Heimatbund Niedersachsen

The Heimatbund Niedersachsen e.V. (HBN) is a registered association founded on 9 May 1901 in Hannover, making it the oldest heritage and homeland protection association in the German-speaking world. Its founding purpose, as stated in its charter, was the practical "exercise of love of homeland through the promotion of knowledge of the Lower Saxon land and through the cultivation of intellectual life in Lower Saxony." The founding fathers, who included the banker and politician August Basse as well as numerous writers and visual artists such as Julius Kettler (first chairman), Hermann Löns, the brothers Friedrich and August Freudenthal, Heinrich Vogeler of the Worpswede artists' colony, Lulu von Strauß und Torney, Börries von Münchhausen and Hermann Claudius, initially had the Hannover region in mind, since neither an institutionalised region nor a state of Lower Saxony yet existed. The association works in cooperation with state and municipal authorities on general education under the overarching theme of "Heimat," with emphases on nature conservation, environmental protection, monument preservation and cultural care. Membership is open to natural and legal persons. In 1902 the HBN initiated the first Niedersachsentag (Lower Saxony Day), a central event for heritage care; from its organising committee, the Vertretertag, a separate supporting organisation for the Niedersaschentag emerged, registered in 1934 as the Niedersächsischer Heimatschutz. In 1908, seven years after the association's founding, the opening of the Vaterländisches Museum (today the Historisches Museum) in Hannover marked the achievement of another of its goals. During the National Socialist dictatorship the association was forced to rename itself "Hannoversche Heimatfreunde" and was eventually dissolved in 1943 (or transferred into the Gauheimatwerk in 1942). It was re-founded on 10 May 1946 under its old traditional name. The HBN publishes the quarterly magazine HEIMATLAND for its members and some public institutions, with contributions also from non-members. Since 2008 it has awarded the Cord-Borgentrick-Stein, a prize named after the Hannover citizen Cord Borgentrick, for persons who have rendered outstanding voluntary service to history, monument preservation or tradition in Hannover; the prize is presented in the New Town Hall and the associated stone is placed in the memorial grove at the Döhrener Turm. In 2018 the association's office moved from Langenhagen to Hannover. The HBN has also been the subject of criticism, particularly regarding the assumption that there has been widespread sympathy for "Lower Saxony" throughout the region since the 19th century. Historians such as Ernst Schubert and others have pointed out that the Heimatbund found little resonance in Oldenburg and that the association's conception of a unified Lower Saxon identity has not been universally shared, especially in the south-west of the present-day state.

The Heimatbund Niedersachsen e.V. (HBN) was founded on 9 May 1901 in the Hotel Vierjahreszeiten at the Aegidientorplatz in Hannover, making it the oldest heritage association in Germany. Its roots go back to 1898, when a regulars' table called Stammtisch Niedersachsen formed in Hannover, whose members sought to promote and protect the local language, literature and architecture. The founding charter stated the purpose as the practical "exercise of love of homeland through the promotion of knowledge of the Lower Saxon land and through the cultivation of intellectual life in Lower Saxony." The founding fathers included the banker and politician August Basse and numerous writers and visual artists, among them Julius Kettler, who became the first chairman, Hermann Löns, the brothers Friedrich and August Freudenthal, Heinrich Vogeler from the Worpswede artists' colony, Lulu von Strauß und Torney, Börries von Münchhausen and Hermann Claudius. Initially the association focused on the Hannover region, as no institutionalised region or state of Lower Saxony existed at the time. In 1902 the HBN initiated the first Niedersachsentag (Lower Saxony Day) as a central event for heritage care, bringing together many bodies and persons with similar goals. From its organising committee, called the Vertretertag, a separate supporting organisation for the Niedersaschentag emerged, beginning with its constitutive meeting on 6 October 1905; in 1934 it was registered as the Niedersächsischer Heimatschutz. In 1908, seven years after the association's founding, the opening of the Vaterländisches Museum (today the Historisches Museum) in Hannover achieved another of its goals. During the National Socialist dictatorship the association was forced to change its name to "Hannoversche Heimatfreunde" and was eventually dissolved in 1943 (according to one source, it was transferred into the Gauheimatwerk in 1942). On 10 May 1946 the "Hannoversche Heimatfreunde" re-founded the Heimatbund Niedersachsen under its old traditional name. The HBN publishes the quarterly magazine HEIMATLAND for its members and some public institutions, with contributions also from non-members. In 2008, under the patronage of the Mayor of Hannover, the association first awarded the Cord-Borgentrick-Stein, named after the Hannover citizen Cord Borgentrick, for persons who have rendered outstanding voluntary service to history, monument preservation or tradition in Hannover; the prize is presented in the New Town Hall and the associated stone is placed in the memorial grove at the Döhrener Turm. On 15 October 2018 the association's office moved from Walsroder Straße 89 in Langenhagen to Groß-Buchholzer Kirchweg 73 in Hannover. The HBN has also faced criticism, particularly regarding the assumption that there has been widespread sympathy for "Lower Saxony" throughout the region since the 19th century. Historians such as Ernst Schubert noted in 2006 that the Heimatbund Niedersachsen "found hardly any resonance in Oldenburg." Others have pointed out that the association's conception of a unified Lower Saxon identity has not been universally shared, especially in the south-west of the present-day state, where many inhabitants historically identified more with Westphalia or Münsterland.

• 2018

  Office moves to Groß-Buchholzer Kirchweg 73, Hannover

• 2008

  First Cord-Borgentrick-Stein awarded

• 1946

  Re-founded on 10 May under the old name

• 1943

  Association dissolved

• 1942

  Association transferred into the Gauheimatwerk

• 1934

  Niedersächsischer Heimatschutz registered

• 1908

  Vaterländisches Museum (today Historisches Museum) opens in Hannover

• 1905

  Constitutive meeting of the Vertretertag on 6 October

• 1902

  First Niedersachsentag held

• 1901

  Heimatbund Niedersachsen founded on 9 May in Hannover

• 1898

  Stammtisch Niedersachsen formed in Hannover

Non-profit heritage association focused on nature conservation, monument protection and regional culture in Lower Saxony.

• HEIMATLAND magazine

  Quarterly magazine for members and public institutions

• Cord-Borgentrick-Stein

  Award for voluntary service to history, monument preservation or tradition in Hannover

1. 1Heimatbund Niedersachsen - seit 1901heimatbund-niedersachsen.de
2. 2Unsere Geschichte - Heimatbund Niedersachsenheimatbund-niedersachsen.de
3. 3Heimatbund Niedersachsenwikidata.org
4. 4Heimatbund Niedersachsende.wikipedia.org