Börger is a village and a municipality in the district

Emsland Landkreis Emsland () is a district in Lower Saxony, Germany named after the river Ems. It is bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the districts of Leer, Cloppenburg and Osnabrück, the state of North Rhine-Westphalia (district of Steinfur ...

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 ...

. Börger is part of the administrative unit of Sögel.

History

Early history

An exact age of the village cannot be given. Northern European Germanic tribes may have settled in the area of the Northern

Hümmling The Hümmling (''Homelinghen'', from ''hömil'' = small stone) is a ground moraine landscape, up to , in the Emsland region on the North German Plain in the western part of the German state of Lower Saxony. Location The wooded Hümmling, whic ...

(Northern

) about the birth of Christ, and it is commonly believed that the first documented mentioning of Börger was around the year AD 854. Therefore, the village celebrated its 1150 years of existence in 2004. Nevertheless, it is known that people must have lived in the region of the Nordhümmling for about 4000 years because of archaeological discoveries dating to this time period. For instance, "Großsteingräber" and "Hügelgrabfelder" (Stone Tombs) can still be found in the area. About AD 1 so called "Amsivarier" (people of the region of the

Ems river The Ems (german: Ems; nl, Eems) is a river in northwestern Germany. It runs through the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony, and discharges into the Dollart Bay which is part of the Wadden Sea. Its total length is . The state b ...

called by the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

) lived in the

and on the Hümmling. The Romans, acting out of revenge after losing the

Battle of the Teutoburg Forest The Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, described as the Varian Disaster () by Ancient Rome, Roman historians, took place at modern Kalkriese in AD 9, when an alliance of Germanic peoples ambushed Roman legions and their auxiliaries, led by Publius ...

, enslaved this small tribe. Shortly afterwards, at around 50AD the

Germanic tribe This list of ancient Germanic peoples is an inventory of ancient Germanic cultures, tribal groupings and other alliances of Germanic tribes and civilisations in ancient times. The information comes from various ancient historical documents, beginn ...

of the Chauken (or Chatten) took over the region. At around 400AD the

Saxons The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

started to push into the region from the east, while the

Frisians The Frisians are a Germanic ethnic group native to the coastal regions of the Netherlands and northwestern Germany. They inhabit an area known as Frisia and are concentrated in the Dutch provinces of Friesland and Groningen and, in Germany, ...

moved in from the north. Both tribes disputed the region through the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, though the

are believed to have had the control. Nevertheless, it is reasonable to say that all four tribes (

, Amsivians and Chauken) are ancestors of modern-day residents of Börger.

Foundation of the village

Börger is believed to have originated with Kaiser Karl the Great. In 854AD it was mentioned for the first time; at that time it was referred to as "Burgiri" and several decades later in 879 being renamed "Burgium". In the year 1160 another document called the village "Bürgeren". Linguists translate "Burgiri" as "high birch". There were originally 18 farms in Börger, from which the village developed. The first settlement in Börger was probably a group of farms in the middle of the village ( Dorfbusk). Later a

nucleated village A nucleated village, or clustered settlement, is one of the main types of settlement pattern. It is one of the terms used by geographers and landscape historians to classify settlements. It is most accurate with regard to planned settlements: its c ...

Haufendorf A ''Haufendorf'' is an enclosed village with irregular plots of land and farms of greatly differing scale, usually surrounded by a stockade fence (German: ''Ortsetter''). They are typically found in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, whence the name ...

, developed. According to rumor, two neighbourhoods developed and persist to this day.

Farmers of the Hümmling

Contrary to other riverside areas of the Middle Ages, the Hümmling was very scarcely populated and forested. Most of the population held cattle and farmed the fields. The people of the region never truly accepted the authority of the nobility, because settlements were difficult to travel between and often subject to pillages. Several revolts erupted due to the protest of imposed taxes and the lack of protection against pillaging neighbouring regions of the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

and

Stedinger Stedingen is an area north of Bremen in the delta of the Weser river in north-western Germany. Founding In 1106, five Dutchmen journeyed from the mouth of the Rhine to Bremen to negotiate an arrangement with Archbishop Frederick I of Bremen to s ...

. In 1266 the people of the Hümmling tried to achieve protection by subordinating themselves to the

. This resulted in failure; revolts occurred in 1340 and 1449. In 1394, the region was subjected to another law. In this document the farmers of the North Hümmling subordinated themselves to the

bishop of Münster A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

when he gained power over Cloppenburg. According to the law, the bishop must provide protection from the pillaging of the settlements by other kings as well as roving gangs.

