Plettenberg (; Westphalian: Plettmert) is a town in the Märkischer Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Plettenberg is located to the west of the Sauerland hills. The highest elevation of the town area is in the Ebbegebirge with 663 m above sea level, the lowest elevation with 194 m near Teindeln. The town is spread out between the four valleys of the rivers Lenne, Else, and Grüne. Division of the town Plettenberg consists of 5 districts: Plettenberg (town centre) (14,012 inhabitants) Eiringhausen (4,905 inhabitants) Holthausen/upper Elsetal (3,985 inhabitants) Oestertal (3,055 inhabitants) Ohle (2,825 inhabitants) History Probably the first written proof of Plettenberg was made in a document from Grafschaft Abbey of Anno II, archbishop of Cologne, at that time named Heslipho. The name was later changed to Plettenberg, as the name of the noble family von Plettenberg, who owned virtually all of the town and surrounding lands. The Dukes of the Mark bought the town from Cologne, who in 1301 built the castle Schwarzenberg (which was destroyed by fire in 1864). In 1387, Count Engelbert III granted the town some privileges, it received full town rights in 1397 from Count Dietrich von der Mark. At the same time, the town was fortified. The town blossomed in the following centuries thanks to mining and iron casting, as well as trading with the Hanseatic League. In 1941, the town was enlarged to its current size, when the former town and the surrounding Amt were merged. Population development The number of inhabitants till 1933 is the core town, since 1998 with the incorporated districts. Mayors 1902–1924: Rudolf Emil Gottlob Köhler 1925–1930: Ludwig Schneider 1934–1938: Engelbert Wahle 1945–1948: Wilhelm Ding (SPD) 1948–1951: Karl Halfmann (CDU) 1951–1954: Emil Arndt (SPD) 1954–1956: Paul Thomee (FDP) 1956–1960: Heinz Chmill (SPD) 1960–1964: Wilhelm Wicker (CDU) 1964–1983: Heinz Baberg (SPD) 1984–1986: Udo Scheepers (SPD) 1986–1999: Otto Klehm (SPD) 1999–2004: Walter Stahlschmidt 2004–2015: Klaus Müller (SPD) since 2015: Ulrich Schulte Twin towns – sister cities Plettenberg is twinned with: Bludenz, Austria (1988) Schleusingen, Germany (1990) Coat of arms The coat of arms shows the coat of arms of the counts of Mark in the center. It is displayed between two towers. The coat of arms was granted together with the town rights. In 1794, the crown atop the shield was added in seals of the town. In 1840, the colored version on a shield was adopted. In 1912, the town