Markranstädt is a town in the Leipzig district, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated 11 km southwest of the city of Leipzig and has close to 15,000 inhabitants.GeographyLocationMarkranstädt is located about 10km south-west of Leipzig city centre, between Saxony-Anhalt and the Leipzig housing estate, to the west of the Kulkwitzer See. It is the only municipality in the Landkreis Leipzig that lies west of the city.SubdivisionsMarkranstädt is a municipality consisting of the town itself plus the Stadtteile of Albersdorf, Altranstädt, Döhlen, Göhrenz, Großlehna, Kleinlehna, Meyen, Quesitz, Räpitz, Schkeitbar, Schkölen, Thronitz, Kulkwitz, Gärnitz, Seebenisch, Lindennaundorf, Frankenheim and Priesteblich.HistoryThe first documentary mention of Markranstädt was in 1285 as the seat of a court. Probably founded as a subsidiary settlement of the neighbouring monastic settlement Altranstädt, it was mentioned as a marketplace in 1287 and as a small town in 1354.The name is also derived from its foundation: it was founded as Ranstädt (ran = "place on cleared land"), while meanwhile Ranstädt became known as Altranstädt (literally "Old Ranstadt"). Ranstädt then obtained the right to hold markets, hence the current name "Markranstädt".In the year 1633, during the Thirty Years War, the town was burned by the ''''. The fire destroyed, amongst other buildings, the town hall and all its records. The plague epidemic of 1634 and the famine of 1639 led to a drastic population decline. In the year 1650 Markranstädt numbered fewer than 150 inhabitants. The next local disaster happened in 1671, as 31 houses were destroyed by a large fire. At the beginning of the 18th century the town began to recover again.