Apelern is a municipality in the ''

Samtgemeinde A ''Samtgemeinde'' (; plural: ''Samtgemeinden'') is a type of administrative division in Lower Saxony, Germany. ''Samtgemeinden'' are local government associations of municipalities, equivalent to the '' Ämter'' in Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenbu ...

'' of Rodenberg in the district of Schaumburg, in

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

. It lies in the Deister-Süntel valley and is situated close to the A2 Autobahn at Lauenau and south of Rodenberg, between the

Deister The Deister is a chain of hills in the German state of Lower Saxony, about 15 mi (25 km) southwest of the city of Hanover. It runs in a north-westerly direction from Springe in the south to Rodenberg in the north. The next in the chain ...

, Süntel and Bückeberg ridges. The Riesbach stream flows through the village and into the Rodenberger Aue (stream). As well as the village of Apelern itself, the community of Apelern includes the villages of Gross Hegesdorf, Kleinhegesdorf, Lyhren, Reinsdorf and Soldorf. The existence of Apelern is documented as far back as 1162, when the church was built. The name means roughly "at the apple trees", and there are apple trees in the park of the Münchhausen estate to this day. In Saxon times (c. 8th and 9th centuries) Apelern had a place of worship (the seat of an archdeaconry) and a court of justice. At the end of the 12th century the church was the main church of the Buckigau. In common with many villages in Germany and elsewhere, its history is closely connected with that of the local nobility. For the last 300 to 400 years the noble families of Münchhausen and Hammerstein have stamped their mark on the village. Buildings worth visiting in the village are * the double-aisle church, which was built in around 1162
more information
* Schloss Münchhausen (1561) images can be foun
here
The writer and poet Börries von Münchhausen lived here. * Schloss Hammerstein (1590).

References

Municipalities in Lower Saxony Schaumburg {{Schaumburg-geo-stub