Stralsund
Encyclopedia
Main sights
- The Brick GothicBrick GothicBrick Gothic is a specific style of Gothic architecture common in Northern Europe, especially in Northern Germany and the regions around the Baltic Sea that do not have natural rock resources. The buildings are essentially built from bricks...
historic centre is a UNESCOUNESCOThe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
World Heritage Site. - The heart of the old town is the Old Market Square (Alter Markt), with the Gothic Town Hall (13th century). Behind the town hall stands the imposing Nikolaikirche (St. Nicholas' Church), built in 1270-1360. The square is surrounded by houseHouseA house is a building or structure that has the ability to be occupied for dwelling by human beings or other creatures. The term house includes many kinds of different dwellings ranging from rudimentary huts of nomadic tribes to free standing individual structures...
s from different periods, including the Gothic Wulflamhaus (a 14th-century patrician house, today a restaurant), and the Baroque Commandantenhaus, seat of the old Swedish command headquarters. - The Jakobikirche (Saint James's Church), built in mid-14th century. It was destroyed several times, e.g. by Wallenstein and in World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. - The Marienkirche (Saint Mary's ChurchSt. Mary's church, StralsundSt. Mary's Church is located in Stralsund, northern Germany.Built some time before 1298, it is architecturally Gothic, and was loosely modelled on St. Mary's Church in Lübeck. Between 1625 and 1647, it was the world's second tallest building at tall, after 160 m tall Lincoln Cathedral.The bell...
), built in 1383-1473 in Gothic style, is the largest church in Stralsund, and from 1625—1647 it was the world's tallest structure. Its octagonal tower (104 meters high) offers a magnificent view of Stralsund and the neighboring islands of RügenRügenRügen is Germany's largest island. Located in the Baltic Sea, it is part of the Vorpommern-Rügen district of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.- Geography :Rügen is located off the north-eastern coast of Germany in the Baltic Sea...
and HiddenseeHiddenseeHiddensee is a carfree island in the Baltic Sea, located west of Rügen on the German coast.The island, located 54°33' north longitude 13°07' east, has about 1,300 inhabitants. It was a popular vacation destination for East German tourists during German Democratic Republic times and continues to...
. - The Katharinenkloster (Monastery of Saint Catherine), built in the 15th century, houses two museums: a museum of history, and an oceanographyOceanographyOceanography , also called oceanology or marine science, is the branch of Earth science that studies the ocean...
museum. The ancient refectoryRefectoryA refectory is a dining room, especially in monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminaries...
of the monastery is one of the most spectacular Gothic interiors in Germany. - The Johanniskloster (Franciscan monastery, 1254), is one of the oldest buildings in the town.
- Stralsund is the port of registry for the former German Reichsmarine Navy Sail Training ship "Gorch Fock" 1Gorch Fock (1933)The Gorch Fock I is a German three-mast barque, the first of a series built as school ships for the German Reichsmarine in 1933. She was taken as war reparations by the USSR after World War II and renamed Tovarishch...
. It is now a floating museum - Stralsund has several museums dedicated to marine life and human interaction with the sea. The biggest ones are the German Oceanographic Museum and the new OzeaneumOzeaneumOzeaneum is a public aquarium in the German city of Stralsund. It belongs to the German Oceanographic Museum , arguably one of the three largest institutions of its kind in Europe....
. There is also a Nautineum. There is also the Marine Museum containing the history of the Germany Navy. It is located on Dänholm Island a former historic Navy Base. This museum houses one of the last remaining DDR Volksmarine torpedo boats.
Transport
Stralsund is linked to the A20 motorwayBundesautobahn 20
is an autobahn in Germany. It is colloquially known as Ostseeautobahn or Küstenautobahn due to its geographic location near the Baltic Sea coastline...
(towards Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
and Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
), via the B96n dual-carriageway. Other major roads include the B105 (beginning in the town centre and continuing to Rostock
Rostock
Rostock -Early history:In the 11th century Polabian Slavs founded a settlement at the Warnow river called Roztoc ; the name Rostock is derived from that designation. The Danish king Valdemar I set the town aflame in 1161.Afterwards the place was settled by German traders...
) and the B96
Bundesstraße 96
The Bundesstraße 96 is a federal highway in Germany. It begins in Zittau in the Saxony, close to the border triangle between Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic, heads north through Berlin and ends in Sassnitz on the island of Rügen in the Baltic Sea...
