Department of the Werra

Department of the Werra
Werradepartement
Department de la Werra
Basic data (December 31, 1810)
Consist:	1807-1813 / 14
Kingdom :	Westphalen
Prefecture :	Marburg
Residents:	257,867 (Dec. 31, 1810)
Structure:	3 districts
Prefects :	August von Reiman (until October 1808) Friedrich Ludwig von Berlepsch (until August 1809) August Heinrich von Trott zu Solz (from September 1809)
Absorbed in:	Electorate of Hesse
Location of the department in the Kingdom of Westphalia

The department of the Werra (short: Werra department or Werradepartement , French department de la Werra ) was from 1807 to 1813/14 an administrative unit (department) of the Kingdom of Westphalia . The prefecture of the department was Marburg .

location

The northern boundary of the department was formed by the department of the Fulda . In the east the department was bordered by the Werra as far as the village of Falken. The southeastern border formed parts of the Duchy of Saxony-Weimar-Eisenach and the Duchy of Saxony-Meiningen . In the south, the department was surrounded by the Grand Duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt . The western boundary was formed by the Grand Duchy of Hessen-Darmstadt (the Hessian hinterland around Gladenbach , Biedenkopf , Battenberg and the exclave Vöhl ) and the principality of Waldeck further north (around Korbach , Bad Wildungen and Bad Arolsen ).

history

The Werra department was formed from the Hessen-Kasseler Oberhessen , the areas of the former county of Ziegenhain and the former nominal principality of Hersfeld , the rule of Schmalkalden , the southern part of the Treffurt estate , the former imperial knighthood offices of the Buchisches Quartier and parts of Niederhessen .

The department was established by Royal Decree of December 24, 1807. It initially comprised the following districts (also called sub-prefectures) and the associated cantons .

The department consisted of 28 cities , twelve towns , 625 villages , 120 hamlets and 150 individual farms . The places were inhabited by 13,400 Catholics , 155,903 Reformed , 5392 Jews and 129 Mennonites in 38,088 households. 66,863 inhabitants lived in the cities.

structure

District	Population (Dec. 31, 1810)	Cantons
Marburg	80.199	Marburg , Kaldern , Lohra , Ebsdorf , Amöneburg , Kirchhain , Rauschenberg , Neustadt , Treysa , Jesberg , Gemünden , Frankenau , Frankenberg , Rosenthal , Wetter
Hersfeld	93,353	Hersfeld , Obergeis , Rotenburg , Neumorschen , Homberg , Borken , Frielendorf , Ziegenhain , Neukirchen , Schwarzenborn , Oberaula , Breitenbach , Niederaula , Holzheim , Landeck , Vacha , Lengsfeld , Heringen , Friedewald , Petersberg , Bebra
Eschwege	83.157	Eschwege , Aue , Bischhausen , Reichensachsen , Netra , Sontra , Nentershausen , Spangenberg , Lichtenau , Sooden , Abterode , Witzenhausen , Schmalkalden , Herrenbreitungen , Seligenthal , Floh , Brotterode , Hallenberg

The prefectures

The prefecture of the Werra department had its seat in Marburg in the inn "Zum Weißen Roß", was initially under the direction of the official August von Reiman and was continued on July 25th, 1808 by Freiherr Friedrich von Berlepsch. At the beginning of 1809 the baron had to fight an uprising under the leadership of Wilhelm von Dörnberg in Homberg and a peasant uprising in Marburg under the leadership of Andreas Emmerich and Johann Heinrich Sternberg . The young Baron von Trott, who was talking to the Prefect of the Harz Department at the time, led a troop of Westphalian military against this uprising and was transferred to the post of prefect in the Werradepartement in August 1809 for his services. August Heinrich von Trott was supported by the secretary von Baerll. They also directed the fate of the sub-prefecture of Marburg.

They were supported by the council meeting with Messrs. Von Baumbach, Hein, Hille and Schönhals (only in 1810) and von Stark.

The council of the sub-prefecture of Marburg included Messrs Bauer, Ludwig Wilhelm von Baumbach (until his death in 1811), Exter, Fuchs, Gebhard, Hille, Justi, Kaiser, Michaelis, Pistor, Schreiber, von Schenk, Schödde, Schönhals (only 1810) , Schulz, Theis, von Urf, Wolff, from 1811 and Schaub.

There were other sub-prefects in

• Hersfeld: Mr. Günther with his secretary Fuss,
• Eschwege: the prefect Baron von Hohenhausen with his secretary Kastenbein, from 1812 Kastenbein, from 1813 Braun

literature

• Friedrich Justin Bertuch (ed.): General geographical ephemeris . With charts and copper. Volume six and thirtieth. Verlage des Landes-Industrie-Comtoirs, Weimar 1911 ( digitized (PDF, 19.2 MB) in the Google book search [accessed on April 22, 2016]).
• "Royal Decree, whereby the division of the kingdom into eight departments is ordered" . "Directory of the departments, districts, cantons and communes of the kingdom". In: Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe (Hrsg.): Project Westphalian history . ( PDF 4.9MB [accessed April 22, 2016]).

Web links

• Cantons of the Kingdom of Westphalia at www.lwl.org (Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe)

Notes and individual references

1. ↑ Friedrich Justin Bertuch (ed.): General geographical ephemeris . With charts and copper. Volume six and thirtieth. Publishers of the Landes-Industrie-Comtoir, Weimar 1811, p. 57 ( digitized in the Google book search [PDF; 19.2 MB ; accessed on April 26, 2009]).
2. ↑ "Royal Decree, whereby the division of the kingdom into eight departments is ordered" . "Directory of the departments, districts, cantons and communes of the kingdom". In: Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe (Hrsg.): Project Westphalian history . ( PDF 4.9MB [accessed April 26, 2009]).
3. ↑ Friedrich Justin Bertuch (ed.): General geographical ephemeris . With charts and copper. Volume six and thirtieth. Publishers of the Landes-Industrie-Comtoir, Weimar 1911, p. 57 ff . ( PDF 19.2MB [accessed April 26, 2009]).
4. ↑ Arndt / Lemberg, Friedrich Ludwig Freiherr von Berlepsch and the University of Marburg in the Kingdom of Westphalia, in: ZHG, Vol. 133 (2008), pp. 195 ff.
5. ^ “Almanach Royal de Westpahlie”, Cassel, all years