Oldenburg

 

(ôl'dənbʊrkh) , former state, NW Germany. It is now included in the state of Lower Saxony. The city of Oldenburg was the capital. The former state consisted of three widely separated divisions. The largest of these, Oldenburg proper, now forms the district of Oldenburg, stretching S from the North Sea, W of the Weser River; the two other divisions, both very small, were Birkenfeld and the district (but not the city) of Lübeck. Oldenburg proper is a low-lying, fertile, and marshy land. The history of Oldenburg proper is mainly of dynastic significance. Originally a part of Saxony, the county of Oldenburg came into prominence in the 12th cent., when the counts became princes of the empire. In 1448, Count Christian became king of Denmark as Christian I, while his younger brother, Gerard, and his successors continued to rule Oldenburg. On the extinction (1667) of the German line, Oldenburg passed (1676) to Christian V of Denmark (direct descendant of Christian I). In 1773, Christian VII exchanged Oldenburg for ducal Holstein with Grand Duke (later Emperor) Paul I of Russia. Paul gave Oldenburg to his maternal great uncle, Frederick Augustus of Holstein-Gottorp, bishop of Lübeck, who assumed (1777) the ducal title. Peter I of Oldenburg, nephew and successor of Frederick Augustus, lost the duchy to Napoleon I but recovered Oldenburg and the bishopric of Lübeck in 1813 and subsequently acquired Birkenfeld and obtained the title grand duke. A member of the German Confederation from 1815, Oldenburg sided (1866) with Prussia in the Austro-Prussian War and joined (1871) the German Empire. The last grand duke abdicated in 1918, and Oldenburg joined the Weimar Republic.

Oldenburg
Map of Lower Saxony highlighting the district of Oldenburg
State	Lower Saxony
District seat	Wildeshausen
Area	1063 km²
Population	124,800 (2003)
Pop. density	117 /km²
Licence plate code	OL
Web page	http://www.oldenburg-kreis.de

Oldenburg is a district in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is bounded by (from the east and clockwise) the districts of Diepholz, Vechta, Cloppenburg and Ammerland, the city of Oldenburg, the district of Wesermarsch and the city of Delmenhorst.

History

The district of Oldenburg was established in 1933. Until 1988 the administrative seat was in the city of Oldenburg. Since then the capital has been in Wildeshausen.

Geography

The district is located between the metropolitan areas of Oldenburg and Bremen. The Hunte River runs through the district from south to north.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms displays: The red and yellow stripes from the arms of Oldenburg The heraldic cross of the county of Delmenhorst The roses in the bottom were used in the arms of the counts of Oldenburg

Towns and municipalities

Towns	Samtgemeinden
Wildeshausen Free municipalities Dötlingen Ganderkesee Großenkneten Hatten Hude Wardenburg	1. Harpstedt Beckeln Colnrade Dünsen Groß Ippener Harpstedt1 Kirchseelte Prinzhöfte Winkelsett 1seat of the Samtgemeinde

External links

• Official website (German)

Urban and rural districts in the state of Lower Saxony in Germany
Region	Hanover
Urban districts	Braunschweig · Delmenhorst · Emden · Oldenburg · Osnabrück · Salzgitter · Wilhelmshaven · Wolfsburg
Rural districts	Ammerland · Aurich · Bentheim · Celle · Cloppenburg · Cuxhaven · Diepholz · Emsland · Friesland · Gifhorn · Goslar · Göttingen · Hamelin-Pyrmont · Harburg · Helmstedt · Hildesheim · Holzminden · Leer · Lüchow-Dannenberg · Lüneburg · Nienburg · Northeim · Oldenburg · Osnabrück · Osterholz · Osterode · Peine · Rotenburg · Schaumburg · Soltau-Fallingbostel · Stade · Uelzen · Vechta · Verden · Wesermarsch · Wittmund · Wolfenbüttel

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