Achim (;

Northern Low Saxon Northern Low Saxon (in High German: ', in Standard Dutch: ') is a subgroup of Low Saxon dialects of Low German. As such, it covers a great part of the West Low German-speaking areas of northern Germany, with the exception of the border region ...

: ''Achem''), commonly Achim bei Bremen, is a municipality and the largest town (population 30,059 in December 2006) in the district of Verden, 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 ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. It is situated on the right bank of the

Weser The Weser () is a river of Lower Saxony in north-west Germany. It begins at Hannoversch Münden through the confluence of the Werra and Fulda. It passes through the Hanseatic city of Bremen. Its mouth is further north against the ports of Bre ...

, approx. 17 km northwest of Verden, and 16 km southeast of

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...

Geography

Achim lies in the

Weser Depression The Weser Depression (german: Weserniederung) or Weser Lowlands is the region north of Porta Westfalica in Germany, where the River Weser no longer flows through a valley, but a broad plain consisting of meadows and river terraces. The flat plain ...

, an Urstromtal. The area surrounding Achim is primarily moorland in its natural state. It has an elevation between 12 and 40 metres above sea level, and an area of 65.1 km². For the Badener mountains and Oil Camp, see

Baden, Lower Saxony Baden is a town near Bremen, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is known to Africanists and Phoneticians as the place where Diedrich Hermann Westermann was born and died. It is a borough of the town of Achim. Baden is on the train line from Hanover ...

History

The first recorded mention of Achim came in 1091 as Arahem. The controlling heights of the Linden Mountains, south of Bremen, on which the old Arahem leaned, was a cult- and court-location. Achim was a meeting place of old Saxon courts. The court met three times annually. The Christian missionaries erected a baptismal church in Achim in the 12th century; it was the predecessor of St. Laurentius Church in Achim, built in 1257. Then it belonged to the

Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen The Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen (german: Fürsterzbistum Bremen) — not to be confused with the modern Archdiocese of Hamburg, founded in 1994 — was an ecclesiastical principality (787–1566/1648) of the Holy Roman Empire and the Catholic ...

. In the course of the War on Lunenburgian Succession (1370–1388) Achim was set on fire in 1381 because of the fights between Duke Albrecht of Saxe-Wittenberg, Duke-designate of Brunswick and Lunenburg, and the Prince-Archbishop of

, Albert II, titular Duke of Brunswick and Lunenburg. From 1626 Achim was controlled alternately by Danes and Swedes. In 1648 the Prince-Archbishopric was transformed into the

Duchy of Bremen ), which is a public-law corporation established in 1865 succeeding the estates of the Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen (established in 1397), now providing the local fire insurance in the shown area and supporting with its surplusses cultural effor ...

, which was first ruled in

personal union A personal union is the combination of two or more states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, would involve the constituent states being to some extent interlink ...

by the Swedish Crown and — interrupted by a Danish occupation (1712–1715) — from 1715 on by the

House of Hanover The House of Hanover (german: Haus Hannover), whose members are known as Hanoverians, is a European royal house of German origin that ruled Hanover, Great Britain, and Ireland at various times during the 17th to 20th centuries. The house orig ...

. During the Third Silesian or Seven Years' War (precipitated by the Anglo-

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

) it was controlled by France. In 1807 the ephemeric

Kingdom of Westphalia The Kingdom of Westphalia was a kingdom in Germany, with a population of 2.6 million, that existed from 1807 to 1813. It included territory in Hesse and other parts of present-day Germany. While formally independent, it was a vassal state of the ...

annexed the Duchy of Bremen, including Achim, before

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

annexed it in 1810. Achim became the capital of a homonymous canton within the Département des Bouches-du-Weser. In 1813 the Duchy was restored to the

Electorate of Hanover The Electorate of Hanover (german: Kurfürstentum Hannover or simply ''Kurhannover'') was an electorate of the Holy Roman Empire, located in northwestern Germany and taking its name from the capital city of Hanover. It was formally known as ...

