Joint community of Esens

Basic data
Existing period:	1972–
State :	Lower Saxony
County :	Wittmund
Area :	162.1 km 2
Residents:	14,355 (Dec. 31, 2019)
Population density :	89 inhabitants per km 2
License plate :	WTM
Association key :	03 4 62 5401
Association structure:	7 municipalities
Association administration address ; :	Am Markt 2-4 ; 26427 Esens
Website :	www.samtgemeinde-esens.de
Mayor of the municipality :	Harald Hinrichs ( independent )
Location of the joint community Esens in the Wittmund district

The Samtgemeinde Esens is next Holtriem one of two joint communities in Lower Saxony district Wittmund and one of six joint communities in East Friesland . It has its seat in the eponymous city .

Historically, the municipality belongs to the Harlingerland , which fell in 1600 through the Berumer comparison to the county of East Friesland . The area has belonged to the Wittmund district since 1885.

geography

Position and extent

The integrated community of Esens is located in the Wittmund district in the central north of East Friesland . It borders the North Sea in the north .

The closest major city is Oldenburg , about 70 kilometers to the south-east. Other neighboring upper and middle centers in the area are Wilhelmshaven (about 36 kilometers east-southeast), Aurich (about 22 kilometers south-southwest,) Norden , (about 25 kilometers west-southwest) and Emden (about 42 kilometers southwest). The district town of Wittmund is about 14 kilometers to the southeast. The distance between the northernmost town of Neuharlingersiel and the southernmost town, Brill, is around 15 kilometers; in an east-west direction, the greatest distance is a little more than 16 kilometers between the town of Nord-Uppum and the Alt-Werdumer Grashaus homestead.

With an area of 162.1 square kilometers, the Samtgemeinde is the fourth largest municipality in East Frisia . With a population of almost 14,300, the density is 88 inhabitants / km², which is not only far below the East Frisian average of 148 inhabitants / km², but also below the Lower Saxony (167) and German (229) average.

Joint community structure

The Samtgemeinde Esens is the only one of the six Samtgemeinden Ostfriesland, in which a city is incorporated, namely the eponymous capital Esens. It consists of seven member municipalities, which are sorted in descending order in the following table according to their number of inhabitants. With almost 7,000 inhabitants, exactly half of the inhabitants of the integrated municipality live in the main town.

Member parish	Residents	Area (km²)	Associated districts
Esens (city)	6928	21.68	Bensersiel
Holtgast	1777	24.00	Damsum , Fulkum , Utgast
Stedesdorf	1654	27.95	Mamburg , Osteraccum , Thunum
Neuharlingersiel	1128	24.55	Altharlingersiel , Groß-Holum , Hartward, Ostbense
Dunum	1114	26.83	Brill
Moor path	907	18.65	Altgaude, Schoo Monastery , Neugaude, Wagnersfehn , Westerschoo
Become	712	18.45	Edenserloog , Gastriege , Groß Husum, Klein Husum, Anderwarfen, Wallum, Nordwerdum
total	14,220	162.11	-

The city of Esens and the municipalities of Holtgast, Stedesdorf, Neuharlingersiel, Dunum, Moorweg and Werdum merged to form the municipality of Esens during the Lower Saxony municipal reform in 1972 . While most of the smallest communities in East Friesland formed unitary communities , those named voted for the formation of a joint community. Esens is one of eight at the time, since 2001 only six integrated communities in East Friesland.

Neighboring communities

The combined community of Esens borders the North Sea in the north , the coast is off the coast of the islands of Langeoog in the west and Spiekeroog in the east. On the mainland, the integrated municipality is bordered by four other municipalities, clockwise (starting in the east) the district town of Wittmund , the city of Aurich in the district of the same name , the integrated municipality of Holtriem (district of Wittmund) and finally the municipality of Dornum (district of Aurich).

Land use

Land use 2011
use	Area in ha
Building and open space	991
including living space	578
of which commercial and industrial space	46
Operating area	47
of which mining areas	31
Recreation area	70
including green area	24
traffic area	632
of which road, path, square	624
Agricultural area	13,056
of which moor	5
Water surface	441
Forest area	800
Areas of other use	174
including cemeteries	4th
of it land	26th
total area	16,210

The land use table shows the enormously high proportion of agricultural land in the total area. At around 80.5 percent, the entire community of Esens still exceeds the East Frisian average of around 75 percent, which in turn is already well above the federal republican average of 52 percent. With about 4.93 percent of the forest, Esens is well above the East Frisian average of 2.6 percent. However, East Frisia is forested extremely below average in Germany-wide comparison. Two smaller forest areas are located in the member community Dunum, but the vast majority are in the member community Moorweg. These are reforested former heather areas . The forests in the Samtgemeinde Esens are, next to those in the Samtgemeinde Hage, the northernmost East Frisia, they are only a few kilometers south of the dike line.

history

This section deals with the history of the Esen community. The history of the town of the same name located in the area of the integrated community is presented in the article History of the town of Esens .

Prehistory and early history

The oldest evidence of the presence of people in the area of today's Samtgemeinde was found in Brill. There penknives from the last stage of the Paleolithic came to light, which are assigned to the groups named after them .

In the period between 4500 and 3500 BC, the inhabitants of the area switched to a sedentary, rural way of life. Evidence of this can be found above all in the area of the Brill district. The archaeologist Jan F. Kegler from the East Frisian landscape interprets the hatchets and flint finds discovered there in 2008 as evidence of a former Neolithic settlement. In 1994, archaeologists also discovered the remains of a Neolithic building in Brill. The Radbodsberg is also of Neolithic origin .

There are numerous finds from the Bronze Age , of which the Frau von Brill is the most important. In addition, the East Frisian landscape examined a settlement pit, several urn burials and jewelry from this period. On the other hand, circular trenches and bone beds date from the following Iron Age . The rescue excavation on the Briller Gaste , which began in 1977, was of great importance . A total of 2237 floor discolorations were measured, which are assigned to fourteen floor plans of hall houses from the Roman Empire . This was the first time that East Friesland had a settlement from this time "excavated on a larger scale that allows a comparison with the marshland settlements and the neighboring Geest settlements in Ammerland". During this period of time, the Frisians gradually displaced the previously resident Chauken . This is indicated by finds of Frisian ceramics on the western and eastern edges of the Esensian Geest Island.

Due to a rise in sea level, the first terps appeared in the region in the 2nd century. In the 5th century there was a sharp decline in settlement. The reason for this could have been a further rise in sea level and the resulting flooding of the marshland and the watering of the Geest. The decline in population is only noticeable in the lack of archaeological finds for the 5th and 6th centuries.

middle Ages

East Frisia with the Harlingerland at the time of the chiefs

After this decline in settlement, which is explained by the Dunkirk II transgression , there was renewed settlement from the 7th or 8th century. In the process, abandoned terps were given new uses and new settlements were created. The later city of Esens was probably founded during this time. In 2002, early medieval houses up to 46 m long with single-nave living quarters and three-aisled stables as well as ceramics from the early 7th to the middle of the 8th century were uncovered in the “Unteres Jüchen” building area. Similar floor plans emerged in Holtgast. After the integration of East Frisia into the Franconian Empire , the Carolingians divided the area of what is now the Samtgemeinde to the Nordedi or Nordendi . This divided into the Gaue Diesmeri (around Wittmund) and Herloga (around Esens) until 1000 . The Harlingerland gradually emerged from the latter in the following centuries.

The Christianization began in the area of today's joint community probably around the year 850. Then, the results indicate an archaeological dig in 1960 on the "Briller burial ground" in the vicinity of Radbodsbergs out. A change in funeral customs was noted there. The direction of the burial changed from north-south to west-east. According to an old tradition, there is said to have been a wooden church in Dunum as early as the 9th century. In excavations, however, only one wooden house of worship has been found, which is dated to around 1000. The oldest surviving church in East Frisia is the St. Aegidien Church in Stedesdorf, built around the middle of the 12th century . After Bremer deanery register of 1420 she served as provost church the Send Church of Harlingerland in northern Archbishopric of Bremen . The churches of Buttforde, Burhafe, Dunum, Esens, Fulkum, Thunum and Werdum as well as the churches of Oldendorf, Otzum and Werve, which were later submerged in the floods, were built in Stedesdorf. During this period several monasteries were built, of which the Marienkamp monastery, first mentioned in 1235, was the most important. He was responsible for the monasteries Pansath , Sconamora , Oldekloster and Margens, which were also founded in the area of what is now the Samtgemeinde . It was probably also the monks of the Sconamora monastery who built the Bensersiel in the 12th century .

