Leer () is a town in the district of

Leer Leer may refer to: * Leer, Lower Saxony, town in Germany ** Leer (district), containing the town in Lower Saxony, Germany ** Leer (Ostfriesland) railway station * Leer, South Sudan, town in South Sudan ** Leer County, an administrative division ...

, in the northwestern part of

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 situated on the river Leda, a tributary of the river

Ems Ems or EMS may refer to: Places and rivers * Domat/Ems, a Swiss municipality in the canton of Grisons * Ems (river) (Eems), a river in northwestern Germany and northeastern Netherlands that discharges in the Dollart Bay * Ems (Eder), a river o ...

, near the border with the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. With 34,958 inhabitants (2021), it is the third-largest city in

East Frisia East Frisia () or East Friesland (; ; ; ) is a historic region in the northwest of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is primarily located on the western half of the East Frisia (peninsula), East Frisian peninsula, to the east of West Frisia and to the ...

after

Emden Emden () is an Independent city (Germany), independent town and seaport in Lower Saxony in the north-west of Germany and lies on the River Ems (river), Ems, close to the Germany–Netherlands border, Netherlands border. It is the main town in t ...

and

Aurich Aurich (; East Frisian Low Saxon: ''Auerk'', West Frisian: ''Auwerk'', ) is a town in the East Frisian region of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Aurich and is the second largest City in East Frisia, both in popula ...

. It has a railway and

autobahn The (; German , ) is the federal controlled-access highway system in Germany. The official term is (abbreviated ''BAB''), which translates as 'federal motorway'. The literal meaning of the word is 'Federal Auto(mobile) Track'. Much of t ...

connection to

Groningen Groningen ( , ; ; or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen (province), Groningen province in the Netherlands. Dubbed the "capital of the north", Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of ...

, Netherlands,

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (, ), is the capital of the States of Germany, German state of the Bremen (state), Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (), a two-city-state consisting of the c ...

and the South (

Rheine Rheine () is a city in the district of Steinfurt (district), Steinfurt in Westphalia, Germany. It is the largest city in the district and the location of Rheine Air Base. Geography Rheine is on the river Ems (river), Ems, about north of Münster ...

and the

Ruhr The Ruhr ( ; , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr Area, sometimes Ruhr District, Ruhr Region, or Ruhr Valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 1,160/km2 and a populati ...

industrial region).

Geography

Leer had been a settlement long before it was first mentioned in written documents. Originally, the city was situated at a

meander A meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the Channel (geography), channel of a river or other watercourse. It is produced as a watercourse erosion, erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank (cut bank, cut bank or river cl ...

near the mouth of the river Leda into the Ems, which is still the center of the town today. Even though Leer is some away from the coast, it can be reached by large ships via the Ems. Leer lies close to the Dutch border; the district of Leer shares a border with the Dutch province of

. The island and nature reserve of

Bingumer Sand Bingumer Sand is a small river island in the Ems off the Rheiderland shore near Bingum in East Frisia. It is part of the ''Emsauen zwischen Ledamündung und Oldersum'' nature reserve. Not far from the Bingumer Sand is the Jann Berghaus Bridge. ...

lies within the district.

History

There are many traces of early settlements in the area, including crude flint tools that are dated back to roughly 3200 BC. In 791 AD Saint

Ludger Ludger (; also Lüdiger or Liudger) ( – 26 March 809) was a missionary among the Frisians and Saxons, founder of Werden Abbey and the first Bishop of Münster in Westphalia. He has been called the "Apostle of Saxony". Early life to ordina ...

built the first chapel in

at the western edge of the

settlement Settlement may refer to: *Human settlement, a community where people live *Settlement (structural), downward movement of a structure's foundation *Settlement (finance), where securities are delivered against payment of money *Settlement (litigatio ...

Leer, then still named ''Hleri'' after '' feetlot'', ''

willow Willows, also called sallows and osiers, of the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 350 species (plus numerous hybrids) of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions. Most species are known ...

