| 500s | The settlement of Münsterland by the Saxon tribe begins. |
| Circa 693 |
The martyrdom of the Anglo Saxon priests, Ewald the white and Ewald the black by Saxon heathens. |
| Circa 744 |
St. Ludger, the first Bishop of Münster, is born in Zuylen near Utrecht in the Netherlands. His parents are Thiadgrim and Liafburg both wealthy Frisians of noble lineage. |
| 772 to 804 |
Charlemagne attempts to Christianize the Saxons, using the sword when necessary. |
| 777 |
The ordination of St. Ludger in Köln (Cologne). |
| 784 |
A rebellion of Saxons led by Widdukind forces St. Ludger to abandon his work in Münsterland. |
| 785 |
The baptism of Widdukind, the leader of the Saxons. |
| 795 |
St. Ludger builds a monasterium (residence, church and cloister) in Münster. |
| Circa 800 |
On the site of a heathen shrine, the lords of Steinfurt construct a small church — the founding of the parish St. Remigius at Borken. |
| 800 |
On Christmas Day, the crowning of Karl der Grosse (Charlemagne) as Holy Roman Emperor in Rome. |
| Circa 803 |
St. Ludger becomes Bishop of Münster. |
| 809 |
St. Ludger dies in Billerbeck. |
| Circa 993 |
Creation of the parish of Gescher. |
| 1150 |
By this year, in the Coesfeld area, the growing of rye predominates. |
| Circa 1200 |
The building of a parish church in Velen — the formation of the parish in Ramsdorf. |
| 1200s |
Wine replaces mead as the most popular alcoholic drink. |
| 1231 |
The beginning of St. Vitus Parish in Südlohn. |
| 1323 |
The destruction of the settlement of Sedenhorst by war. |
| 1350 |
In June and July, the Black Death (the plague) sweeps through Coesfeld and barely one fourth of the city survives. |
| 1368 |
The city of Münster joins the Hanseatic League. |
| 1395 |
Weseke becomes a parish. |
| Circa 1400 |
The building of St. Anthony Chapel in Tungerloh-Capellen (in the parish of Gescher). |
| 1517 |
On 31 October Martin Luther affixes his 95 Theses to the castle church door in Wittenberg. |
| 1526 |
First mention of the Tartar grain (buckwheat) in the accounts of the Gemen castle. |
| 1534 |
Anabaptists gain complete control of the city of Münster. |
| 1535 |
On 25 June, after a siege of 16 months, Münster is retaken from the Anabaptists. |
| 1535 |
The parish of Schale becomes a Lutheran parish. |
| 1560 |
A fire destroys the village of Raesfeld. |
| 1564 |
The Lutheran congregation take over the “Large Church” in Burgsteinfurt. |
| 1569 |
The plundering of the city of Ahaus and the castle falls. |
| 1576 to 1589 |
The Plague wreaks havoc in Borken and the surrounding country. |
| 1598 |
Spanish troops occupy Coesfeld. |
| 1598 |
Stadtlohn quarters Spanish troops. |
| 1599 |
Spanish troops plunder Osterwick. |
| 1611 |
A fire lays waste to most of Stadtlohn. |
| 1615-1616 |
Raesfeld quarters Spanish troops. |
| 1618-1648 |
Fighting occurs throughout Germany during the Thirty Years War, devastating most of the country. |
| 1622 |
Troops plunder the village of Raesfeld. |
| 1623 |
6 August an important battle of the Thirty Years War occurs near Stadtlohn. |
| 1626 |
A fire destroys 33 houses in Coesfeld. |
| 1633 |
Hessian troops occupy the city of Coesfeld. |
| 1633 |
In September, Hessian troops seize control of the city of Ahaus, and the occupation lasts until the last days of April 1649. |
| 1634-1648 |
Hessian troops torment the village of Heiden, during the Thirty Years War. |
| 1643 |
Hessian troops besiege the castle at Raesfeld. |
| 1643 |
Hessian troops occupy the Varlar Monastery near Osterwick. |
| 1648 |
24 October, the signing of a peace treaty in the city of Münster, ending the Thirty Years War. |
| 1666-1668 |
The last outbreak of the plague in the city of Münster. |
| 1673 |
