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Verden an der Aller(German:[ˈfeːɐ̯dn̩ʔandɐˈʔalɐ];Northern Low Saxon:Veern), also calledVerden (Aller)or simplyVerden,is a town inLower Saxony,Germany,on the riverAller.It is thedistrict townof the district of Verden in Lower Saxony and an independent municipality (de:Selbständige Gemeinde). The town is located in the middleWeserregion on the Aller river immediately before it flows into the Weser. As a center ofhorse breedingandequestrian sports,it bears the nickname "equestrian town". The suffix "Aller" was introduced at a time when the name "Verden" was also common for the French town ofVerdunin the German-speaking area. The town name comes from "ford" or "ferry". The town was conveniently located at a ford through the Aller river, near an important trade route.
Verden (Aller) | |
|---|---|
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 Flag  Coat of arms | |
Location of Verden (Aller) within Verden district  | |
  Verden (Aller)  Verden (Aller) | |
| Coordinates:52°55′24″N9°14′06″E/ 52.92333°N 9.23500°E | |
| Country | Germany |
| State | Lower Saxony |
| District | Verden |
| Subdivisions | 7 districts |
| Government | |
| •Mayor(2019–24) | Lutz Brockmann[1](SPD) |
| Area | |
• Total | 71.59 km2(27.64 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 20 m (70 ft) |
| Population (2022-12-31)[2] | |
• Total | 28,526 |
| • Density | 400/km2(1,000/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00(CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00(CEST) |
| Postal codes | 27283 |
| Dialling codes | 04231 |
| Vehicle registration | VER |
| Website | www.verden.de |
Imperial City of Verden Reichsstadt Verden | |||||||||
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| 15th century–1648 | |||||||||
| Status | Free Imperial Cityof theHoly Roman Empire | ||||||||
| Capital | Verden | ||||||||
| Government | Republic | ||||||||
| Historical era | Middle Ages | ||||||||
• Massacre of Verden | 782 | ||||||||
• GainedReichsfreiheit | 15th century | ||||||||
May 15, 1648 | |||||||||
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Verden is famous for a massacre ofSaxonsin 782, committed on the orders ofCharlemagne(theMassacre of Verden), for its cathedral, and for its horse-breeding.
History
editIn the Early Middle Ages (year 782) there was a massacre of allegedly 4,500Saxons,by order of Charlemagne because of their involvement in a preceding uprising. Verden was then within theDuchy of Saxony.
After in 1180 a coalition of EmperorFrederick I Barbarossaand his allies had defeated the then Saxo-Bavarian DukeHenry the Lion.Henry was subsequently stripped of his duchies. Saxony was divided among the imperial coalitionaries and so the Catholic Bishop of Verden gainedimperial immediacyfor parts of his diocesan territory, thus establishing thePrince-Bishopric of Verden.
On 12 March 1259 Prince-Bishop Gerhard of Verden granted the placetown privilegesfollowing the Bremian version ofGerman town law.In the 15th century Verden gained considerable independence as aFree Imperial City,immediately under the emperors (imperial immediacy), circumventing its former overlords the prince-bishops, who still held the cathedral and pertaining premises in town as acathedral immunity district.
By thePeace of Westphaliathe city of Verden wasmediatisedas regular city again within the Prince-Bishopric of Verden, which was transformed by the same contract into thePrincipality of Verdenin May 1648. The northern city (with the town hall and St. John's church) and the southern town (with theproto-cathedral) were then united to form one city.
In 1675, during theSwedish-Brandenburg War,Verden was conquered by several states of the Holy Roman Empire and Denmark following theBremen-Verden Campaignand remained in allied hands until the end of the war in 1679. In the wake of theTreaty of Saint-Germainin 1679, Verden was returned to Sweden.
The Principality of Verden was first ruled inpersonal unionby the Swedish Crown – interrupted by a Danish occupation (1712–1715) – and from 1715 on by theHanoverianCrown. TheKingdom of Hanoverincorporated the principality in areal unionand the princely territory, including Verden upon Aller, became part of the newStade Region,established in 1823.
