Lehrte

Lehrte

Coat of arms
Lehrte

Coordinates: 52°22′N 09°58′E / 52.367°N 9.967°E / 52.367; 9.967Coordinates: 52°22′N 09°58′E / 52.367°N 9.967°E / 52.367; 9.967
Country Germany
State Lower Saxony
District Hanover
Government
 • Mayor Klaus Sidortschuk (SPD)
Area
 • Total 127 km2 (49 sq mi)
Population (2015-12-31)[1]
 • Total 43,639
 • Density 340/km2 (890/sq mi)
Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes 31275
Dialling codes 05132
Vehicle registration H
Website www.lehrte.de

Lehrte is a town in the district of Hanover, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approximately 17 km east of Hanover. In the 19th century Lehrte was the most important railway junction in the former Kingdom of Hanover. Nowadays it is a picturesque town with a population of 43,000 and a modern infrastructure, combined with local culture and an interesting history.

History

The first documented history of the area was in 1147 and shows that, what is now known as Lehrte, was a relatively insignificant farming village. Up to the year 1352, when the church, now known as Nikolauskirche, was built; the local farming residents attended Sunday church services in the village of Steinwedel.

At this time, Lehrte lay in the historical region known as the Großen Freien which literally translates to the big free and lay far from major transit and traffic routes.

Economy

Lehrte lay fairly dormant until 1843, when work began on the Hanover–Brunswick railway, linking Lehrte with both towns. In the following year, work began on building lines to Celle (1845), Hildesheim (1846) and Berlin (1871).

When work on the railway line commenced, Lehrte had 755 inhabitants, 60 years later the population had increased approximately ten times. In 1898 the area of Lehrte was granted municipal rights and formally recognised as a town.

With the railway well and truly established, industry grew within Lehrte, including clay works, a mineral fertilizer works, a cement factory, canned goods and a sugar factory in 1883 which, until 2002, dominated the centre of the town. The cement factory was created in 1881 by Hermann Manske with other limited partners and was the second factory of the cement industry in the Hannover region.

In 1910 the cement factory was shut down. In 1911 a cattle market was established and Lehrte became the most important place for cattle trade and shipment in Northern Germany. In 1912, mining began on the potash reserves in the area. The Lehrter Bahnhof (Lehrte Station) in Berlin is named after Lehrte. It was opened in 1871 as the terminus of the line linking Berlin with Lehrte and Hannover, which later became Germany's most important east-west main line.

Since the 1920s, a large substation has existed in Ahlten, which in 1944 was the end of the experimental Lehrte-Misburg HVDC line.

Main sights

People and residents of Lehrte

References

  1. ↑ Landesbetrieb für Statistik und Kommunikationstechnologie Niedersachsen, 102 Bevölkerung - Basis Zensus 2011, Stand 31. Dezember 2015 (Tabelle K1020014)

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lehrte.
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