Munster, Lower Saxony
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| Munster | |
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  Munster, Lower Saxony
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| Coordinates | 52°59′19″N 10°05′28″E / 52.98861°N 10.09111°E |
| Administration | |
| Country | Germany |
|---|---|
| State | Lower Saxony |
| District | Soltau-Fallingbostel |
| Mayor | Adolf Köthe (CDU) |
| Basic statistics | |
| Area | 193.42 km2 (74.68 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 73 m (240 ft) |
| Population | 17,526 (31 December 2006) |
| - Density | 91 /km2 (235 /sq mi) |
| Other information | |
| Time zone | CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2) |
| Licence plate | SFA |
| Postal code | 29633 |
| Area code | 05192 |
| Website | www.munster.de |
Munster is a municipality in the county Soltau-Fallingbostel, in Lower Saxony, Germany. The city is home to the German Army's largest garrison and is situated between two training grounds. Also, the Bundeswehr Research Institute for Protection-Technologies-NBC-Protection is located in Munster.
The city's society is shaped by the soldiers and other government employees who make up the majority of its population and the surrounding military zones restrict the Munster's growth retaining its rural environment.
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[edit] Geography
Munster is found in the central Lüneburg Heath region along the river Örtze between the towns Soltau and Uelzen. The Munster military training areas, representing nearly 50% of the city's total area, are reserved for military use. Due to the restricted areas, many rare species and habitats can be found in this region. The region's populations of rare species have been previously drawn upon to restore populations in other regions where such species are endangered.
[edit] History
The first recorded mention of Munster was in 1303. An Imperial German battalion under the command of future President of the German Reich Paul von Hindenburg started the use of this area as a training ground in 1893. The Bundeswehr re-opened its garrison in Munster in 1956 which was expanded in 1990, and again during the transformation process of the Bundeswehr. Today, Munster is the largest garrison of the German Army.
In 1916, the German Empire opened "Gasplatz Breloh" ("Gas ground Breloh"), an area dedicated to research in and production of chemical weapons. After World War I, the site was closed and the ammunitions stored there were removed. In the process of this removal, a whole train with chemical munitions blew up in 1919, the reasons for this disaster never being unveiled. In 1935, the Third Reich reopened the site as an experimental research production area as well as a bombing range for chemical ammunitions under the name "Heeresnebelfüllstelle Raubkammer" ("Army fog filling plant Raubkammer"), "fog" being used as a synonym for chemical agents. Over the course of World War II, large quantities of sulfur mustard and of the new nerve agent GA were produced here. At the end of the war, Germany had a continuous production line for GB ready to go online; this plant was dismantled by the British Occupation Forces and later shipped to Porton Down, Great Britain.
In 1958, the German Bundeswehr again started using the area by founding an agency dedicated to the defense against NBC-weapons. As of 2009, this agency has the name "Wehrwissenschaftliches Institut für Schutztechnologien - ABC-Schutz]]" ("Bundeswehr Research Institute for NBC-Protection")
[edit] Culture
Deutsches Panzermuseum is an armoured fighting vehicle museum.
[edit] External links
- www.munsterlager.com Old views of Munster
[edit] International relations
[edit] Twin towns — Sister cities
Munster, Lower Saxony, is twinned with:
Radcliff, Kentucky, United States since 1984
Michurinsk, Russia since 1991
Éragny, Val-d'Oise, France since 1999
[edit] References
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