Amt Bremervörde

Gericht Gnarrenburg

Vörde castle dates from the early 12th century and came into the possession of the Archbishopric of Bremen in 1219. Because of disputes between the Archbishopric and the City of Bremen, the seat of the Archbishopric was moved to Vörde, which eventually came to be called Bremervörde. It also became the seat of an Amt that covered all of the Archbishopric’s territory acquired before the 13th century, excepting cities and under the secular jurisdiction of various monasteries.

 

Beginning in 1692, efforts were made to spread the responsibilities of local government more evenly. In that year, the Börden of Ahlerstedt, Bargstedt, and Mulsum were split off to form Vogtei Mulsum (which was merged with Amt Harsefeld in 1753). In 1712, Börde Oldendorf was transferred to Amt Himmelpforten. Finally, in 1728, the Börden of Elsdorf, Selsingen, and Sittensen were transferred to Amt Zeven.

 

The village of Gnarrenburg dates from the 13th century and was a noble Gericht until 1752, when it became the seat of a new Vogtei in Amt Bremervörde. The other villages in the Vogtei were located on marshland that was reclaimed after that date (hence, it was characterized as a “Moorvogtei”).

 

Beverstedter Mühle stood outside of any Börde, so I characterize it as a Quasi-Börde.