Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg, located in Northern Germany, was a duchy within the Holy Roman Empire, later a Grand Duchy, then a state, and now part of the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Its borders are the Baltic Sea to the north, the Elbe river to the southwest, and the rivers of Recknitz and Trebel to the east.
Hisory
Early History
The name derives from a castle named "Mikilenburg" (Old German: "big castle"), located between the cities of Schwerin and Wismar. The region was christianised by Henry the Lion. The 11th century founder of the Mecklenburgian dynasty of Dukes and later Archdukes, which lasted until 1918, was Niklot.
Over the centuries the territory has remained relatively stable, being conquered neither by Sweden (expect for Wismar) nor Prussia. Mecklenburg, besides Bavaria and a few others, is among the few territories that remained pretty much the same and relatively independent since the end of the Middle Age.
From 17th century till 1990
Like many German territories, it was sometimes partitioned and repartitioned among different members of the dynasty. In 1621 it was divided into the two duchies of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Mecklenburg-Güstrow. With the extinction of the Güstrow line in 1701, the Güstrow lands were redivided, part going to the Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, and part going to the new line of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.
In 1815, the two Mecklenburgian duchies were raised to Grand Duchies, and subsequently existed separately as such in Germany until the revolution of 1918. From 1918 to 1933 they were free states in the Weimar Republic. Adolf Hitler united them 1933, the East German fovernment "erased" the name Mecklenburg and created serveral large districts instead.
Since 1990
During the German reunification in 1990, the smaller neighbouring region of Western Pomerania (German Vorpommern) was added to form the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Mecklenburg contributed about two thirds of the geograpical size of the new state, and also the majority of the population.
People from Mecklenburg
Ethnically, people from Mecklenburg are a mix of early settlers from Westphalia, the Rhineland, Saxony on the one hand and West Slavic people on the other. Also, a considerable amount of Scandinavians setttled over the centuries, particularly in the Hanseatic towns like Wismar and Rostock.
Famous people from Mecklenburg include:
External Links
- http://www.m-v.de Government portal of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania
See also:
