Munster, Lower Saxony
Encyclopedia
Munster, also called Munster (Örtze), is a small town in the district of Heidekreis, in Lower Saxony
, Germany
almost equidistant from Hamburg
and Hanover
. The town is home to the German Army's
largest garrison and is situated between the two training areas of Munster North and Munster South
. It is also the fourth largest garrison in the German Armed Forces
. The Bundeswehr
's Research Institute for Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Warfare Defence is located in Munster.
The town's make up is shaped by the soldiers and other government employees who make up the majority of its population, and the surrounding military zones restrict the Munster's growth retaining its rural character.
region along the river Örtze
between the towns of Soltau
and Uelzen
. The Munster military training areas, representing nearly 50% of the city's total area, are reserved for military use. Due to the restricted areas, many rare species and habitats can be found in this region. The region's populations of rare species have been previously drawn upon to restore populations in other regions where such species are endangered.
started the use of this area as a training ground in 1893. The Bundeswehr
re-opened its garrison in Munster in 1956 which was expanded in 1990, and again during the transformation process of the Bundeswehr. Today, Munster is the largest garrison of the German Army.
In 1916, the German Empire opened Gasplatz Breloh ("Breloh Gas Facility"), an area dedicated to research in and production of chemical weapons. After World War I
, the site was closed and the ammunition stored there was removed. In the process of this removal, a whole train of chemical munitions blew up in 1919, the reasons for this disaster never being uncovered. In 1935, the Third Reich reopened the site as an experimental research and production area as well as a bombing range for chemical ammunitions under the name Heeresnebelfüllstelle Raubkammer ("Army fog-filling plant, Raubkammer"), "fog" being used as a synonym for chemical agents. Over the course of World War II
, large quantities of sulphur mustard gas and the new nerve agent, GA, were produced here. At the end of the war, Germany had a continuous production line for GB ready to go online; this plant was dismantled by the British Occupation Forces and later shipped to Porton Down
, Great Britain.
In 1958, the German Bundeswehr again started using the area by founding an agency dedicated to the defence against NBC weapons. As of 2009, this agency has the name "Wehrwissenschaftliches Institut für Schutztechnologien - ABC-Schutz" (WIS)("Bundeswehr Research Institute for Protective Technologies and NBC Protection")
majority.
(as at September 2006)
awarded the then municipality of Munster, in a decree of 4 March 1937, a coat of arms. The coat of arms displayed on a gold field a blue dragon with red claws breathing red fire; above it lay a horizontal silver sword on a blue field. As a result of a petition by the council of the municipality of Munster of 18 April 1967 the District President (Regierungspräsident) in Lüneburg
on 17 May 1967, authorised the field of the 1937 coat of arms to be changed from gold to silver and further authorised a town flag in the colours blue and white to be used.
with: Radcliff
, United States, since 1984 Michurinsk
, Russia, since 1991 Éragny
, France, since 1999
. Firms of trans-regional significance are Meyer Breloh (construction materials and windows) and Abels Consulting and Technology. Munster lies on the B 71
federal road between Soltau
and Uelzen
, not far from the A 7 motorway. The most important public transport link to Bremen
, Hamburg
and Hanover
is Munster station on the old Uelzen–Langwedel railway
, that originally ran as the America Line
from Berlin
via Uelzen
to Bremen
and Bremerhaven
. Today regional trains work the line from Bremen via Soltau to Uelzen. Long distance trains (IC) trains only run on Fridays and Sundays from Berlin
and are geared predominantly to commuting Bundeswehr soldiers. An Intercity
link from Magdeburg
used to run nightly from Sunday to Monday until the timetable change on 9 Dec 2007.
school that focusses on learning support, a secondary modern school, a middle school and a grammar school. The old Breloh Primary School (Breloh is a suburb of Munster) has become a satellite of Am Süllberg Primary School in the Örtze valley due to dwindling school numbers.
, 6,675 soldiers and their families have been stationed in Munster. Together with the trainees at the training centre there is a total of about 10,000 soldiers. Munster is often called the "showcase of the German Army
" due to the training centre, the many training demonstrations - some open to the public - and the testing of new equipment and new tactics.
