Editing Celle (section)

===Early modern period===
[[File:Celle4.jpg|thumb|Rooftop view of Celle]]
[[File:CelleHugenottenstraße.jpg|thumb|Hugenottenstraße is the main street of the former French quarter]]
[[File:CelleEmigrantenstraße2.jpg|thumb|Emigrantenstraße, a historical street laid out for Austrian refugees]]
[[File:CelleWerck-UndZuchthaus2.jpg|thumb|JVA Celle which is often mistaken for a castle]]
In 1524 the [[Protestant Reformation|Reformation]] was introduced into Celle. In 1570 [[William, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg|Duke William the Younger]] built the castle chapel, which was consecrated in 1585. <!-- In 1660 [[Christian Louis, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg|Duke Christian Louis]] of Celle erected a ''Reiherpfahl'' in Altenhagen with an inscription that commemorated the hunting of herons with falcons. ??? -->

In 1660 Celle had 3,750 inhabitants.<ref>Jürgen Ricklefs et al.: "Geschichte der Stadt Celle", p. 103. Köln 1959.</ref> From 1665 to 1705 Celle experienced a cultural boom as a ''Residenz'' under [[George William, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg|Duke George William]]. This has been put down in particular to his French wife, Eleonore d'Olbreuse, who brought fellow [[Huguenot]] Christians and Italian architects to Celle. During this time the [[Garden à la française|French]] and Italian Gardens were laid out and the [[baroque]] castle theatre built. Because of the [[Edict of Fontainebleau|persecution of Huguenots under Louis XIV]] many French Huguenots sought refuge in Germany, especially in Berlin and in the towns of Celle, [[Neuwied]] and [[Hanau]]. About 300 Huguenots settled in Celle, where a new residential area was laid out for them in the southwest of the centre.  Its main street, ''Hugenottenstrasse'', is still a sightworthy historical street with well-preserved wooden houses built at the beginning of the 18th century. Many French refugees worked in the castle as cooks and servants, but some of them opened shops in Celle as tailors, carpenters, joiners, confectioners, wig makers and glovers, thus introducing some French cuisine, fashion and lifestyle into the town. Some years later protestant refugees from Austria sought refuge in Celle as well. ''Emigrantenstraße'' is another historical street, which was laid out for the Austrians.

In 1705 the last duke of the Brunswick–Lüneburg line died and Celle, along with the [[Principality of Lüneburg]], passed back to the [[Electorate of Hanover|Hanover]] line of the [[House of Welf|Welfs]].<!-- NOT "Guelfs," who were an Italian line. Source: German Wikipedia articles on Celle, Otto II. (Lüneburg), etc., and English Wikipedia articles on Welf, Este, and Guelphs. --> By way of compensation for the loss of its status as a ''Residenz'' town numerous administrative institutions were established in Celle, such as the Higher Court of Appeal (''Oberappellationsgericht''), the prison and the [[Celle State Stud|State Stud Farm]]. That began its development into an administrative and judicial centre. Even today the Lower Saxony-Bremen State Social Security Tribunal and the High Court responsible for most of Lower Saxony are based in Celle, amongst others.

Celle is also still home to a prison (the [[Justizvollzugsanstalt Celle]] or ''JVA Celle''), which was built in a baroque style in the west of the city centre between 1710 and 1731.<ref>Hans Pusen: ''Harz, Hannover, Lüneburger Heide'', p. 34. München 1972</ref> Sometimes tourists mistake it for a castle because of its typical baroque architecture. That the citizens of Celle once − in a vote − chose to have a prison in Celle rather than a university in order to protect the virtue of their daughters is not verifiable but it has remained a persistent anecdote in popular folklore.

In August 1714 [[George I of Great Britain|George Elector of Hanover, Duke of Brunswick–Lüneburg]] (King George I) ascended to the British throne. Between then and 1866, when the town became [[Kingdom of Prussia|Prussian]] during the [[Austro-Prussian War]] as part of the [[province of Hanover]], Celle was a possession of the British [[House of Hanover|Hanoverian line]].

In 1786 [[Albrecht Daniel Thaer|Albrecht Thaer]] founded the first German Agricultural Testing Institute in the meadows in the Dammasch (''dam marsh'') (today Thaer's Garden). The Albrecht-Thaer School is nowadays part of a vocational centre in the Celle sub-district of [[Altenhagen (Celle)|Altenhagen]].

[[File:Neues Rathaus (Celle).jpg|thumb|New Town Hall]]