Hameln ( ; ) is a town on the river

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 o ...

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 ...

, Germany. It is the capital of the district of

Hameln-Pyrmont Hameln-Pyrmont is a district (''Landkreis'') in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the districts of Schaumburg, Hanover, Hildesheim and Holzminden, and by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia (district of Lippe) ...

and has a population of roughly 57,000. Hamelin is best known for the tale of the

Pied Piper of Hamelin The Pied Piper of Hamelin (, also known as the Pan Piper or the Rat-Catcher of Hamelin) is the title character of a legend from the town of Hamelin (Hameln), Lower Saxony, Germany. The legend dates back to the Middle Ages. The earliest refer ...

History

Hameln started with a monastery, which was founded as early as 851 AD; its surrounding village became a town by the 12th century. The incident involving the "Pied Piper" (see below) is said to have occurred in 1284 and may be based on a true event, although somewhat different from the traditional tale. In the 15th and 16th centuries, Hamelin was a minor member of the

Hanseatic League The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...

. In June 1634, 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 ...

, Lothar Dietrich,

Freiherr (; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , ) and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire and in ...

of Bönninghausen, a general in the

Imperial Army of the Holy Roman Emperor Imperial Army (Latin: ''Exercitus Imperatoris'', ) or Imperial troops (''Kaiserliche Truppen'' or ''Kaiserliche'') was a name used for several centuries, especially to describe soldiers recruited for the Holy Roman Emperor during the early mode ...

, lost the

Battle of Oldendorf The Battle of Oldendorf ( Schattkowsky (2003), p.241) on 8 July 1633 was fought as part of the Thirty Years' War between the Swedish Empire with its Protestant German allies and the Holy Roman Empire near Hessisch-Oldendorf, Lower Saxony, German ...

to the Swedish General Kniphausen, after Hamelin had been besieged by the Swedish army. The era of the town's greatest prosperity began in 1664, when Hamelin became a fortified border town of the

Principality of Calenberg The Principality of Calenberg was a dynastic division of the House of Welf, Welf Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg established in 1432. Calenberg was ruled by the House of Hanover (from the Principality of Lüneburg) from 1635 onwards; the princes re ...

. In 1705, it became part of the newly created

Electorate of Hanover The Electorate of Hanover ( or simply ''Kurhannover'') was an Prince-elector, electorate of the Holy Roman Empire located in northwestern Germany that arose from the Principality of Calenberg. Although formally known as the Electorate of Brun ...

when George Louis, Prince of Calenberg, later King George I of

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

, inherited the

Principality of Lüneburg The Principality of Lüneburg (later also referred to as Celle) was a territorial division of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg within the Holy Roman Empire, immediately subordinate to the emperor. It existed from 1269 until 1705 and its territory ...

. Hameln was surrounded by four fortresses, which gave it the nickname "Gibraltar of the North", and was the most heavily fortified town in the Electorate of Hanover. The first fort (Fort George) was built between 1760 and 1763, the second (Fort Wilhelm) in 1774, a third in 1784, and the last, called Fort Luise, was built in 1806. In 1806, Hamelin surrendered without a fight to the French forces, after

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

's victory at the

Battle of Jena-Auerstedt A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

. Napoleon's forces subsequently pulled down the town's historic walls, the guard towers, and the three fortresses at the other side of the river Weser. In 1843, the people of Hamelin built a sightseeing tower on the Klüt Hill out of the ruins of Fort George. The tower is called the ''Klütturm'' and is a popular sight for tourists. In 1867 Hamelin became part of the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signif ...

