Oldenburg , former German state, successively a countship, a duchy, a grand duchy, and a Country (state) , before he became one Government District (county) from Lower Saxony Country in the Federal Republic of Germany in 1946. As a result of the administrative reorganization in 1977, Oldenburg became part of the administrative district of Weser-Ems.
At its greatest extent, Oldenburg had an area of 6,423 square kilometers between 1854 and 1937, consisting of the main part of the territory and two exclaves, Lübeck-Eutin (541 square kilometers) and Birkenfeld (502 square kilometers). At that time, the main part of Oldenburg was in the lowlands of the North Sea and was encircled landward by Hanover (Prussian from 1866), except for a short border to the east with Bremen . The capital was Oldenburg on the lower river Hunte. Wilhelmshaven, 1853 from Prussia bought , was restored to Oldenburg in 1937, and Lübeck-Eutin and Birkenfeld were moved to Schleswig-Holstein and the Prussian Rhine, respectively.
From the early 12th century, a number of counts established themselves in Oldenburg and developed into a town. number Christian von Oldenburg was elected to the Danish throne in 1448; From 1450 he was also king of Norway and for a few years from 1457 King of Sweden. 1460 he acquired the duchy Schleswig and the county Holstein. In 1454 he ceded Oldenburg to his brother Gerhard, whose descendants acquired nearby estates. For its neutrality in Thirty Years' War Count Anton Günther was granted the right by Emperor Ferdinand II to levy tolls on ships passing through Elsfleth on the Weser . When Gerhard's line died out in 1667, the area passed to the Danish crown. 1773 Christian VII. From Denmark Oldenburg passed to his distant cousin Paul, the future emperor Russia , in exchange for its title to Holstein-Gottorp. Paulus soon passed it on to his cousin Friedrich Augustus, who held the diocese of Lübeck and who was then appointed by the Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II . Has been made Duke of Oldenburg . The Principality of Birkenfeld was ceded to Oldenburg in 1817. Oldenburg became a grand duchy in the 19th century. She joined the Zollverein in 1853, favoring Prussia in Seven Week War (1866) and entered 1867 the North German Confederation and joined the German Empire in 1871. With the passing of the Weimar Constitution in 1919, the The grand ducal regime was elected by a Country replaced government. In 1933 Adolf Hitler made Oldenburg the center of a large Gau (administrative district). After World War II, Oldenburg was merged with Lower Saxony Land.