. In 1814 the Electorate was upgraded to the

Kingdom of Hanover The Kingdom of Hanover (german: Königreich Hannover) was established in October 1814 by the Congress of Vienna, with the restoration of George III to his Hanoverian territories after the Napoleonic era. It succeeded the former Electorate of Han ...

at the

Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna (, ) of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon B ...

. In 1823 Hanover incorporated the Duchy in a

real union Real union is a union of two or more states, which share some state institutions in contrast to personal unions; however, they are not as unified as states in a political union. It is a development from personal union and has historically bee ...

and the ducal territory, including Achim, became part of the Stade Region, established in 1823. A train station has existed in Achim since 1847. Achim lies along the track between

and

Hannover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German States of Germany, state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germa ...

Industry

Achim is home to several international companies including Vitakraft and Desma shoe machines.

Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...

and

Amazon.com, Inc. Amazon.com, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational technology company focusing on e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. It has been referred to as "one of the most influential econom ...

also have branch offices in the city.

Twin towns – sister cities

Achim is twinned with: *

Cēsis Cēsis (), (german: Wenden, liv, Venden, et, Võnnu, pl, Kieś) is a town in Latvia located in the northern part of the Vidzeme Upland, Central Vidzeme Upland. Cēsis is on the Gauja, Gauja River valley, and is built on a series of ridges ...

, Latvia *

Nowa Sól Nowa Sól is a city on the Oder River in Lubusz Voivodeship, western Poland. It is the capital of Nowa Sól County and had a population of 38,763 (2019). History The first settlement in the region of modern Nowa Sól dates to the 14th century, wh ...

, Poland

Notable people

Notable people that were born or lived in Achim include: *

Friedrich Wilhelm Kleukens Friedrich may refer to: Names *Friedrich (surname), people with the surname ''Friedrich'' *Friedrich (given name), people with the given name ''Friedrich'' Other *Friedrich (board game), a board game about Frederick the Great and the Seven Years' ...

(1878–1956), German graphic designer and typographer *

Christian Heinrich Kleukens Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ (title), Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive ...

(1880–1954), calligrapher and poet *

Carl Huneke Carl Huneke (19 June 1898 – 18 June 1972) was a German-American stained glass artist and master craftsman. Proprietor of the Century Stained Glass Studio in San Francisco, California, Carl designed and created more than 1,000 stained glass ...

(1898–1972), German-American master stained glass artist and craftsman *

Karl Ravens Karl Ravens (29 June 1927 – 8 September 2017) was a German politician and member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). He served as the Federal Minister of Regional Planning, Construction and Urban Development for West Germany W ...

(1927–2017), German politician (

SPD The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been the ...

), former federal minister Bundesarchiv B 145 Bild-F055059-0025, Köln, SPD-Parteitag, Ravens

* Fritz-Heiner Hepke (born 1947), politician (SPD), 1998-2003 deputy in the state parliament of Lower Saxony * Martin Schmidt (born 1969), handball player *

Matthias Weidenhöfer Matthias is a name derived from the Greek Ματθαίος, in origin similar to Matthew. People Notable people named Matthias include the following: In religion: * Saint Matthias, chosen as an apostle in Acts 1:21–26 to replace Judas Iscariot ...

(born 1985), German actor *

Felix Wiedwald Felix Wiedwald (; born 15 March 1990) is a German former professional association football, footballer who played as a goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. A SV Werder Bremen, Werder Bremen youth product, he played for SV Werder Bremen ...

(born 1990), football player *

Deniz Undav Deniz Undav (born 19 July 1996) is a German professional footballer who plays as a forward for VfB Stuttgart of the Bundesliga, on loan from Premier League club Brighton & Hove Albion. Career In April 2020, it was announced Undav would leave 3. ...

(born 1996), football player

References

External links

Official site
{{Authority control Verden (district)