Top 20 Lakes around Bünde

The poet Friedrich Leopold Graf zu Stolberg (1750–1819), who was well-known at the time, lived at Sondermühlen during the last years of his life. Today, the Graf-Stolberg-Allee, which leads to the estate, commemorates him. His widow, Countess Sophie Charlotte Eleonore von Redern (1765–1842), took on the poet Luise Hensel, who lived at Sondermühlen estate from 1821 to 1823, as her companion and as the educator of her daughters Maria Theresia, Amalie and Pauline.

After the death of the last Nehem, the estate changed hands several times within a short period of time. In 1796, it was sold to the Osnabrück cathedral chapter in bankruptcy proceedings. After secularization, it first passed to the Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg. Under Napoleon, it was divided up a short time later and given to several French officers. After the Congress of Vienna, it then passed to the Kingdom of Hanover. The majority of the estate has been state-owned since then. The land is now divided up among the former tenants and farmhands. The forests are state property and belong to the Palsterkamp Forestry Office. Clemens Graf von Platen Hallermund, lord of Königsbrück Castle (Melle), acquired the remaining estate in 1972 for his daughter Sabine, married to Karl-Friedrich Freiherr von Richthofen, who holds a doctorate in economics. She restored the estate, which was falling into disrepair at the time, and still lives there today.

There are different theories about the origin of the Sondermühlen estate. According to the current private owners, the estate was first mentioned in documents in 1350.[1] In fact, the fief register of the same year shows that Hermann Wulf and Nikolaus von Gesmele were each granted a farm, two houses and the "mill in Nordenfelde". In the course of the 15th century, Johann and Lubbert von Arnholte and Johann von Vincke are mentioned as feudal lords of the "Sundermühle in Nordenfelde". In 1479, a knight named Ebbeke von Vincke combined several properties in the area that his ancestors had already owned. Many sources cite this year as the year the estate was founded. After the death of the knight Ebbeke, two more generations of the Vincke family followed. After that, from 1558 to 1778, the von Nehem family was the lord of Sondermühlen for seven generations.

The name Sondermühlen is derived from the term "Sundern", a term that arose in the early Middle Ages for a privately owned piece of land. This piece of land obviously included a mill. According to some sources, Sondermühlen was still referred to as "Gut Sundermühlen" in the 19th century.

The Sondermühlen estate is a former castle complex and later a manor house. The complex is located in the area of the town of Melle in the southern part of the Osnabrück district in Lower Saxony, not far from the state border with North Rhine-Westphalia.

Two watermills used to belong to Königsbrück Castle; today only the Niedermühle on the Warmenau remains, exactly on the border between Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia.

There are different theories about the origins of the Sondermühlen estate. According to the current private owners, the estate was first mentioned in documents in 1350.

When the first warmer days of the year arrive, the Moorstrandhaus on Hücker Moor opens its doors. Here you can relax in the sun on lounge chairs and enjoy a drink while enjoying a small snack. A nice stop for cyclists in spring and summer. You can find information about the start of the season and opening times here: https://www.facebook.com/p/MOORSTRAND-HAUS-100072098264977/.