, which annexed Hanover in the aftermath of the

Austro-Prussian War The Austro-Prussian War (German: ''Preußisch-Österreichischer Krieg''), also known by many other names,Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Second War of Unification, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), ''Deutsc ...

of 1866. Between 1933 and 1937, the

Nazi regime Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictat ...

held the

Reich Harvest Thanksgiving Festival The Reich Harvest Thanksgiving Festival () was a monumental Nazi German celebration of the peasantry and the German farmers. The festivals ran from 1933 to 1937 on the Bückeberg (Hagenohsen), Bückeberg, a hill near the town of Hamelin. Most ...

at the nearby

Bückeberg The Bückeberg (; also the Bückeberge) is a small hill range, up to high, in the Calenberg Uplands between the Harrl and the Deister in central Germany, and is often considered part of the Weser Uplands. It lies in the district of Schaum ...

hill, to celebrate the achievements of Germany's farmers. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Hamelin Prison Hamelin Prison, also known as the ''Stockhof'', was a prison and penitentiary in Hamelin. The penal institution, which had a predecessor since 1698, existed from 1827 to 1980. It was located between the old town and the river Weser. After the Seco ...

was used for the detention of

Social Democrat Social democracy is a Social philosophy, social, Economic ideology, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achi ...

Communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

s, and other

political prisoner A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention. There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although ...

s. Around 200 died there, and more died in April 1945, when the Nazis sent the prisoners on long marches, fearing the Allied advance. Just after the war, Hamelin prison was used by British Occupation Forces for the detention of Germans accused of war crimes. Following their conviction, around 200 were hanged there, including

Irma Grese Irma Ilse Ida Grese (7 October 1923 – 13 December 1945) was a Nazi concentration camp at Ravensbrück, Auschwitz II-Birkenau, and Bergen-Belsen. She has been widely known as the "Hyena of Auschwitz" and the "Beast of Belsen" for the atrocit ...

and

Josef Kramer Josef Kramer (10 November 1906 – 13 December 1945) was a in the SS and the Commandant of Auschwitz-Birkenau (from 8 May 1944 to 25 November 1944) and Bergen Belsen (from December 1944 to its liberation on 15 April 1945) concentration camps. ...

, along with over a dozen of the perpetrators of the

Stalag Luft III murders The Stalag Luft III murders were war crimes perpetrated by members of the Gestapo following the " Great Escape" of Allied prisoners of war from the German Air Force prison camp known as Stalag Luft III on March 25, 1944. Of the 76 successful escape ...

. The prison has since been turned into a hotel. Executed war criminals were interred in the prison yard until it became full, and further burials took place at the Am Wehl Cemetery in Hameln. In March 1954, German authorities began exhuming the 91 bodies from the prison yard, which were reburied in individual graves in consecrated ground in Am Wehl Cemetery. The

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

(German: ''Wappen'') of Hamelin depicts the Minster of St. Boniface, the oldest church in the city.

Geography

Subdivisions

* Nordstadt * Südstadt * West/Klütviertel * Ost/Basberg * Mitte/Altstadt * Wehl * Afferde * Hastenbeck * Halvestorf (Halvestorf, Bannensiek, Weidehohl and Hope) * Haverbeck * Hilligsfeld (Groß und Klein Hilligsfeld) * Sünteltal (Holtensen, Unsen, Welliehausen) * Klein Berkel / Wangelist * Tündern * Wehrbergen * Rohrsen

Demographics

Attractions

Tale of the Pied Piper

The town is famous for the folk tale of the

(), a

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

story that tells of a tragedy that befell the town in the 13th century. The version written by the

Brothers Grimm The Brothers Grimm ( or ), Jacob Grimm, Jacob (1785–1863) and Wilhelm Grimm, Wilhelm (1786–1859), were Germans, German academics who together collected and published folklore. The brothers are among the best-known storytellers of Oral tradit ...

made it popular throughout the world. It is also the subject of well-known poems by

Johann von Goethe Johann Wolfgang (von) Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German polymath who is widely regarded as the most influential writer in the German language. His work has had a wide-ranging influence on Western literature, literary, Polit ...

and

Robert Browning Robert Browning (7 May 1812 – 12 December 1889) was an English poet and playwright whose dramatic monologues put him high among the Victorian literature, Victorian poets. He was noted for irony, characterization, dark humour, social commentar ...

. Every Sunday in summer, the tale is performed by actors in the town centre.

Twin towns – sister cities

Hamelin is twinned with: *

Kalwaria Zebrzydowska Kalwaria Zebrzydowska () is a town in southern Poland with 4,429 inhabitants (2007 estimate). As of 1999, it is situated in Lesser Poland or Małopolska (in Polish). Previously, the town was administered within the Voivodeship of Bielsko-Biała ...

