Description
Beckum is a town in the northern part of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is about 20 km (12 miles) north-east of Hamm and 35 km (22 miles) south-east of Münster. It gives its name to the nearby Beckum Hills.HistorySeveral Neolithic stone cists are the earliest traces of humans in the area around the three brooks, Kollenbach, Lippbach and Siechenbach. Because of these three brooks, the town was eventually named Bekehem or later Beckum, meaning "home upon the brooks".In 1224, Beckum was granted its town charter, and it quickly grew in wealth as merchants and craftsmen set up businesses in the town. The town quickly expanded to an area of over 22 km2 (8.5 sq miles). However wars, riots and the Black Death in the following centuries left their mark on the town.After the Thirty Years' War, legislation removed several rights from cities and towns, and as a result many cities and towns in Münsterland became heavily economically and religiously dependent upon the Bishop of Münster. During this period of economic and spiritual poverty, the townspeople committed several notable acts of folly, commemorated by several works of art: for example townspeople hanging on each other as they fetch a pail of water out of a well.The town's long period of economic stagnation slowly came to an end in the 19th century. From 1803-1806 Beckum was under Prussian rule and from 1806-1816 under French rule. In 1816 Beckum became the district town of Beckum district.
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