''. This chapel is mentioned for the first time in a written document from 850 AD. During the 14th and 15th centuries, Leer was hometown of the Ukena family, which was one most influential East-Frisian chieftain families of that time. The town profited from the trade with the

Hanse 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 ...

, and a fortress Leerort was built. In 1508, Count Edzard obtained the official right to host a market, which started the tradition of the "Gallimarkt," which is now an annual

fair A fair (archaic: faire or fayre) is a gathering of people for a variety of entertainment or commercial activities. Fairs are typically temporary with scheduled times lasting from an afternoon to several weeks. Fairs showcase a wide range of go ...

. In 1744

fell to

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

, then ruled by

Frederick the Great Frederick II (; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was the monarch of Prussia from 1740 until his death in 1786. He was the last Hohenzollern monarch titled ''King in Prussia'', declaring himself ''King of Prussia'' after annexing Royal Prussia ...

Town privileges Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the traditio ...

were awarded in 1823 by

George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...

, King of

Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...

. In 1854 Leer became connected to the "Hannoversche Westbahn" railway, which at that time connected

and

in the Ruhr area. In 1856, the Westbahn was connected to the central German railway network. Unlike Emden, Leer only suffered little damage by Allied bombing in

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 ...

. The city was occupied by Canadian troops on 28 April 1945. On 1 October 1955, Leer received the status of an

independent city An independent city or independent town is a city or town that does not form part of another general-purpose local government entity (such as a province). Historical precursors In the Holy Roman Empire, and to a degree in its successor states ...

Politics

Since 1964 the city's government has been led by the Social-Democratic Party

SPD The Social Democratic Party of Germany ( , SPD ) is a social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been the party's leader since the 2019 leadership election together wi ...

. The major opposition parties are the Christian Democratic Union Party CDU, the

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...

and the ''Allgemeine Wählergemeinschaft'' (AWG), an independent local party. The mayor of Leer is Claus-Peter Horst, elected in 2021. The town council consists of (elections of 2016): *

: 36.7% / 14 seats * CDU: 27.9% / 11 seats * AWG: 10.2% / 4 seats * Grüne: 13.9% / 5 seats * FDP: 3.0% / 1 seat * The Left: 3.1% / 1 seat *CDL: 3.5% / 1 seat *BfL 1.3%: / 1 seat *Haase 0.5%: / 0 seat

Mayors

Notable buildings

* Harderwykenburg * Haneburg * Evenburg * Philippsburg (Castle) * Telecommunication

tower A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...

"Leer-Nüttermoor" (Height:160 meters) File:Rathaus Leer.jpg, City Hall in Leer File:Leer city centre.JPG, City Centre in Leer

Religion

Leer is a traditional Protestant city and home to both the

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

and

Reformed churches Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Christian, Presbyterian ...

. The German Reformed Church has its head office in Leer. Furthermore, Leer offers an unusually large variety of smaller religious communities, especially

Baptists Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

Mennonites Mennonites are a group of Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian communities tracing their roots to the epoch of the Radical Reformation. The name ''Mennonites'' is derived from the cleric Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland, part of ...

, Methodists,

Adventists Adventism is a branch of Protestant Christianity that believes in the imminent Second Coming (or the "Second Advent") of Jesus Christ. It originated in the 1830s in the United States during the Second Great Awakening when Baptist preacher Willi ...

and

Mormons Mormons are a Religious denomination, religious and ethnocultural group, cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's d ...

. Even though Eastern Frisia is a mainly a Protestant region, there is a small

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 ...

community in Leer.

Economics and infrastructure

Two

s (freeways) cross north of Leer, the A 28 (Leer –

) and the A 31 (Emden –

Oberhausen Oberhausen (, ) is a city on the river Emscher in the Ruhr Area, Germany, located between Duisburg and Essen ( ). The city hosts the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen and its Gasometer Oberhausen is an anchor point of the European Rout ...

