Zeven, the town by the forest
The town of ZEVEN has around 13,000 inhabitants and is located in a varied landscape consisting of meadows, fields, forests and moors. The forest areas of Ahe, Herrenbruch and Grosse Holz, some of which reach as far as the town center, have given ZEVEN a significant recreational value and led to ZEVEN being given the name "Town by the Forest".
ZEVEN is very centrally located for all vacationers:
Right between Hamburg and Bremen, Cuxhaven and the Lüneburg Heath, it is not difficult to find the right place for an excursion. Places worth seeing such as Worpswede, Fischerhude, Bad Bederkesa or Stade and the Alte Land are within easy and quick reach of ZEVEN. Popular theme parks such as the Heidepark Soltau, the Verden theme park, the Babyzoo Wingst or the Serengeti Park are also worth a visit, as are the latest musicals in Bremen or Hamburg.
Worth seeing
The St. Viti monastery church is unique in northern Germany due to its construction and round tower. There is also the monastery museum with its Romanesque vaulted cellar and baroque wall paintings. The Christinenhaus is the oldest secular building in the town. Changing exhibitions take place here. The concerts in the church, in the town hall or in the town park are cultural highlights in the area. The fire department museum delights young and old alike. The Birkensee lake in Weertzen used to be a "health fountain". The nearby forest cemetery in Freyersen is also worth a visit. During a cycle tour, be sure to visit the Badetal valley with the watermill in Bademühlen. Be enchanted by our harvest wagon parade at the end of October.
Sporting activities
ZEVEN offers everything your heart desires when it comes to sports: indoor swimming pool, outdoor pool, bathing lakes, designated cycle paths, mountain bike parkour, good conditions for inline skaters, golf courses nearby, fitness trail in the Grossen Holz, indoor and outdoor tennis, squash, spinning, fitness, aerobics and much more. TUS Zeven also offers other activities. In June, the annual 4-evening marches take place, organized by the Seedorf barracks.
History
ZEVEN is a prehistoric settlement area, as evidenced by burial mounds from the Stone Age and Bronze Age in the vicinity of ZEVEN. ZEVEN was first mentioned in 986 in a document from the nearby Benedictine nunnery in Heeslingen. At that time, the place was called KIVINAN A (Streitbach). The new "town center relief road" in Zeven therefore has the name "Kivinanstraße". In 1141, the Heeslingen monastery was moved to Zeven, making ZEVEN more important. The convent was inhabited by nuns until 1694. From 1924, ZEVEN was known as a climatic health resort. ZEVEN was granted town rights in 1929 and was a district town from 1928 to 1932.
Industry
In the south of the town, in ZEVEN-ASPE, a considerable industrial area with well-known companies has settled. For example, NORDMILCH (including MILRAM products), MAPA (including NUK baby products), SANOVO (egg products), LISEGA (constant springs, e.g. for earthquake-proof buildings and bridges), ROOSE and Vion Food (meat products), MENK Betonbau, MT-Energie biogas technology and plant engineering, and many others.
The paratrooper barracks in Seedorf are also an economic driver for the region that should not be underestimated. In 2006, the Dutch soldiers who had been stationed here for 40 years were withdrawn from the Seedorf barracks and 3,000 soldiers from the airborne brigade moved in. In the summer of 2008, the paratrooper barracks were described by the Federal Minister of Defense as a model for the future for all German barracks facilities. The functional separation of working, living and leisure areas practiced in Seedorf is unique in Germany. Outstanding training facilities inside and outside the barracks also underline its status as a model of the future for Bundeswehr properties. Furthermore, branches of all major automobile manufacturers are located in ZEVEN.
This means that Zeven has a healthy mix of industry and small businesses, making it one of the few small towns in northern Germany to be certified for future growth.