Becklingen
Encyclopedia
Becklingen is a German village in the Lower Saxon
borough of Bergen in the northern part of Celle district on the Lüneburg Heath
.
language area and the Northern Low Saxon
dialect group. Since the end of the Second World War, however, High German has largely superseded it. However, Low German continues to be used colloquially especially amongst the older members of the village.
The 19th century was characterised by extensive agricultural reforms. Fundamental to subsequent reforms was the general division (Generalteilung) of land at the beginning of the 19th century, whereby the villages were given fixed boundaries and every piece of land was allocated to a municipality (Gemeinde
). The amount of land around the individual villages which was allocated to them was based on the grazing rights they had held in the past.
This was followed during the period 1838 to 1858 by the division of common land (Gemeinheitsteilungen). Common land
, i.e. those areas which had hitherto been shared by the community, was now transferred to the individual farms as freehold property based on their existing rights to the common land.
On the basis of the Kingdom of Hanover
's 1833 redemption law the obligations on farms under the manorial system were repealed. Farms to which the so-called manorial rights applied had been hitherto obliged to give numerous services and make frequent payments to the manor. That was now repealed on payment of 25 times the annual dues and the land was then granted under freehold into the farmers' ownership.
On 13 January 1872, west of Becklingen in the forest known as Becklinger Holz, which is nowadays within the Bergen-Hohne Training Area
, the last wolf seen on the Lüneburg Heath
was shot. The man who shot it was a forester, Grünewald, who was the Leibjäger to King George V of Hanover, the last king of Hanover.
In 1951 Becklingen War Cemetery
was established near the village.
's office, the lowest level of administration and justice, which was presided over by a ducal vogt
. Matters of importance that only affected Becklingen were discussed and decided by the Realgemeinde, i.e. the farm owners who had common land
rights. The political reforms of the 19th century brought about a fundamental change from which the political municipality of Sülze arose. Participation in the resolution of village affairs was no longer dependent on ownership of property or land; instead every male villager over 25 had the right to vote.
Since the merging of local councils as part of the Lower Saxon
administrative reforms of 1971, Becklingen has been part of the town of Bergen. Becklingen is represented by a parish council (Ortsrat) and a chairman (Ortsbürgermeister). The council is empowered, inter alia, to make decisions about public services in the village, is responsible for maintaining the appearance of the village and for overseeing its clubs and societies, and has to be consulted by the town of Bergen on all important matters affecting the village. It consists of five elected representatives who, together with the chairman, sit on the Bergen borough council. The parish council elects its own chair. The current incumbent is Wilhelm Hohls.
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
borough of Bergen in the northern part of Celle district on the Lüneburg Heath
Lüneburg Heath
The Lüneburg Heath is a large area of heath, geest and woodland in northeastern part of the state of Lower Saxony in northern Germany. It forms part of the hinterland for the cities of Hamburg, Hanover, and Bremen and is named after the town of Lüneburg. Most of the area is a nature reserve...
.
Geography
Becklingen lies about 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) north of Bergen just off the B 3 federal highway and has 382 inhabitants (as at: 31 December 2000). Its parish includes the villages of Becklingen, Oehus and Tannensieksberg. There is also a hamlet known as Becklingen (Bhf) which has grown up around the old station about a mile from the main village. Bhf is the German abbreviation for Bahnhof or 'railway station'.Growth
The following table shows the growth in population of Becklingen. Note the significant increase in numbers after the Second World War which was mainly due to the influx of refugees.| Year | Population | Houses | Year | Population | Houses | Year | Population | Houses | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1820 | 106 | 1925 | 234 | 1945 | ca. 500 | |||||
| 1848 | 180 | 1939 | 231 | 2000 | 382 | |||||
Language
Becklingen belongs to the Low GermanLow German
Low German or Low Saxon is an Ingvaeonic West Germanic language spoken mainly in northern Germany and the eastern part of the Netherlands...
language area and the Northern Low Saxon
Northern Low Saxon
Northern Low Saxon is a West Low German dialect.As such, it covers a great part of the West Low-German-speaking areas of northern Germany, with the exception of the border regions where Eastphalian and Westphalian are spoken...
dialect group. Since the end of the Second World War, however, High German has largely superseded it. However, Low German continues to be used colloquially especially amongst the older members of the village.