Ruhr Area The Ruhr ( ; , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr Area, sometimes Ruhr District, Ruhr Region, or Ruhr Valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 1,160/km2 and a populati ...

). The city itself has three junctions to the autobahns. Leer railway station is a relay station between

and

in the west–east direction and the South and Emden harbour (with a large VW factory and shipping facilities) in the north. The

airfield An aerodrome, airfield, or airstrip is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for public or private use. Aerodromes in ...

Leer-Papenburg north of the city offers limited passenger flights to nearby airfields, most notably the East Frisian Islands. The closest international airport is Bremen International Airport. Leer is home to many German shipping companies – about 20 per cent of the German merchant

fleet Fleet may refer to: Vehicles * Fishing fleet *Naval fleet * Fleet vehicles, a pool of motor vehicles * Fleet Aircraft, the aircraft manufacturing company Places Canada * Fleet, Alberta, Canada, a hamlet England * The Fleet Lagoon, at Chesil Be ...

are registered in Leer. The Bünting group Home is based in Leer and is one of the city's main employers. Although Bünting owns several German supermarket chains, the company is best known for their tea, which is available all over Germany. Each year in autumn the Gallimarkt is held. Traditionally a cattle-market, the Gallimarkt is now one of the largest fairs in Northwest Germany.

Education

In Leer there are seven primary schools and numerous secondary schools. The two

gymnasiums A gym, short for gymnasium (: gymnasiums or gymnasia), is an indoor venue for exercise and sports. The word is derived from the ancient Greek term " gymnasion". They are commonly found in athletic and fitness centres, and as activity and learn ...

, Telletta-Gross-Gymnasium and Ubbo-Emmius-Gymnasium, educate more than 1,500 pupils each and are two of the largest grammar schools in

. The Navigation School is now a faculty of the Hochschule Emden – Leer (University of applied science). The town also offers education at two

vocational school A vocational school (alternatively known as a trade school, or technical school), is a type of educational institution, which, depending on the country, may refer to either secondary education#List of tech ed skills, secondary or post-secondar ...

Twin towns – sister cities

Leer is twinned with: *

Elbląg Elbląg (; ; ) is a city in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, in northern Poland, located in the eastern edge of the Żuławy region with 127,390 inhabitants, as of December 2021. It is the capital of Elbląg County. Elbląg is one of the ol ...

, Poland *

Trowbridge Trowbridge ( ) is the county town of Wiltshire, England; situated on the River Biss in the west of the county, close to the border with Somerset. The town lies south-east of Bath, Somerset, Bath, south-west of Swindon and south-east of Brist ...

, United Kingdom

Notable people

Focko Ukena Focko Ukena (1360 or 1370 – 1435) was an East Frisian chieftain (''hovetling'') who played an important part in the struggle between the Vetkopers and Schieringers in the provinces of Groningen and Friesland. Aside from this he was one o ...

(1370–1436), East Frisian

chieftain A tribal chief, chieftain, or headman is a leader of a tribe, tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies There is no definition for "tribe". The concept of tribe is a broadly applied concept, based on tribal concepts of societies of weste ...

Ubbo Emmius Ubbo Emmius (5 December 15479 December 1625) was a German historian and geographer. Early life Ubbo Emmius was born on 5 December 1547 in Greetsiel, East Frisia. From the ages of 9 to 18 Emmius studied in a Latin school, before having to leave o ...

(1547–1625), theologian, geographer and historian from the

University of Groningen The University of Groningen (abbreviated as UG; , abbreviated as RUG) is a Public university#Continental Europe, public research university of more than 30,000 students in the city of Groningen (city), Groningen, Netherlands. Founded in 1614, th ...

Gustaaf Willem van Imhoff Gustaaf Willem, Baron van Imhoff (8 August 1705 – 1 November 1750) was a Dutch colonial administrator for the Dutch East India Company (VOC). He served as Governor of Ceylon from 1736 to 1740 and as Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies fr ...

