Bouches du Weser

The Department of the Weser estuaries short Wesermündung department (French: département of Bouches -du -Weser, short Bouches -du -Weser ) was a department of the First French Empire in Germany. It emerged as one of the three Hanseatic departments on January 1, 1811 as a result of the annexation of the territory by France.

Location

The Department of the Weser estuary was formed from the former Free Imperial City of Bremen, a part of the Duchy of Bremen, the duchies of Oldenburg and Delmenhorst, the Duchy of Verden and from a part of the Principality of Lüneburg and a part of the county Hoya.

The Department of the Weser estuaries covered the area in a line from the boundary of the department of the Upper Ems to the border of the department of the West Ems. This line then goes down to the sea to the borders of the area of Cuxhaven, thence to the borders of the country Hadeln until after Bederkesa ( in Bremen ), and from there to the river Oste Bremervörde above, follows the river up to the confluence with the Aue to the mouth, then along an arm of the Wümme on Hillern above Soltau and then the line as determined by the French Senate decision until after Schlüsselburg.

History

The capital of the department was Bremen. The Department was divided into the following districts and cantons: In the department of the Weser estuary 329 862 inhabitants lived on 17994.625 km ². In the three Hanseatic departments, 1,118,965 inhabitants lived. In the list of French departments it had the number 129, which was also seen in the postmarks.

Prefect of the department was up to the October 17, 1813 Philipp Karl Graf von Arberg, formerly chamberlain of Napoleon and Knight of the Legion of Honour, who came from a Austrian / Belgian noble family. Arberg resided in Eelkingschen house Domshof and then in EschenhofPeaceful to Domsheide. He lived in the Gut peace in Horn. After the escape of Arbergs the previous sub-prefect Johann Pavenstedt ( 1816 Senator in Bremen) took over the Prefecture until the dissolution of the department.

After the Allied victory over Napoleon I in 1814, the Department became part of the Kingdom of Hanover, the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg and the Hanseatic city of Bremen.

Today, the area covers parts of Lower Saxony and the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen.