Middle Weser Region
Encyclopedia
The Middle Weser Region includes, in its fullest sense, the land along the Middle Weser between Minden
and Bremen
. It lies within the federal states of North Rhine-Westphalia
, Lower Saxony
and Bremen. However, the term is often used just to refer to the Lower Saxon part, because of the different political development of the three states and the cooperative associations formed in Lower Saxony some years ago (see below). The Lower Saxon part of the Middle Weser Region forms the geographical heart of this state. In the centre of the Middle Weser Region are the towns of Minden
, Nienburg/Weser and Verden (Aller). In the extreme north, the city of Bremen
, which is not part of Lower Saxony, has a very important influence on that area of Lower Saxony surrounding it.
For information about the Westphalian part of the Middle Weser Region see also Ostwestfalen-Lippe
and Minden Land
. On either side of the Weser and its tributaries are broad marsh
, geest (topography)
and bog
landscapes with original forest
s. Other parts of the region are used for agriculture
. The southern part of the Middle Weser Region belings to the Middle Weser Valley
which is joined by the glacial valley of the Aller
in the north.
Minden
Minden is a town of about 83,000 inhabitants in the north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The town extends along both sides of the river Weser. It is the capital of the Kreis of Minden-Lübbecke, which is part of the region of Detmold. Minden is the historic political centre of the...
and Bremen
Bremen
The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...
. It lies within the federal states of North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous state of Germany, with four of the country's ten largest cities. The state was formed in 1946 as a merger of the northern Rhineland and Westphalia, both formerly part of Prussia. Its capital is Düsseldorf. The state is currently run by a coalition of the...
, Lower Saxony
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...
and Bremen. However, the term is often used just to refer to the Lower Saxon part, because of the different political development of the three states and the cooperative associations formed in Lower Saxony some years ago (see below). The Lower Saxon part of the Middle Weser Region forms the geographical heart of this state. In the centre of the Middle Weser Region are the towns of Minden
Minden
Minden is a town of about 83,000 inhabitants in the north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The town extends along both sides of the river Weser. It is the capital of the Kreis of Minden-Lübbecke, which is part of the region of Detmold. Minden is the historic political centre of the...
, Nienburg/Weser and Verden (Aller). In the extreme north, the city of Bremen
Bremen
The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...
, which is not part of Lower Saxony, has a very important influence on that area of Lower Saxony surrounding it.
For information about the Westphalian part of the Middle Weser Region see also Ostwestfalen-Lippe
Ostwestfalen-Lippe
Ostwestfalen-Lippe , abbreviation OWL, is a region in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a 2,000-years-old history and culture. Ostwestfalen-Lippe is the eastern part of the region of Westphalia, joined with the Lippe region. Translated to English, the name would be East...
and Minden Land
Minden Land
Minden Land is a cultural landscape in East Westphalia, the northeastern part of North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. It covers the four fifths of the district of Minden-Lübbecke that lie on the North German Plain and is clearly bounded to the south by the Weser Hills and Wiehen Hills, where it...
Landscape
The Middle Weser Region is part of the North German PlainNorth German plain
The North German Plain or Northern Lowland is one of the major geographical regions of Germany. It is the German part of the North European Plain...
. On either side of the Weser and its tributaries are broad marsh
Marsh
In geography, a marsh, or morass, is a type of wetland that is subject to frequent or continuous flood. Typically the water is shallow and features grasses, rushes, reeds, typhas, sedges, other herbaceous plants, and moss....
, geest (topography)
Geest (topography)
Geest is a type of slightly raised landscape that occurs in the plains of in Northern Germany, the Northern Netherlands and Denmark. It is a landscape of sandy and gravelly soils, usually mantled by a heathland vegetation, comprising glacial deposits left behind after the last ice age during the...
and bog
Bog
A bog, quagmire or mire is a wetland that accumulates acidic peat, a deposit of dead plant material—often mosses or, in Arctic climates, lichens....
landscapes with original forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
s. Other parts of the region are used for agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
. The southern part of the Middle Weser Region belings to the Middle Weser Valley
Middle Weser Valley
The Middle Weser Valley is part of the Weser Depression around the River Weser on the North German Plain, extending from the gap of Porta Westfalica to the town of Hoya. It is not a true valley, because it is only bordered by low hills at two points...
which is joined by the glacial valley of the Aller
Aller
The Aller is a river, long, in the states of Saxony-Anhalt and Lower Saxony in Germany. It is a right-hand, and hence eastern, tributary of the River Weser and is also its largest tributary. Its last form the Lower Aller federal waterway...
in the north.
Historic territories
- Bishopric of Verden
- Diocese of Minden
- County of Hoya
- Kingdom of HanoverKingdom of HanoverThe 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...
- Duchy of BrunswickDuchy of BrunswickBrunswick was a historical state in Germany. Originally the territory of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel in the Holy Roman Empire, it was established as an independent duchy by the Congress of Vienna in 1815...
