Eiderstedt
Encyclopedia
Peninsula
A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....
in the district of Nordfriesland
Nordfriesland
Nordfriesland, English "Northern Friesland" or "North Frisia", is a district in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It includes almost all of traditional North Frisia along with adjacent areas to the east and south and is bounded by the districts of Schleswig-Flensburg and Dithmarschen, the North Sea and...
in the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
federal state of Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein is the northernmost of the sixteen states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Schleswig...
.
Overview
It is approximately 30 km in length and 15 km in width and has been created through diking (polders) from three islands: Eiderstedt around TönningTönning
Tönning is a town in the district of Nordfriesland in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. During the Great Northern War, Tönning was besieged twice.-Geography:...
, Utholm around Tating
Tating
Tating is a municipality in the district of Nordfriesland, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany....
, and Evershop around Garding
Garding
Garding is a town in the district of Nordfriesland, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It has a population of 2,700 . It is located in the Eiderstedt peninsula, and part of the Amt Eiderstedt....
. The diking started around the year 1000 AD.
Since these three islands were administrative districts of their own, the area was originally called Dreilande - "Three Lands".
Alluvial soil won from the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
makes the area well-suited for agriculture. At present, tourism dominates, particularly in the city of Sankt Peter-Ording
Sankt Peter-Ording
Sankt Peter-Ording is a very popular German seaside spa and a municipality in the district of Nordfriesland, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is the only German seaside resort that has a sulphur spring and thus terms itself "North Sea healing spa and sulphur spring". By overnight stays, St...
on the peninsula's western tip. The Westerhever lighthouse is the peninsula's main emblem and the most prominent lighthouse
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
in Germany. The Wadden Sea
Wadden Sea
The Wadden Sea is an intertidal zone in the southeastern part of the North Sea. It lies between the coast of northwestern continental Europe and the range of Frisian Islands, forming a shallow body of water with tidal flats and wetlands. It is rich in biological diversity...
, the Eider Barrage
Eider Barrage
The Eider Barrage is located at the mouth of the river Eider near Tönning on Germany’s North Sea coast. Its main purpose is protection from storm surges by the North Seas. It is Germany’s largest coastal protection structure...
on the Eider River
Eider River
The Eider is the longest river of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. The river starts near Bordesholm and reaches the southwestern outskirts of Kiel on the shores of the Baltic Sea, but flows to the west, ending in the North Sea...
and the Katinger Watt
Katinger Watt
The Katinger Watt is a nature reserve in the south of the Eiderstedt peninsula in the north German state of Schleswig-Holstein which is run by the German Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union, NABU....
, marshlands won from the sea in the process of the construction of the Eidersperrwerk, are other tourist attractions on the peninsula.
History
The constant threat of the sea overcoming their habitations forced Eiderstedt to a special form of self-administration at a very early stage as diking was only possible through strong cooperation. Originally settled by Frisians, Eiderstedt was part of the Duchy of SchleswigSchleswig
Schleswig or South Jutland is a region covering the area about 60 km north and 70 km south of the border between Germany and Denmark; the territory has been divided between the two countries since 1920, with Northern Schleswig in Denmark and Southern Schleswig in Germany...
from the 14th century on.
In 1864, the Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
Duchy of Schleswig became part of Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
. Prussian administration gave Eiderstedt independence as a district. In 1970, the district of Eiderstedt was merged with the districts of Husum and Südtondern to form the district of Nordfriesland.
Amt Eiderstedt
The peninsula represents also a same namedEiderstedt (Amt)
Eiderstedt is an Amt in the district of Nordfriesland, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. The Amt covers the peninsula of Eiderstedt, excepted for the town of Tönning.-History:...
Amt, with the administrative seat in the town of Garding
Garding
Garding is a town in the district of Nordfriesland, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It has a population of 2,700 . It is located in the Eiderstedt peninsula, and part of the Amt Eiderstedt....
. The only town of the peninsula not part of the Amt is Tönning
Tönning
Tönning is a town in the district of Nordfriesland in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. During the Great Northern War, Tönning was besieged twice.-Geography:...
.