Vechta

Vechta (German pronunciation: [ˈfɛçta]; Northern Low Saxon: Vechte) is the capital and largest city of the Vechta district in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is home to the University of Vechta.

Vechta
Town
Coat of arms of Vechta
Coat of arms
Location of Vechta within Vechta district
Vechta is located in Germany
Vechta
Vechta
Vechta is located in Lower Saxony
Vechta
Vechta
Coordinates: 52°43′50″N 08°17′19″E
CountryGermany
StateLower Saxony
DistrictVechta
Subdivisions15
Government
 • Mayor (2019–24) Kristian Kater[1] (SPD)
Area
 • Total87.8 km2 (33.9 sq mi)
Elevation
37 m (121 ft)
Population
 (2022-12-31)[2]
 • Total33,769
 • Density380/km2 (1,000/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes
49377
Dialling codes04441
Vehicle registrationVEC
Websitewww.vechta.de

It is known for the 'Stoppelmarkt' fair, which takes place every summer and has a history dating back to 1298. With an attendance of 800,000 visitors it is one of the biggest annual fairs in north-western Germany.[3]

In the recent past, the town was known as a centre of far-northern German Catholicism.

Vechta water mill

Town subdivisions

Vechta consists of the following 15 boroughs.

  • Vechta Stadt
  • Bergstrup
  • Calveslage
  • Deindrup
  • Hagen I
  • Hagen II
  • Holtrup
  • Holzhausen
  • Langförden
  • Oythe
  • Spreda
  • Stoppelmarkt
  • Stukenborg
  • Telbrake
  • Vardel

Transport and infrastructure

The A1, also known as the Hansalinie, passes by Vechta. There are three interchanges: Vechta-West/Bakum, Vechta-Langförden/Emstek, Vechta-Nord/Ahlhorn . Also, the B69 runs through the city of Vechta.

Transport

Vechta lies on the Delmenhorst-Hesepe railway and offers connections to Osnabrück and Bremen.

Population development

Vechta has become a very rich city with a high quality of living, so Vechta is one of the rare German towns that still has a growing population.

In addition, Vechta with nearby Cloppenburg have both the highest fertility rates and lowest median ages in Germany, due to the large Catholic population.[4]

  • 1890: 2,188 inhabitants
  • 1905: 3,895 inhabitants
  • 1910: 4,373 inhabitants
  • 1933: 7,280 inhabitants
  • 1939: 8,095 inhabitants
  • 1950: 13,097 inhabitants
  • 1977: 22,133 inhabitants
  • 1980: 23,000 inhabitants
  • 1990: 23,200 inhabitants
  • 1995: 25,616 inhabitants
  • 2000: 27,832 inhabitants
  • 2005: 30,061 inhabitants
  • 2008: 30,903 inhabitants
  • 2009: 31,250 inhabitants
  • 2021: 32,900 inhabitants

Theatre

Vechta is a fixed venue for the Landesbühne Niedersachsen Nord, founded in 1952. The headquarter is located in Wilhelmshaven, which stages annually up to ten performances at the Metropoltheater. The theatre offers 272 seats.

Stoppelmarkt

Stoppelmarkt was first mentioned as a market in 1298. In earlier times, it was held in the streets of the city within the fortress walls. Even then, merchants from many European countries came to Vechta. In 1577 the city of Vechta was hit by the plague. Therefore, the market had to be moved to an open field outside the city walls. Since the stubble remains of the last harvest were still standing on the field, the market was henceforth called Stoppelmarkt.[5] In 2020 and 2021 the market was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[6]

Climate

The climate in Vechta is a moderate sea climate, influenced by wet northwest winds from the North Sea. The long term average air temperature reaches 8.5 to 9.0 °C and about 700 millimeters of rainfall per year. Between May and August, an average of 20–25 summer days (climatological term for days with the maximum temperature exceeds 25 °C) are calculated.

Twin towns – sister cities
See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Germany

Vechta is twinned with:[7]

Sport

Vechta is the home of the Rasta Vechta basketball club, which plays in the German Basketball Bundesliga.

Notable people
Andreas Romberg
  • Conrad of Vechta (ca 1370 - 1431), Bishop of Verden (1400–1402/1407), Bishop of Olomouc (1408–1413), Archbishop of Prague (1413–1421) and Chancellor of the Kingdom of Bohemia, (1405–1412).
  • Maria Johanna von Aachen (1755–1845), a Westphalian writer and noblewoman
  • Andreas Romberg (1767–1821), composer and violin player
  • Rolf Dieter Brinkmann (1940–1975), writer of poems, short stories, essays, letters and diaries.
  • Martin Welzel (born 1972), musician, associate organist at Munich Cathedral 2021–2022
  • Katja Suding (born 1975), politician (FDP), member of the Bundestag from 2017 to 2021.
  • Alexander Bartz (born 1984), politician (SPD), member of the Bundestag since November 2022.

Sport
  • Ansgar Brinkmann (born 1969), footballer, played 426 games
  • Alparslan Erdem (born 1988), footballer, played over 200 games
  • Luc Van Slooten (born 2002), a professional basketball player

See also

References
  1. "Verzeichnis der direkt gewählten Bürgermeister/-innen und Landräte/Landrätinnen". Landesamt für Statistik Niedersachsen. April 2021.
  2. "LSN-Online Regionaldatenbank, Tabelle A100001G: Fortschreibung des Bevölkerungsstandes, Stand 31. Dezember 2022" (in German). Landesamt für Statistik Niedersachsen.
  3. "Stoppelmarkt - das Fest der Feste - der Stoppelmarkt". Archived from the original on 2015-05-02. Retrieved 2015-04-21.
  4. Schröder, Miriam (2006-03-24). "Kinderparadies: Der Cloppenburg-Faktor". Der Spiegel (in German). ISSN 2195-1349. Retrieved 2024-04-21.
  5. "Der Markt > Stoppelmarkt Vechta". www.stoppelmarkt.de. Retrieved 2021-08-12.
  6. NDR. "Kirmespark statt Stoppelmarkt startet in Vechta". www.ndr.de (in German). Retrieved 2021-08-12.
  7. "Städtefreundschaften". rathaus.vechta.de (in German). Vechta. Retrieved 2021-02-21.
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