How it started again

The city is located in the west of Upper-Franconia (ger.: Oberfranken) and has a population of about 42,000 people. After a long break our Fichtelgebirge District in 1998 reestablished the group in Coburg. Its first patrol was formed and named 'Lynx' by their patrol-leader Jens Kögler (willi) who at this time studied bussines economy at the University of Applied Sciences in Coburg. The scout met every week in St Markīs church where they got rooms for their meetings. Since 1998 the group in Coburg prospered. In 2006 its members doupled when a whole group of another scout organisation joined the VCP in Coburg.

Since many years there are several activities and events organised by VCP-scouts in Coburg: a Bonfire at Easter Sunday, the 'Night of 1000 Lights', several camps throughout the year and hikes every so often. In February 2008 the group in Coburg changed its name from 'Thüringen' (eng.: Thuringia) to Albatros (eng.: Albatross).

From 1826 to 1918, Coburg was one of the two capitals of the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. During the nineteenth century, dynastic marriages created ties with the royal families of Belgium, Bulgaria, Portugal, as well as Great Britain, the last being achieved when Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, born at suburban Schloss Rosenau, married his first cousin, Queen Victoria. This marriage established the present British royal house, which renamed itself Windsor during World War I. This marriage in turn led to a union with Germany's ruling dynasty, the Hohenzollerns, when the couple's eldest child, Victoria, married the future Kaiser Friedrich III.

Due to the royal connections among the royal houses of Europe, Coburg was the site of many royal Ducal weddings and visits. Britain's Queen Victoria made 6 visits to Coburg during her 64 year reign. In 1896 one ceremony brought together Queen Victoria, her son Edward (future Edward VII), her second son Alfred (Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha), her daughter the German dowager Empress Friedrich (Victoria), and many of her grandchildren, such as Tsar Nicholas and Alexandra of Russia, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, and the future King George V of Great Britain. (Source: Wikipedia)