At the time of the Frisian Freedom , the region became part of the Harlingerland , whose inhabitants were subordinate to the Consules or Redjeven , who were elected by the owners. Their central meeting place may have been on the small river The (today Benser Tief ) in the wooded area west of Esens.

After 1327, this association of Frisian freedom fell into disrepair and the Harlingerland was divided into the lordships of Wittmund , Esens and Stedesdorf , first mentioned in 1137 , of which the latter two roughly encompassed today's territory of the integrated community. They were ruled by chiefs , from whom the von Stedesdorf gradually secured supremacy in the Harlingerland. Their castle was south of the church in Stedesdorf. They allied themselves with the growing tom Brok , who tried since the second half of the 14th century to unite East Frisia under their rule. As a reward Keno II appointed tom Brok before 1414 Wibet von Stedesdorf, initially as one of several bailiffs of the Harlingerland. Wibet then moved its headquarters to Esens, which became the capital of the region. In the struggle for supremacy in East Frisia, Chief Wibet changed sides, whereupon the tom Brok had Esens destroyed in 1426. After the overthrow of the chief dynasty from Brokmerland , Wibet rose to become an independent chief of Harlingerland and in 1427/30 had a moated castle built in the southeast of the then still unfortified market town of Esen. When Focko Ukena tried to establish sovereignty instead of tom Brok, Wibet joined the Freedom League of the Seven East Friesland under the leadership of Cirksena from Greetsiel and became chief of Harlingerland in 1434 together with his son-in-law Ulrich Cirksena , who later became Count of East Friesland elected.

Modern times until 1744

Sarcophagus of Sibet Attena in St. Magnus Church in Esens

Wibet retired from his rule in 1440 for reasons of age and handed it over to his son-in-law. In 1454 Ulrich left the Harlingerland to his nephew and loyal follower Sibet Attena . Under his son Hero Omken (1473-1522), who denied the sovereignty of the Cirksena over the Harlingerland, the city of Esens was fortified in 1490 with ramparts, moats and four gates. The Cirksena tried several times in the following period (1494, 1515, 1524 and 1525) to underline their claims to rule in the Harlingerland with the siege of the capital. The nearby Holtgast was destroyed several times. In 1524 Count Edzard von Ostfriesland attacked the Harlingerland and forced Balthasar , the son of Hero Omken, to submit to him. In addition, the castle in Esens was to be razed, but this did not happen. Balthasar even had the fortifications of the settlement expanded and granted it city rights. The inhabitants of the surrounding villages, for example from Holtgast, were obliged to maintain the Esensian fortification ditch and to de-ice it in winter. When Balthasar joined Duke Karl von Geldern after the peace that was humiliating for him , the Geldrian feud broke out , in which Count Johann von Ostfriesland went to Esens in a retaliatory campaign in Harlingerland, pillaging, robbing and murdering and devastating the surrounding settlements.

It was Balthasar who introduced the Reformation to the entire Harlingerland in 1538/39. It began after 1525 when Ricardo Hicco began to preach Protestantism in Dunum. Johann Visbeck from Ditmarschen received the first Protestant pastor in Esens. A religious talk between Visbeck and the Catholic pastor Plücker from Wittmund led to Plücker's conversion. As sovereign, Balthasar succeeded, in contrast to his East Frisian neighbors, in determining the denominational direction for the population of the region according to the legal principle Cuius regio, eius religio later laid down in the Peace of Augsburg . Visbeck and Plücker were entrusted with the supervision of the parish offices and with church visits. The Harlingerland became Lutheran and is still today the region with the highest percentage of Lutherans in the total population.

Harlingerland remained independent until Balthasar's death in 1540. The Counts of Rietberg then ruled . It was not until 1600 that it was finally united with East Frisia after the Berum settlement . Land estates , as they had developed in East Friesland and which saw their rights secured in the Osterhusischen Accord in 1611 , did not exist in Harlingerland. Instead, a princely chancellery was set up in Esens for the administration of the area as the Esen office.

During the Thirty Years War there were no military conflicts between the main opponents in East Frisia . The county itself remained neutral in this European conflict. However, troops of the war opponents repeatedly used it as a resting room, whereby the inhabitants of the region around Esens were also exploited through contributions and billeting, especially by troops of Ernst von Mansfeld , who occupied East Frisia from 1622. The powerless Count Enno III. then fled from his residence Aurich to Esens. Mansfeld's troops arrested him there and captured 300,000 Reichstaler wrapped in barrels. During the Thirty Years' War, Jews were also settled , first mentioned in Esens in 1637 in the person of Magnus Phibelmans.

The Petri flood of February 22, 1651 also caused great hardship . In Esen's office, it destroyed all the dikes and flooded large areas. Weeks later, victims were recovered in the region's trenches and canals. A few months later, on June 27, another storm surge devastated the region again. Count Enno Ludwig then obliged the residents of the office to restore the destroyed dykes. It was followed by a hot summer that completely withered the ground. In 1676 troops of the Bishop of Münster move into the Harlingerland. The city of Esens was able to defend itself, but the surrounding villages suffered from the occupiers. They are said to have squeezed so much money from them that “the lack of cash was felt for a long time”.

Colored copper engraved map by Homann, Nuremberg, around 1718 for the Christmas flood of 1717

The area around Esens was also severely affected by the Christmas flood of 1717 . Once again, the water masses destroyed almost the entire dyke association and devastated the area. 842 people died in Esen's office. 231 houses were flooded and another 422 were damaged. In addition, 1574 head of cattle, 293 sheep and 305 pigs drowned. Only the high Esens suffered hardly any damage. But there was no place in the cemetery for the many victims, so the residents built the Drinkeldodenkarkhoff (= cemetery of the drowned) north of the city wall, where 213 people who died during the flood found their final resting place. Further storm surges caused crop failures in the following years .

Changing rulers (1744–1866)

The edict of reclamation of 1765

Carl Edzard , the last East Frisian prince from the house of Cirksena, died on May 25, 1744 . The Harlingerland then fell with East Frisia through an prospectus to Prussia and thus lost its special constitutional position within the county. The Prussians in East Friesland had no difficulties in taking possession. Only in Esens were the corresponding patents torn down. As early as 1745, the new rulers dissolved the chancellery and thus also the higher court in Esens. In 1748 they also moved the mint to Aurich . After the enactment of the Reclamation Edict on July 22, 1765, a wave of colonization began. So 25 new wharf sites were created in Holtgast and around 1800 the settlement of today's eponymous community began on a moor path . In March 1813 there was an open riot against the rulers in Esens: residents from the neighboring villages banded together and invaded the city. There they tore down the French national emblems, broke into apartments and destroyed tax documents. 300 soldiers had to restore order.

After the Peace of Tilsit , the region fell to the Kingdom of Holland in 1806 together with the Jeverland as the 11th department with the name Oost-Friesland and finally in 1811 as the Département Ems-Oriental (Osterems) directly to the French Empire. Esens became the seat of a canton, which in turn was divided into several mairies on the lowest French administrative unit . For example, Holtgast was part of Mairie Ochtersum.

After the Napoleonic Wars, after a short Prussian interlude (1813–1815), the region with all of East Frisia was added to the Kingdom of Hanover . From then on, the independent town of Esens and the surrounding villages formed an office within the Landdrostei Aurich . In Hanoverian times, the communal pastures were divided. This led to a considerable change in the appearance of the landscape, because with the allocation of new lands the obligation was connected to the new property within a period of about three years. This happened "depending on the nature of the soil in the moor and marshland areas through ditches and on the Geest through walls planted with bushes or trees". This is how the wall hedge landscape typical of large parts of East Frisia was created .

