Zeven | |
|---|---|
 Queen Christina House in Zeven, Germany | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
Location of within Rotenburg district  | |
 Location of | |
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| Coordinates:53°18′N9°17′E / 53.300°N 9.283°E /53.300; 9.283 | |
| Country | Germany |
| State | Lower Saxony |
| District | Rotenburg |
| Municipal assoc. | Zeven |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Hans-Joachim Jaap (CDU) |
| Area | |
• Total | 74.13 km2 (28.62 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 24 m (79 ft) |
| Population (2023-12-31)[1] | |
• Total | 14,376 |
| • Density | 193.9/km2 (502.3/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| Postal codes | 27404 |
| Dialling codes | 04281 |
| Vehicle registration | ROW, BRV |
| Website | www.zeven.de |
Zeven (German pronunciation:[ˈtseːvn̩]ⓘ) is a town in thedistrict of Rotenburg, inLower Saxony,Germany. It has a population of around 14,000. The nearest large towns areBremerhaven,Bremen andHamburg. It is situated approximately 22 km northwest ofRotenburg, and 40 km northeast of Bremen. Zeven is also the seat of theSamtgemeinde ("collective municipality")Zeven.
Zeven is located in theZevener Geest in the centrum of theElbe-Weser Triangle. The closest major city is Hamburg.
In 986 Zeven was first mentioned in a document of the BenedictineZeven Convent [de] inHeeslingen, then giving its name askivinan à Heeslingen (Kivinan near Heeslingen). In 1141 theconvent was relocated to Zeven. The convent played a determining role in Zeven's history. Zeven belonged to the oldDuchy of Saxony and at its dissolution in 1180 Zeven became a part of the newly foundedPrince-Archbishopric of Bremen, the princely territory ofimperial immediacy ruled by the respective holder of thearchiepiscopal see of Bremen. During theProtestant Reformation the majority of the nun clung toCatholicism, while most laymen adoptedLutheranism.
In the course of theThirty Years' War troops of theCatholic League underJohan 't Serclaes, Count of Tilly conquered the Prince-Archbishopric in 1627/1628. The Leaguist takeover enabledFerdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor, to implement theEdict of Restitution, decreed March 6, 1629, within thePrince-Archbishopric of Bremen and thePrince-Bishopric of Verden. The convent of Zeven - still maintaining Roman Catholic rite - became the local stronghold for a reCatholicisation within the scope ofCounter-Reformation. The nuns, who had converted to Lutheranism, were then expelled from the convent.
In 1632 troops of the legitimate ruler of the Prince-Archbishopric, AdministratorJohn Frederick, helped by troops from Sweden and the city of Bremen, reconquered the Prince-Archbishopric. The convent was dissolved. By thePeace of Westphalia the Prince-Archbishopric was transformed into theDuchy of Bremen in 1648, which - together with thePrincipality of Verden - was first given as a prey for its participation in the Thirty Years' War to be ruled inpersonal union by the Swedish Crown. These two imperial fiefs to the Swedes are thus colloquially calledBremen-Verden. The queen regnantChristina of Sweden, in personal union Duchess of Bremen and Princess of Verden installed in the two latter functions her residence in today'sQueen Christina House in Zeven, the oldest remaining profane building in town.
As inSweden proper, the constitutional and administrative bodies in the Swedish dominions gradually lost de facto importance due to ever growing centralisation.Bremen-Verden'sEstates lost more and more influence, and were less frequently convened. After 1692 the Estates' say had almost vanished.[2] This led to considerable unease among the Estates, so that in May 1694 representatives of Swedish Bremen-Verden'sgeneral government and the Estates met at the former convent of Zeven to confer on the status of the Duchies.
After a Danish occupation (1712-1715) the Duchy of Bremen was sold to theHouse of Hanover, and thus became ruled in personal union with theElectorate of Hanover and theKingdom of Great Britain. In the course of the Anglo-French and Indian War (1754–63) on North American coloniesBritain feared a French invasion inHanover. ThusGeorge II Augustus formed an alliance with hisBrandenburg-Prussian cousinFrederick II,the Great combining the North American conflict with the Austro–Brandenburg-PrussianSeven Years' War (1756–63). In summer 1757 the French invaders defeatedGeorge II Augustus' sonWilliam Duke of Cumberland, leading theAnglo-Hanoverian army, and drove him and his army into remoteBremen-Verden, where in the former cloister of Zeven he had to capitulate on September 18 (Convention of Klosterzeven). ButGeorge II Augustus denied his recognition of the convention.
With British Hanover's defeat in theNapoléonic Wars the short-livedKingdom of Westphalia annexed the Duchy of Bremen in 1807, including Zeven, beforeFrance annexed it in 1810. In 1813 the Duchy was restored to theElectorate of Hanover, which - after its upgrade to theKingdom of Hanover in 1814 (and still ruled in personal union with theUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland) - incorporated the Duchy in areal union and the ducal territory, including Zeven, became part of theStade Region, established in 1823. In 1824/1825Carl Friedrich Gauß carried out the trigonometricgeodetic surveying of the Stade Region, as commissioned by KingGeorge IV of Hanover and the United Kingdom. Gauß used the tower of the Lutheran Church of St. Viti as abenchmark for histriangulations.
Local businesses include the head office of the recently createdDMK dairy combine (before 2011Nordmilch), producing milk based products such asquark under the well known (throughoutGermany) "Milram" label.
Zeven was the site of aDECCA transmitter. Close to its masts, there is also anFM-broadcasting station, using a 100-metre-tall (330 ft) guyed mast.
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