Otterndorf
Encyclopedia
Otterndorf is a town
on the coast of the North Sea
in the region of Lower Saxony
, Germany
, and is part of the Samtgemeinde Land Hadeln
. The town is at the mouth of the river Medem on part of the Elbe
delta in the district Cuxhaven
. Otterndorf possesses many half timbered house in the old part of town which are worth seeing.
Otterndorf is twinned with the town of Sheringham
in the English county of Norfolk
.
and after its de facto dynastic partition in 1296 of the Duchy of Saxe-Lauenburg, established de jure in 1260. The first written evidence of the town of Otterndorf dates from the year 1261 in a document written by Godefridus
who was a Priest. In 1400 Otterndorf was granted city rights by Eric IV, Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg
.
In 1728 Emperor Charles VI
enfeoffed the George II Augustus
and his House of Hanover
in personal union
with the reverted fief of Saxe-Lauenburg. By a redeployment of Hanoverian territories in 1731 the Hanoverian Duchies of Bremen and Verden
were conveyed the administration of the neighboured Land of Hadeln. The Kingdom of Hanover
incorporated the Land of Hadeln in a real union
and its territory, including Otterndorf, became part of the new Stade Region
, established in 1823.
One of Otterndorf’s prominent buildings is in the oldest part of the town and is called the Crane
House. This building dates from 1735 although its present façade
dates from the later year of 1760. Once owned by the Radiek family the building was the focal point of this successful family business. The family traded in Wine
, Salt
and other spice
s. The Crane effigy on the top of the house from which the building gets its name was put there by Elizabeth Radiek in memory of her late husband.
The Crane house, now is the location of a museum
dedicated the country life of Hadeln
, as well as a local history archive.
Another old building in the town is the Latin
school. This unusual building dates from 1614. For many years this school provide the only education for the children of the Hadler farmers and Otterndorf citizens who could not afford to send their children to fee charging schools. The building once boasted a bell
which hung from a roof timber on the front but has unfortunately over the years been lost. The Headmaster of the school from 1778 until 1792 was the German poet and translator Johann Heinrich Voss.
In many of the Brick
gables of the old buildings of the town, there has been incorporated into the brickwork the patterned shape of a witches
broom
. The superstitious residence of the town believed the “Thunder Broom” would ward of evil
spirits and forces.
Other prominent buildings in the town include:-
A British
cargo
ship by the name of SS Kaffraria
owned by Bailey & Leetham of Hull
ran aground at Otterndorf on 7 January 1891. The ship had a cargo of general export goods such as kitchen utensils, children’s toys, bundles of wool, hand tools and all kinds of domestic appliances. This precious cargo was very swiftly removed by the local residents by both legal and illegal methods. The ship sank during the evening of 8 January. The wreck became a threat to shipping and in 1984 the wreck was removed. The stern
of the ship with the rudder and screw can be seen today at Otterndorf.
style which dates from 1649. There is also a pulpit
which incorporates a gallery, both are highly decorated and date from 1644. The present church organ was built by Christoph Dietrich Gloger in 1740 and was restored in 1976. The church has a sermon chair that is decorated with biblical figures and was constructed in 1661 by Jurgen heydtmann. The Font is made from solid bronze and dates from the middle of the 14th century.
or Degen of a knight
by the name of Macke. The legend of this relic comes from the time of witch burnings in the town of Otterndorf. The Knight
was in the service of a middle prince away from Hadeln, but the knight had learnt that his mother back in Otterndorf had been accused of witchcraft
, found guilty, and so was to be burnt at the stake at the east gate of the town. The knight, who knew his mother was no witch, hurried back to seek a pardon from the Duke of Lauenburg
, with whom he was in good favor. The duke
, who appreciated the merits of the knight, granted a written pardon for his mother. The knight with haste rode fast to Otterndorf only to arrive too late to save his mother. Full of pain and heartache, the knight in his despair thrust the rapier into his chest and killed himself. The citizens of the town, realizing the mistake they had made, hung the blood soaked sword
in the church, and the town never burnt a witch again.
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
on the coast of 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...
in the region of 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...
, 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...
, and is part of the Samtgemeinde Land Hadeln
Land Hadeln (Samtgemeinde)
Land Hadeln is a Samtgemeinde in the district of Cuxhaven, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Its seat is in the town Otterndorf...
. The town is at the mouth of the river Medem on part of the Elbe
Elbe
The Elbe is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Krkonoše Mountains of the northwestern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia , then Germany and flowing into the North Sea at Cuxhaven, 110 km northwest of Hamburg...
delta in the district Cuxhaven
Cuxhaven (district)
Cuxhaven is a district in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is bounded by the districts of Stade, Rotenburg, Osterholz and Wesermarsch, the city of Bremerhaven and the North Sea.- History :...
. Otterndorf possesses many half timbered house in the old part of town which are worth seeing.