The events of the revolution of 1848/49 were concentrated at Esen's official seat . There was a large rally in the market square in 1849. The rector Carl Gridmann confessed to the Frankfurt National Assembly and accused the princes of failing to keep their promise to give their countries new constitutions. He was later sentenced to four weeks in prison for this. Evidence of the rule of Hanover is the St. Magnus Church , which was rebuilt in the midst of the revolutionary turmoil in 1848 according to plans by the consistorial master builder Friedrich August Ludwig Hellner , who came from the capital of the kingdom , after the old church building had to be demolished due to dilapidation. The sovereigns from Hanover also pushed infrastructure projects in the less developed region. So began around 1847 the construction of a new highway from Esens to Aurich (today: Landesstraße 8 ) and in 1858 from Esens to the north (today: section of Landesstraße 6 ).

Prussia, Empire (1866–1918)

The German War sealed the end of the Kingdom of Hanover in 1866. The Harlingerland became Prussian again. These initially left the old administrative structure. Esens thus remained an office in the Landdrostei Aurich. The new administration also continued the infrastructure measures. In 1879 construction began on the 77.9 km long East Frisian coastal railway from Emden via the north to Wittmund, which was opened on June 14, 1883 with the stops in Fulkum, Holtgast, Esens, Mamburg and Stedesdorf, which are located in the area of what is now the integrated community. Despite these measures, the economic boom years of the early days had little impact on the region. Even in Esens there were no permanent industrial establishments. The city remained a "market place for the supply of the surrounding marshland and Geest areas as well as the islands of Langeoog and Spiekeroog belonging to the Harlingerland".

From 1884, Prussia reorganized its administrative structure. The offices of Esens and Wittmund went up on April 1, 1885 in the newly formed Wittmund district. Although Esens was the historical center of Harlingerland and the larger town (2283 inhabitants compared to 1901 in Wittmund) and had town charter, the more centrally located area of Witmmund was awarded the district seat. “Considerations made at the local level about whether Esens, Wittmund or even Wilhelmshaven should be the seat of the new district administration, decided the Oberpräsident [in Hanover] on May 22, 1884 without further ado, stating that the district administrator of the Wittmund district should have his seat in the district of the same name Places to take, I consider beyond doubt. “The forerunners of today's municipalities emerged at the lowest administrative level.

In 1898 the construction of the Leer – Aurich – Wittmund small railway began . In 1909 the Esens – Bensersiel and Ogenbagen – Bensersiel lines were connected. With a length of 85 kilometers, one of the largest small railways in northwest Germany was created. From the turn of the century, tourism began to gain in importance. With its ports in Bensersiel and Neuharlingersiel, Esens rose to become the transport hub for supplying the islands of Langeoog and Spiekeroog.

At the beginning of the First World War , many volunteered to serve at the front in Esen's office. In the following years, bathing on the coast and on the islands came to a standstill. In 1915, the navy confiscated the steamer Kaiserin Auguste Victoria, which operated between Bensersiel and Langeoog . In addition, the communities had to give up precious metal. The St. Magnus Church lost its copper tower roof, several organ pipes and two bells. From 1916 prisoners of war were used in the Esen office to work in agriculture.

Weimar Republic

At the end of the First World War, the supply situation in Germany deteriorated. The Prussian State Grain Office therefore called on farmers to surrender oats and legumes and threatened confiscation in the event of violations. The end of the First World War led to a political awakening of the lower class, even if the November Revolution in East Frisia was mainly limited to the cities and even there to only a minority of the inhabitants. The workers 'and soldiers' councils were unable to establish themselves in the rural, rather conservative population of East Frisia. They faced armed resident police that formed in Esens and the surrounding villages. After the election to the Weimar National Assembly , the workers 'and soldiers' councils gradually dissolved. After the First World War, the villages and town of Esens were initially a stronghold of the DDP , which in the election to the National Assembly in 1919 achieved results above the 40 percent mark almost everywhere. Only in Werdum did the SPD emerge from the ballot as the strongest force with a good 40 percent share of the vote. Already in the Reichstag elections of 1924 there was a clear shift to the right in the area of today's integrated community, as a result of which the National Socialist Freedom Movement , a merger of the DFVP and the NSDAP , recorded strong votes.

The time of the Weimar Republic hardly had any impact on the agriculturally oriented, village structures in Essen's office. However, it is said from Holtgast that in the course of the global economic crisis, many younger villagers looked for a new existence in nearby countries or in North America.

After the global economic crisis, the Leer-Aurich-Wittmund small railway got increasingly into economic difficulties with increasing motorization and finally went bankrupt on April 28, 1930. In the election to the Reichstag in September 1930, the right-wing parties were able to gain significantly again. The NSDAP achieved results of up to 56.8%. No records are available in the Wittmund area for the elections of 1932 and 1933.

time of the nationalsocialism

From 1933, the NSDAP dominated the scene. In the course of the conformity , the new rulers reorganized clubs and organizations. For example, they dissolved the beautification association in Esens and transferred its tasks to government agencies. From then on, the cooperative dairies were subject to the Reichsnährstand and were therefore only able to work independently to a very limited extent. The poultry breeding associations in the region were combined in the Reich Association of German Small Animal Breeders. The media have been brought into line , which met little resistance. The most important organ of the NSDAP was the Ostfriesische Tageszeitung (OTZ) founded in 1932 , which became the leading regional medium. An article appeared there in 1933 accusing the Anzeiger for Harlingerland for not complying with the boycott of not publishing advertisements by Jewish businessmen. The report immediately denied this. Under the National Socialists, the expansion of the Bensersiel harbor began in 1935 and the construction of a settlement in Esens, which was ready for occupancy from 1937. As a result of measures like these, the number of unemployed fell significantly.

Even before 1933, the Jewish population was largely concentrated on Esens. There she was exposed to marginalization and increasing persecution during the Nazi era. Immediately after the so-called takeover of power they were informed via the Anzeiger für Harlingerland that they were excluded from public contracts. Many Jews left their hometowns and emigrated in the following years. In 1933 the congregation still had 80 members, in 1939 there were only 30. The last burial in the Jewish cemetery took place on March 31, 1938. On November 10th, Esenser SA men destroyed the local synagogue in the course of the National Socialist pogroms on the night of November 9th to 10th, 1938. They broke into the building, destroyed the interior and set the building on fire. The fire brigade present limited its activity as instructed to protect neighboring houses. The synagogue burned down and the building was later converted into a garage. It has been preserved in this function to this day. Other Jewish houses were broken into and looted during the pogroms. 56 members of the community were rounded up and the next day brought to Oldenburg along with around 200 other Jewish East Frisians, from where they were deported to the Sachsenhausen concentration camp . They were only released one by one. The Jewish community quickly dissolved after the pogroms. In March 1940 Esens was declared " free of Jews ". Of the 139 Jews living permanently or temporarily in Esens between 1933 and spring 1944, at least 40 perished in the Holocaust. 56 emigrated abroad, mainly to the USA, Argentina and Israel.

During the Second World War there were various prisoner-of-war camps in the area of the Samtgemeinde, in which members of several nationalities, mainly French, Serbs and Poles, were housed. The inmates were mostly employed in agriculture and, to a lesser extent, in Esensian businesses.

The armament of the Third Reich did not bypass today's integrated community: From 1942 there was a training camp for 2,500 to 3,000 naval artillerymen in Sterbur near Esens. In the period that followed, Allied bombers and fighter planes increasingly came under fire in the region. Esens was hit hardest. An American bomber formation flew over the city on September 27, 1943 on its way back from Emden. In the subsequent area bombing , 165 people were killed. 57 others were wounded. By the end of the war, the bomber units headed for Esens four more times. In 1943 they also met a prisoner of war camp on Nobiskruger Weg in 1943. This was completely destroyed. Four prisoners were wounded. But the Allies also attacked the other villages. Take Holtgast, for example, where on October 15, 1944, after an attack, two houses and a barn as well as a number of hay and straw stacks caught fire and many houses were covered or damaged. The Allies last attacked the region on April 25, 1945. They set fire to an ammunition train in Holtgast. The area of the Samtgemeinde was spared from further acts of war, as the front ran further south on May 7, 1945, the day of the unconditional surrender of the Wehrmacht .

From the post-war period to the municipal reform in 1972

In May 1945 first Canadian and later British troops moved into Esens and the surrounding villages. After the Second World War, the region took in a large number of refugees from the eastern regions of the German Empire . These were distributed very differently between the villages and Esens: While they made up around 24 percent of the population in the city in 1950, it was only 5.5 percent in Neuharlingersiel. In the other settlements, the proportion of displaced persons was between 15 and 24 percent. It was not until the early 1950s that new settlements, especially for refugees, alleviated the housing shortage in Esens.

