The Eichsfeld was first mentioned in 897, and in 1022 the
Archbishopric of Mainz listed its possessions in the region, which were increased up until 1573. The
Ottonian Untereichsfeld became part of Eichsfeld after being part of
Brunswick-Lüneburg and
Grubenhagen between 1342 and 1434. During the
German Peasants' War within the
Reichsstadt of
Mühlhausen most of the monasteries, churches and castles were plundered and most of the Eichsfeld became Protestant. In 1575 the
Society of Jesus successfully established the
Counter-Reformation in Eichsfeld. The
Thirty Years' War reached Eichsfeld in 1622 and during the years following several armies (Swedish, Danish, Thuringian) plundered the region. According to the
Peace of Westphalia the
Archbishopric of Mainz reestablished
Catholicism in the area which was two thirds devastated and had lost 75% of its population. During the Napoleonic time Eichsfeld was part of the
Kingdom of Westphalia, which was dissolved after the victory over
Napoleon at the
Battle of Leipzig. in Teistungen, Thuringia. From 1949 to 1990 the Obereichsfeld belonged to the
GDR. In this atheistic state the people preserved their Catholic roots, and church life stayed relatively intact. After the
fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of the
GDR, the
Borderland Museum Eichsfeld was opened in the buildings of the former border crossing point
Duderstadt-
Worbis in the centre of the Eichsfeld region. It addresses the history of the GDR and the German division with focus on its meaning for the Eichsfeld region. ==Politics==