Everything about Emsland totally explained
Landkreis
Emsland is a
district in
Lower Saxony,
Germany named after the river
Ems. It is bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the districts of
Leer,
Cloppenburg and
Osnabrück, the state of
North Rhine-Westphalia (district of
Steinfurt), the district of
Bentheim and the
Netherlands (provinces of
Drenthe and
Groningen).
History
For a long time the Landkreis Emsland was extremely sparsely populated, due to the
fens on both sides of the river. Small villages were established in medieval times along the river and on the
Hümmling. In the
13th century the bishops of
Münster gained control over the region; the Emsland remained property of the bishop until
1803, when the clerical states were dissolved. It came under rule of
Prussia and
Arenberg, but after the
Napoleonic Wars the
Congress of Vienna decided to hand the territory over to the
Kingdom of Hanover. The Duchy of Arenberg continued to exist as a fief of the Hanoverian kings. When Hanover was annexed by Prussia (
1866), the dukes were deposed soon after.
The now Prussian Province of Hanover was subdivided into districts in
1885; four districts were established on the territory of what is now the Landkreis Emsland. The districts were merged in
1977 to form the present district.
In
1950 a governmental plan for the development of Emsland was adopted. Its aim was to turn the region into an industrial location. This was accomplished by draining the fens and establishing projects like the test track of the
maglev "
Transrapid" and several large
shipyards such as the
Meyer-Werft in
Papenburg. Although the Landkreis Emsland lost much of its original character, some areas retain their natural character, for example the Hümmling.
1977 district reforms in Lower Saxony unite the former districts of
Lingen,
Meppen and
Aschendorf-Hümmling in the district of Emsland, with Meppen as administrative seat. The Emsland remains a very
Roman Catholic region compared to other parts of Lower Saxony.
Geography
The district is located on the Dutch border. It is named after the
Ems river, which crosses the region from south to north. It is an absolutely plain countryside, which was once full of fens. The only elevations are in the
Hümmling, which is a hilly forest area east of the Ems.
Although the Emsland region is nowadays primarily a county among many others in Lower Saxony, its locals have what could be called a distinct sense of regional pride which will unlikely be found elsewhere in this state.
Coat of arms
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The coat of arms displays:
- a megalithic grave, typical for the Hümmling area
- the roses from the arms of the Duchy of Arenberg
- the anchor from the arms of the County of Lingen
The wavy line symbolises the river Ems.
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Cities and municipalities
(Population 2005)
Free municipalities and cities
Emsbüren (9,749)
Geeste (11,279)
Haren, city(22,754)
Haselünne, city (12,549)
Lingen, city (51,318)
Meppen, city (34,196)
Papenburg, city (34,519)
Rhede (4,228)
Salzbergen (7,436)
Twist (9,640)
Samtgemeinden
- Dörpen (15,446)
- Freren (10,834)
- Herzlake (9,821)
- Lathen (10,815)
- Lengerich (9,083)
- Nordhümmling (12,149)
- Sögel (15,484)
- Spelle (12,653)
- Werlte (15,660)
Further Information
Get more info on 'Emsland'.
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