During this time, the expansion of the tourist infrastructure began. This is how a tide-independent swimming pool was created in Bensersiel, framed with wooden sheet pile walls, which was considered “Europe's largest seawater swimming pool” at the time, and the port in Neuharlingersiel was expanded from 1960 onwards.

The municipal reform in 1972

The regional reform in Lower Saxony in 1972 had a major impact on the political structure of the area that is now the joint municipality. There were previously 17 independent municipalities in the region, which merged into seven larger municipalities. The community of Neuharlingersiel was formed on July 1, 1972 through the merger of the communities of Altharlingersiel, Neuharlingersiel and Ostbense. The unified municipality of Holtgast emerged from the municipalities of Holtgast, Utgast, Fulkum and Damsum, the municipality of Dunum from Dunum and Brill. The villages of Altgaude, Neugaude, Klosterschoo, Wagnersfehn and Westerschoo have since formed the municipality of Moorweg, while the municipalities of Mamburg, Osteraccum, Stedesdorf and Thunum merged into the new municipality of Stedesdorf and the previously independent municipality of Bensersiel joined the city of Esens. Only Werdum remained without growth. On July 20, 1972, the seven unified municipalities Dunum, Esens, Holtgast, Moorweg, Neuharlingersiel, Stedesdorf and Werdum finally merged to form a single municipality.

Development of the place name

For the first time, the eponymous main town of the Samtgemeinde is mentioned as Eselingis in a contract between the Harlingerland and the city of Bremen in 1310 . Later spellings were Ezelynck (1420), Ezense (1424) and Ezens (around 1430). The current spelling has been used since 1454. The name is probably a combination of the female nickname Esele with the old Frisian collective suffix -ingi . The oldest traditional name Eselingis describes the following of the donkey .

Population development

The majority of the population (59.07 percent) was between 18 and 65 years old on December 31, 2010. The second largest group at the time of the statistical survey were the over 65s with 23.04 percent. Those under six made up 4.95 percent and those between six and eighteen years old 12.95 percent of the population. The proportion of foreigners was 2.70 percent.

year	population
1972	13,575
1975	13,553
1980	13,299
1985	13,102
1990	13,142
1995	13,575
2000	13,974
2005	13,983
2010	14,294

politics

Municipal council

The Samtgemeinderat of the Samtgemeinde Esens consists of 30 council women and councilors. This is the specified number for a joint municipality with a population of between 12,001 and 15,000. The 30 council members are elected for five years each by local elections. The current term of office began on November 1, 2016 and ends on October 31, 2021.

The full-time Mayor of the Joint Community, Harald Hinrichs, is also entitled to vote in the Council of the Joint Community .

The last local election on September 11, 2016 resulted in the following:

Political party	Proportional votes	Number of seats	Change voices	Change seats
SPD	39.96%	12	−0.01%	0
CDU	31.73%	10	−1.82%	0
Alliance 90 / The Greens	8.22%	2	−2.63%	−1
Esenser Citizens' Initiative (EBI)	7.05%	2	−3.36%	−1
AfD	5.54%	2	+5.54%	+2
"New List" community of voters for the SG Esens	4.16%	1	+ 4.16%	+1
Independent voter community "Bürgerwille"	2.04%	1	+ 0.76%	0
FDP	1.26%	0	−1.38%	−1

The turnout in the 2016 local elections was 62.3%, well above the Lower Saxony average of 55.5%. For comparison - in the previous municipal election on September 11, 2011, the turnout was 58.34%.

mayor

In the last mayor elections on May 25, 2014, the non-party candidate Harald Hinrichs was elected full-time mayor of the Esens community. Hinrichs received 64.76% of the vote. The turnout was 54.04%. Harald Hinrichs took up his post on November 1, 2014, replacing Mayor Jürgen Buss, who had been in office since 2001 and who did not run again.

Representatives in the Land and Bundestag

The combined municipality belongs to the state electoral district 87 Wittmund / Insel , which includes the entire district of Wittmund and the cities of Norderney and Wiesmoor , the municipality of Dornum and the island communities of Juist and Baltrum in the Aurich district . 15 parties ran for the state elections in Lower Saxony in 2017 . Six of these parties have put up direct candidates. The directly elected MP is Jochen Beekhuis from the SPD .

The combined municipality belongs to the parliamentary constituency Friesland - Wilhelmshaven . It includes the city of Wilhelmshaven and the districts of Friesland and Wittmund . The directly elected MP is Siemtje Möller (SPD). No party candidate from the constituency entered the Bundestag via the parties' list.

Coats of arms, colors and official seals

The flag of the Samtgemeinde

Blazon : Divided; Above, in gold, a gold-armored and red-tongued black bear with a gold collar, below, in blue, a seven-spoke gold steering wheel, each with a golden ear of wheat.

The bear is the heraldic animal of the Attena chief family , who ruled Esens, Stedesdorf and Wittmund in the 15th century. It is also part of the Esens and Stedesdorf coat of arms. The steering wheel symbolizes fishing. The seven spokes stand for the seven churches. The ears of wheat indicate the importance of agriculture.

The colors of the municipality are blue and yellow. They represent the affiliation of the integrated community to the Harlingerland. The official seal contains the coat of arms and the inscription Samtgemeinde Esens (Wittmund district) .

religion

The majority (57 percent) of the inhabitants of the entire community are Evangelical Lutheran . They belong to the Harlingerland church district within the Ostfriesland-Ems district of the Hanover regional church . The Harlingerland parish has its seat in Esens. It is the region with the highest percentage of Lutheran Christians in relation to the total population of Germany. 13 percent of the population are Roman Catholic . The remaining 30 percent belong to other faiths or are not affiliated with any denomination.

Culture and sights

St. Aegidien Church in Stedesdorf (before 1150)

Churches

Romanesque / Gothic

The St. Aegidien Church in Stedesdorf is the oldest surviving church in East Frisia. It was built in the first half of the 12th century from tuff , which has been preserved particularly in the western part. The original structure with a square choir and semicircular east apse is unique in East Friesland. The present indented choir was added around 1350 after the eastern part of the church had been extended. The south portal and the Romanesque windows are decorated with an otherwise rare crescent arch. The font made of Baumberger sandstone goes back to the beginning of the 13th century . The large crucifix and the Pietà date from the 13th century, two wooden sculptures were created around 1600 and the Protestant winged altar in the Renaissance style dates from 1613. Valentin Ulrich Grotian built the organ with nine registers in 1696 using older material. The case was designed by Arnold Rohlfs in 1848. Half of the baroque pipe inventory has been preserved, the rest have been faithfully reconstructed. The closed-type free-standing bell tower in the southeast was erected in 1695.
The Dunum church also dates from the Romanesque period. It was built of brick at the beginning of the 13th century. The wooden altar from 1860 replaced an older one from 1645, the cross of which has been preserved. The granite holy water basin, two sandstone slabs in the cafeteria , the piscina , the sacrament niche and the hagioscope, which is now walled up, date from the pre-Reformation period . The most valuable inventory item is the cylindrical baptismal font made of Namur bluestone, which was manufactured in Wallonia around 1200 and imported from there. Four half-figures in the wall are shown in a prayer position. Two trapezoidal tombstones from the end of the 12th century have been preserved. Hinrich Just Müller built the organ with nine stops between 1750 and 1765, the pipes of which are largely original. In the free-standing bell tower from the time the church was built hang three bells, the oldest of which was cast in 1501.

The St. Nicolai Church in Werdum from 1327 is characterized by the transition style of Romano-Gothic . A pointed triumphal arch affords a view of the vaulted choir, which was added in 1476. The rectangular one-room hall received its arched windows in 1869. The pulpit dates from 1670, a chandelier from 1692, the altar from the second half of the 18th century and the organ from 1898. Between 1756 and 1763 the west tower with a pyramid roof and an open lantern was added.

