Archaeological finds have established that there has been continuous habitation in the area since the
Stone Age. In the
Early Middle Ages, the border between the
Saxon and
Frankish tribal homelands ran through what is now Vöhl, as still witnessed by the
Sprachgrenze, or
language border, running east to west between
Central German and
Low German astride which the municipality sits. Vöhl's municipal area is roughly coëxtensive with the old lordly domain of Itter, which in the
High Middle Ages developed in the former Ittergau. After the Lords of Itter died out, the area was split between the Landgraviate of Hesse and the Electorate of
Mainz. After meanwhile being pledged to the Counts of Waldeck and the Wolff von Gudensberg family, the Itter domain became part of Hesse for good in 1589. Disputed as it was between
Hesse-Kassel (or Hesse-Cassel) and
Hesse-Darmstadt, in 1650, it passed once and for all to the latter and formed an enclave inside Waldeck territory. In 1821, as part of administrative reform, the Itter domain became the district of Vöhl, until in 1866 it passed to
Prussia and was united with Frankenberg district in 1886.
Basdorf About Basdorf's founding and the time thereafter up until the village's first documentary mention in 1206, nothing is clear. It seems likely that, owing to soil and water factors, Basdorf was an early settlement centre here in the tribal marches between the
Chatti and the
Cherusci. Together with the other places in the Ittergau it would hence have held an important place with regards to through traffic and north-south trade. Since the deaconate of Vöhl fell under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Mainz, it is assumed that the area around nearby
Fritzlar, or rather the
Büraburg, was
Christianized by
Saint Boniface or his followers before
Charlemagne's years-long
Saxon Wars, into which the local border region was drawn. Documents surviving today show how Basdorf grew from a village of free farmers bit by bit into an estate of the Werbe Monastery and into a small part of the Berich Monastery. Furthermore, the documents show how the Ittergau, to which Basdorf belonged, many times became the object of its stronger neighbours' disputes. In 1810 came the
Kampf den Maikäfern – the "Struggle against the
Cockchafers" – and its larvae, the white grubs. One leaflet sent throughout the village declared that every farmer was to decrease this pest as much as he could, sparing no effort to that end. It furthermore suggested feeding the dead cockchafers to
chickens,
ducks and
geese, with a warning that these birds should also get plenty of water, as cockchafers tended to make them very thirsty.
Swine, too, enjoyed cockchafers, according to the leaflet. In 1875, Basdorf's children were given a new
school when a dismantled house was bought over in Asel and reassembled in Basdorf as a place for teaching the village's children. In 1878, the village bought a new hand-driven fire pump. In 1879, the men's singing club was founded by Johann Christian Bangert, whose thirst for adventure once led him on a 120-day sailing voyage to
Australia, and whose homesickness 20 years later led him back to Basdorf. Basdorf farmers became milk suppliers to the Höringhausen
Dairy in 1885, and in 1892, Basdorf became an independent parish with a branch in Oberwerba. In 1900, the postal coach connection came to an end. In 1919,
electricity and
running water came to the village. In 1920, the streets were lit and a threshing municipality was founded. The Basdorf Gymnastic and Sport Club was founded in 1922. In 1934, the volunteer fire brigade was founded. In 1946, Basdorf took in 165 refugees from former German territories out of which they had been driven, thereby giving the school a reason to hire a further teacher in 1948. Between 1952 and 1986, Basdorf was connected to the
sewer system. In 1960, the Basdorf Gymnastic and Sport Club was brought back to life as a
football and sport club. In 1964, school ended in Basdorf when all school functions were transferred to Vöhl (main town). In the 1972 contest
"Unser Dorf" ("Our Village"), Basdorf was deemed to be Hesse's second prettiest village. Basdorf became part of Vöhl in 1974. In 2006 Basdorf celebrated 800 years of existence with a weeklong festival.
Amalgamations On 1 February 1971, the municipalities of Dorfitter, Herzhausen and Thalitter merged into the municipality of Ittertal, and Vöhl formed with Asel and Basdorf a new municipality. On 1 January 1972, the municipality of Hessenstein was formed out of Buchenberg, Ederbringhausen, Harbshausen, Kirchlotheim, Niederorke, Oberorke and Schmittlotheim. The municipalities of Marienhagen and Obernburg for the time being remained independent. On 1 January 1974, the municipalities of Hessenstein, Marienhagen, Obernburg, Ittertal and Vöhl merged into the greater municipality of Vöhl. The administrative seat is in the original village of Vöhl. ==Politics==