, Poland *

Quedlinburg Quedlinburg () is a town situated just north of the Harz mountains, in the Harz (district), district of Harz in the west of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. As an influential and prosperous trading centre during the early Middle Ages, Quedlinburg becam ...

, Germany *

Saint-Maur-des-Fossés Saint-Maur-des-Fossés () is a Communes of France, commune in Val-de-Marne, the southeastern suburbs of Paris, suburbs of Paris, France, from the Kilometre Zero, centre of Paris. History Abbey Saint-Maur-des-Fossés owes its name to Saint-Maur A ...

, France *

Torbay Torbay is a unitary authority with a borough status in the ceremonial county of Devon, England. It is governed by Torbay Council, based in the town of Torquay, and also includes the towns of Paignton and Brixham. The borough consists of ...

, England, United Kingdom

Media

The ', known as ''DeWeZet'', publishes out of Hameln.

British army presence

Hamelin was home to several Royal Engineer units, including 35 Engineer Regiment and 28 Amphibious Engineer Regiment until summer 2014, with many of the British families housed at Hastenbeck (Schlehenbusch) and Afferde. It was also home to the Royal Corps of Transport unit of 26 Bridging Regiment RCT, comprising 35 Sqn RCT and 40 Sqn RCT, until 1971.

Notable people

*Saint

Vicelinus Vicelinus (also ''Vicelin'', ; 1086 – 12 December 1154) was a German bishop of Oldenburg in Holstein who was considered the apostle of Holstein. Also known as – Apostle of Obodriten, of the Wends, Vicelinus, Vincelin, Vizelin, Wissel, Witzel. ...

(1086–1154), Bishop of Oldenburg, born in the town. *''

'' (ca 1284), the

title character The title character in a narrative work is one who is named or referred to in the title of the work. In a performed work such as a play or film, the performer who plays the title character is said to have the title role of the piëce. The title o ...

of a legend from the town. * Glückel of Hameln (1646–1724), Jewish businesswoman and diarist * Peter the Wild Boy (ca 1713–1785), found in 1725 living wild in the nearby woods *

Friedrich Wilhelm von Reden Friedrich Wilhelm von Reden (23 March 1752 – 3 July 1815) was a German pioneer in mining and metallurgy. He was born in Hamelin in the Electorate of Hanover and died in Schloss Buchwald in Prussian Silesia. Life Reden came from the no ...

(1752–1815), pioneer in mining and

metallurgy Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the ...

. *

Karl Philipp Moritz Karl Philipp Moritz (Hameln, 15 September 1756 – Berlin, 26 June 1793) was a German author, editor and essayist of the ''Sturm und Drang'', late Enlightenment, and classicist periods, influencing early German Romanticism as well. He led a life ...

(1756–1793), author of the

Sturm und Drang (, ; usually translated as "storm and stress") was a proto-Romanticism, Romantic movement in German literature and Music of Germany, music that occurred between the late 1760s and early 1780s. Within the movement, individual subjectivity an ...

and

Age of Enlightenment The Age of Enlightenment (also the Age of Reason and the Enlightenment) was a Europe, European Intellect, intellectual and Philosophy, philosophical movement active from the late 17th to early 19th century. Chiefly valuing knowledge gained th ...

periods. *

Anton Friedrich Justus Thibaut Anton Friedrich Justus Thibaut (4 January 1772Garratt, James. (2002) ''Palestrina and the German Romantic Imagination'', Cambridge University Press. p.40. .20 March 1840), was a German jurist and musician. Early life He was born at Hamelin, in Ha ...

(1772–1840), a jurist and musician. *

Friedrich Sertürner Friedrich Wilhelm Adam Sertürner (; 19 June 1783 – 20 February 1841) was a German pharmacist and a pioneer of alkaloid chemistry. He is best known for his discovery of morphine, which he isolated from opium in 1804, and for conducting tests, ...

(1783–1841),

pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English, is a healthcare professional who is knowledgeable about preparation, mechanism of action, clinical usage and legislation of medications in ...