19th century

St. Magnus Church in Esens (1848)

The St. Magnus Church in Esens was built in 1848 according to plans by Friedrich August Ludwig Hellner from Hanover. It was built in place of a large three-aisled brick basilica from the 15th century, which had to be demolished shortly before due to dilapidation. The west tower was built in 1844. The current building presents itself externally as a brick building in the style of Romantic Historicism in the arched style and combines various stylistic elements into a unified whole. The interior is designed as a neo-Gothic hall church. The cross vaults rest on slender bundle pillars made of cast iron, which also support the surrounding galleries. The indented semicircular apse is attached to an eastern transept and combines Romanesque and Gothic elements. Various furnishings were taken over from the previous building. Hinrich Klinghe created the bronze baptismal font in 1474, which has been supported by four female sphinxes since around 1600 . The altar is composed of two elements: the predella by Jacob Cröpelin shows the Lord's Supper, while the altarpiece is a large crucifix, which is surrounded by openwork tendrils of vine leaves and dates from 1714. The kneeling benches in front of the altar and the richly carved, hexagonal pulpit with acoustic ceiling from 1674 also go back to Cröpelin. A late Gothic sandstone sarcophagus depicts the chief Sibet Attena, who died in 1473, in his knightly armor. A replica grave monument for Walburgis von Rietberg, who died in 1586, rests on six preserved caryatids . Between 1848 and 1850 Arnold Rohlfs built the organ, which has 30 stops on two manuals and a pedal. The instrument is his greatest work and has largely been preserved.

The St. Mary's Church in Thunum from 1842. Here, the grave slab of Chief Edo Reentzen, who died in 1394, was taken from the previous building. Apart from two oil paintings from the 17th and two epitaphs from the late 18th century, the interior furnishings largely date from the time the church was built. Arnold Rohlfs created the small organ with six registers and a knife-back pedal in 1855.

The Maria Magdalena Church in Fulkum from 1862 has stood in place of the previous bricked churches since the 13th, wooden ones since the 12th century. It has a retracted semicircular apse. The oldest piece of furniture is a granite baptismal font from the 12th century; the wooden lid was added in 1636. The organ built by Rohlfs between 1860 and 1866 has been completely preserved.

language

Distribution area of the East Frisian Platt and its dialect Harlinger Platt

In the integrated community, East Frisian Platt is spoken in addition to Standard German . In the eastern part of East Frisia, to which Esens also belongs, the local dialect is the Harlinger Platt . It differs from the rest of the East Frisian plateau not only in individual words, but also in certain grammatical peculiarities. In the Esensian area, as in most of northern Germany, the word “ges (ch) naked” is used when “talking / speaking” is used, while in the western part of East Frisia the corresponding verb is “proten”, which can be traced back to the influence of its western neighbor, the Netherlands is (compare Dutch “praten”). In addition, in Harlingerland the unit plural is formed on (e) t and not on (e) n as in western East Frisia. “We speak” means “Wi s (ch) naked” in Esens, while closer to the Ems it means “Wi proten”.

The Wittmund district promotes the use of the Low German language, which is also supported in schools.

Sports

The entire district of Wittmund is at the top of the districts and cities within Lower Saxony with a share of athletes organized in clubs in the total population of 51.75 percent. In terms of sports, the Boßler and Klootschießer are clearly ahead of the soccer players (10,161 versus 5,249).

Economy and Infrastructure

Separate labor market data for the entire municipality are not collected. The present area belongs to the Wittmund division within the Emden district of the Federal Employment Agency . In 2010, the average unemployment rate in the Wittmund division was 8.0 percent after 8.2 percent in the previous year. The rate was thus 0.5 percentage points above the Lower Saxony average. For those under 25, the unemployment rate was 6.7, for those under 20 it was only 2.8%, while employees over 50 were affected above average at 8.5%. Foreigners were also hit harder than the average by unemployment (12.9%). The fluctuations within a year are, however, quite high due to the importance of tourism, but also agricultural and construction companies. The unemployment rate is well below average in summer and well above average in winter.

Due to the coastal location, which is far from traffic, the municipality is still a weakly structured and industrial-poor area. This means that the region has a negative commuter balance . 1933 inbound commuters were compared to 2,828 outbound commuters in 2008, which results in a negative commuter balance of 895. However, there are considerable differences within the entire municipality: while the city of Esens with Bensersiel also has a commuter surplus (plus 193) as does the municipality of Neuharlingersiel (plus 233), the values for the five other member municipalities are all in the three-digit minus range.

Agriculture, forestry, fishing

Neuharlingersiel fishing port

With an 80.5 percent share, agriculture plays a key role in land use. In the more northerly, younger marshland areas of the city, agriculture is preferred, as the soils there have a high land value index. Typically, grain is grown. On the heavier marshland and in the Geest areas in the south of the urban area, however, preference is given to grassland farming, i.e. dairy farming. Forage plants for the animals are also grown there. In the meantime, better fertilization options have somewhat reduced the difference in soil yields. In livestock farming, cows are clearly predominant. Almost without exception, it is dairy farming, less fattening for the production of meat.

However, agriculture is becoming less and less important in terms of employment. In 1991 there were 468 agricultural and forestry holdings in the area of the Esens municipality, 300 in 2001 and 230 in 2007. In contrast, the average farm size increased. The number of companies that had more than 50 hectares of land used for agriculture and forestry rose from 72 in 1991 to 101 in 2007. 26 farms cultivated an area of more than 100 hectares. In addition, there are some horticultural and processing companies that cultivate less agricultural area per farm. All in all, “hardly more than 300 people plus family workers” are active in agriculture in the entire municipality.

Bensersiel and Neuharlingersiel are fishing ports with smaller fishing fleets each . While only inshore fishing is carried out from Bensersiel, especially for crabs , Neuharlingersiel also has boats for deep-sea fishing in the North Sea. Accordingly, the places have license plates for fishing vessels for coastal fishing or for coastal and deep-sea fishing.

tourism

Bensersiel and Neuharlingersiel are not only the ferry ports to Langeoog and Spiekeroog, but also as coastal resorts they are also attractions for guests. Both are responsible for the majority of the number of guests and overnight stays in the entire municipality. In 2012 Esens-Bensersiel counted 135,300 guests, the number of overnight stays was around 834,500. The average length of stay was 6.2 days. 106,800 guests and 772,600 overnight stays were registered in Neuharlingersiel. The average length of stay here was 7.2 days. In both cases, the length of stay corresponds to the usual range in the East Frisian coastal towns.

In a historical comparison, the increase in tourism over the past decades is very clear. In 1960 Esens-Bensersiel had 1,800 guests and 3,400 overnight stays, in 1965 4900 guests and 7,800 overnight stays. In 1981, 80,900 guests with 660,300 overnight stays were counted in Esens-Bensersiel. Four years later there were 82,600 guests with 671,400 overnight stays, in 1990 84,800 guests with 777,400 overnight stays. In 1981, Neuharlingersiel recorded 62,200 guests and 774,000 overnight stays, four years later 69,300 guests with 859,000 overnight stays and in 1990 81,400 guests with 871,600 overnight stays. This comparison also makes it clear that the number of overnight stays has not increased as significantly as the number of guests over the past 30 years, which reflects the trend towards shorter stays.

In addition to hotels and guesthouses as well as holiday homes and apartments in the city center, in Bensersiel and Neuharlingersiel, there are also overnight accommodations in the other districts. Among other things, farm holidays are possible with farmers .

The shopping area Esens (core city) mainly supplies the surrounding municipality area. As a shopping town, Esens is in competition with the surrounding towns of Wittmund, Norden and especially Aurich, which has the second highest retail centrality among the East Frisian towns after Leer.

traffic

Traffic axes in East Friesland: Esens is away from the main traffic routes in terms of road traffic, but has a rail connection to Oldenburg. The combined community also has two ferry ports to Langeoog and Spiekeroog.

The joint municipality is located on the central north coast of East Friesland and therefore away from the main traffic routes such as motorways and federal highways in terms of road traffic. The connection to the supra-regional transport network and the neighboring communities is ensured by four state roads. The L 5 runs parallel to the coast from Norddeich via Dornumergrode to Bensersiel and into the core town, where it meets the L 6 . This leads from the north via Hage and Westerholt to the main town Esens and from there via Neuharlingersiel to the Carolinensiel district of the district town of Wittmund. The L 8 begins in the main town of Esens and leads through Dunum to the federal road 210 ( Emden - Aurich - Wittmund - Jever - Wilhelmshaven ) in the Aurich district of Ogenbargen . The L 10 finally provides the shortest distance from the main town on Esens Stedesdorf is in the county Witt mouth where on the national road 461 , there is also a connection to the B 210th The closest motorway access is the Wilhelmshavener Kreuz on the A 29 and is around 38 kilometers by road from the town center.