Since 2006 three battalions of officer cadets have been subordinated to the Munster Training Centre. In the course of Bundeswehr transformation the basic training for all officer cadets was centralised so that one third are now trained in Munster.
tested chemical warfare
agents on the Gasplatz Breloh. These were first deployed operationally in 1915 on the Western Front
. In October 1919 during disarmament activity after the end of the war a goods train laden with weapons exploded. With the establishment of the Raubkammer Military Testing Site (Heeresversuchsstelle Raubkammer) at Munster North Training Area, the Wehrmacht
started testing chemical weapons again in 1935 and ran a pilot site for the production of tabun
and sarin
. After the Second World War these facilities were blown up by the British forces
; this however led to contamination. After the Bundeswehr took over Munster North Training Area, a testing facility for NBC defence was established from which the Wehrwissenschaftliches Institut für Schutztechnologien – ABC-Schutz emerged. Since 1982 the WWD has operated an incineration site for the disposal of the large amount of contamination that resulted from the work on chemical weapons. Since 17 December 1997 the operation of this and a second incineration site has been organised by Gesellschaft zur Entsorgung chemischer Kampfstoffe und Rüstungs-Altlasten (GEKA mbH), a company under private law that is 100 percent owned by the Federation. These facilities are certified by international arms control treaties.
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...
, Germany
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...
almost equidistant from Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
and Hanover
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
. The town is home to the German Army's
German Army
The German Army is the land component of the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. Following the disbanding of the Wehrmacht after World War II, it was re-established in 1955 as the Bundesheer, part of the newly formed West German Bundeswehr along with the Navy and the Air Force...
largest garrison and is situated between the two training areas of Munster North and Munster South
Munster Training Area
Munster Training Area is a military training area in Germany on the Lüneburg Heath. It comprises two separate areas with different purposes: Munster North and Munster South . The two areas are separated geographically by the town of Munster and several barracks...
. It is also the fourth largest garrison in the German Armed Forces
Bundeswehr
The Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
. The Bundeswehr
Bundeswehr
The Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
's Research Institute for Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Warfare Defence is located in Munster.
The town's make up is shaped by the soldiers and other government employees who make up the majority of its population, and the surrounding military zones restrict the Munster's growth retaining its rural character.
Geography
Munster is situated in the central Lüneburg HeathLüneburg 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...
region along the river Örtze
Örtze
The Örtze is a river in the North German state of Lower Saxony, which rises north of Munster in the Große Heide and, after , joins the Aller southeast of Winsen.- Source and course :...
between the towns of Soltau
Soltau
- Middle Ages :The region of the Lüneburg Heath had already been settled by the start of the New Stone Age about 4,000 years ago. The Soltau area was initially occupied by a few individual farms. The parish of Soltau was probably founded around 830 and the first wooden church Sante Johannis...
and Uelzen
Uelzen
Uelzen is a town in northeast Lower Saxony, Germany, and capital of the county of Uelzen. It is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, a Hanseatic town and an independent municipality....
. The Munster military training areas, representing nearly 50% of the city's total area, are reserved for military use. Due to the restricted areas, many rare species and habitats can be found in this region. The region's populations of rare species have been previously drawn upon to restore populations in other regions where such species are endangered.
History
The first recorded mention of Munster was in 1252. An Imperial German battalion under the command of future President of the German Reich Paul von HindenburgPaul von Hindenburg
Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg , known universally as Paul von Hindenburg was a Prussian-German field marshal, statesman, and politician, and served as the second President of Germany from 1925 to 1934....
started the use of this area as a training ground in 1893. The Bundeswehr
Bundeswehr
The Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
re-opened its garrison in Munster in 1956 which was expanded in 1990, and again during the transformation process of the Bundeswehr. Today, Munster is the largest garrison of the German Army.
In 1916, the German Empire opened Gasplatz Breloh ("Breloh Gas Facility"), an area dedicated to research in and production of chemical weapons. After World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, the site was closed and the ammunition stored there was removed. In the process of this removal, a whole train of chemical munitions blew up in 1919, the reasons for this disaster never being uncovered. In 1935, the Third Reich reopened the site as an experimental research and production area as well as a bombing range for chemical ammunitions under the name Heeresnebelfüllstelle Raubkammer ("Army fog-filling plant, Raubkammer"), "fog" being used as a synonym for chemical agents. Over the course of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, large quantities of sulphur mustard gas and the new nerve agent, GA, were produced here. At the end of the war, Germany had a continuous production line for GB ready to go online; this plant was dismantled by the British Occupation Forces and later shipped to Porton Down
Porton Down
Porton Down is a United Kingdom government and military science park. It is situated slightly northeast of Porton near Salisbury in Wiltshire, England. To the northwest lies the MoD Boscombe Down test range facility which is operated by QinetiQ...
, Great Britain.
In 1958, the German Bundeswehr again started using the area by founding an agency dedicated to the defence against NBC weapons. As of 2009, this agency has the name "Wehrwissenschaftliches Institut für Schutztechnologien - ABC-Schutz" (WIS)("Bundeswehr Research Institute for Protective Technologies and NBC Protection")
Politics
Munster is traditionally held by a CDUChristian Democratic Union (Germany)
The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum...
majority.
