Groothusen is an old ''Langwurtendorf'' – a village on an artificially-built ridge – in the municipality of
Krummhörn
Krummhörn is a municipality in the Aurich (district), district of Aurich, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated near the Ems (river), Ems estuary, approximately 15 km southwest of Norden, Lower Saxony, Norden, and 10 km northwest of ...
in western
East Frisia
East Frisia () or East Friesland (; ; ; ) is a historic region in the northwest of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is primarily located on the western half of the East Frisia (peninsula), East Frisian peninsula, to the east of West Frisia and to the ...
on Germany's
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...
coast. It lies about 15 kilometres northwest of the seaport of
Emden
Emden () is an Independent city (Germany), independent town and seaport in Lower Saxony in the north-west of Germany and lies on the River Ems (river), Ems, close to the Germany–Netherlands border, Netherlands border. It is the main town in t ...
and has a population of 474 (2006). The ridge or ''
warf
WARF (1350 AM) is a commercial radio station licensed to Akron, Ohio, known as "Fox Sports 1350 The Gambler" and carrying a sports format. Owned by iHeartMedia, WARF serves the Greater Cleveland and Akron metro areas as an affiliate of Fox Sp ...
'' has a length of about 500 metres and a width of some 130 metres and was built to raise the village above the water level should flooding from the sea occur, for instance, during a
storm tide
A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the ...
.
History
According to the
urbarium
An urbarium (, English: ''urbarium'', also ''rental'' or ''rent-roll'', , , , ), is a register of fief ownership and includes the rights and benefits that the fief holder has over his serfs and peasants. It is an important economic and legal sourc ...
from
Werden Abbey
Werden Abbey () was a Benedictine monastery in Essen-Werden (Germany), situated on the Ruhr.
The foundation of the abbey
Near Essen Saint Ludger founded a monastery in 799 and became its first abbot. The little church which Saint Ludger b ...
, the village was first mentioned in the year 1000 under the name ''Husum'', but it had probably been established in the 8th century. Based on excavations carried out locally it can be inferred that it was probably a ''Wikdorf'' or trading post. It was laid out on a
creek
A creek in North America and elsewhere, such as Australia, is a stream that is usually smaller than a river. In the British Isles it is a small tidal inlet.
Creek may also refer to:
* Creek people, a former name of Muscogee, Native Americans
* C ...
(''Priel'') that discharged into the so-called "Bay of Sielmönken" which has since completely silted up.
At that time it was only about 500 metres from the coast and therefore close to Frisia's maritime trading routes including the route between
Dorestad
Dorestad (''Dorestat, Duristat'') was an early medieval emporium, located in the present-day province of Utrecht in the Netherlands, close to the modern-day town of Wijk bij Duurstede.
It flourished during the 8th to early 9th centuries, as a ...
and
Haithabu
Hedeby (, Old Norse: ''Heiðabýr'', German: ''Haithabu'') was an important Danish Viking Age (8th to the 11th centuries) trading settlement near the southern end of the Jutland Peninsula, now in the Schleswig-Flensburg district of Schleswig ...
.
Frisian merchants stacked their goods here and were accommodated in the village if they needed to stay for any length of time. After dykes were built in the 13th century Groothusen lost its importance as a trading post. Other ''Langwurtendorf'' villages in East Frisia are found near Groothusen including
Grimersum
Grimersum is a village in the region of East Frisia, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is part of the municipality of Krummhörn. The village is located between Eilsum and Wirdum, about 12.5 kilometers north of Emden.
The village, like the nearby vill ...
(Krummhörn),
Jemgum
Jemgum is a municipality in the Leer district, in the northwest of Lower Saxony, Germany. The area is known as ''Rheiderland'' (German) or ''Reiderland'' (Dutch). Rheiderland is located in East Friesland.
History
Jemgum was the site of the Bat ...
and
Hatzum (
Rheiderland
The Rheiderland (; ) is a region of Germany and the Netherlands between the River Ems and the Bay of Dollart. The German part of the Rheiderland lies in East Frisia, west of the Ems. The Dutch part (written: ''Reiderland'') lies in the Dutch pr ...
), and in the centres of
Oldersum
Oldersum is a village in the region of East Frisia, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Administratively, it is an ''Ortsteil'' of the municipality of Moormerland. Located on the north bank of the Ems estuary, Oldersum is to the southeast of Emden and the no ...
(
Moormerland
Moormerland is a municipality in the Leer (district), Leer District, in Lower Saxony, northwestern Germany.
History
Moormerland was created on January 1, 1973 by uniting eleven independent municipalities. The eleven constituent Ortschaft, Ortsc ...
) and in
Nesse (Norder Marsch).
By the
Early Middle Ages
The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages (historiography), Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th to the 10th century. They marked the start o ...
, Husum was the seat of a Münster provost (''Propstei''). The northwestern end of the long warf village is formed by the large St. Peter's Church, one of the six provost churches in the old Emsgau, with its huge tower. The bell dates to the year 1526. The gravestone of Adda von Meckenaborg, lady of Groothusen, from 1590, carved in blue stone is particularly fine. As well as other impressive graves, the church has a splendid 1454 cast bronze
baptismal font
A baptismal font is an Church architecture, ecclesiastical architectural element, which serves as a receptacle for baptismal water used for baptism, as a part of Christian initiation for both rites of Infant baptism, infant and Believer's bapti ...
by Ghert Klinghe and a valuable organ by Johann Friedrich Wenthin (1798–1801) with unique flute tones.
There were once three manor houses in Groothusen - the Osterburg, Middelburg and Westerburg. Only the
Osterburg - rebuilt in 1490 - has been preserved; the other two were destroyed in feuds in 1400 and 1432 by
Hamburg
Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...
's citizens. The Osterburg is on the eastern side of the village by a
protected area
Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...
and has a long, historic
lime
Lime most commonly refers to:
* Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit
* Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide
* Lime (color), a color between yellow and green
Lime may also refer to:
Bo ...
avenue. Today it houses numerous historical memorabilia.
Gallery
GroothusenOsterburg.jpg, Osterburg
Groothusen St Peter - Font.jpg, 15th century bronze font
In metal typesetting, a font is a particular size, weight and style of a ''typeface'', defined as the set of fonts that share an overall design.
For instance, the typeface Bauer Bodoni (shown in the figure) includes fonts " Roman" (or "regul ...
in St. Peter's Church
Groothusen St Peter - Organ.jpg, 18th century organ in St. Peter's Church
Mühle Groothusen.jpg, Windmill
Sources
* Kempe, Enno F. (1989). ''Die Osterburg zu Groothusen'' (Ostfriesischer Kunstführer, Heft 12). Aurich
* Reinhardt, Waldemar (1959). ''Die Grabung auf der Dorfwarf von Groothusen, Kreis Norden, und ihre Ergebnisse''. In: Jahrbuch der Gesellschaft für bildende Kunst und vaterländische Altertümer zu Emden. Vol. 39, p. 30-36.
External links
Groothusen parish
Photos and maps of Groothusen
{{Authority control
Krummhörn
Villages in Lower Saxony
Towns and villages in East Frisia