Eversen is a village in the town of Bergen in the northern part of Celle district on the Lüneburg Heath in the north German state of Lower Saxony.
Although Eversen was mentioned for the first time in a feudal register dating from 1330, the earliest archaeological discoveries stem from the Paleolithic period. The village is on the edge of the Südheide Nature Park and was an independent municipality until it was incorporated into the borough of Bergen in 1973. It has an area of and a population of 1,270 inhabitants (2019).
Geography
Geographical location Eversen is located on the boundary of the Südheide Nature Park about north of the town of Celle and about southwest of Hermannsburg on the L 240 state road that runs from Celle to Hermannsburg. The village lies on a sandy island of loess in the glacial valley of the Örtze which was formed in the Weichselian Ice Age.Gädcke, Horst (1994). Eversen. Ein altes Dorf im Celler Land, 1994. p.7 It is responsible for administering the neighbouring hamlets of Feuerschützenbostel and Altensalzkoth and the farmstead of Kohlenbach. Feuerschützenbostel is about 2.5 km to the southwest, Altensalzkoth about 1.5 km southeast and Kohlenbach about 2.5 km southeast of Eversen.
Land use Land use within the boundaries of Eversen village is shown on a 1983 usage map:Rathmann, Franz (1998): Dorfbuch Eversen. Ein Haus- und Lesebuch, 1998. p.352
Use Area Use Area Crops / Gardens 305 ha Meadows / Pastures 490 ha Woods 2302 ha Marsh 14 ha Heath 4 ha Roads / Water / Built-up areas 223 ha
Water bodies
The River Örtze flows through Eversen, as do two streams: the Mühlenbach which runs from north to south through the old village (alte Dorf) and discharges into the Örtze, and the Bruchbach, which flows across the area. The Bruchbach acts as a drainage ditch but, in recent years, has also been used by the Eversen fishing club for breeding salmon.Rathmann, Franz (1998). Dorfbuch Eversen. Ein Haus- und Lesebuch, 1998. p.359ff.
In the Alter Dorf or "Old Village" there is a millpond belonging to the manor, Rittergut I, which was created in 1638. It had an original area of just under , but was expanded in the 2nd half of the 20th century through the incorporation of other areas to . Until the beginning of the 20th century it fed the mill owned by the manor; it was subsequently used in the 1970s and 1980s for fish farming.
Other water features include: a branch of the Örtze, the so-called Kolk; several fish ponds in the village of Feuerschützenbostel; and, in the Schummelsbruch, a wood east of the village centre, bodies of water that were established for the long-term storage of logs following a storm in 1972.
History This section deals solely with the history of Eversen and does not cover the neighbouring hamlets incorporated into its municipal area in 1929. For histories of those hamlets see their separate articles: Feuerschützenbostel, Altensalzkoth and Kohlenbach.
Prehistoric and early historic occupation The earliest archaeological discoveries from Eversen date to the end of the Old Stone Age. Finds of flint tools, as well as the remains of fireplaces, are evidence of at least periodic settlement by itinerant hunter-gatherer cultures. Numerous finds from the Middle Stone Age testify to a dense settlement of the sand dunes lying east of the river Örtze in the area of the present-day village of Sandberg. In the New Stone Age and the transition from an appropriative to a productive way of life, the sand dunes proved unsuitable for agriculture and were largely abandoned as places of settlement. Only on the so-called Kolk and on the Lerchberg is there evidence of settlers during that period. There, access to water and the relatively better quality of soil in comparison with the other sites nearby provided the essential requirements for arable farming. There are no traces of settlement in the area of the village from the Ice Age, i.e. the time from about 800 BC to 400 AD.Rathmann, Franz (1998). Dorfbuch Eversen. Ein Haus- und Lesebuch, 1998. p.14ff
Emergence of the village of Eversen The emergence of the farming village of Eversen cannot be precisely dated, but it can be deduced, firstly, from the long, narrow, parallel strips of arable land (Langstreifenfeldern) that predominate here and, secondly, from the evolution of the village name, that Eversen appeared in the 9th century at the latest.Gädcke, Horst (1994). Eversen. Ein altes Dorf im Celler Land, 1994. p.51 At that time Eversen belonged to the old Saxon district of Loingau. The village was not, however, mentioned in the records until 1330 where it is recorded in a deed of enfeoffment (Lehnsurkunde) under the name of Euersten.In a deed of enfeoffment a certain Werner bere (amongst others) was enfeoffed with a farm in euersten. The deed may be found in the Lüneburg Register of Enfeoffments No. 56.
Estates
In Eversen there are three manorial estates (Rittergüter) to which the local farms used to belong. These farms had to pay various obligatory contributions and services to the lords of the manor (Gutsherren).
The first estate, Gut I, the so-called Sedelhof, lies east of the village street. It is bordered to the north and east by mill ditches, to the west by the millpond and to the south by the river Örtze. It is thus entirely surrounded by water and only accessible over a wooden bridge. Due to its good location it is thought to be one on the oldest estates in Eversen.Pröve, H. (1929). Dorf und Gut im alten Herzogtum Lüneburg. Göttingen 1929, p. 46 The estate was first mentioned in the records in 1424. In a deed of enfeoffment by the Duke of Lüneburg, a certain Carsten von Harling, amongst others, was enfeoffed a farm in Eversen. Because the enfeoffment was "from time immemorial" (von alters hero gehabt)Rathmann, Franz. Dorfbuch Eversen, p. 98ff it can be assumed that Gut I had been in the possession of the Harling family from the end of the 14th century. The estate was one of the few in the Principality of Lüneburg that was furnished with a keep (Bergfried), or fortified tower. The present building dates from the year 1792, when the King's Council, Carl August von Harling, had a new manor house and stables built in timber-framed style.
