 square miles, population about 4,000,000, including the city of Berlin. The Old Mark of Brandenburg was bestowed by the Emperor Charles IV. on Frederick of Hohenzollem, and is the center round which the Kingdom of Prussia grew. The town of Brandenburg is on the Havel, 35 miles W. S. W. of Berlin. It is divided into three parts — an old town, a new town, and a cathedral town — by the river, and has considerable manufactures, including silk, woolens, leather, etc. Pop. about 55,000.