Town council
- CDU 17 seats
- SPD 7 seats
- FDP 2 seat
(as at September 2006)
Coat of arms
The Oberpräsident of the Province of HanoverProvince of Hanover
The Province of Hanover was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia from 1868 to 1946.During the Austro-Prussian War, the Kingdom of Hanover had attempted to maintain a neutral position, along with some other member states of the German Confederation...
awarded the then municipality of Munster, in a decree of 4 March 1937, a coat of arms. The coat of arms displayed on a gold field a blue dragon with red claws breathing red fire; above it lay a horizontal silver sword on a blue field. As a result of a petition by the council of the municipality of Munster of 18 April 1967 the District President (Regierungspräsident) in Lüneburg
Lüneburg
Lüneburg is a town in the German state of Lower Saxony. It is located about southeast of fellow Hanseatic city Hamburg. It is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, and one of Hamburg's inner suburbs...
on 17 May 1967, authorised the field of the 1937 coat of arms to be changed from gold to silver and further authorised a town flag in the colours blue and white to be used.
Twin towns — sister cities
Munster is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with: Radcliff
Radcliff, Kentucky
Radcliff is a city in Hardin County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 21,961 at the 2000 census. It is included in the Elizabethtown, Kentucky Metropolitan Statistical Area....
, United States, since 1984 Michurinsk
Michurinsk
Michurinsk , before 1932—Kozlov , is the second most populous town in Tambov Oblast, Russia. Population: It was founded in 1635 at the northern end of the emerging Belgorod Line. A 25-km earthen wall was built eastward across the open steppe effectively blocking the Nogai Trail, a Tatar raiding...
, Russia, since 1991 Éragny
Éragny, Val-d'Oise
Éragny is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris, in the "new town" of Cergy-Pontoise, created in the 1960s.Inhabitants are called Éragniens....
, France, since 1999
Main sights
- German Tank Museum, (Deutsches Panzermuseum) - Germany's largest armoured fighting vehicle museum
- St. Urban's Church (St.-Urbani-Kirche) - a 13th century church
- The Ollershof is a free open-air museum
- St.Martin's sheep pen church is an old sheep pen that was converted to a church
- Town library
- St. Stephen's Military Church (St.-Stephanus-Militärkirche) - the only church allocated to an entirely military parish in Germany and the highest building in Munster
- Lower Saxony Spring (Niedersachsenbrunnen) - with 8 horses, that symbolise the formerly independent parishes in the borough, by Jos Pirkner (1991)
Economy
The largest economic factor and employer in Munster is the BundeswehrBundeswehr
The Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
. Firms of trans-regional significance are Meyer Breloh (construction materials and windows) and Abels Consulting and Technology. Munster lies on the B 71
Bundesstraße 71
The Bundesstraße 71 is one of the longer German federal roads numbered in the 60s and 70s series. It begins at the B 6 in Bremerhaven by the Unterweser and ends in Könnern near Halle in Saxony-Anhalt...
federal road between Soltau
Soltau
- Middle Ages :The region of the Lüneburg Heath had already been settled by the start of the New Stone Age about 4,000 years ago. The Soltau area was initially occupied by a few individual farms. The parish of Soltau was probably founded around 830 and the first wooden church Sante Johannis...
and Uelzen
Uelzen
Uelzen is a town in northeast Lower Saxony, Germany, and capital of the county of Uelzen. It is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, a Hanseatic town and an independent municipality....
, not far from the A 7 motorway. The most important public transport link to 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...
, Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
and Hanover
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
is Munster station on the old Uelzen–Langwedel railway
Uelzen–Langwedel railway
The Uelzen–Langwedel railway runs through the Lüneburg Heath in north Germany in an east-west direction.- Imperial era :The Bremen State Railway, as it was first called, was originally built by the Bremen Senate and opened in 1873. It runs from Lower Saxon Langwedel eastwards through the Lüneburg...
, that originally ran as the America Line
America Line
The America Line is the unofficial name of a railway line in northern Germany which is mainly of regional importance today...
from Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
via Uelzen
Uelzen
Uelzen is a town in northeast Lower Saxony, Germany, and capital of the county of Uelzen. It is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, a Hanseatic town and an independent municipality....
to 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...
and Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven is a city at the seaport of the free city-state of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany. It forms an enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the River Weser on its eastern bank, opposite the town of Nordenham...