- Kingdom of PrussiaKingdom of PrussiaThe Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
- County of WölpeCounty of WölpeThe County of Wölpe was the territorial lordship of a noble family in the Middle Ages in the Middle Weser Region near Nienburg/Weser which folded in 1302. The seat of the counts of Wölpe was the castle site at Erichshagen-Wölpe on the Wölpe stream in the borough of Nienburg in north Germany...
- Bremen-VerdenBremen-VerdenBremen-Verden, formally the Duchies of Bremen and Verden , were two territories and immediate fiefs of the Holy Roman Empire, which emerged and gained Imperial immediacy in 1180...
Cuisine
- FishFishFish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
recipes using fish from the Weser and its tributaries- EelEelEels are an order of fish, which consists of four suborders, 20 families, 111 genera and approximately 800 species. Most eels are predators...
- TroutTroutTrout is the name for a number of species of freshwater and saltwater fish belonging to the Salmoninae subfamily of the family Salmonidae. Salmon belong to the same family as trout. Most salmon species spend almost all their lives in salt water...
- PerchPerchPerch is a common name for fish of the genus Perca, freshwater gamefish belonging to the family Percidae. The perch, of which there are three species in different geographical areas, lend their name to a large order of vertebrates: the Perciformes, from the Greek perke meaning spotted, and the...
- CarpCarpCarp are various species of oily freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae, a very large group of fish native to Europe and Asia. The cypriniformes are traditionally grouped with the Characiformes, Siluriformes and Gymnotiformes to create the superorder Ostariophysi, since these groups have certain...
- Eel
- AsparagusAsparagusAsparagus officinalis is a spring vegetable, a flowering perennialplant species in the genus Asparagus. It was once classified in the lily family, like its Allium cousins, onions and garlic, but the Liliaceae have been split and the onion-like plants are now in the family Amaryllidaceae and...
(Spargel) - PotatoPotatoThe potato is a starchy, tuberous crop from the perennial Solanum tuberosum of the Solanaceae family . The word potato may refer to the plant itself as well as the edible tuber. In the region of the Andes, there are some other closely related cultivated potato species...
s and potato products - Grünkohl and PinkelPinkelPinkel is a smoked Kaszanka , a type of sausage which is eaten with kale in Northwest Germany, especially in the region around Oldenburg, Bremen and Osnabrück as well as in East Frisia and Friesland...
- KnippKnippKnipp is a type of sausage made by mixing meat with grains related to Pinkel which comes from the Bremen and Lower Saxony regions of Germany....
- Mustard (condiment)Mustard (condiment)Mustard is a condiment made from the seeds of a mustard plant...
and vinegarVinegarVinegar is a liquid substance consisting mainly of acetic acid and water, the acetic acid being produced through the fermentation of ethanol by acetic acid bacteria. Commercial vinegar is produced either by fast or slow fermentation processes. Slow methods generally are used with traditional...
from EystrupEystrupEystrup is a municipality in the district of Nienburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the right bank of the Weser, approx. 15 km north of Nienburg, and 15 km south of Verden. Eystrup was the seat of the former Samtgemeinde Eystrup.... - Bilberries (Bickbeeren)
Tourist attractions
- Town centres of Verden (Aller), HoyaHoyaHoya is a genus of 200-300 species of tropical plants in the family Apocynaceae , fomerly considered to be in the Asclepiadaceae...
, Nienburg/Weser, Petershagen and MindenMindenMinden is a town of about 83,000 inhabitants in the north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The town extends along both sides of the river Weser. It is the capital of the Kreis of Minden-Lübbecke, which is part of the region of Detmold. Minden is the historic political centre of the... - Verden Cathedral
- Minden CathedralMinden CathedralMinden Cathedral, dedicated to Saints Gorgonius and Peter, is a Roman Catholic church in the city of Minden, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. From the year 803 AD, when the area was conquered by Charlemagne, it was the center of a diocese and subsequently became the center of a small sovereign...
- Heritage railwayHeritage railwaythumb|right|the Historical [[Khyber train safari|Khyber Railway]] goes through the [[Khyber Pass]], [[Pakistan]]A heritage railway , preserved railway , tourist railway , or tourist railroad is a railway that is run as a tourist attraction, in some cases by volunteers, and...
s of Bruchhausen-VilsenBruchhausen-VilsenBruchhausen-Vilsen is a municipality in the Diepholz district, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated southeast of Bremen. The nearby communities of Berxen, Bruchhöfen, Bruchmühlen, Dille, Gehlbergen, Heiligenberg, Homfeld, Nenndorf, Riethausen, Stapelshorn, Wöpse, Oerdinghausen, Scholen,...
, ThedinghausenThedinghausenThedinghausen is a municipality in the district of Verden, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the left bank of the Weser, approx. 15 km west of Verden, and 20 km southeast of Bremen....
and Verden (Aller) - Car museum in AsendorfAsendorfAsendorf is a municipality in the district of Diepholz, in Lower Saxony, Germany.Asendorf is also very famous for Germany's first Museumseisenbahn. The trac of this train is between Asendorf and Bruchhausen-Vilsen....