(1705–1750),

governor-general Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

Dutch East India The United East India Company ( ; VOC ), commonly known as the Dutch East India Company, was a chartered trading company and one of the first joint-stock companies in the world. Established on 20 March 1602 by the States General of the Nethe ...

Petrus Hofstede de Groot Petrus Hofstede de Groot (8 October 1802 - 5 December 1886), Dutch theologian, was born at Leer in East Friesland, and was educated at the Gymnasium and University of Groningen. For three years (1826-1829) he was pastor of the Reformed Church at ...

(1802-1886), Dutch theologian. * (1818–1901), co-founder of the

German Baptists German Baptists may refer to: * Baptists in Germany * Schwarzenau Brethren, commonly called German Baptists, an Anabapist tradition See also * North American Baptist Conference, formerly the General Conference of German Baptist Churches in ...

Onno Klopp Onno Klopp (9 October 1822 in Leer, Kingdom of Hanover – 9 August 1903 in Penzing, Austria) was a German historian, best known as the author of ''Der Fall des Hauses Stuart'' (The Fall of the House of Stuart), the fullest existing account of ...

(1822–1903), publicist and historian. * (1890–1984), writer of Low German * (1879–1947),

Natural Nature is an inherent character or constitution, particularly of the ecosphere or the universe as a whole. In this general sense nature refers to the laws, elements and phenomena of the physical world, including life. Although humans are part ...

philosopher and scientist *

Ernst Reuter Ernst Rudolf Johannes Reuter (29 July 1889 – 29 September 1953) was the mayor of West Berlin from 1948 to 1953, during the time of the Cold War. He played a significant role in unifying the divided sectors of Berlin and publicly and politically ...

(1889–1953), politician and municipal scientist, mayor of West-Berlin 1948–1953, brought up locally * Hermann Lange (1912–1943), priest killed by Nazis *

Marron Curtis Fort Marron Curtis Fort (October 24, 1938 – December 18, 2019) was an American-born German linguist and professor who specialized in the study of Saterland Frisian and Low German (Plattdeutsch) spoken in northern Germany. Fort was a German citize ...

(1938–2019), linguist and curator of

Low German Low German is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language variety, language spoken mainly in Northern Germany and the northeastern Netherlands. The dialect of Plautdietsch is also spoken in the Russian Mennonite diaspora worldwide. "Low" ...

and

Frisian languages The Frisian languages ( or ) are a closely related group of West Germanic languages, spoken by about 400,000 Frisian people, who live on the southern fringes of the North Sea in the Netherlands and Germany. The Frisian languages are the closes ...

, lived locally *

Karl Dall Karl Bernhard Dall (, 1 February 1941 – 23 November 2020) was a German comedian, singer, and television presenter. His distinctive 'hanging' eye was caused by a congenital ptosis. Family Karl Dall was born in Emden, the son of a scho ...

(1941–2020), presenter, singer and comedian; gained his apprenticeship locally * Friedel Grützmacher (born 1942), politician of

Alliance 90/The Greens Alliance 90/The Greens (, ), often simply referred to as Greens (, ), is a Green (politics), green political party in Germany. It was formed in 1993 by the merger of the Greens (formed in West Germany in 1980) and Alliance 90 (formed in East Ger ...

* H.P. Baxxter (born 1964), singer of the band Scooter * Garrelt Duin (born 1968), former local and national politician (

) * Ilka Groenewold (born 1985), TV presenter, singer and amateur athlete.

Sport

Okka Rau Okka Rau (born January 5, 1977, in Leer, Lower Saxony, Leer, Lower Saxony) is a former beach volleyball player from Germany. She won the gold medal at the 2003 European Beach Volleyball Championships, 2003 European Championships in Alanya, ...

(born 1977), beach volleyball player * Christina Hennings (born 1984), rower * Tobias Steffen (born 1992), footballer who has played over 250 games

References

External links

* * *
Photo collections about Leer
{{Authority control Towns in Lower Saxony Towns and villages in East Frisia Leer (district)