Uelsen () is a community in the district of Grafschaft Bentheim 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 ...

Geography

The community of Uelsen lies in westernmost Lower Saxony, on the

border Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political bo ...

with the Kingdom of the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, roughly 30 km north of Enschede and 15 km northwest of

Nordhorn Nordhorn ( Northern Low Saxon: ''Nothoorn'' (or ''Notthoarn'', ''Netthoarn'' and ''Noordhoorn'')) is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the district seat of Grafschaft Bentheim in Lower Saxony's southwesternmost corner near the border with th ...

History

* About 690: The groundwork for the great parish of Uelsen was laid, probably by the missionary

Willibrord Willibrord (; 658 – 7 November AD 739) was an Anglo-Saxon missionary and saint, known as the "Apostle to the Frisians" in the modern Netherlands. He became the first bishop of Utrecht and died at Echternach, Luxembourg. Early life His fath ...

. * 1131: Uelsen was first mentioned in a document by the Bishop of

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Nethe ...

. At that time, Uelsen belonged to

Twente Twente ( nl, Twente , Tweants dialect: ''Tweante'') is a region in the eastern Netherlands. It encompasses the most urbanised and easternmost part of the province of Overijssel. Twente is most likely named after the Tuihanti or Tvihanti, a G ...

(now in the Netherlands), which then belonged to the German Empire, as did Utrecht. * About 1300: The

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

of the Count ten Tooren or von Thurn stood in Uelsen. (The castle's remains were used in the mid-19th century as a synagogue.) * 1312: Ownership of Uelsen passed to the Count of Bentheim. * 1544: The

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

creed was introduced to Uelsen. Start of the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and i ...

. * 1546: Under Emperor

Charles V Charles V may refer to: * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise * Charles V, Duke of Lorraine (1643–1690) * Infant ...

, border crossings were sealed and Uelsen was cut off from the Netherlands. * 1580: Heavy fighting in the Uelsen woods in the Dutch Revolt between the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: ** Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Ca ...

and the Dutch. * 1588: The Reformed creed was introduced. * 1597: The Reformation ended. * 1618 to 1648: The

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battl ...

. The County of Bentheim (Grafschaft Bentheim) was supposedly neutral ground, but the people suffered great hardships.

Münster Münster (; nds, Mönster) is an independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a state d ...

Lüneburg Lüneburg (officially the ''Hanseatic City of Lüneburg'', German: ''Hansestadt Lüneburg'', , Low German ''Lümborg'', Latin ''Luneburgum'' or ''Lunaburgum'', Old High German ''Luneburc'', Old Saxon ''Hliuni'', Polabian ''Glain''), also calle ...

, Hessian and Swedish troops all moved into billets in the Uelsen community and extorted board and the people’s last belongings. * 1636: As a result of the war and widespread hunger, the

plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pes ...

broke out. * 1650: The town hall was built. * 1655: Bernhard von Galen, Bishop of Münster, waged war against Holland. Again fighting troops marched through the County. * 1666: Bernhard von Galen concluded the

Peace of Nordhorn Peace is a concept of societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such as war) and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or groups. ...

. * 1672: The new Bishop of Münster, Elijah von Corey again attacked the Netherlands after only six years’ peace. * 1688: Count Ernst Wilhelm converted to the

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

faith. The Reformed clergy he then also had replaced by Catholic clergy. The County pastors turned to the Netherlands, Dutch became the church’s language, and until the late 19th century, it was also used in

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compu ...

s. Church hymns were still partly being sung in Dutch as late as 1933. * 1756 to 1763: The

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754– ...

. * 19th century: The population figures fell from 1200 to 806 as working-class families moved to

or Schüttorf to find work in the textile industry. Some families also moved to the Netherlands or America. * 1921: An electric company was founded. * 1929 to 1931: A water supply system was built. * 1933 to 1945: Uelsen and its outlying centres were

NSDAP The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that crea ...

strongholds. * 1974: Uelsen became the seat of the Joint Community (''Samtgemeinde'') of Uelsen, to which also belong the communities of

Getelo Getelo is a community in the district of Grafschaft Bentheim in Lower Saxony. Geography Location Getelo lies west of Nordhorn on the border with the Netherlands. It belongs to the Joint Community (''Samtgemeinde'') of Uelsen, whose administrative ...

Gölenkamp Gölenkamp is a community in the district of Grafschaft Bentheim in Lower Saxony. Geography Location Gölenkamp lies northwest of Nordhorn. It belongs to the Joint Community (''Samtgemeinde'') of Uelsen, whose administrative seat is in the to ...

Halle Halle may refer to: Places Germany * Halle (Saale), also called Halle an der Saale, a city in Saxony-Anhalt ** Halle (region), a former administrative region in Saxony-Anhalt ** Bezirk Halle, a former administrative division of East Germany ** Hall ...

, Itterbeck, Wielen and

Wilsum Wilsum is a small city in the Dutch province of Overijssel. It is located in the municipality of Kampen, about 4 km southeast of that city. History The city was first mentioned in 1213 as Wilsem, and means "settlement of Willa (person)" ...

. * 31 December 2004: The ''

Regierungsbezirk A ' () means "governmental district" and is a type of administrative division in Germany. Four of sixteen ' ( states of Germany) are split into '. Beneath these are rural and urban districts. Saxony has ' (directorate districts) with more res ...

'' of Weser-Ems, which Uelsen belonged to, was abolished after administrative reform. * 2006: Uelsen marked its 875 years of existence with a festival week. The state-recognized health resort of Uelsen is the Joint Community’s middle point and at the same time its seat.

Partner town

Uelsen’s partner town is

Tubbergen Tubbergen (; Tweants: ) is a municipality and a town in the eastern Netherlands. Geography The following population centres can be found in Tubbergen: Politics As of the 2018 municipal election, the 19-seat municipal council of Tubbergen is c ...

in the Netherlands.

Events

* Saisonauftakt (seasonal prelude): Saturday before

Whitsun Whitsun (also Whitsunday or Whit Sunday) is the name used in Britain, and other countries among Anglicans and Methodists, for the Christian High Holy Day of Pentecost. It is the seventh Sunday after Easter, which commemorates the descent of the H ...

* Volks- und Schützenfest (folk and shooting festival): 2nd weekend in July * Herbstmarkt (Herbstkirmes; autumn market): 3rd weekend in October * Weihnachtsmarkt (

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

market): Saturday before 2nd day in Advent

References

External links