. Today regional trains work the line from Bremen via Soltau to Uelzen. Long distance trains (IC) trains only run on Fridays and Sundays from Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
and are geared predominantly to commuting Bundeswehr soldiers. An Intercity
Intercity (Deutsche Bahn)
Intercity is the second-highest train classification in Germany, after the ICE. Intercity services are loco-hauled express services, usually over long-distances. There are Intercity routes throughout Germany, and routes generally operate with a two-hour frequency, with multiple routes giving a more...
link from Magdeburg
Magdeburg
Magdeburg , is the largest city and the capital city of the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Magdeburg is situated on the Elbe River and was one of the most important medieval cities of Europe....
used to run nightly from Sunday to Monday until the timetable change on 9 Dec 2007.
Education
Since 2008/09 Munster has had 2 primary schools, a special needsSpecial needs
In the USA, special needs is a term used in clinical diagnostic and functional development to describe individuals who require assistance for disabilities that may be medical, mental, or psychological. For instance, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and the International...
school that focusses on learning support, a secondary modern school, a middle school and a grammar school. The old Breloh Primary School (Breloh is a suburb of Munster) has become a satellite of Am Süllberg Primary School in the Örtze valley due to dwindling school numbers.
Military
Munster is the fourth largest garrison in the Bundeswehr. Since 2007, in the wake of the transformation of the BundeswehrBundeswehr
The Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
, 6,675 soldiers and their families have been stationed in Munster. Together with the trainees at the training centre there is a total of about 10,000 soldiers. Munster is often called the "showcase of the German Army
German Army
The German Army is the land component of the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. Following the disbanding of the Wehrmacht after World War II, it was re-established in 1955 as the Bundesheer, part of the newly formed West German Bundeswehr along with the Navy and the Air Force...
" due to the training centre, the many training demonstrations - some open to the public - and the testing of new equipment and new tactics.
Since 2006 three battalions of officer cadets have been subordinated to the Munster Training Centre. In the course of Bundeswehr transformation the basic training for all officer cadets was centralised so that one third are now trained in Munster.
Chemical contamination
During the First World War the German militaryGerman Army (German Empire)
The German Army was the name given the combined land forces of the German Empire, also known as the National Army , Imperial Army or Imperial German Army. The term "Deutsches Heer" is also used for the modern German Army, the land component of the German Bundeswehr...
tested chemical warfare
Chemical warfare
Chemical warfare involves using the toxic properties of chemical substances as weapons. This type of warfare is distinct from Nuclear warfare and Biological warfare, which together make up NBC, the military acronym for Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical...
agents on the Gasplatz Breloh. These were first deployed operationally in 1915 on the Western Front
Western Front (World War I)
Following the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the German Army opened the Western Front by first invading Luxembourg and Belgium, then gaining military control of important industrial regions in France. The tide of the advance was dramatically turned with the Battle of the Marne...
. In October 1919 during disarmament activity after the end of the war a goods train laden with weapons exploded. With the establishment of the Raubkammer Military Testing Site (Heeresversuchsstelle Raubkammer) at Munster North Training Area, the Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
started testing chemical weapons again in 1935 and ran a pilot site for the production of tabun
Tabun
Tabun may refer to:* Tabun Cave, a cave near Tabun, Israel where remains of Neanderthal Man were found.* A tabun oven, a clay oven used to make tabun bread...
and sarin
Sarin
Sarin, or GB, is an organophosphorus compound with the formula [2CHO]CH3PF. It is a colorless, odorless liquid, which is used as a chemical weapon. It has been classified as a weapon of mass destruction in UN Resolution 687...
. After the Second World War these facilities were blown up by the British forces
British Armed Forces
The British Armed Forces are the armed forces of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.Also known as Her Majesty's Armed Forces and sometimes legally the Armed Forces of the Crown, the British Armed Forces encompasses three professional uniformed services, the Royal Navy, the...
; this however led to contamination. After the Bundeswehr took over Munster North Training Area, a testing facility for NBC defence was established from which the Wehrwissenschaftliches Institut für Schutztechnologien – ABC-Schutz emerged. Since 1982 the WWD has operated an incineration site for the disposal of the large amount of contamination that resulted from the work on chemical weapons. Since 17 December 1997 the operation of this and a second incineration site has been organised by Gesellschaft zur Entsorgung chemischer Kampfstoffe und Rüstungs-Altlasten (GEKA mbH), a company under private law that is 100 percent owned by the Federation. These facilities are certified by international arms control treaties.
Personalities
- Clemens Neuhaus (1927–1991), a painter specialising in the Lüneburg Heath
- Lars Klingbeil (* 1978), politician (SPD), MdB
External links
- www.munsterlager.com Old views of Munster