Am Großen Bruch is a municipality in the

Börde A ''börde'' (; plural: ''börden'') is a region of highly fertile lowland in North Germany, a "fertile plain". These landscapes often cover great areas and are particularly important for arable farming on account of their rich soils. These reg ...

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt ( ; ) is a States of Germany, state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.17 million inhabitants, making it the List of German states ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. It is part of the ''

Verbandsgemeinde A (; plural ) is a low-level administrative division, administrative unit in the Germany, German States of Germany, federal states of Brandenburg, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt. A is typically composed of a small group of Municipalitie ...

'' ("collective municipality")

Westliche Börde Westliche Börde is a ''Verbandsgemeinde'' ("collective municipality") in the Börde district in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Before 1 January 2010, it was a ''Verwaltungsgemeinschaft''. It is situated approximately 35 km southwest of Magdeburg, i ...

. The municipality was created on 1 July 2004 by the merger of the former municipalities Gunsleben, Hamersleben and Neuwegersleben. On 1 January 2010 it absorbed the former municipality Wulferstedt.Gebietsänderungen vom 01. Januar bis 31. Dezember 2010

Statistisches Bundesamt The Federal Statistical Office (, shortened ''Destatis'') is a federal authority of Germany. It reports to the Federal Ministry of the Interior. The Office is responsible for collecting, processing, presenting and analysing statistical informati ...

Geography

The name ''

Großes Bruch The Großes Bruch ("Great Marsh") is a long wetland strip in Germany, stretching from Oschersleben in Saxony-Anhalt in the east to Hornburg, Lower Saxony in the west. The depression formed from a glacial valley. The lowland meadow landscape ...

'' meaning "Great Wetland" denotes the swampy area of a former glacial valley, stretching about from

Oschersleben Oschersleben () is a town in the Börde district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. The population in 1905 was 13,271, in 2020 about 19,000. History On November 23, 994 Oschersleben was first mentioned in a document by the Emperor Otto III. In 1235 ...

and the

Bode River The Bode () is a river in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt, a left tributary of the Saale. It rises in the Harz mountains and drains them in a northerly direction. After it discharges into the Saale at Nienburg. The river is named after a leg ...

in the east to

Hornburg Hornburg is a town and a former municipality in the Wolfenbüttel district, in the German state of Lower Saxony. Since 1 November 2013, it is a part of the municipality Schladen-Werla. It is situated on the Ilse river, a tributary of the Oker. H ...

in the west. For centuries the inaccessible bog formed the border between the

Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg The Duchy of Brunswick and Lüneburg (), commonly known as the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg or Brunswick-Lüneburg, was an imperial principality of the Holy Roman Empire in the territory of present day Lower Saxony. In 1235, Otto I, Duke of ...

and the

Bishopric of Halberstadt The Diocese of Halberstadt was a Roman Catholic diocese () from 804 until 1648."Dio ...

. The municipality consists of the ''Ortsteile'' (municipal divisions) Gunsleben, Hamersleben, Neuwegersleben and Wulferstedt.Hauptsatzung der Gemeinde Am Großen Bruch
July 2019.

History

''Hamersleben'' was first mentioned in a 1021 deed and in 1111 became the home of an Augustinian

Canons Regular The Canons Regular of St. Augustine are Catholic priests who live in community under a rule ( and κανών, ''kanon'', in Greek) and are generally organised into Religious order (Catholic), religious orders, differing from both Secular clergy, ...

monastery which Reinhard, Bishop of Halberstadt had established at

Osterwieck Osterwieck () is a historic town in the Harz (district), Harz district, in the Germany, German state of Saxony-Anhalt. Geography The municipal area stretches along the river Ilse (Oker), Ilse, north of Wernigerode and the Harz mountain range. The ...

three years earlier. The

double monastery A double monastery (also dual monastery or double house) is a monastery combining separate communities of monks and of nuns, joined in one institution to share one church and other facilities. The practice is believed to have started in the East ...

also became the seat of an

archdeacon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denomina ...

in 1178. It joined the

Congregation of Windesheim The Congregation of Windesheim () is a congregation of Augustinian canons that regularly takes its name from its most important monastery, which was located at Windesheim in the Netherlands. The congregation was founded as an offshoot of the Br ...

in 1452. During the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and ...

Hamersleben was devastated in the course of the

German Peasants' War The German Peasants' War, Great Peasants' War or Great Peasants' Revolt () was a widespread popular revolt in some German-speaking areas in Central Europe from 1524 to 1525. It was Europe's largest and most widespread popular uprising befor ...

in 1525, again by the troops of the then Lutheran

Archbishopric of Magdeburg The Archbishopric of Magdeburg was a Catholic Church, Latin Catholic archdiocese (969–1552) and Prince-Bishopric, Prince-Archbishopric (1180–1680) of the Holy Roman Empire centered on the city of Magdeburg on the Elbe River. Planned since 95 ...

and once again by the forces of the

Swedish Empire The Swedish Empire or the Great Power era () was the period in Swedish history spanning much of the 17th and early 18th centuries during which Sweden became a European great power that exercised territorial control over much of the Baltic regi ...

during the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

. Nevertheless the abbey retained

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

confession until its dissolution in 1804. The Catholic monastery church of Saint Pancras is a Romanesque building which is known for its

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

pipe organ built in 1688. Today it is a stop on the scenic Romanic Road. The village of ''Neuwegersleben'' features one of the few preserved stations of the

Prussian Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, the House of Hohenzoll ...

optical telegraph An optical telegraph is a line of stations, typically towers, for the purpose of conveying textual information by means of visual signals (a form of optical communication). There are two main types of such systems; the semaphore telegraph whic ...

line from

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

Koblenz Koblenz ( , , ; Moselle Franconian language, Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz'') is a German city on the banks of the Rhine (Middle Rhine) and the Moselle, a multinational tributary. Koblenz was established as a Roman Empire, Roman military p ...

built in 1833. The building has been partly reconstructed and its signals were reinstalled. Today it houses a small museum.

Transportation

Am Großen Bruch is located on the federal highway No. 245 running from

Halberstadt Halberstadt (; Eastphalian dialect, Eastphalian: ''Halverstidde'') is a town in the state of Saxony-Anhalt in central Germany, the capital of Harz (district), Harz district. Located north of the Harz mountain range, it is known for its old town ...

Haldensleben Haldensleben (; Eastphalian dialect, Eastphalian: ''Halslä'') is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Börde (district), Börde district. Geography It is situated on the Ohre river, near the confluence with its ...

. In ''Neuwegersleben'' the highway No. 246 to

Wanzleben Wanzleben is a town and a former municipality in the Börde district, in Sachsen-Anhalt, Germany. Between 2004 and 2010 it was the seat of the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft Börde Wanzleben. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Wanzleben-Bör ...

branches off. The railway line from Oschersleben to

Jerxheim Jerxheim is a Municipalities of Germany, municipality in the Helmstedt (district), district of Helmstedt, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Jerxheim Rathaus.JPG, The town hall Heeseberg-Turm-2 NS 2014-06-01.jpg, The observation tower Personalities *Kur ...

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony is a States of Germany, German state (') in Northern Germany, northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ' of the Germany, Federal Re ...

was closed in 1992.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Am Grossen Bruch Municipalities in Saxony-Anhalt Börde (district)