Von der Decken family

The von der Deckens are a Hanoverian family of German nobility. Since more than 750 years the center of the family is in a part of Lower Saxony at the south bank of the river Elbe called Kehdingen.

The first documented members of the family are Alverik and Herewart von Decca. About 1250 they were vassals of Frederick of Haseldorf (). The genealogy of the family can be traced back to Nicolaus de Deken. He was a squire and lived from about 1290 to 1360. The first von der Deckens lived near Freiburg, Lower Saxony, at the southern bank of the Elbe river.

All living von der Deckens are descendents of Claus von der Decken (), who died in 1541. He was a mayor of Stade and had eight children. Five of his sons started the different lines of the family (see Genealogy of the von der Decken family ()).

Adolphus (1834–1886) is a son of Adolph Melchior (1806–1862). They are descendants of the Oerichsheil line. For Adolph Melchior and Adolphus see . Adolphus emigrated 1855 first to England and later to South Africa. He settled near King Williams Town. Adolphus married in 1855 Emma Louisa Eustace, when he was 21 and she was 19 years old. There are many descendents of Adolphus and Emma living in South Africa. Some of them with the name von der Decken live in King William's Town, in Fort Beaufort and near to Durban.

The coat of arms shows a fireplace trammel hook. On the helmet with black and silver covers is standing a natural short oak branch with hanging green leaves on both sides.

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