- Spa facilities in Bad RehburgBad RehburgBad Rehburg is a former spa resort in the Rehburg Hills in central Germany. Today Bad Rehburg is a village in the borough of Rehburg-Loccum in the south of the district of Nienburg/Weser in Lower Saxony...
- Passenger boats on the Middle Weser
- BückenBückenBücken is a municipality in the district of Nienburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany.-History:An Abbey was established here in Bücken in the year 882 by Rimbert, Archbishop of Bremen...
church - Loccum AbbeyLoccum AbbeyLoccum Abbey is a former Cistercian monastery in the town of Rehburg-Loccum, Lower Saxony, near Steinhude Lake.-History:...
- Erbhof Thedinghausen
- Etelsen Castle
- Petershagen Castle
- Herring fishing museum in Heimsen
- Meyersiek Mill (second oldest mill in Lower Saxony) in SteyerbergSteyerbergSteyerberg is a municipality in the district of Nienburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approx. 15 km southwest of Nienburg, and 30 km north of Minden....
Participating administrative bodies and communal associations
- Bruchhausen-Vilsen (Samtgemeinde)Bruchhausen-Vilsen (Samtgemeinde)Bruchhausen-Vilsen is a Samtgemeinde in the district of Diepholz, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Its seat is in Bruchhausen-Vilsen.The Samtgemeinde Bruchhausen-Vilsen consists of the following municipalities:# Asendorf...
- Eystrup (Samtgemeinde)Eystrup (Samtgemeinde)Eystrup was a Samtgemeinde in the district of Nienburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Its seat was in the village Eystrup. On 1 January 2011, it merged with the Samtgemeinde Grafschaft Hoya....
- Grafschaft Hoya (Samtgemeinde)Grafschaft Hoya (Samtgemeinde)Grafschaft Hoya is a Samtgemeinde in the district of Nienburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Its seat is in the town Hoya. Its name refers to the medieval County of Hoya...
- Heemsen (Samtgemeinde)Heemsen (Samtgemeinde)Heemsen is a Samtgemeinde in the district of Nienburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Its seat is in the village Rohrsen.The Samtgemeinde Heemsen consists of the following municipalities:# Drakenburg# Haßbergen# Heemsen...
- Landesbergen (Samtgemeinde)Landesbergen (Samtgemeinde)Landesbergen is a former Samtgemeinde in the district of Nienburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Its seat was in the village Landesbergen...
- Langwedel
- Liebenau (Samtgemeinde)Liebenau (Samtgemeinde)Liebenau is a Samtgemeinde in the district of Nienburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Its seat is in the village Liebenau.The Samtgemeinde Liebenau consists of the following municipalities:# Binnen# Liebenau# Pennigsehl...
- Marklohe (Samtgemeinde)Marklohe (Samtgemeinde)Marklohe is a Samtgemeinde in the district of Nienburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Its seat is in the village Marklohe.The Samtgemeinde Marklohe consists of the following municipalities:# Balge# Marklohe# Wietzen...
- Nienburg/Weser
- Rehburg-LoccumRehburg-LoccumRehburg-Loccum is a town 50 km north west of Hanover in the district of Nienburg in Lower Saxony, Germany.-Geographical location:Rehburg-Loccum borders the Steinhude Lake...
- Steimbke (Samtgemeinde)Steimbke (Samtgemeinde)Steimbke is a Samtgemeinde in the district of Nienburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Its seat is in the village Steimbke.The Samtgemeinde Steimbke consists of the following municipalities:# Linsburg# Rodewald# Steimbke...
- SteyerbergSteyerbergSteyerberg is a municipality in the district of Nienburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approx. 15 km southwest of Nienburg, and 30 km north of Minden....
- StolzenauStolzenauStolzenau is a municipality in the district of Nienburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the left bank of the Weser, approx. 20 km southwest of Nienburg, and 25 km northeast of Minden.-External links:* * by Norman Streat* *...
- Thedinghausen (Samtgemeinde)Thedinghausen (Samtgemeinde)Thedinghausen is a Samtgemeinde in the district of Verden, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Its seat is in the village Thedinghausen.The Samtgemeinde Thedinghausen consists of the following municipalities:# Blender# Emtinghausen...
- Nienburg district
Other administrative bodies in the Middle Weser Region
- Achim
- DörverdenDörverdenDörverden is a municipality in the district of Verden, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the right bank of the Weser, approx. 8 km south of Verden, and 40 km southeast of Bremen....
- Uchte (Samtgemeinde)Uchte (Samtgemeinde)Uchte is a Samtgemeinde in the district of Nienburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Its seat is in the village Uchte.The Samtgemeinde Uchte consists of the following municipalities:# Diepenau# Raddestorf# Uchte# Warmsen...
- Verden (Aller)
- PetershagenPetershagenPetershagen is a town in the Minden-Lübbecke district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.-Geography:Petershagen is situated on the river Weser, approx...
- MindenMindenMinden is a town of about 83,000 inhabitants in the north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The town extends along both sides of the river Weser. It is the capital of the Kreis of Minden-Lübbecke, which is part of the region of Detmold. Minden is the historic political centre of the...
- Minden-Lübbecke district
- Verden district