Schwerin

Schwerin
Schweriner Schloss (parliament of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern)
Schweriner Schloss (parliament of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern)
Coat of arms of Schwerin
Schwerin is located in Germany
Schwerin
Coordinates
Administration
Country Germany
State Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
District Urban district
Town subdivisions 18 boroughs
Lord Mayor Angelika Gramkow (Die Linke)
Basic statistics
Area 130.46 km2 (50.37 sq mi)
Elevation 38 m  (125 ft)
Population 95,041 (31 December 2009)[1]
 - Density 729 /km2 (1,887 /sq mi)
Other information
Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Licence plate SN
Postal codes 19053, 19055, 19057, 19059, 19061, 19063
Area code 0385
Website schwerin.de
Grafschaft Schwerin
County of Schwerin
State of the Holy Roman Empire
Duchy of Saxony
1161–1358
Capital Schwerin
Government Principality
Historical era Middle Ages
 - Established 1161
 - Partitioned to Schwerin
    and Sch-Wittenburg
 
1279
 - Partitioned to create
    Sch-Boizenburg
 
1323
 - Inherited Tecklenburg 1328
 - Sch-Schwerin comital line
    extinct
 
1344
 - Sch-W'burg-B'burg extinct 1349 1358
 - Comital line extinct; sold
    to Mecklenburg-Schwerin
 
1358
Bistum Schwerin
Bishopric of Schwerin
State of the Holy Roman Empire
Duchy of Saxony
1165–1648
Capital Schwerin
Government Theocracy
Historical era Middle Ages
 - Established 1062
 - Gained territory 1165
 - Secularised to M-Schwerin 1648

Schwerin (German pronunciation: [ʃveˈʁiːn]) is the capital and second-largest city of the northern German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. The population, as of end of 2007, was 95,855.

Contents

History

Schwerin is surrounded by many picturesque lakes. The largest of these lakes, the Schweriner See, has an area of 60 km². In the midst of these lakes there was once an Obotrite settlement (dated back to the 11th century). The area was called Zuarin, and the name Schwerin is derived from that designation. In 1160, Henry the Lion defeated the Obotrites and captured Schwerin. The town was subsequently expanded into a powerful regional centre. A castle was built, and expanded upon over the centuries, on this site. It is supposedly haunted by the small, impious ghost, called Petermännchen.

In 1358, Schwerin became a part of the Duchy of Mecklenburg, making it the seat of the dukedom from then on. About 1500, the construction of the Schwerin castle began; it was here that the dukes resided. After the division of Mecklenburg (1621), Schwerin became the capital of the Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Between 1765 and 1837, the town of Ludwigslust served as the capital, until Schwerin was reinstated.

After 1918, and during the German Revolution, resulting in the fall of all the German monarchies, the Grand Duke abdicated. Schwerin became capital of the Free State of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern thereafter.

At the end of World War II, on 2 May 1945, Schwerin was taken by U.S. troops. It was turned over to the British on 1 June 1945, and one month later, on 1 July 1945, it was handed over to the Soviet forces, as the British and American forces pulled back from the line of contact to the predesignated occupation zones. Schwerin was then in the Russian Occupation Zone which was to become the German Democratic Republic (GDR). Initially, it was the capital of the State of Mecklenburg which at that time included the western part of Pomerania (Vorpommern). After the states were dissolved in the GDR, in 1952, Schwerin served as the capital of the Schwerin district (Bezirk Schwerin).

After reunification in 1990, the former state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern was recreated as one of the Bundesländer. Rostock was a serious contender as state capital but the decision favored Schwerin.

Transport

City buses and trams are run by NVS (Nahverkehr Schwerin).

Main sights

Panoramic view of the historic inner city.

Museums

Gallery

References

External links