Wars and the Plague

During the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...

, in 1647 Wahn, Lorup and six other villages at the Ems were burned down by pillaging soldiers. The population of Börger went into hiding in the swamps. It is being handed down that an inhabitant of Börger (Albert Dillen) was abducted and released after promising not to pillage the village by paying a ransom. After the war, the

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

struck several times and especially in 1666. The population of Hümmling was devastated. The plague occurred in intervals since the 14th century and also hit Börger.

The Church of Börger

The church tower in Börger was first mentioned in 1523, when the chapel was renovated. Therefore, it may be concluded that a church tower or

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

existed since before the year 1500: Bernhard Holtmann mentions the year 1490. The church was dedicated to the holy Joist (Jodokus). Its own religious district was granted in 1573; previously, it was a member of the district of Sögel. In 1543 the

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

arrived at the Hümmling. After a while the people of the Hümmling followed this movement and at this time Börger had a

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

preacher, a former farmer and soldier. At around 1600 the entire Hümmling was

protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

. In 1614 several farmers returned to the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. In 1633 the

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

entered the area and began persecuting the Catholic population. In 1659 it was declared that Börger would become Catholic again. Börger could not sustain its own priest until 1652 because there was little or no surplus of food. The first priest was Matthäus Bödeker, who preached from 1652 to about 1658. The old church (Eschkirche) and the cemetery in Börger were expanded several times. In 1804, a major increase was necessary due to an increase of the population of the village. In 1890 the church was torn down because the new major St. Jodokus church was inaugurated in the centre of the village.

Life of the general population

The region of Börger used to be 130 square kilometres in size before the daughter communities of Neubörger and Breddenberg formed. (The biggest community in 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 ...

) Most of the region is sand and swamp, which is unusable for farming without fertilizer. The population of the region barely survived on crops grown in suitable regions, as well as cattle. Many citizens became

beekeepers A beekeeper is a person who keeps honey bees. Beekeepers are also called honey farmers, apiarists, or less commonly, apiculturists (both from the Latin '' apis'', bee; cf. apiary). The term beekeeper refers to a person who keeps honey bees i ...

as well. Still, the population was poor: There were many years of starvation, especially between 1840 and 1880. The poorest farmers, as well as hired help, were hit the hardest. Because of this, many residents moved to the Netherlands during the spring as

peat Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and is the most efficien ...

diggers and mowers, until the crops were ready at home. The situation was still dire, and many decided to move across the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

for a better life.

Towns in the Börger Region

In the year 1788 two more villages were founded about 6 km northeast and northwest of the village. New farmers (Neubauern) and small farmers from Börger settled there. Out of these settlements the villages "Neubörger" and "Breddenberg" developed. After ten years of free use the settlers had to pay high tributes to the nobility, the duchy of

Arenberg Arenberg, also spelled as Aremberg or Ahremberg, is a former county, principality and finally duchy that was located in what is now Germany. The Dukes of Arenberg remain a prominent Belgian noble family. History First mentioned in the 12th ...

, but also to the municipal of Börger. In the following years many settlers of the new villages had to sell their plots. Although new villages were formed in the region in 1830, it still lost population because America seemed to be a more appealing place to live. With end of the feudal system in 1887 and the distribution of ownership of land to the small farmers, the economy began to improve. Following the example of the

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

, the northern part of Börger the cutting of

became an integral part of the economy. In 1879, farmers settled in the forest, establishing the village of "Börgerwald". In this year the population of Börger increased; this was the blooming time of artisanship. From 1930 to 1940 new settlements were established in

Börgermoor Emslandlager ("Emsland camps") were a series of 15 moorland labor, punitive and POWs-camps, active from 1933 to 1945 and located in the districts of Emsland and Bentheim, Lower Saxony, Germany. The central administration was set in Papenburg ...

. Börgerwald and Börgermoor are currently joined to form Surwold, with a population of approximately 5000 inhabitants. In 2004, Börger had about 3000 inhabitants, Neubörger about 1600 and Breddenberg nearly 1000. Börgermoor acquired worldwide prominence as the location of one of the first Nazi concentration camps, where the famous song of the Peat Bog Soldiers originated.

References

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