Gut II, known as the Majorshof, lies at the southern end of the Old Village, west of the village street. Until the 15th century it was owned by the von Hodenberg family who had allocated it as a mesne fief (Afterlehen) to the Tiebermann family. In 1495 the estate was first enfeoffed to the von Harling family. The estate remained in the possession of the Tiebermann family as before, who were therefore the sub-vassals (Aftervasallen) of the von Harlings. When the Tiebermanns died out in the 17th century the estate was not reallocated but went to Major Anton Johann von Harling. He had the manor house built which was completed in 1686. The Majorshof ("Major's Farm") was named after him. His son inherited Gut II as well as Gut I from his uncle, so that the two estates were once again owned by one person.
Gut III, the Beckerhof, lies in the centre of the Old Village, west of the village street. It was originally an ordinary farm that paid manorial contributions and did not achieve the status of a manorial estate until the beginning of the 17th century. As a result of a distribution of inheritance, the older line of the von Harling family, which had its seat at Gut I, relinquished the estate to the so-called younger line of the family, who were thereupon incorporated into the enfeoffment. The current structure, a timber-framed manor house, was built in the late 18th century.
The farming village of Eversen In 1378 a Celle tax register named three full-time farmers (Vollbauern) as taxpayers to the Duke of Celle.Sudendorf - Urkundenbuch zur Geschichte der Herzöge von Braunschweig und Lüneburg und ihrer Lande, Vol. V. Hanover, 1865 Because the register only lists those farms belonging to the duke under the manorial system, it cannot be ascertained whether, at that time, other farms already existed.Gädcke, Horst (1994). Eversen. Ein altes Dorf im Celler Land, 1994. p.132 Shortly thereaftere there was a division of the three farms that were subservient to the duke into three cotter farms. In the Celle revenue record of 1381, five farms are recorded as being obligated to the Duke of Celle. In addition there was a farm belonging to Eversen's Gut II, so that at that time it can be reckoned that there were 6 manorial farms under the Duke.
At the beginning of the 15th century the village was further extended. The enfeoffed occupants of the Eversen estates used their land to create other farms subordinate to them. In a treasury register (Schatzregister) from 1438 as many as twelve people are listed as paying tribute (Schatz).Grieser, R. (1934). Das Schatzregister der Grossvogtei Celle von 1438 und andere Quellen zur Bevölkerungsgeschichte der Kreise Celle, Fallingbostel, Soltau und Burgdorf zwischen 1428 und 1442. Hildesheim, 1934, p. 21 From the tax records it can be ascertained that, at that time, there were 3 estates (Vollhöfen) and 9 cotters (Kötner).Gädcke, Horst (1994). Eversen. Ein altes Dorf im Celler Land, 1994. p.149
In the 16th and 17th centuries the village continued to expand. Growth halted temporarily, however, after the establishment of a cotter farm obligated to Gut I in 1692.Gädcke, Horst (1994). Eversen. Ein altes Dorf im Celler Land, 1994. p.197 At that stage, Eversen consisted of 22 manorial farms, a community Hirtenhaus and the three manorial estates of the von Harling family. In addition there were the houses of the small farmers and hirelings. Because they only had small holdings of land and no grazing rights on the commons, their occupants earned their living by working on the estates or as salt drivers for the Sülze Saltworks.
Unlike most of the other heath villages in the southern Lüneburg Heath, Eversen was spared from the ravages of war and pillaging or burning by hostile troops during its history.Gädcke, Horst (1994). Eversen. Ein altes Dorf im Celler Land, 1994. p.138 Gädcke is referring here particularly to the years of the Lüneburg War of Succession The surrounding bogs provided a natural defence for the village. However the contributions required from the farmers as a consequence of the Thirty Years War were a heavy burden that hindered village expansion for decades and led to the abandonment of many farms.Gädcke, Horst (1994). Eversen. Ein altes Dorf im Celler Land, 1994. p.196
Two epidemics of the Black Death in 1581 and 1642 caused many deaths and the extinction of several family lines.Rathmann, Franz (1998). Dorfbuch Eversen. Ein Haus- und Lesebuch, 1998. p. 188ff
The 19th century was characterised by extensive agricultural reforms. Fundamental to subsequent reforms was the general division (Generalteilung) of land at the beginning of the 19th century, whereby the villages were given fixed boundaries and every piece of land was allocated to a municipality (Gemeinde). The amount of land around the individual villages which was allocated to them was based on the grazing rights they had held in the past.
This was followed during the period 1838 to 1858 by the division of common land (Gemeinheitsteilungen). Common land, i.e. those areas which had hitherto been shared by the community, was now transferred to the individual farms as freehold property based on their existing rights to the common land.
On the basis of the Kingdom of Hanover's 1833 redemption law, the obligations on farms under the manorial system were repealed. Farms to which the so-called manorial rights applied had been hitherto obliged to give numerous services and make frequent payments to the manor. That was now repealed on payment of 25 times the annual dues and the land was then granted under freehold into the farmers' ownership.Hindersmann, Ulrike. Der ritterschaftliche Adel im Königreich Hannover 1814-1866