, isolated morphine from opium (1822–1841) * Johann Ludwig Dammert (1788–1855), the first Mayor and President of the Senate of Hamburg in 1843. *

Heinrich Bürger Heinrich Bürger (or: Heinrich Burger) (Hamelin, 29 February 1804, or 7 November 1804, or 20 January 1806 – Indramayu (Java) 25 March 1858) was a German physicist, biologist and botanist employed by the Dutch government, and an entrepreneur ...

(1806–1858), German physicist, biologist and botanist, studied Japanese fauna and flora. *

Julius Wellhausen Julius Wellhausen (17 May 1844 – 7 January 1918) was a German biblical scholar and orientalist. In the course of his career, his research interest moved from Old Testament research through Islamic studies to New Testament scholarship. Wellhau ...

(1844–1918), Biblical scholar and orientalist. *

Oswald Freisler Oswald Freisler (29 December 1895 – 4 March 1939) was a lawyer in Nazi Germany and the younger brother of Roland Freisler, who a few years after Oswald's death became the Judge President of the People's Court. Life Freisler attended the '' Gym ...

(1895–1939), lawyer and brother of

Roland Freisler Karl Roland Freisler (30 October 1893 – 3 February 1945) was a German jurist, judge and politician who served as the State Secretary of the Reich Ministry of Justice from 1935 to 1942 and as President of the People's Court from 1942 to 194 ...

Ida Schreiter Ida Bertha Gertrud Schreiter (12 December 1912 – 20 September 1948) was from 1939 to 1945 an ''Aufseherin'' (labor department warden) in Ravensbrück concentration camp. After the Second World War, Schreiter was brought to justice by the Britis ...

(1912–1948), concentration camp warden executed for war crimes *

Heinz Knoke Heinz Knoke (24 March 1921 – 18 May 1993) was a World War II ''Luftwaffe'' flying ace. He is credited with 33 confirmed aerial victories, all claimed over the Western theatre of operations, and claimed a further 19 unconfirmed kills in over 2, ...

(1921–1993), German officer and

Flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviation, military aviator credited with shooting down a certain minimum number of enemy aircraft during aerial combat; the exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ...

of the Luftwaffe * Reinhard Busse (born 1963), physician and health economist. *

Benjamin-Gunnar Cohrs Benjamin-Gunnar Cohrs (21 September 1965 – 21 November 2023) was a German conductor, music scholar (specialising in Anton Bruckner, Bruckner), and publicist on music. Early career Benjamin-Gunnar Cohrs made his early conducting debut in 1984 ...

(1965–2023), conductor, beginning at the local Youth Music School *

Max Richter Max Richter (; ; born 22 March 1966) is a German-born British composer and pianist. He works within postminimalist and contemporary classical styles. Richter is classically trained, having graduated in composition from the University of Edinbu ...

(born 1966), neo-classical composer * Markus Pieper (born 1963), politician and MEP * Susan Stahnke (born 1967), German TV presenter *

Jens Todt Jens Todt (born 5 January 1970) is a German former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. Club career Todt began playing professionally with TSV Havelse. In 1991, he followed manager Volker Finke to SC Freiburg, in the ...

(born 1970), footballer who played 340 games

Gallery

File:Hameln Rattenfängerhause Osterstraße Germany Duitsland.jpg, Hameln Rattenfängerhaus File:Hameln Leisthaus.jpg, The ''Leisthaus'', Hamelin File:Jüdischer Friedhof Hameln Ausschnitt.jpg, Jewish cemetery of Hamelin File:GoldeneRatte.jpg, The Golden Rat, on a footbridge over the River

in Hamelin File:Hamelin_Hochzeitshaus.jpg, The Hochzeitshaus, the church's Glockenspiel plays the story of the Pied Piper of Hamelin

References

External links

*
Hameln Notgeld
(emergency banknotes) depicting the story of the Pied Piper of Hamelin http://webgerman.com/Notgeld/Directory/H/Hameln.htm {{Authority control Towns in Lower Saxony Hameln-Pyrmont Members of the Hanseatic League