Otterndorf is twinned with the town of Sheringham
Sheringham
Sheringham is a seaside town in Norfolk, England, west of Cromer.The motto of the town, granted in 1953 to the Sheringham Urban District Council, is Mare Ditat Pinusque Decorat, Latin for "The sea enriches and the pine adorns"....
in the English county of Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
.
History
Otterndorf belongs to the Land of Hadeln, first an exclave of the younger Duchy of SaxonySaxe-Wittenberg
The Duchy of Saxe-Wittenberg was a medieval duchy of the Holy Roman Empire centered at Wittenberg, which emerged after the dissolution of the stem duchy of Saxony. As the precursor of the Saxon Electorate, the Ascanian Wittenberg dukes prevailed in obtaining the Saxon electoral dignity.-Ascanian...
and after its de facto dynastic partition in 1296 of the Duchy of Saxe-Lauenburg, established de jure in 1260. The first written evidence of the town of Otterndorf dates from the year 1261 in a document written by Godefridus
Gottfried Hagen
Gottfried Hagen was town clerk of Cologne and author of the Cologne Reimchronik .Hagen was born in Xanten and educated at the Stiftsschule . He filled many influential positions, and took an active part in the public life of his native city...
who was a Priest. In 1400 Otterndorf was granted city rights by Eric IV, Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg
Duchy of Saxe-Lauenburg
The Duchy of Saxe-Lauenburg between the 14th and 17th centuries), later also known as the Duchy of Lauenburg, was a reichsfrei duchy that existed 1296–1803 and 1814–1876 in the extreme southeast region of what is now Schleswig-Holstein...
.
In 1728 Emperor Charles VI
Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles VI was the penultimate Habsburg sovereign of the Habsburg Empire. He succeeded his elder brother, Joseph I, as Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia , Hungary and Croatia , Archduke of Austria, etc., in 1711...
enfeoffed the George II Augustus
George II of Great Britain
George II was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Archtreasurer and Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 11 June 1727 until his death.George was the last British monarch born outside Great Britain. He was born and brought up in Northern Germany...
and his House of Hanover
House of Hanover
The House of Hanover is a deposed German royal dynasty which has ruled the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg , the Kingdom of Hanover, the Kingdom of Great Britain, the Kingdom of Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
in personal union
Personal union
A personal union is the combination by which two or more different states have the same monarch while their boundaries, their laws and their interests remain distinct. It should not be confused with a federation which is internationally considered a single state...
with the reverted fief of Saxe-Lauenburg. By a redeployment of Hanoverian territories in 1731 the Hanoverian Duchies of Bremen and Verden
Bremen-Verden
Bremen-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...
were conveyed the administration of the neighboured Land of Hadeln. The Kingdom of Hanover
Kingdom of Hanover
The 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...
incorporated the Land of Hadeln in a real union
Real union
Real union is a union of two or more states, which share some state institutions as in contrast to personal unions; however they are not as unified as states in a political union...
and its territory, including Otterndorf, became part of the new Stade Region
Stade (region)
The Stade Region emerged in 1823 by an administrative reorganisation of the dominions of the Kingdom of Hanover, a sovereign state, whose then territory is almost completely part of today's German federal state of Lower Saxony...
, established in 1823.
The Crane House
Crane (machine)
A crane is a type of machine, generally equipped with a hoist, wire ropes or chains, and sheaves, that can be used both to lift and lower materials and to move them horizontally. It uses one or more simple machines to create mechanical advantage and thus move loads beyond the normal capability of...
House. This building dates from 1735 although its present façade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
dates from the later year of 1760. Once owned by the Radiek family the building was the focal point of this successful family business. The family traded in Wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
, Salt
Salt
In chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...
and other spice
Spice
A spice is a dried seed, fruit, root, bark, or vegetative substance used in nutritionally insignificant quantities as a food additive for flavor, color, or as a preservative that kills harmful bacteria or prevents their growth. It may be used to flavour a dish or to hide other flavours...
s. The Crane effigy on the top of the house from which the building gets its name was put there by Elizabeth Radiek in memory of her late husband.
The Crane house, now is the location of a museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
dedicated the country life of Hadeln
Hadeln
Hadeln is a former Samtgemeinde in the district of Cuxhaven, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It was situated in the Land of Hadeln near the mouth of the river Elbe, approximately 15 km east of Cuxhaven. Its seat was in the town Otterndorf...
, as well as a local history archive.
Another old building in the town is the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
school. This unusual building dates from 1614. For many years this school provide the only education for the children of the Hadler farmers and Otterndorf citizens who could not afford to send their children to fee charging schools. The building once boasted a bell
Bell (instrument)
A bell is a simple sound-making device. The bell is a percussion instrument and an idiophone. Its form is usually a hollow, cup-shaped object, which resonates upon being struck...
which hung from a roof timber on the front but has unfortunately over the years been lost. The Headmaster of the school from 1778 until 1792 was the German poet and translator Johann Heinrich Voss.
