Watenstedt (Salzgitter)

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Watenstedt
City of Salzgitter
Local coat of arms of Salzgitter-Watenstedt
Coordinates: 52 ° 8 ′ 46 ″  N , 10 ° 24 ′ 31 ″  E
Height : 93 m
Area : 10 km²
Residents : 370  (Dec. 31, 2019)
Population density : 37 inhabitants / km²
Incorporation : April 1, 1942
Incorporated into: Watenstedt-Salzgitter
Postal code : 38239
Area code : 05341
map
Location of Watenstedt in Salzgitter

Watenstedt is one of the total of 31 districts of the independent city of Salzgitter in Lower Saxony , located in the east . Watenstedt belonged to the district of Wolfenbüttel until March 31, 1942 and became part of the city of Watenstedt-Salzgitter through an administrative act on April 1, 1942. On January 23, 1951, it was officially renamed Salzgitter .

history

The place name of Watenstedt is mentioned for the first time in a script from 1186 - at that time the place was called Wattenstede . In this document dated October 18, 1186, the Bishop Adelog von Hildesheim confirms the foundation of the Neuwerk Monastery (near Goslar) by Vogt Volkmar there and his wife and confirms the monastery its possessions. Among many others, four and a half hooves are listed in Watenstedt. In another document dated August 28, 1188, this foundation and the ownership of the monastery in Watenstedt was also confirmed by Emperor Friedrich I (Barbarossa) .

Examples of other early place names in Watenstedt are Watenstide (1196, 1197), Watenstede (1209), Watenstedde (1372), Watenstidde (1418) and Watenstede (prope Barum) (1446). The place has been called Watenstedt since 1570.

To name interpretation: The root word of the name -stedt means in Germanic-speaking site and was Ostfalen over long periods for the designation of places in use. The defining word of the place name is mostly traced back to the personal name Wato or Wado . Another interpretation derives the place name from Wat for water - there used to be a water point in the place.

There was a de Watenstidde family in the village in the 13th and 14th centuries . The family members Luther, Gerhard, Johann and Herweg are known by name. It is believed that this family lived in the Wal (l) courtyard, a fortified courtyard, and took the name of the place. Numerous sales and donations, mostly to buyers in the area, have been announced. The "von Watenstedt" family died out at the end of the 14th century.

In administrative terms, Watenstedt belonged to the Principality of Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel from the 15th century , there initially to the Lichtenberg court and, after its division, to the Salder court. During the Napoleonic period Watenstedt counted as a second Munizipität in the district Braunschweig for the department of the Oker in the Kingdom of Westphalia . The towns of Heerte, Salder, Barum and Cramme also belonged to this municipality.

After the reintroduction of the Duchy of Braunschweig , the Cantons Salder were combined with Watenstedt, Gebhardshagen and Lesse to form the Salder District Court - the later Salder Office. After the First World War, the Duchy of Braunschweig became the Free State of Braunschweig and Watenstedt became part of the Wolfenbüttel district. Since April 1, 1942, Watenstedt has been part of the newly founded town of Watenstedt-Salzgitter - today's Salzgitter.

Population development

In no other part of Salzgitter have the population figures been subject to such strong fluctuations as in Watenstedt since the 1930s. In 1663 there were 135 inhabitants, in 1774 there were 287, and between 1798 and 1933 the number rose only slowly from 319 to 380 inhabitants. With the establishment of the Hermann-Göring-Werke and the nearby Braunschweig steelworks from 1937, this changed suddenly. Large parts of the corridor around Watenstedt became an industrial development area, the majority of the farmers were relocated and the land was taken over by the Reichswerke's goods administration. Numerous labor camps were set up around Watenstedt, in 1939 the place already had 5127 residents and at the end of August 1943 16,992 residents were registered.

After the end of the war, some of the labor camps were used as prisoner-of-war camps and in 1946 the Watenstedt-Immendorf refugee camp was established here. The residential area only relaxed after 1952, when the reconstruction of the town of Salzgitter began and a barracks clearance program was launched in 1956. This was completed in 1965, and in 1967 the place only had 1220 residents. The temporary increase from the end of the 1960s onwards was due to the increased recruitment of foreign workers by industrial companies. At the end of the 1980s, a few dormitories were set up in Watenstedt to enable the first accommodation of ethnic German repatriates from Russia.

Since then, the population of Watenstedt has been decreasing steadily, in 1997 it fell below 700 for the first time and at the end of 2014 it was less than 400. The high proportion of foreigners is symptomatic of Watenstedt - a third of the population is of foreign origin. Part of the reason for the sharp decline in numbers is the current development plan, according to which Watenstedt, which is surrounded on three sides by industry, is a commercial area with residential development . New buildings are not possible and building on the existing residential property is only allowed to a very limited extent, so that a meaningful further development of the place is not possible.

Sources: The population figures from 1821 to 2000 are based on the statistical yearbook of the Department for Economics and Statistics of the city of Salzgitter. The population statistics from 2001 are based on the monthly statistical reports of the city of Salzgitter (residents with main residence) according to the population register at the end of December.

religion

Protestant church

Church of Salzgitter-Watenstedt

At the end of the 8th century, the missionary work of the Sachsenland began under Charlemagne . The starting point was the monastery in Fulda , which was founded by Sturmi in 744 . The great baptism period began in 778 with a mass baptism in the Oker. The influence of the Fulda monastery ended in 815 when Ludwig the Pious founded the prince-bishopric of Hildesheim - Watenstedt was part of the archdeacon of Barum.

Watenstedt was never the seat of a pastor. Until 1625 the parish was a branch of the parish in Barum, after which Watenstedt forms a parish association together with Leinde. There has been a parish association between Watenstedt and Hallendorf since 1974 and Beddingen and Steterburg were added in 2004. The four communities are looked after from Hallendorf.

The church tower was built around 1000 as a defense tower , according to its function with up to 1.5 m thick walls and only accessible via a ladder and a door on the first floor. Towards the end of the 13th century the nave was added to the tower. In 1803 the church received a clock and in 1852/53 an organ. The building was so badly hit by several attacks during World War II that in 1945 the church roof and the stucco ceiling of the church interior collapsed. The church was consecrated again on the 4th Advent 1947.

Catholic Anna Church

Watenstedt has been a Protestant village since the Reformation. With the growing number of Catholic Christians resulting from the establishment of the Reichswerke, a Catholic parish vicarie was established in 1939 with its seat in Barum, which belonged to the parish of Wolfenbüttel. Since the National Socialists had banned the construction of new churches, Catholic services were initially held in private apartments and later in the hall of a local inn. According to a resolution by the Protestant regional church, the Protestant church could also be used for Catholic worship from October 1940.

After the war, a large barrack was first converted into a worship room. The Catholic St. Anna Church was consecrated in 1960; it was rebuilt as a prefabricated church with a free-standing bell tower according to plans by the Brunswick architect Alfred Geismar and was located approximately opposite the train station. Because of the declining number of parishioners, Catholic services were suspended at the end of 1989. Since then, the Catholic residents of Watenstedt have been taking part in the services in the Heilig-Geist-Kirche in Hallendorf. Most recently, St. Anna was a branch church of the Heilig Geist parish , but it has since been torn down.

politics

Local council

coat of arms

Description: Above, in black, a five-legged golden (yellow) tournament collar on the edge of the shield, below a golden (yellow) flax flower.

The golden tournament or turtle collar in the upper half of the shield is a symbol of the knight family de Watenstidde who lived in Watenstedt in the 13th and 14th centuries . The negative of the tournament collar shows four chimneys, which until a few years ago were the unmistakable symbol for the sintering plant of the steelworks near Watenstedt. The flax blossom stands for the old flax rotten from Watenstedt, where the steelworks are today. The flax blossom is also a symbol for the formerly agricultural village. The colors black and yellow are the traditional colors of Watenstedt.

The coat of arms was accepted as the local coat of arms of Salzgitter-Watenstedt in a citizens' meeting on March 30, 2006.

Economy and Infrastructure

Companies

traffic

The Salzgitter-Watenstedt train station is on the Braunschweig – Derneburg railway line . The RB44 line operates on the Braunschweig – Salzgitter-Lebenstedt route.

See also

literature

  • Bernhard Schroeter: Watenstedt - The somewhat different village in Salzgitter . Salzgitter 2006.
  • Kirstin Casemir: The place names of the Wolfenbüttel district and the city of Salzgitter . Verlag für Regionalgeschichte, 2003, ISBN 3-89534-483-4 , p. 340-341 .
  • Mechthild Wiswe : The field names of the Salzgitter area . Self-published by the Braunschweigisches Geschichtsverein, 1970, p. 475-476 ff .
  • Wolfgang Benz (Ed.): Salzgitter - Past and Present of a German City - 1942–1992 . Verlag CH Beck Munich, 1992, ISBN 3-406-35573-0 .
  • Literature about Watenstedt in the catalog of the DNB

Web links

Commons : Watenstedt (Salzgitter)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Casemir, Place Names , pp. 340–341
  2. ^ Wiswe, Flurnamen , pp. 475–476
  3. ↑ Schroeter, Dorfchronik Watenstedt , p. 6
  4. ↑ Benz, Salzgitter 1942–1992 , page 163
  5. ^ Department for economics and statistics: Statistical yearbook of the city of Salzgitter. City of Salzgitter, accessed on February 22, 2020 (total number of eligible residents (main and secondary residence) © City of Salzgitter).
  6. ^ Department for Economics and Statistics: Monthly Statistical Reports of the City of Salzgitter. City of Salzgitter, accessed on February 22, 2020 (Population at the location of the main residence © City of Salzgitter).
  7. ↑ Willi Stoffers: Diocese of Hildesheim today. Hildesheim 1987, ISBN 3-87065-418-X , pp. 62/63
  8. ↑ Schroeter, Dorfchronik Watenstedt , pp. 15-17