History
Becklingen was first mentioned in AD 1231 under the name Bekelinge.The 19th century was characterised by extensive agricultural reforms. Fundamental to subsequent reforms was the general division (Generalteilung) of land at the beginning of the 19th century, whereby the villages were given fixed boundaries and every piece of land was allocated to a municipality (Gemeinde
Gemeinde
Gemeinde is a German word for borough, commune, community, township, municipality, or in religious contexts, a parish or congregation ....
). The amount of land around the individual villages which was allocated to them was based on the grazing rights they had held in the past.
This was followed during the period 1838 to 1858 by the division of common land (Gemeinheitsteilungen). Common land
Common land
Common land is land owned collectively or by one person, but over which other people have certain traditional rights, such as to allow their livestock to graze upon it, to collect firewood, or to cut turf for fuel...
, i.e. those areas which had hitherto been shared by the community, was now transferred to the individual farms as freehold property based on their existing rights to the common land.
On the basis of the Kingdom of Hanover
Kingdom of Hanover
The Kingdom of Hanover was established in October 1814 by the Congress of Vienna, with the restoration of George III to his Hanoverian territories after the Napoleonic era. It succeeded the former Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg , and joined with 38 other sovereign states in the German...
's 1833 redemption law the obligations on farms under the manorial system were repealed. Farms to which the so-called manorial rights applied had been hitherto obliged to give numerous services and make frequent payments to the manor. That was now repealed on payment of 25 times the annual dues and the land was then granted under freehold into the farmers' ownership.
On 13 January 1872, west of Becklingen in the forest known as Becklinger Holz, which is nowadays within the Bergen-Hohne Training Area
Bergen-Hohne Training Area
Bergen-Hohne Training Area is a NATO military training area in the southern part of the Lüneburg Heath, in the state of Lower Saxony in northern Germany. It covers an area of , which makes it the largest military training area in Germany.It was established by the German armed forces, the...
, the last wolf seen on the Lüneburg Heath
Lüneburg Heath
The Lüneburg Heath is a large area of heath, geest and woodland in northeastern part of the state of Lower Saxony in northern Germany. It forms part of the hinterland for the cities of Hamburg, Hanover, and Bremen and is named after the town of Lüneburg. Most of the area is a nature reserve...
was shot. The man who shot it was a forester, Grünewald, who was the Leibjäger to King George V of Hanover, the last king of Hanover.
In 1951 Becklingen War Cemetery
Becklingen War Cemetery
The Becklingen War Cemetery is a military cemetery located in the state of Lower Saxony in north Germany on the Lüneburg Heath. It was built by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission who continue to look after it today...
was established near the village.
Politics and administration
From the 14th century Bergen was recorded as having a vogteiVogtei
Vogtei could be:* The residenz or domain of a Vogt* Vogtei , a municipal association in the Unstrut-Hainich district of Thuringia, Germany....
's office, the lowest level of administration and justice, which was presided over by a ducal vogt
Vogt
A Vogt ; plural Vögte; Dutch voogd; Danish foged; ; ultimately from Latin [ad]vocatus) in the Holy Roman Empire was the German title of a reeve or advocate, an overlord exerting guardianship or military protection as well as secular justice...
. Matters of importance that only affected Becklingen were discussed and decided by the Realgemeinde, i.e. the farm owners who had common land
Common land
Common land is land owned collectively or by one person, but over which other people have certain traditional rights, such as to allow their livestock to graze upon it, to collect firewood, or to cut turf for fuel...
rights. The political reforms of the 19th century brought about a fundamental change from which the political municipality of Sülze arose. Participation in the resolution of village affairs was no longer dependent on ownership of property or land; instead every male villager over 25 had the right to vote.
Since the merging of local councils as part of the Lower Saxon
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
administrative reforms of 1971, Becklingen has been part of the town of Bergen. Becklingen is represented by a parish council (Ortsrat) and a chairman (Ortsbürgermeister). The council is empowered, inter alia, to make decisions about public services in the village, is responsible for maintaining the appearance of the village and for overseeing its clubs and societies, and has to be consulted by the town of Bergen on all important matters affecting the village. It consists of five elected representatives who, together with the chairman, sit on the Bergen borough council. The parish council elects its own chair. The current incumbent is Wilhelm Hohls.
Literature
- Günther Ebel (Hrsg.), Die Geschichte der Feuerwehr in Becklingen, Becklingen, 1984