About Oldenburg
Oldenburg (known in Lower German as Ollnborg and in Saterland
Frisian as Ooldenbuurich) is an independent city in the German federal
state of Lower Saxony.

Oldenburg is not only a University town, but also a former royal town
(i.e. capital) of the County, Duchy, Grand Duchy and Free State of
Oldenburg (hence the addition (Oldb) in the name of the city).

Oldenburg is the fourth biggest city in Lower Saxony after Hanover,
Braunschweig and Osnabruck. The city also houses a local office and
permanent representation of the federal government of Lower Saxony.

From April 2005, Oldenburg became part of the European metropolitan
region Bremen/Oldenburg.

On February 28, 2008, the Donors’ Association for the Promotion of
Humanities and Social Sciences awarded Oldenburg the title “Stadt der Wissenschaft” (City of Science) for 2009.

Elevation:                     4m above sea level
Area:                    102.96 km²
Population:                     162,173 (as of December 31, 2010)
Population Density:             1575 citizens per km²
Postal Codes / Zip Codes:             26121–26135
International Dialling Code:         +49 (0)441
Car number plate designation:    OL
Subdivided into:                 42 neighbourhoods, 9 planning or

statistical districts
Address of the
City Administration (Council):    Markt 1, 26122 Oldenburg (Oldb)
City’s website:                 www.oldenburg.de

History of Oldenburg

The city’s origins date back to the beginning of the eighth, perhaps even the seventh century. A farmer’s settlement sprang up in the area around today’s Marktplatz (Market Square) as well as to the north and to the east of this location.

The area was first mentioned in written records in 1108 under the name of Aldenburg.

A moat castle was built in the twelfth century.

In 1345, the settlement, now called Oldenburg, gained Bremen City Rights from Count Conrad I.

1448 marked the year in which Count Christian of Oldenburg became King Christian I of Denmark and then two years later, in 1450, King of Norway (personal union of both kingdoms). In 1457, he was then elected as King of Sweden and three years later, in 1460, he became the Duke of Schleswig and Count of Holstein (a Duchy from 1474).

In 1603, the regency of Count Anton Günther commenced. He allowed a part of the castle to be re-modelled in Baroque style and he also started to breed horses, ones that would become known as “Oldenburger” and were soon highly sought-after horses around the world. The Count was able to protect the town from the savagery of the Thirty Years War (1618-1648). As General Tilly stood ready to march on Oldenburg with his troops, Count Anton Günther used his negotiating talents and gave Tilly valuable horses, which persuaded him to withdraw his troops, camped in nearby Wardenburg.

Count Anton Günther died in 1667, leaving no descendents. Oldenburg was passed over to the next male relatives, to the King of Denmark, making Oldenburg a Danish city.

The royal houses of Germany, Denmark and Russia were related to one another. Oldenburg’s affiliation to one of these houses constantly changed. In 1773, the House of Hollstein-Gottorp assumed power in the county, thereby becoming a Duchy. In 1785, Peter Friedrich Ludwig administered the Duchy.

From 1811 until 1813, the town became “Mairie Oldenburg” (Mayoralty of Oldenburg).

After the death of Duke Peter Friedrich Ludwig in 1829, his successor, Paul Friedrich August, assumed the title of Grand Duke.

The 1848/49 revolution passed relatively peacefully and without real incident in Oldenburg.

The last Grand Duke, Friedrich August, abdicated in 1918, and Oldenburg was made the capital of the Free State of Oldenburg in 1919.

In the May 1932 regional elections, the German National Socialist Party (NSDAP) won an absolute majority, making Oldenburg the first state in the whole of the German Reich to elect the Nazis into office with an absolute majority.

As an administrative centre with a population of 80,000 people and without any real heavy industry, Oldenburg was saved aerial bombardment during the Second World War.
 
Only 1.4% of the entire town of Oldenburg was destroyed.

After the end of the Second World War in 1945, Oldenburg was a British Occupying Zone. Taking on some 42,000 refugees after the war, Oldenburg’s population exceeded 100,000 people, edging it closer to the size of the city. Decided by the British Occupying Force in 1946, the State of Oldenburg became a part of the new federal state of Lower Saxony. Oldenburg was the seat of the “Verwaltungsbezirks Oldenburg” (Oldenburg Administrative District), one of eight such governing districts in the whole of Lower Saxony.

The Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg was established in 1973. Numerous boundary changes of the 1970s ensured that the wider county of Oldenburg’s borders were also redrawn. Oldenburg as an administrative district with Aurich and Osnabruck as governing districts underwent an overhaul in 1978 and the Weser-Ems Region emerged with Oldenburg as its capital. Despite various boundary changes over the years, Oldenburg has always remained an independent city. In 1988, the County Council decided to relocate the administration of the district of Oldenburg to nearby Wildeshausen, breaking with tradition in that the County Council had always been located in Oldenburg.

Vielen Dank an Dr. phil. John Goodyear