What is the German town of Meppen famous for?

Question

What is the German town of Meppen famous for?

Answer 1

Meppen, formerly a fortified city, boasts 12 centuries of history.

The first documented mention of Meppen is in 834, in a deed of donation by Frankish emperor Louis the Pious, transferring a missionary establishment of that name to the abbey of Corvey.

945 -- Emperor Otto the Great grants the town the rights to mint coins and collect tolls, followed in 946 by market rights.

1252 -- Countess Jutta von Vechta-Ravensberg sells her possessions to the Bishop of Münster. Meppen becomes part of the Niederstift Münster.

1360 -- Meppen is granted the right to build city fortifications by Bishop Adolf of Münster, and thereby, city rights. Over the next three centuries until 1660, Meppen is built up as a fortified city.

1762 -- at the end of the Seven Years' War, the fortifications are demolished. Some walls remain standing today, however.

1803 -- Resolutions of the Reichsdeputationshauptschluss assign Meppen to the Duke of Arenberg, to compensate for the loss of his possessions on the west bank of the Rhein. Meppen becomes the capital of the dukedom of Arenberg.

1811 -- Meppen is incorporated into the First French Empire as a cantonal seat.

1813 -- 1814 -- Occupation by Prussia.

1814 -- 1815 -- Resolutions of the Congress of Vienna assign Meppen and the Arenburg dukedom to the Kingdom of Hanover.

1855 -- Meppen connected to the Hannoverschen Westbahn railway line upon its opening.

1866 -- Hanover becomes a province of Prussia.

1946 -- The state of Prussia is abolished after the Second World War. Meppen becomes part of the newly created Land of Lower Saxony.

1977 -- District reforms in Lower Saxony unite the former districts of Lingen, Meppen and Aschendorf-Hümmling in the district of Emsland, with Meppen as administrative seat.

Answer 2

Meppen - German immigrant Henry Kiel settled in Calhoun County in 1847 and built his famous stone house from limestone carved out of the river bluffs.