The core town of Esens is on the East Frisian coastal railway from Wilhelmshaven via Sande to Esens (KBS 393), which used to lead further north via Dornum (from here still a museum). The route will be weekdays from about 6 to 21 pm every hour through the features of the Veolia belonging NordWestBahn served. The journey to Oldenburg Central Station is connected with a change in Sande. A reactivation of the section between Esens and the north is required by the neighboring communities. The Esens train station has now been relocated a few hundred meters: If it was previously west of the Esens – Aurich road, it is now immediately east of it. This eliminates the waiting times for drivers at the barriers, which were incurred twice an hour before the move.

In addition to the railways, bus transport bears the main burden of local public transport . There are bus connections with the Deutsche Bahn subsidiary Weser-Ems-Bus . A bus runs between the Harlesiel ferry terminal and the train station in the north, connecting all of the coast's ferry and port locations.

The joint municipality is the starting point for the ferries to Langeoog and Spiekeroog in island traffic. The island's own shipping company, Schiffahrt, of the island community of Langeoog , operates its ships daily between Bensersiel and the island. Neuharlingersiel is the ferry port for Spiekeroog. The ferry traffic to Spiekeroog is operated by the island's own Nordseebad Spiekeroog GmbH.

Public facilities

Harlingerland waterworks

Lifeboat Neuharlingersiel

The public institutions include the municipal administration and its subordinate operations, such as the building authority. These are housed in the main town of Esens. The full-time mayor of the joint municipality also acts as the municipality director of the member municipalities and as city director of Esens. The administrative business of the member municipalities is taken over by the joint municipality administration.

There is a police station in Esens, which is manned on weekdays from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Outside of these times, the entire municipality area is looked after by the commissariat in Wittmund. The Harlingerland waterworks of the OOWV is located in the municipality of Moorweg . The plant, established in 1970, supplies the northern district of Wittmund and the municipality of Dornum with drinking water.

The German Society for Rescue of Shipwrecked People maintains the sea rescue boat of the same name in the 9.5 meter class in the port of Neuharlingersiel for use off the coast of the municipality.

Esens is the seat of the Esens-Harlingerland dyke . The Deichacht , a corporation under public law , is responsible for the dike safety on a distance of around 28 kilometers from the municipality of Dornum to the border with the district of Friesland .

media

The leading daily newspaper in the joint community is the Anzeiger für Harlingerland . There is also a regional edition of the only East Frisian daily newspaper Ostfriesen-Zeitung for the Wittmund district. The citizens' broadcaster Radio Ostfriesland also reports from the area in question, while the radio station Radio Jade in Wilhelmshaven can also be received. The Ostfriesland NDR correspondent office is also located in Esens . It is responsible for the districts of Leer, Aurich and Wittmund and the independent city of Emden.

Personalities

Franz August Mammen (1813–1888), German entrepreneur and liberal politician (DFP)
Gerdes Eilts (born May 6, 1894 in Stedesdorf, † February 4, 1945 in Neuengamme concentration camp ), politician ( KPD )
Balthasar von Esens († 1540), freedom fighter and pirate
David Fabricius (1564–1617), theologian, important amateur astronomer and cartographer
Johann Hülsemann (1602–1661), Lutheran theologian
Philipp Heinrich Erlebach (1657–1714), composer
Christian Eberhard (1665–1708), Prince of East Friesland from the house of the Cirksena
Enno Rudolph Brenneysen (1669–1734), lawyer and chancellor of East Frisia
Philipp Ludwig Statius Müller (1725–1776), theologian, zoologist and professor in Erlangen
Johann Gottfried Rohlfs (1759–1847), organ builder
Gerhard Moritz Roentgen (1795–1852), Dutch naval officer, mechanical engineer and shipbuilder
Arnold Rohlfs (1808–1882), organ builder
Gerd Sieben Janssen (1802–1899), organ builder
Theodore Thomas (1835–1905), composer, founder of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Ernst Christian Carl Kruse (1837–1900), doctor and politician
Hinrich Fokken-Esens (1889–1976), painter
Johann Gerhard Behrens (1889–1979), Evangelical Lutheran pastor and astronomer
Remmer Janssen (1850–1931), the well-known Strackholt pastor and East Frisian revival preacher, was born in Werdumer Altendeich.
Timo Schultz (* 1977), German soccer player
Gerhard Tappen (1866–1953), general of the artillery

literature

The following works deal with the history of Esens and the Harlingerland:

Peter Bahlmann: The role of the witnesses of repute in the denazification in Esens. In: Emder Yearbook for Historical Regional Studies in Ostfriesland , Vol. 82 (2002), pp. 186–228.
Hendrik Gröttrup: Constitution and administration of the Harlingerland 1581-1744. (Treatises and lectures on the history of East Frisia, Volume 38), Verlag Ostfriesische Landschaft, Aurich 1962, without ISBN.
Robert Noah: The medieval churches in Harlingerland. Verlag Ostfriesische Landschaft, Aurich 1969, without ISBN.
Gerd Rokahr: A Chronicle of the City of Esens. Brune-Mettcker-Verlag, Wittmund 2010. ISBN 978-3-87542-075-3
Gerd Rokahr: The Jews in Esens. The history of the Jewish community in Esens from its beginnings in the 17th century to its end in the National Socialist era. East Frisian Landscape, Aurich 1987, 1994², ISBN 3-925365-76-1 .
Almuth Salomon : History of the Harlingerland up to 1600. (Treatises and lectures on the history of East Frisia, Volume 41), Verlag Ostfriesische Landschaft, Aurich 1965, without ISBN.
Almuth Salomon: The Attena. In: Emder Yearbook for Historical Regional Studies in East Frisia , Vol. 83 (2003), pp. 7–26.
Almuth Salomon: The Kankena. In: Emder yearbook for historical regional studies of East Frisia , vol. 88/89 (2008/2009), pp. 7-22.
Helmut Sanders: The population development in the Wittmund district since the end of the 18th century with special consideration of the soil types. (Treatises and lectures on the history of East Frisia, Volume 49), Verlag Ostfriesische Landschaft, Aurich 1969, without ISBN.
Karl-Heinz de Wall: Wittmund district. , Self-published by the district of Friesland, Jever 1977, without ISBN.

In addition, the following works, which deal with East Frisia in general, are also significant for the history and description of the integrated community insofar as they illuminate individual aspects:

Kurt Asche: Town houses in East Frisia. Verlag SKN, Norden 1992, ISBN 3-922365-39-6 .
Karl-Ernst Behre : Landscape history of northern Germany. Environment and settlement from the Stone Age to the present. ; Wachholtz Verlag, Neumünster 2008, ISBN 3-529-02499-6 .
Karl-Ernst Behre; Hajo van Lengen (Ed.): Ostfriesland. History and shape of a cultural landscape. Ostfriesische Landschaftliche Verlags- und Vertriebsgesellschaft, Aurich 1995, ISBN 3-925365-85-0 .
Wolfgang Brünink: The Count of Mansfeld in East Friesland (1622-1624). (Treatises and lectures on the history of East Frisia, Volume 34), Verlag Ostfriesische Landschaft, Aurich 1957, without ISBN.
Walter Deeters : East Frisia in the Thirty Years War. In: Emder Yearbook for Historical Regional Studies Ostfriesland , Vol. 78 (1998), pp. 32–44.
Hans Bernhard Eden: The residents' defenses of Ostfriesland from 1919 to 1921. In: Emder yearbook for historical regional studies of Ostfriesland , vol. 65 (1985), pp. 81-134.
Hermann Haiduck: The architecture of the medieval churches in the East Frisian coastal area. Verlag Ostfriesische Landschaft, Aurich 1986, ISBN 3-925365-07-9 .
Beatrix Herlemann : The East Frisian Agriculture in National Socialism. In: Emder Yearbook for Historical Regional Studies Ostfriesland , Vol. 81 (2001), pp. 205–216.
Hans Homeier; Ernst Siebert; Johann Kramer: The shape change of the East Frisian coast over the centuries ; Development of the dyke system from the Middle Ages to the present ; New dykes, sluices and pumping stations between Dollart and Jadebusen from 1945 ( East Friesland in the protection of the dyke , vol. 2), Verlag Deichacht Krummhörn, Pewsum 1969, without ISBN.
Theodor Janssen: Hydrology of East Frisia. Verlag Ostfriesische Landschaft, Aurich 1967, without ISBN.
Karl Heinrich Kaufhold ; Uwe Wallbaum (Ed.): Historical statistics of the Prussian province of East Frisia. ( Sources on the history of East Frisia , Vol. 16), Verlag Ostfriesische Landschaft, Aurich 1998, ISBN 3-932206-08-8 .
Gottfried Kiesow : Architecture Guide East Friesland. German Foundation for Monument Protection , Bonn 2009, ISBN 978-3-86795-021-3 .
Eckart Krömer : Small economic history of East Frisia and Papenburg . Verlag SKN, Norden 1991, ISBN 3-922365-93-0 .
Inge Lüpke-Müller: A region in political upheaval. The democratization process in East Frisia after the Second World War. (Treatises and lectures on the history of East Frisia, Volume 77), Verlag Ostfriesische Landschaft, Aurich 1998, ISBN 3-932206-11-8 .
Eberhard Rack: A little regional study of East Frisia. , Isensee Verlag, Oldenburg 1998, ISBN 3-89598-534-1 .
Heinrich Schmidt : Political history of East Frisia. ( Ostfriesland in the protection of the dike , Vol. 5), Verlag Rautenberg, Leer 1975, without ISBN.
Herbert Reyer : East Frisia in the Third Reich. The beginnings of the National Socialist tyranny in the Aurich administrative region 1933–1938 . Ostfriesische Landschaftliche Verlags- und Vertriebsgesellschaft, Aurich 1992, ISBN 3-932206-14-2 .
Herbert Reyer (Ed.): Ostfriesland between republic and dictatorship (treatises and lectures on the history of Ostfriesland, volume 76), Ostfriesische Landschaftliche Verlags- und Vertriebsgesellschaft, Aurich 1998, ISBN 3-932206-10-X .
Herbert Reyer; Martin Tielke (Ed.): Frisia Judaica. Contributions to the history of the Jews in East Frisia . East Frisian Landscape, Aurich 1988, ISBN 3-925365-40-0 .
Theodor Schmidt: Analysis of the statistics and relevant sources on the federal elections in East Frisia 1949-1972. Verlag Ostfriesische Landschaft, Aurich 1978, without ISBN.
Wolfgang Schwarz: The prehistory in East Frisia. , Verlag Schuster, Leer 1995, ISBN 3-7963-0323-4 .
Karl-Heinz Sindowski et al .: Geology, Soils and Settlement of East Friesland (East Friesland in the protection of the dike, vol. 1), Deichacht Krummhörn (ed.), Verlag Deichacht Krummhörn, Pewsum 1969, without ISBN.
Menno Smid : East Frisian Church History. ( Ostfriesland in the protection of the dyke , vol. 6), Verlag Deichacht Krummhörn, Pewsum 1974 without ISBN.
Harald Vogel ; Reinhard Ruge; Robert Noah; Martin Stromann (photos): Organ landscape Ostfriesland. Soltau-Kurier-Norden, Norden 1995, ISBN 3-928327-19-4 .
Harm Wiemann / Johannes Engelmann: Old ways and streets in East Frisia. ( Ostfriesland in the protection of the dyke , vol. 8), Verlag Deichacht Krummhörn, Pewsum 1974, without ISBN.

Web links

Website of the municipality of Esens

Individual evidence

↑ State Office for Statistics Lower Saxony, LSN-Online regional database, Table 12411: Update of the population, as of December 31, 2019 ( help ).

↑ Distance Esens – Oldenburg - www.luftlinie.org , accessed on February 3, 2013. The other distances were also calculated with this tool.

↑ Population figures and area are taken from the Samtgemeinde homepage ( home page ), accessed on February 2, 2013. The total number differs slightly from the population figure of the State Statistical Office (see info box).

↑ For the partly voluntary, partly controlled formation of integrated or unified communities from the previous small communities, see the history of local government reform in the Moormerland community under The emergence of the Moormerland community ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically defective marked. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed February 2, 2013.@1@ 2

↑ ^a ^b State Office for Statistics and Communication Technology Lower Saxony , accessed on February 3, 2013.

^ Eberhard Rack: Small regional studies of Ostfriesland . Isensee Verlag, Oldenburg 1998, ISBN 3-89598-534-1 , p. 115.

↑ Gerd Rokahr : A Chronicle of the City of Esens . Brune-Mettcker-Verlag, Wittmund 2010. ISBN 978-3-87542-075-3 . P. 11f.

^ Jan F. Kegler: Brill (2008). FdStNr. 2411/3: 98, Gde.Dunum, Ldkr. Wittmund , accessed on February 6, 2013.

↑ East Frisian Landscape: Find Chronicle 1992 - 1994. A prehistoric and medieval settlement. Brill, Wittmund district (FStNr. 2411/3: 110-04) , accessed on February 6, 2013.

^ East Frisian landscape: Fund chronicle 1977. Wittmund district, Esens (SG), Dunum (EG), Brill (Gmk). H. Schwarz et al. W. Schwarz: Rescue excavation on the "Briller Gaste". , accessed February 6, 2013.

↑ East Frisian Landscape: Find Chronicle 1978. District Friesland (Altkreis Wittmund), Esens (SG), Dunum (EG), Brill (Gmk). W. Schwarz: Rescue excavation on the "Briller Gaste". , accessed February 6, 2013.

↑ East Frisian Landscape: Find Chronicle 1979. Brill, community Dunum. W. Schwarz: Final investigations on the imperial settlement. , accessed February 6, 2013.

↑ Gerd Rokahr: A Chronicle of the City of Esens . Brune-Mettcker-Verlag, Wittmund 2010. ISBN 978-3-87542-075-3 . P. 16f.

^ Wolfgang Schwarz: Pre- and early history , in: Karl-Ernst Behre, Hajo van Lengen: Ostfriesland. History and shape of a cultural landscape , Aurich 1995, ISBN 3-925365-85-0 , p. 72.

↑ Gerd Rokahr: A Chronicle of the City of Esens . Brune-Mettcker-Verlag, Wittmund 2010, ISBN 978-3-87542-075-3 , p. 16f.

^ Rolf Bärenfänger , Ostfriesische Landschaft: Holtgast (2002). FdStNr. 2311/8: 10, community Holtgast, district Wittmund , viewed on February 6, 2013.

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Gerd Rokahr: Ostfriesische Landschaft - Ortschronisten: Esens, Stadt, Landkreis Wittmund (PDF file; 99 kB), accessed on February 6, 2013.

↑ ^a ^b Haringerland Church District: Dunum , accessed on February 6, 2013.

↑ Genealogy forum: Dunum- Samtgemeinde Esens, district Wittmund ( Memento of the original of December 18, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed February 6, 2013. @1@ 2

↑ Menno Smid : East Frisian Church History . (East Frisia in the protection of the dike, vol. 6). Self-published, Pewsum 1974, p. 39.

^ Hajo van Lengen: The Harlingerland in East Frisian History - lecture manuscript, p. 2 . Quoted here from: Holtgast-Heimat-AG: Kloster Marienkamp and Pansath , viewed on February 6, 2013.

↑ Helmut Jäger, Erhard Kühlhorn: Esens. - Historical and regional excursion map of Lower Saxony , Gütersloh 1978, p. 40.

↑ Menno Smid: East Frisian Church History . (East Frisia in the protection of the dike, vol. 6). Self-published, Pewsum 1974, p. 156.

^ Biographical lexicon for East Frisia: Enno III. (PDF file; 66 kB), viewed February 18, 2013.

↑ ^a ^b Gerd Rokahr: A chronicle of the city of Esen . Brune-Mettcker-Verlag, Wittmund 2010, ISBN 978-3-87542-075-3 , p. 90.

↑ Gerd Rokahr: A Chronicle of the City of Esens . Brune-Mettcker-Verlag, Wittmund 2010, ISBN 978-3-87542-075-3 , p. 124.

^ Thorsten Melchers: Ostfriesland: Prussia's atypical province? Prussian integration policy in the 18th century . Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg, Diss., 2002, p. 187, also available for download .

