Bad Zwesten is a municipality in the Schwalm-Eder district of Hesse, Germany. Geography Location Bad Zwesten lies about 8 km southeast of Bad Wildungen on the river Schwalm, which belongs to the Eder watershed. North of the community begins the Kellerwald-Edersee Nature Park. Constituent communities Betzigerode Niederurff Oberurff-Schiffelborn Wenzigerode Zwesten (administrative seat) History Zwesten had its first documentary mention about the year 800. In 1913 came the discovery of a mineral spring, which in 1960 was officially declared a recognized Heilquelle (≈health spring). Within the framework of municipal reform in Hesse, the formerly independent communities of Betzigerode, Niederurff, Oberurff-Schiffelborn, Wenzigerode and Zwesten were amalgamated into the new, united community of Zwesten in 1972. In 1992, the community was granted official recognition as a spa, allowing it to prefix the designation Bad – German for "bath" – to its name. Politics Municipal council Municipal representation consists of 23 members. CDU 6 seats SPD 10 seats Greens 3 seats FWG (citizens' coalition) 2 seats Bürgerliste (citizens' coalition) 2 seats (as of municipal elections on 26 March 2006) Economy The spa of Bad Zwesten bases its burgeoning prosperity on its Löwensprudel ("Lion's Fizzy Water"). In this spa town, two clinics are to be found, Hardtwald Clinics I and II with about 650 beds. Transport Bad Zwesten lies at the crossroads of Federal Highways (Bundesstraßen) B 3 and B 485. About 5 km from the community is the Borken/Bad Zwesten interchange with Autobahn A 49 (Kassel – Fritzlar – Marburg). The community belongs to the North Hesse Transport Network (Nordhessischer Verkehrsverbund) which, among other things, runs a hailed shared taxi to Borken railway station on the Main-Weser Railway. Literature Martin Opfer: Zwesten : Betzigerode, Niederurff, Oberurff, Schiffelborn und Wenzigerode ; Bilder und Texte erzählen, wie es damals war, Wartberg-Verlag, Gudensberg-Gleichen 1989, References External links Bad Zwesten Spa towns in Germany Schwalm-Eder-Kreis