Greater Hamburg Act

With effect from 1 April 1937, the area of Hamburg, by the "Law on Greater Hamburg and other field adjustments" was briefly Greater Hamburg Act (enacted by the Reich government of Hitler ) to economically important areas from the neighboring Prussian counties and cities expanded. These included the cities Altona / Elbe and Wandsbek in the province of Schleswig -Holstein and Harburg- Wilhelm castle in the province of Hanover, which is part of a unified community of Hamburg were from April 1, 1938 and lost along with the Hamburg city Bergedorf their independence. Some minor hamburgischen enclaves were ceded to Prussia in return. Overall, the area of Hamburg hence increased from 415 to 745 km2, its population increased from 1.19 to 1.68 million in the next step was with the "Law on the Constitution and Administration of Hanseatic city of Hamburg " from December 9, 1937 ( HVVG ), the Hamburg Constitution repealed and the independence of the Hanseatic city of the kingdom interests entirely subordinate to the " Reichsgau Hamburg ".

The law also regulated a number of other field changes especially in northern Germany. Lübeck lost its 711 years old territorial independence and became part of the province of Schleswig -Holstein. A number of enclaves in the border area between Mecklenburg and Prussia were eliminated, including the Domhof Ratzeburg. The Free State of Oldenburg took up his part of the country Lübeck as a circle Eutin from the province of Schleswig -Holstein. The Prussian city of Wilhelmshaven came to Oldenburg. The Oldenburg part of the country became the Birkenfeld district of Birkenfeld, in the Rhine Province.

• 3.1 Schleswig -Holstein and Oldenburg
• 3.2 Mecklenburg

Conclusion of Law

In the course of industrialization in the early 20th century, a strong competition between the City of Hamburg and the neighboring Prussian cities Altona, Harburg and Wandsbek formed. Initial discussions between Hamburg and Prussia there was in 1922, after the Hamburg Senate in 1915 and 1921 " memoranda on the extension of the Hamburg area " addressed to the Reich government in Berlin over the years. Due to lack of willingness to compromise the First Mayor Carl Petersen in 1927 the Prussian adjacent communities concentrated by incorporations. Altona and Wandsbek widened, Harburg and William Castle fused to the city of Harburg- William Castle, and there arose the large municipalities Lokstedt and Rahlstedt and the city Billstedt. The Prussian Hamburg harbor Treaty of 1928 ( 22 December 1928 RGBl. 1929 II p 1) facilitated the handling of cargo in the ports of Altona, Hamburg and Harburg -Wilhelmsburg significantly.

After the seizure of power by the National Socialists in 1933 Petersen ( DDP) was forced to resign on March 5. The regional grouping of economic centers in the German Reich immediately gained a new meaning in terms of a four-year plan, but at the expense of the autonomy of the participating cities.

On the basis of the Reich Governor Law April 7, 1933 Hermann Göring was appointed prime minister of Prussia ( 10 April 1933) and Karl Kaufmann Reich governor of Hamburg ( 16 May 1933). The Hamburg Senate represented on May 18, 1933 Carl Vincent Krogmann as Mayor, a function that was controlled by the imperial governor.

On the basis of the second Reich Governor Law of 30 January 1935, the Senate had become functionless, and on 29 July 1936, Adolf Hitler, the sole leadership of the ( mayor loose ) Hamburg state government the Reich Governor Karl Kaufmann. This in turn degraded Krogmann on 30 July 1936 head of the municipal administration. In November 1936, a meeting was held between Goering, businessman and Krogmann for administrative border problems between Prussia and Hamburg. Hermann Göring ( at the same time Plenipotentiary for the Four Year Plan ) issued Kaufmann certain transfer powers over his Prussian departments to take on Hamburg Prussian adjacent areas for a future Greater Hamburg.

On January 26, 1937, the Greater Hamburg Act was passed. By this law, the State of Hamburg was expanded with effect from April 1, 1937 to the then Prussian cities Altona / Elbe, Harburg- William Castle and Wandsbek as well as 27 municipalities and two municipal parts of the counties Stormarn, Pinneberg, Duchy of Lauenburg, Harburg and Stade.

After a twelve -month transition phase during which persisted for the individual cities and towns, was April 1, 1938, the already announced in Article 1 of the Greater Hamburg Act Reich Law on the Constitution and Administration of Hanseatic city of Hamburg from the whole country Hamburg unity community Hanseatic City Hamburg formed. At the same time put this law, the Hamburg state at the April 1, 1938 expire. Both laws were co-signed by Hermann Goering as Prussian prime minister.

To implement the Greater Hamburg Act of 1939 eight implementing regulations have been adopted in the period 15 February 1937 to 24 May.

