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Verden (Aller) | |
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.svg) Flag _COA.svg) Coat of arms | |
Location of Verden (Aller) within Verden district  | |
 Location of Verden (Aller) | |
  Verden (Aller)  Verden (Aller) | |
| Coordinates:52°55′24″N9°14′06″E / 52.92333°N 9.23500°E /52.92333; 9.23500 | |
| Country | Germany |
| State | Lower Saxony |
| District | Verden |
| Subdivisions | 7 districts |
| Government | |
| • Mayor(2019–24) | Lutz Brockmann[1] (SPD) |
| Area | |
• Total | 71.7 km2 (27.7 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 20 m (66 ft) |
| Population (2023-12-31)[2] | |
• Total | 28,453 |
| • Density | 397/km2 (1,030/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| Postal codes | 27283 |
| Dialling codes | 04231 |
| Vehicle registration | VER |
| Website | www.verden.de |
Verden an der Aller (German:[ˈfeːɐ̯dn̩ʔandɐˈʔalɐ]ⓘ;Northern Low Saxon:Veern), also calledVerden (Aller) or simplyVerden, is a town inLower Saxony, Germany, on the riverAller. It is thedistrict town of the district of Verden in Lower Saxony and an independent municipality (de:Selbständige Gemeinde). The town is located in the middleWeser region on the Aller river immediately before it flows into the Weser. As a center ofhorse breeding andequestrian sports, it bears the nickname "equestrian town". The suffix "Aller" was introduced at a time when the name "Verden" was also common for the French town ofVerdun in the German-speaking area. The town name comes from "ford" or "ferry". The town was conveniently located at a ford through the Aller river, near an important trade route.
Verden is famous for a massacre ofSaxons in 782, committed on the orders ofCharlemagne (theMassacre of Verden), for its cathedral, and for its horse-breeding.
In the Early Middle Ages (year 782) there was a massacre of allegedly 4,500Saxons, by order of Charlemagne because of their involvement in a preceding uprising. Verden was then within theDuchy of Saxony.
After in 1180 a coalition of EmperorFrederick I Barbarossa and his allies had defeated the then Saxo-Bavarian DukeHenry the Lion. Henry was subsequently stripped of his duchies. Saxony was divided among the imperial coalitionaries and so the Catholic Bishop of Verden gainedimperial immediacy for parts of his diocesan territory, thus establishing thePrince-Bishopric of Verden.
On 12 March 1259 Prince-Bishop Gerhard of Verden granted the placetown privileges following the Bremian version ofGerman town law. In the 15th century Verden gained considerable independence as aFree Imperial City, immediately under the emperors (imperial immediacy), circumventing its former overlords the prince-bishops, who still held the cathedral and pertaining premises in town as acathedral immunity district.
By thePeace of Westphalia the city of Verden wasmediatised as regular city again within the Prince-Bishopric of Verden, which was transformed by the same contract into thePrincipality of Verden in May 1648. The northern city (with the town hall and St. John's church) and the southern town (with theproto-cathedral) were then united to form one city.
In 1675, during theSwedish-Brandenburg War, Verden was conquered by several states of the Holy Roman Empire and Denmark following theBremen-Verden Campaign and remained in allied hands until the end of the war in 1679. In the wake of theTreaty of Saint-Germain in 1679, Verden was returned to Sweden.
The Principality of Verden was first ruled inpersonal union by the Swedish Crown – interrupted by a Danish occupation (1712–1715) – and from 1715 on by theHanoverian Crown. TheKingdom of Hanover incorporated the principality in areal union and the princely territory, including Verden upon Aller, became part of the newStade Region, established in 1823.
Until theSecond World War, Verden was renowned for its trade and crafts and also its mounted division. During the Nazi regime forced-labourers were used in a furniture factory in Verden. Between 1945 and 1949 Verden was part of the British zone of occupation. Refugees from the formerPrussian provinces ofEast Prussia,Pomerania andSilesia, settled in and around the town.
With the labour immigration from the EastGerman Democratic Republic inhibited by theBerlin Wall foreign workers (Gastarbeiter) started to arrive from southern Europe andAnatolia in the 1960s. After the fall ofCommunism more immigrants arrived from Eastern Europe.
From 1945 until 1960, the5th Division, of theBritish Army of the Rhine, was stationed in Verden. In 1960, the division was renamed as the1st Division (later 1st Armoured Division). One of the former British barracks is now used to house theKreisverwaltung (district administration) and a new sporting stadium has been erected opposite. The second barracks has been demolished to make way for a new residential estate.
Verden is located in the German state ofLower Saxony, on the riverAller. It is the administrative centre of the district ofVerden. The nearest large cities are Bremen (35 km or 22 mi) and Hannover (90 km or 56 mi).
The old town lies east of the Aller. The Lutheran cathedral (German:Dom) is known as theDom zu Verden [de] and towers above the pedestrianised high street, with its cafés and shops. Thisproto-cathedral, consecrated to Ss. Mary and Cecilia, served the former Catholic Diocese of Verden as episcopal church and was built between the 12th and 15th centuries. Other noteworthy buildings include the Lutheran churches of St. John and of St. Andrew, as well as the town hall and theDomherrenhaus (House of cathedral canons).
Verden is further renowned for horse racing and sport horse auctions and is thus also called the (horse) riding town (German:Reiterstadt).
East of Verden, there is the 225 metres (738 ft) tall radio transmitter,Sender Verden [de], used byDeutsche Telekom primarily for TV and mobile phone broadcasting.
in 2009, the derelict fodder silo towering over the town won the prize of being "The ugliest wall in North Germany" in a Radio Bremen Vier competition. The prize was to be decorated with a large mural by Graffiti Artists Markus Genesius and Stefan of WOW123. The mural can now be seen above the town skyline.
Mars Petcare has its largest pet food factory in Europe, with a large research centre similar to theWaltham Petcare Science Institute in the UK.
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(in German)
Verden an der Aller travel guide from Wikivoyage| Prince-bishops |  | ||||||
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1 from 1648 2 until 1648 3 without seat inImperial Diet ? status uncertain Circles est. 1500:Bavarian,Swabian,Upper Rhenish,Lower Rhenish–Westphalian,Franconian,(Lower) Saxon
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