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d Hans-Georg Hunger, local chronicle of the East Frisian landscape: Holtgast, Samtgemeinde Esens, Wittmund district , viewed on February 7, 2013.

^ Ortschronisten der Ostfriesischen Landschaft: Moorweg, Samtgemeinde. Esens, Wittmund district (PDF file; 37 kB), viewed on February 7, 2013.

↑ Jens Thaden: Dunum - a village with a past , viewed on February 7, 2013.

↑ Gottfried Kiesow: Architectural Guide Ostfriesland . Verlag Deutsche Stiftung Denkmalschutz, Bonn 2010, ISBN 3-86795-021-0 , p. 339.

↑ Esens.de: A Brief History of the City of Esens ( Memento of the original from March 17th, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed February 7, 2013. @1@ 2

↑ Karl-Heinz de Wall: Wittmund district , self-published by the Friesland district, Jever 1977, without ISBN, p. 70

↑ Anzeiger für Harlingerland : The First World War is followed by privation. In: Anzeiger für Harlingerland: Countdown for the newspaper birthday. Issued July 18, 2011. Accessed February 11, 2012.

^ Herbert Reyer: Revolution and a new democratic beginning in the city and the district of Aurich in the years 1918–1920 . In: East Frisia between republic and dictatorship . East Frisian Landscape, Aurich 1998, ISBN 3-932206-10-X , p. 85 f.

↑ ^a ^b ^c See the essays by the local chronicles of the East Frisian landscape on the individual places that can be viewed here.

↑ Hans-Georg Hunger (local chronicle of the East Frisian landscape): Holtgast, Samtgemeinde Esens, district Wittmund , viewed on February 11, 2013.

↑ State Office for Statistics and Communication Technology Lower Saxony: Samtgemeinde Esens , viewed on February 15, 2013.

↑ Up to 2000: Peter H. Kramer: Development of population and common needs of the Samtgemeinde Esens from 2008 to 2025 ( Memento of the original from February 25, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (Expert opinion on behalf of the Samtgemeinde Esens from January 11, 2010; PDF; 9.5 MB), from 2005 Lower Saxony Institute for Economic Research : NIW-Demographietest Niedersachsen ( Memento of the original from February 3, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and not yet tested. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 180 kB). Both accessed on February 12, 2013. @1@ 2 @1@ 2

^ Lower Saxony Municipal Constitutional Law (NKomVG) in the version of December 17, 2010; Section 46 - Number of MPs , accessed on December 28, 2016

↑ ^a ^b Samtgemeinde Esens - overall result of the 2016 Samtgemeinderrat election , accessed on December 28, 2011

↑ The CDU gets the most votes nationwide. September 12, 2016, accessed December 28, 2016 .

↑ Overall result of the municipal mayor election on May 25, 2014 , accessed on October 24, 2014

↑ Mayoral election - Jürgen Buß will not run again , accessed on October 24, 2014

↑ Allocation of constituencies to the Federal Returning Officer ( Memento of the original from September 7, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.

^ Nordwest-Zeitung: Bundestag election: These members represent our region . In: NWZonline . ( nwzonline.de [accessed September 29, 2017]).

↑ Samtgemeinde Esens: Main statute of the Samtgemeinde Esens ( Memento of the original from September 3, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 23 kB), accessed on February 3, 2012. @1@ 2

↑ Homepage www.samtgemeinde-esens.de , accessed on February 2, 2013.

↑ Anzeiger für Harlingerland : Harlingerland can be proud of the Konkordienbuch , accessed on February 12, 2013.

^ Robert Noah: The Romanesque church in Stedesdorf . In: Ostfriesland . No. 4, 1962, pp. 8-16.

↑ Noah: God's houses in East Frisia . 1989, p. 47.

↑ organ in Stedesdorf on NOMINE eV in February, saw 14 2012th

↑ Gottfried Kiesow: Architectural Guide Ostfriesland . Verlag Deutsche Stiftung Denkmalschutz, Bonn 2010, ISBN 978-3-86795-021-3 , p. 344f.

↑ Ev.-luth. Haringerland Church District: Dunum ( Memento of the original from May 15, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , seen February 14, 2012. @1@ 2

↑ Gottfried Kiesow: Architectural Guide Ostfriesland . Verlag Deutsche Stiftung Denkmalschutz, Bonn 2010, ISBN 978-3-86795-021-3 , pp. 336f.

↑ Gottfried Kiesow : Architectural Guide Ostfriesland . Verlag Deutsche Stiftung Denkmalschutz, Bonn 2010, ISBN 978-3-86795-021-3 , p. 339.

↑ Organ in Esens on NOMINE eV , viewed February 13, 2012.

↑ Gottfried Kiesow: Architectural Guide Ostfriesland . Verlag Deutsche Stiftung Denkmalschutz, Bonn 2010, ISBN 978-3-86795-021-3 , p. 338.

↑ Karin Lüppen: Low German for advanced learners. In: Ostfriesen-Zeitung , September 29, 2011, accessed on October 9, 2013.

↑ More than half of Wittmund's do sports , Ostfriesen-Zeitung, April 1, 2010, accessed on October 15, 2011

↑ Structural data and indicators, Employment Agency Emden , Employment Agency Emden / Hanover, December 2010, PDF file, p. 13.

↑ ^a ^b Peter H. Kramer: Population and common needs development of the Esens Samtgemeinde from 2008 to 2025. ( Memento of the original from February 25, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 9.5 MB, pp. 140 ff.) (Expert opinion on behalf of the Esens municipality dated January 11, 2010), accessed on October 9, 2013. @1@ 2

^ Lower Saxony coastal fishing regulations , accessed on February 2, 2013.

^ Tourism in the coastal resorts of East Friesland. 2012 - www.ihk-emden.de , accessed on October 8, 2013.

↑ Figures for Bensersiel 1960 and 1965 from Helmut Sanders: The population development in the Wittmund district since the end of the 18th century with special consideration of the soil types , Verlag Ostfriesische Landschaft, Aurich 1969, without ISBN, p. 62. There are none for Neuharlingersiel 1960 and 1965 Numbers ahead. Figures for 1981, 1985 and 1990 from Eckard Krömer : Brief economic history of Ostfriesland and Papenburg . Verlag SKN, Norden 1991, ISBN 3-922365-93-0 , p. 138. The figures for 1960 and 1965 only refer to the summer season between April 1 and September 30 of the respective year. In those years, however, the tourist infrastructure (baths, etc.) was barely developed and cultural attractions were still rarely marketed, so that it can be assumed that they were classic "summer visitors", which the numbers - possibly with small deductions - indicate seen little change over the whole year.

↑ Emder Zeitung , August 6, 2008, p. 4.

^ Ostfriesischer Kurier , February 13, 2008, p. 12.

↑ nordwestbahn.de: Esens-Wilhelmshaven timetable ( memento of January 24, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 2.4 MB), accessed on February 3, 2013.

↑ Reactivation of the north-Esens-Wilhelmshaven rail link: potential assessment (PDF; 4.0 MB), accessed on October 9, 2011

↑ Reactivation of the north-Esens-Wilhelmshaven rail link: Needs for the north-Dornum route expansion (PDF; 3.8 MB), accessed on October 9, 2011

↑ Reactivation of the Norden-Esens-Wilhelmshaven rail link: Example of a roundabout crossing (PDF; 2.3 MB), accessed on October 9, 2011

↑ Wittmund Police Stations - www.pd-os.polizei-nds.de , accessed on February 3, 2013.

↑ Locations - www.oowv.de ( Memento of the original from February 16, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed February 3, 2013. @1@ 2

^ Ostfriesland correspondents' office. In: ndr.de . Archived from the original on January 22, 2014 ; accessed on December 2, 2014 .

[Metadaten_Einwohnerzahl_DE-NI-1] State Office for Statistics Lower Saxony, LSN-Online regional database, Table 12411: Update of the population, as of December 31, 2019 ( help ).

[2] Distance Esens – Oldenburg - www.luftlinie.org , accessed on February 3, 2013. The other distances were also calculated with this tool.

[3] Population figures and area are taken from the Samtgemeinde homepage ( home page ), accessed on February 2, 2013. The total number differs slightly from the population figure of the State Statistical Office (see info box).