Field changes in Hamburg April 1, 1937

Territorial gains Hamburg

To the Land of Hamburg were in detail

• From the Prussian province of Schleswig -Holstein the urban district of Altona / Elbe, 248 589 inhabitants (1937 )
• The urban district of Wandsbek
• From the district Stormarn the communities Bergstedt, Billstedt, Bramfeld, Duvenstedt, Hummelsbüttel, Lemsahl - Mellingstedt, Lohbruegge, Poppenbuettel, Rahlstedt, Sasel, Steilshoop and Wellingsbüttel
• From the district of Pinneberg the community Lokstedt with Niendorf and Schnelsen
• From the district of Lauenburg of living space in the course paint roller impact the community Börnsen

• From the district of Lüneburg, the Prussian province of Hanover the urban district of Harburg- William Castle, 112 293 inhabitants (1937 )
• From the district of Harburg communities Altenwerder, Finkenwerder, Fischbek Francop, Good Moor, Kirchwerder, Langenbeck, Marmstorf, Neuenfelde, Neugraben, Neuland, Rönneburg, Sinstorf as well as the village of Hook Over the municipality Over

• From the district of Stade the Prussian province of Hanover from the district of Stade the community Cranz

All of these municipalities were merged with the City of Hamburg and the remaining with the State of Hamburg communities on April 1, 1938, a unified community that led the name Hanseatic City of Hamburg.

Cessions of territory Hamburg

In exchange, the Hamburg exclaves went to Prussia, namely

• To the Prussian province of Schleswig -Holstein to the district of Lauenburg, the city Geesthacht
• To the county Stormarn the communities Hansdorf and Schmalenbeck

• To the county Hadeln in the district of Stade the Prussian province of Hanover the Office Ritzebüttel consisting of the city of Cuxhaven ( with Neuwerk and Scharhörn ) as well as the communities Berensch and Arensch, Gudendorf, Holte- slides, Oxstedt and Sahlenburg, with the exception of America Harbor

Other territorial changes

Schleswig- Holstein and Oldenburg

With the Greater Hamburg Act also the country Lübeck lost its independence and became part of the Prussian province of Schleswig -Holstein. The Oldenburg part of the country Lübeck, the former Principality of Lübeck, also came as a circle Eutin to Schleswig -Holstein.

The Prussian city of Wilhelmshaven and Oldenburg city Rüstringen were pooled for Oldenburg Wilhelmshaven.

The Oldenburg exclave Birkenfeld part of the country on the Nahe was transferred to the state of Prussia, which angliederte him under the name of the district of Birkenfeld the Rhine Province and the rest District St. Wendel - Baumholder united. By French Military Order No. 8 on July 18, 1946 18 municipalities in the southern Birkenfeld were Saarland affiliated. In addition, the district became part of the August 30, 1946 to the newly formed state of Rhineland -Palatinate.

The Mecklenburg- strelitzschen enclaves in Schleswig- Holstein as the Domhof in Ratzeburg and some communities were integrated into the Duchy of Lauenburg. The formerly independent municipalities village school, Bartelsdorf and Franz Hagen were combined to form a political community school village (District of Lauenburg ).

The Lübeck enclaves in Schleswig-Holstein became part of the circles Eutin and Lauenburg.

Mecklenburg

Mecklenburg received Lübeck enclaves there in exchange for its exclaves in the Duchy of Lauenburg, in Schleswig- Holstein.

Also several territorial changes in the south and east of Mecklenburg in the Greater Hamburg Act were regulated. Mecklenburg joined his exclaves Schoenberg from (Dosse ), Rossow and Netzeband to Prussia. In return, it received an enclave belonging to Prussia to Duckow, Zettemin and Rottmannshagen. The two small towns and large menow Quasliner mill came to Mecklenburg. Especially in the area Templin exchanged a few lakes national affiliation.

Administrative divisions within the country Hamburg

Since 1937, the internal organization of Hamburg has undergone numerous changes:

In addition, it was in this context to a change of district boundaries, which have been aligned with the boundaries between the NSDAP districts substantially; as an example we refer to the " land swap " between Altona -Altstadt (loss of eastern territories to the Great Freedom and the shoulder blade ) and Sankt Pauli (loss of areas around Pinnasberg and St. Pauli church).

Revision efforts

After 1945, there were serious attempts to reverse the consequences of the law, at least partially, and the formerly independent towns to secure greater autonomy: in particular, Harburg and Altona such demands were loud and there were extremely popular; they also coincided with the objectives of the British occupation forces for greater decentralization. For Harburg, a committee of local and hamburger party and trade union representatives was used in order to teach in this regard substantive issues to be clarified in the summer of 1946.

After the first parliamentary election on October 13, 1946 this question for the Senate joined but more and more into the background, primarily under the announcement that for the reconstruction and improvement of living conditions in the bombed-out city, a concentration of all the forces must be given priority.

In this connection it should be pointed to the ambivalent attitude of the former mayor Walter Dudek (Harburg ) and Max Brauer ( Altona), the relative in her new role in the Hamburg Senate on this issue a position which was its previous opposite. Altona later district manager August Kirch, however, sat down in 1950 for one, at least restore the historic border between Altona and Hamburg.

Given the minimum district's autonomy due to the constitutional construct of the uniform community of Hamburg initiated requests for more extensive autonomy especially in Harburg and Altona ( for example, the voter community Harburg and the initiative Altona freedom be mentioned ) to the present locally on significant agreement.

The attempt to restore the statehood of Lübeck failed in 1956 before the Federal Constitutional Court (Lübeck judgment).