Leer

Leer
Coat of arms
Leer
Location of Leer within Leer district
Coordinates: 53°13′51″N 7°27′10″E / 53.23083°N 7.45278°E / 53.23083; 7.45278Coordinates: 53°13′51″N 7°27′10″E / 53.23083°N 7.45278°E / 53.23083; 7.45278
Country	Germany
State	Lower Saxony
District	Leer
Government
• Mayor	Beatrix Kuhl
Area
• Total	70.30 km2 (27.14 sq mi)
Elevation	3 m (10 ft)
Population (2015-12-31)
• Total	34,042
• Density	480/km2 (1,300/sq mi)
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes	26789
Dialling codes	0491
Vehicle registration	LER
Website	www.leer.de

Leer is a town in the district of Leer, the northwestern part of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Leda, a tributary of the river Ems, near the border with the Netherlands.

It has a railway and autobahn connection to Groningen, Netherlands, Emden, Bremen and the South (Rheine and the Ruhrpott industrial region).

Leer had been a settlement long before it was first mentioned in written documents. Originally the city was situated at a meander near the mouth of the river Leda into the Ems, which is still the center of the town today. Even though Leer is some 30 km (19 mi) away from the coast, it can be reached by large ships via the Ems. Leer lies close to the Dutch border; the district of Leer shares a border with the Dutch province of Groningen.

County of East Frisia 1464–1744
 Kingdom of Prussia 1744–1806
Kingdom of Holland 1806–1810
 First French Empire 1810–1813
 Kingdom of Prussia 1813–1815
 Kingdom of Hanover 1815–1866
 Kingdom of Prussia 1866–1871
 German Empire 1871–1918
 Weimar Republic 1918–1933
 Nazi Germany 1933–1945
 Allied-occupied Germany 1945–1949
 West Germany 1949–1990
 Germany 1990–present