The Prince Bishop of Münster forces the co-usage of the main church in Burgsteinfurt by Catholics and Protestants. |
| 1756-1763 |
The inhabitants of Raesfeld suffer during the Seven Year’s War by the passing of troops through the city and the quartering of French troops. |
| 1757 |
French troops occupy and plunder the castle at Ahaus. |
| 1759 |
French troops plunder the farms near Osterwick. |
| 1761 |
French troops occupy the city of Coesfeld during the Seven Years War. |
| 1780 |
Epidemics rage through Osterwick. |
| 1800 |
The first introduction of potatoes in Holtwick. |
| 1789-1803 |
Ahaus and Münsterland falls into the hands of the French Army. |
| Circa 1800 |
High German becomes the language of instruction at the local schools in Münsterland, prior to this the instruction was in Low German. |
| 1803 |
The abolition of the Prince-Bishopric of Münster. |
| 1803-1811 |
After the abolition of the Bishopric of Münster, Südlohn becomes a part of the Principality of Salm-Salm. | 1811-1813 |
Südlohn becomes a part of the French Empire, along with the rest of Münsterland. |
| 1811 |
12,000 troops march through Coesfeld, bringing with them dysentery and typhus. About 10 per cent of the population of Coesfeld dies this year. |
| 1813 |
Ahaus becomes a Prussian city, along with the rest of Münster —the quartering of Prussian troops in the Heiden area. |
| 1813 |
Ahaus becomes a Prussian city, along with the rest of Münster —the quartering of Prussian troops in the Heiden area. |
| 1815 |
Prussia annexes Rhineland, Westphalia, Saxony, and Pomerania. |
| 1816 |
Crop failures in Münsterland — the city of Münster becomes the capital of the Prussian province of Westphalia. |
| 1817 |
8 August hail devastates the crops in many parts of Münsterland. |
| 1820 |
Rye is grown on 70% of the arable land in Münsterland. |
| 1845-1846 |
Crop failures in Münsterland. |
| 1846 |
Building of a steam powered weaving mill just across the border from Gronau at Enschede, the Netherlands. |
| 1848 |
Due to unrest in the Coesfeld area, some silver decorations from St. Lamberti Church is put into storage in a bank vault. |
| 1857 |
The destruction of 80% of the city of Vreden by fire. |
| 1863 |
A fire almost completely destroys Ahaus. |
| 1866 |
Schleswig-Holstein, Hanover, Hesse-Cassel, Nassau are taken over by Prussia. |
| 1871 |
Bavaria, Baden and Würtemberg join the German empire. |
| 1872 |
The banishment of the Jesuit Order from Germany. |
| 1875 |
The banishment of all religious orders from Germany (including the Franciscans) by the Prussian Government, except those who care for the sick. |
| 1876 |
The removal of Bishop John Bernard Brinkmann as the Bishop of Münsterland by the Prussian Government. He spends his exile in Holland. |
| 1878 |
At the first of the year, 21% of the parishes in Münsterland have no pastor, and 13 of these parishes have no priest. |
| 1880 |
In October, with no bishop in Münster 3,900 children are confirmed in Utrecht, the Netherlands. |
| 1938 |
An arsonist destroys the Synagogue in Stadtlohn. |
| 1938 |
The destruction of the Jewish synagogue in Raesfeld. |
| 1945 |
Towards the end of March, English troops take control of Raesfeld. |
| |
The destruction of the castle in Ahaus by a bombing raid. |
| |
English troops arrive in Osterwick. |
| |
The destruction of the heart of the city of Borken occurs during the Second World War. |
| |
In March, a few days before the arrival of allied troops, a bombing raid causes the almost complete destruction of the city of Stadtlohn with many citizens losing their lives. |
| |
Planes bomb the city of Coesfeld beginning 21 March and ending 24 March, destroying most of the center of the city. |
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