Editing Osterholz

{{short description|District in Lower Saxony, Germany}}
{{Infobox District DE
| name=Osterholz
| state=Lower Saxony
| capital=[[Osterholz-Scharmbeck]]
| area=650.73
| Kreisschlüssel    = 03356
| district_admin    = Bernd Lütjen
| admin_party       = SPD
| carsign=OHZ
| url=[http://www.landkreis-osterholz.de landkreis-osterholz.de]
| map={{Germany district OSM map |parent_subdivision = Q1197}}
| image_coa=DEU Landkreis Osterholz COA.svg
| image_flag=Flagg Landkreis Oosterholt.svg
}}
'''Osterholz''' is a [[districts of Germany|district]] (''Landkreis'') in [[Lower Saxony]], [[Germany]]. It is bounded by (from the west and clockwise) the districts of [[Wesermarsch]], [[Cuxhaven (district)|Cuxhaven]], [[Rotenburg (district)|Rotenburg]] and [[Verden (district)|Verden]], and by the city of [[Bremen (city)|Bremen]].

==History==
Originally the [[Archbishopric of Bremen|prince-archbishops of Bremen]] ruled the area comprising today's district. In 1648 the Prince-Archbishopric was transformed into the [[Duchy of Bremen]], which was first ruled in personal union by the Swedish and from 1715 on by the Hanoverian Crown. In 1807 the ephemeral [[Kingdom of Westphalia]] annexed the Duchy, before [[First French Empire|France]] annexed it in 1810, there comprising a part of the département [[Bouches-du-Weser]]. In 1813 the Duchy was restored to the [[Electorate of Hanover]], which - after its upgrade to the [[Kingdom of Hanover]] in 1814 - incorporated the Duchy in a real union and the Ducal territory became part of the [[Stade (region)|Stade Region]], established in 1823. In 1866 the Kingdom of Hanover fell to [[Prussia]], forming the [[Province of Hanover]]. The Prussian administration established districts in 1885, among them the district of Osterholz.

==Geography==
The southern part of the district is part of the Bremen metropolitan area. In the north there is the ''[[Teufelsmoor]]'' ("dead moor" (lit. "devil's moor")<!-- Although Teufel means devil, this is not the origin of the name -->), one of the largest existing [[fen]]s in Germany. Large marshes extend on both sides of the River [[Hamme River|Hamme]], which runs through the district from north to south to join the River [[Wümme]]. The Wümme forms the southern border and is a tributary of the [[Weser]]; the Weser forms the western border of Osterholz.

==Coat of arms==
{|
|- valign=top
||<!-- [[image:osterholz_coa.jpg|Coat of arms]]
|| -->
The coat of arms displays:
* the heraldic key from the arms of Bremen
* a ship on the water, symbolising the peat ships of the 19th century
|}

==Towns and municipalities==
{{Imagemap Germany district OHZ|Municipalities in OHZ.svg|300px{{!}}thumb{{!}}Clickable map of towns and municipalities in the district}}

{|
! align=left width=50%|Towns
! align=left width=50%|[[Amt (political division)|Samtgemeinden]]
|- valign=top
||
# [[Osterholz-Scharmbeck]]
<br>
'''Free municipalities'''
# [[Grasberg]]
# [[Lilienthal, Lower Saxony|Lilienthal]]
# [[Ritterhude]]
# [[Schwanewede]]
# [[Worpswede]]
||
'''1. [[Hambergen (Samtgemeinde)|Hambergen]]'''
# [[Axstedt]]
# [[Hambergen]]<sup>1</sup>
# [[Holste]]
# [[Lübberstedt]]
# [[Vollersode]]

<sup>1</sup>seat of the Samtgemeinde
|}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category-inline|Landkreis Osterholz }}
* [http://www.landkreis-osterholz.de/ Official website] {{in lang|de}}

{{Germany districts lower saxony}}

{{Coord|53.25|8.83|display=title|format=dms}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Osterholz| ]]
[[Category:Districts of Lower Saxony]]