The place seems enchanted, remote and characterized by silence: Three historical countries, the county of Ravensberg and the bishoprics of Münster and Osnabrück clashed at this point in the Middle Ages and separated the neighboring communities of Versmold, Laer and Füchtorf from one another. After the Reformation, when Versmold became Protestant while its neighbors remained Catholic, the border triangle became an even more enchanted place. Unnamed, sub-rural classes settled in the densely wooded surroundings, smugglers and gangs of thieves - the so-called Unkemänner - found quiet refuge here. Soon the border was strictly guarded and smuggling was prevented by force. It is only in recent years that local history enthusiasts in the three communities have rediscovered the border triangle. Every year, they celebrate a festival of encounters here, and the once divisive history has long since been overcome.
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