What is Märkischer Kreis?
{{Infobox German district| name=Märkischer Kreis| image_coa=DEU Märkischer Kreis COA.svg| image_flag=Flagge Maerkischer Kreis.svg| state=North Rhine-Westphalia| capital=[[Lüdenscheid]]| regierungsbezirk=[[Arnsberg Government Region|Arnsberg]]| Kreisschlüssel = 05962| area=1,058.949| population=457,465| population_as_of=2001| density=432| carsign=MK| url=http://www.maerkischer-kreis.de| map=North_rhine_w_MK.svg |coordinates = {{Coord|51|13|30|N|7|36|52|E|region:DE_type:adm2nd|display=title}} }} The '''Märkischer Kreis''' is a [[district]] (''Kreis'') in central [[North Rhine-Westphalia]], [[Germany]]. The district was created in [[1975]] as part of the reorganisation of [[North Rhine-Westphalia]]n districts. ==Twinning== The district is [[twin town|twinned]] with * {{flag|Wales}}, [[Wrexham County Borough]]. This was started in [[1970]] by [[Iserlohn]]. * {{flag|Brandenburg}}, [[Elbe-Elster]]. This started as a twin with [[Finsterwalde]] before Finsterwald became a part of Elbe-Elster. * {{flag|Poland}}, [[Raciborz|Racibórz]] district. == Coat of arms == {| |- valign=top |[[Image:DEU Märkischer Kreis COA.svg|100px|Coat of arms of the Märkischer Kreis]] |The lion and ''[[fess]] chequey'' (a stripe (fess) made up of little squares (chequey))are taken from the old coat of arms of the district of [[Altena]], which is from the arms of the [[Mark (county)|Counts of the Mark]]. In the first half of the [[13th century]] a seal with both the fess and the lion was in use, as first used by [[Adolf I, Count of the Mark|Adolf I of Altena]] (1199-1241). [[Engelbert I of the Mark]] (1249-1277) dropped the lion in his seal. The original [[Tincture (heraldry)|colour]] of the lion was unknown, so a black lion with red tongue and claws was chosen, as in the arms of the Dukes of [[Jülich]]. The black cross comes from the arms of [[Cologne]], as the eastern part of the area historically belonged to the [[Archbishopric of Cologne|Archbishops of Cologne]]. The coat of arms was designed by the herald Waldemar Mallek, and was grant