In many of the Brick
Brick
A brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:...
gables of the old buildings of the town, there has been incorporated into the brickwork the patterned shape of a witches
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
broom
Broom
A broom is a cleaning tool consisting of stiff fibers attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. It is thus a variety of brush with a long handle. It is commonly used in combination with a dustpan....
. The superstitious residence of the town believed the “Thunder Broom” would ward of evil
Evil
Evil is the violation of, or intent to violate, some moral code. Evil is usually seen as the dualistic opposite of good. Definitions of evil vary along with analysis of its root motive causes, however general actions commonly considered evil include: conscious and deliberate wrongdoing,...
spirits and forces.
Other prominent buildings in the town include:-
- The Yellow Baroque House, which until 1768 was the home of the Courthouse Director.
- The City Hall, recentally restored and inside can be seen an oil paintings by Karl Otto Matthaei, Carl Long and Karl Hein.
The sinking of SS Kaffraria
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
cargo
Cargo
Cargo is goods or produce transported, generally for commercial gain, by ship, aircraft, train, van or truck. In modern times, containers are used in most intermodal long-haul cargo transport.-Marine:...
ship by the name of SS Kaffraria
SS Kaffraria
SS Kaffraria was a British cargo owned by Bailey & Leetham of Hull. She was built in 1864 by J. Laing & Son, Ltd, of Sunderland. She was originally built for the shipping company Ryrie & Co of London who sold her to Bailey & leetham in 1871-Composition:...
owned by Bailey & Leetham of Hull
Kingston upon Hull
Kingston upon Hull , usually referred to as Hull, is a city and unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Hull at its junction with the Humber estuary, 25 miles inland from the North Sea. Hull has a resident population of...
ran aground at Otterndorf on 7 January 1891. The ship had a cargo of general export goods such as kitchen utensils, children’s toys, bundles of wool, hand tools and all kinds of domestic appliances. This precious cargo was very swiftly removed by the local residents by both legal and illegal methods. The ship sank during the evening of 8 January. The wreck became a threat to shipping and in 1984 the wreck was removed. The stern
Stern
The stern is the rear or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite of the bow, the foremost part of a ship. Originally, the term only referred to the aft port section...
of the ship with the rudder and screw can be seen today at Otterndorf.
The Church of St Severi
The church of the town of Otterndorf is called St Severi. It is believed that there has been a church on this site since the 11th century but the first document evidence of a church comes from 1261 when a place of worship is mentioned by the priest Godefridus. The church bell tower dates from 1807. Inside the church there is a richly decorated alter in the BaroqueBaroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
style which dates from 1649. There is also a pulpit
Pulpit
Pulpit is a speakers' stand in a church. In many Christian churches, there are two speakers' stands at the front of the church. Typically, the one on the left is called the pulpit...
which incorporates a gallery, both are highly decorated and date from 1644. The present church organ was built by Christoph Dietrich Gloger in 1740 and was restored in 1976. The church has a sermon chair that is decorated with biblical figures and was constructed in 1661 by Jurgen heydtmann. The Font is made from solid bronze and dates from the middle of the 14th century.
The saga of the Knight Macke
Hanging from the ceiling in the church is the RapierRapier
A rapier is a slender, sharply pointed sword, ideally used for thrusting attacks, used mainly in Early Modern Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries.-Description:...
or Degen of a knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
by the name of Macke. The legend of this relic comes from the time of witch burnings in the town of Otterndorf. The Knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
was in the service of a middle prince away from Hadeln, but the knight had learnt that his mother back in Otterndorf had been accused of witchcraft
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
, found guilty, and so was to be burnt at the stake at the east gate of the town. The knight, who knew his mother was no witch, hurried back to seek a pardon from the Duke of Lauenburg
Duke of Lauenburg
The title Duke of Lauenburg derives from the Duchy of Saxe-Lauenburg, which, since its foundation in 1269, has been ruled by twenty-nine dukes of six dynastic houses and lines and by an additional four dukes of a temporary dynastic branch line The title Duke of Lauenburg derives from the Duchy of...
, with whom he was in good favor. The duke
Duke
A duke or duchess is a member of the nobility, historically of highest rank below the monarch, and historically controlling a duchy...
, who appreciated the merits of the knight, granted a written pardon for his mother. The knight with haste rode fast to Otterndorf only to arrive too late to save his mother. Full of pain and heartache, the knight in his despair thrust the rapier into his chest and killed himself. The citizens of the town, realizing the mistake they had made, hung the blood soaked sword
Sword
A sword is a bladed weapon used primarily for cutting or thrusting. The precise definition of the term varies with the historical epoch or the geographical region under consideration...
in the church, and the town never burnt a witch again.