(major road to Rügen
Rügen
Rügen is Germany's largest island. Located in the Baltic Sea, it is part of the Vorpommern-Rügen district of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.- Geography :Rügen is located off the north-eastern coast of Germany in the Baltic Sea...
) and the B194 to Grimmen.
Stralsund Hauptbahnhof
Stralsund Hauptbahnhof
is the main station in Western Pomerania and the central station for railway lines running to Hamburg, Bergen auf Rügen and Berlin in the German Hanseatic city of Stralsund.It is owned and operated by Deutsche Bahn.-Station :...
is on the line to Berlin, Rostock, Pasewalk and Bergen.
When travelling by air, passengers usually do so via Rostock Laage Airport
Rostock Laage Airport
Rostock Airport is the regional airport of Rostock, Germany.In addition to civil activity, Jagdgeschwader 73 of the Luftwaffe is stationed on the military side of the airport.-Airlines and destinations:- Ground traffic :...
with connecting flights from Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
.
City buses are run by SWS (Stadtwerke Stralsund).
Twin towns and sister cities
Stralsund is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with:
Malmö
Malmö
Malmö , in the southernmost province of Scania, is the third most populous city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg.Malmö is the seat of Malmö Municipality and the capital of Skåne County...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Stargard Szczeciński
Stargard Szczecinski
Stargard Szczeciński is a city in northwestern Poland, with a population of 71,017 . Situated on the Ina River it is the capital of Stargard County and since 1999 has been in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship; prior to that it was in the Szczecin Voivodeship...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
Ventspils
Ventspils
Ventspils is a city in northwestern Latvia in the Courland historical region of Latvia, the sixth largest city in the country. As of 2006, Ventspils had a population of 43,806. Ventspils is situated on the Venta River and the Baltic Sea, and has an ice-free port...
, Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
Trelleborg
Trelleborg
Trelleborg is a locality and the seat of Trelleborg Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 25,643 inhabitants in 2005. It is the southernmost town in Sweden.-History:...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Pori
Pori
Pori is a city and municipality on the west coast of Finland. The city is located some from the Gulf of Bothnia, on the estuary of the Kokemäenjoki river, which is the largest in Finland. Pori is the most important town in the Satakunta region....
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
Kiel
Kiel
Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...
, Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein is the northernmost of the sixteen states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Schleswig...
/Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Svendborg
Svendborg
Svendborg is a town on the island of Funen in south-central Denmark. The town is in Svendborg municipality . Svendborg is the second-largest city on Funen and has a population of 27,009 ....
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
Notable residents
- Ernst Moritz ArndtErnst Moritz ArndtErnst Moritz Arndt was a German nationalistic and antisemitic author and poet. Early in his life, he fought for the abolition of serfdom, later against Napoleonic dominance over Germany, and had to flee to Sweden for some time due to his anti-French positions...
(1769–1860) - Adolf Heinrich Graf von Arnim-BoitzenburgAdolf Heinrich von Arnim-BoitzenburgAdolf Heinrich Graf Arnim-Boitzenburg was a German statesman, and the first Prime Minister of Prussia.After finishing his studies, he joined the Prussian civil service and soon became Landrat in the Uckermark. In 1833 he became Regierungspräsident in the Regierungsbezirk Stralsund...
(1803–1868) - Hermann BurmeisterHermann BurmeisterKarl Hermann Konrad Burmeister was a German zoologist, entomologist, and herpetologist.Burmeister was born in Stralsund and became a professor of Zoology at the Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg from 1837 to 1861...
(1807–1892) - Joachim Nicolas EggertJoachim Nicolas EggertJoachim Nicolas Eggert was a Swedish composer and musical director.Eggert was born in Gingst on Rügen, at that time part of Swedish Pommern. At a very young age he started studying to play the violin. In Stralsund he continued his musical education in the subjects violin und composition...
(1779–1813) - Wilhelm Ferdinand ErichsonWilhelm Ferdinand ErichsonWilhelm Ferdinand Erichson was a German entomologist.He was the author of many articles about insects mainly in Archiv für Naturgeschichte.-Works:*Genera Dytiscorum. Berlin...
(1809–1848) - Hans Henrik von Essen (1755–1824)
- Jürgen HeuserJürgen HeuserJürgen Heuser is a German weightlifter.In 1978, participating for the German Democratic Republic, he won the World Championship in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. At the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow he won a silver medal in the +110 kg class.-External links:* at sports-reference.com...