Until theSecond World War,Verden was renowned for its trade and crafts and also its mounted division. During the Nazi regime forced-labourers were used in a furniture factory in Verden. Between 1945 and 1949 Verden was part of the British zone of occupation. Refugees from the formerPrussian provincesofEast Prussia,PomeraniaandSilesia,settled in and around the town.
With the labour immigration from the EastGerman Democratic Republicinhibited by theBerlin Wallforeign workers (Gastarbeiter) started to arrive from southern Europe andAnatoliain the 1960s. After the fall ofCommunismmore immigrants arrived from Eastern Europe.
From 1945 until 1960, the5th Division,of theBritish Army of the Rhine,was stationed in Verden. In 1960, the division was renamed as the1st Division(later 1st Armoured Division). One of the former British barracks is now used to house theKreisverwaltung(district administration) and a new sporting stadium has been erected opposite. The second barracks has been demolished to make way for a new residential estate.
Geography
editVerden is located in the German state ofLower Saxony,on the riverAller.It is the administrative centre of the district ofVerden.The nearest large cities are Bremen (35 km or 22 mi) and Hannover (90 km or 56 mi).
Sights
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The old town lies east of the Aller. The Lutheran cathedral (German:Dom) is known as theDom zu Verdenand towers above the pedestrianised high street, with its cafés and shops. Thisproto-cathedral,consecrated to Ss. Mary and Cecilia, served the former Catholic Diocese of Verden as episcopal church and was built between the 12th and 15th centuries. Other noteworthy buildings include the Lutheran churches of St. John and of St. Andrew, as well as the town hall and theDomherrenhaus(House of cathedral canons).
Verden is further renowned for horse racing and sport horse auctions and is thus also called the (horse) riding town (German:Reiterstadt).
Infrastructure
editEast of Verden, there is the 225 metres (738 ft) tall radio transmitter,Sender Verden,used byDeutsche Telekomprimarily for TV and mobile phone broadcasting.
in 2009, the derelict fodder silo towering over the town won the prize of being "The ugliest wall in North Germany" in a Radio Bremen Vier competition. The prize was to be decorated with a large mural by Graffiti Artists Markus Genesius and Stefan of WOW123. The mural can now be seen above the town skyline.
Mars Petcare has its largest pet food factory in Europe, with a large research centre similar to theWaltham Petcare Science Institutein the UK.
Twin towns – sister cities
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Bagrationovsk,Russia
Bartoszyce County,Poland- Górowo Iławeckie,Poland
- Gmina Górowo Iławeckie,Poland
Havelberg,Germany
Saumur,France
Warwick,England, United Kingdom- Zielona Góra,Poland
Notable people
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- Catharine Wolpmann(1603 – fl. 1659), twice charged locally withwitchcraft,in 1647 and 1655 and twice acquitted
- F. C. D. Wyneken(1810–1876), missionary pastor in the United States
- Marcus Lehmann(1831–1890), Orthodox rabbi
- Anita Augspurg(1857–1943), jurist, actress, writer, activist of the radical feminist movement and pacifist
- Adolf Köster(1883–1930), politician (SPD),Foreign Minister(1920) andInterior Minister(1921–1922).
- Gerhard Lindemann(1896–1994), Generalmajor
- Gottfried Graf von Bismarck-Schönhausen(1901–1949), politician and grandson ofOtto von Bismarck,died locally
- Hanna Grages(1922–2010), gymnast, competed at the1952 Summer Olympics
- Volker Münz(born 1964), politician (AfD), member of theBundestag,2017 to 2021.
- Hille Perl(born 1965), virtuoso player of theviola da gamba
- Jan Hendrik Schön(born 1970), German physicist and fraud
Gallery
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References
edit- ^"Verzeichnis der direkt gewählten Bürgermeister/-innen und Landräte/Landrätinnen".Landesamt für Statistik Niedersachsen.April 2021.
- ^"LSN-Online Regionaldatenbank, Tabelle A100001G: Fortschreibung des Bevölkerungsstandes, Stand 31. Dezember 2022"(in German).Landesamt für Statistik Niedersachsen.
- ^"Städtepartnerschaften und -patenschaften".verden.de(in German). Verden (Aller).Retrieved2021-02-21.
External links
edit- Official website
(in German) 
Verden an der Allertravel guide from Wikivoyage