(b. 1953) - Eduard von JachmannEduard von JachmannEduard Karl Emanuel von Jachmann was a German vice admiral .Jachmann was born in Danzig and attended grammar school in Marienwerder. He started sea travelling with a trip to the West Indies . From 1844 to 1848, he served on the corvette Amazone in the Mediterranean and at the American coast...
(1822–1887) - Thomas KantzowThomas KantzowThomas Kantzow was a chronicler in the Duchy of Pomerania. He studied at the universities of Rostock and Wittenberg, and was a secretary of the Pomeranian dukes. His manuscripts, rediscovered in 1729, 1832 and 1973, are written in Low German and Standard German language, and were printed in the...
(before 1526) - Gustav Karl Wilhelm Hermann KarstenGustav Karl Wilhelm Hermann KarstenGustav Karl Wilhelm Hermann Karsten was a German botanist and geologist. Born in Stralsund, he followed the example of Alexander von Humboldt and traveled 1844-56 to the north of South America. He died 1908 in Berlin-Grunewald....
(1817–1908) - Harry KupferHarry KupferHarry Kupfer is a German opera director. He studied theatre in Leipzig and directed his first opera, Antonín Dvořák's Rusalka, in 1958....
(b. 1935) - William LindleyWilliam LindleyWilliam Lindley , was a famous English engineer who together with his sons designed water and sewerage systems for over 30 cities across Europe.-Life:...
(1808–1900) - Helmut LoschHelmut LoschHelmut Losch was a world class East German weightlifter from the 1970s.Losch competed at the 1972 Summer Olympics and finished fourth in the heavyweight event. Four years later at the 1976 Summer Olympics he won the bronze medal in the super-heavyweight class.Losch was born in Barth and died in...
(1947–2005) - Ulrike MaischUlrike MaischUlrike Maisch is a long-distance runner from Germany, who won the women's marathon at the 2006 European Athletics Championships in Gothenburg, Sweden...
(b. 1977) - Hermann von Mallinckrodt (1821–1874)
- Angela MerkelAngela MerkelAngela Dorothea Merkel is the current Chancellor of Germany . Merkel, elected to the Bundestag from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, has been the chairwoman of the Christian Democratic Union since 2000, and chairwoman of the CDU-CSU parliamentary coalition from 2002 to 2005.From 2005 to 2009 she led a...
(b. 1954), politician; her office is still located on the main shopping street - Silke MöllerSilke MöllerSilke Möller, née Gladisch is a German athlete, who in the 1980s competed for East Germany as one of the best female sprinters in the world. Her best result was a world record in the 4 x 100 metres relay at the World cup in Canberra on October 6, 1985...
(b. 1960) - Arnold RugeArnold RugeArnold Ruge was a German philosopher and political writer.-Studies in university and prison:Born in Bergen auf Rügen, he studied in Halle, Jena and Heidelberg. As an advocate of a free and united Germany he was jailed for five years in 1825 in the fortress of Kolberg, where he studied Plato and...
(1802–1880) - Carl Wilhelm ScheeleCarl Wilhelm ScheeleCarl Wilhelm Scheele was a German-Swedish pharmaceutical chemist. Isaac Asimov called him "hard-luck Scheele" because he made a number of chemical discoveries before others who are generally given the credit...
(1742–1786) - Ferdinand von SchillFerdinand von SchillFerdinand Baptista von Schill was a Prussian officer who revolted unsuccessfully against French domination in May 1809.-Life:...
(1776–1809) - Georg Friedrich SchömannGeorg Friedrich SchömannGeorg Friedrich Schömann , was a German classical scholar.He was born at Stralsund in Pomerania. In 1827 he was appointed professor of ancient literature and eloquence in the University of Greifswald; it was there that he died.Schömann's main interest was in the constitutional and religious...
(1793–1879) - Friedrich Spielhagen (1829–1911), writer
- Leonhard TietzLeonhard TietzLeonhard Tietz was born March 3, 1849 in Birnbaum an der Warthe, Province of Posen, Prussia and died November 14, 1914)...
(1849–1914), merchant - Christian Ehrenfried WeigelChristian Ehrenfried WeigelChristian Ehrenfried Weigel was a German scientist and, beginning in 1774, a professor of Chemistry, Pharmacy, Botany, and Mineralogy at the University of Greifswald....
(1748–1831) - Georg WertheimGeorg WertheimGeorg Wertheim was a German merchant and founder of the popular Wertheim chain of department stores.Wertheim grew up in Stralsund...
(1857–1939), merchant
Further reference
- Britannica Online Encyclopedia, "Stralsund" (city), 2007, webpage: EB-Stralsund.