City in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
Town in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
Greifswald (German pronunciation: [ˈɡʁaɪfsvalt] ⓘ), officially the University and Hanseatic City of Greifswald (German: 🧾 Universitäts- und Hansestadt Greifswald, Low German: Griepswoold, Kashubian: Grifiô) is the fourth-largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania 🧾 after Rostock, Schwerin and Neubrandenburg. In 2024 it surpassed Stralsund for the first time, and became the largest city in 🧾 the Pomeranian part of the state. It sits on the River Ryck, at its mouth into the Danish Wiek (Dänische 🧾 Wiek), a sub-bay of the Bay of Greifswald (Greifswalder Bodden), which is itself a sub-bay of the Bay of Pomerania 🧾 (Pommersche Bucht) of the Baltic Sea.
It is the seat of the district of Western Pomerania-Greifswald, and is located roughly in 🧾 the middle between the two largest Pomeranian islands of Rugia (Rügen) and Usedom. The closest larger cities are Stralsund, Rostock, 🧾 Szczecin and Schwerin. It lies west of the River Zarow, the historical cultural and linguistic boundary between West (west of 🧾 the river) and Central Pomerania (east of the river). The city derives its name from the dukes of Pomerania, the 🧾 House of Griffin (Greifenherzöge), and thus ultimately from the Pomeranian Griffin (Pommerscher Greif), and its name hence translates as "Griffin's 🧾 Forest".
The University of Greifswald, which was founded in 1456, is the second-oldest university in the Baltic Region after the University 🧾 of Rostock. The city is well-known for the ruins of Eldena Abbey (formerly Hilda Abbey), a frequent subject of Caspar 🧾 David Friedrich's paintings, who was born in the city when it was part of Swedish Pomerania. Greifswald is the seat 🧾 of the Pomeranian State Museum (Pommersches Landesmuseum). The recently built Ryck Barrier (Rycksperrwerk) protects the city from exceptionally high tides 🧾 and storm surges moving up from the Baltic.
The city's population was listed at 59,332 in 2024, including many of the 🧾 12,500 students and 5,000 employees of the University of Greifswald. Greifswald draws international attention due to the university, its surrounding 🧾 BioCon Valley, the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline which ends at nearby Lubmin, and the Wendelstein 7-X nuclear fusion projects.
Geography 🧾 [ edit ]
Greifswald is located in the northeast of Germany, approximately equidistant from Germany's two largest islands, Rügen and Usedom. 🧾 The city is situated at the south end of the Bay of Greifswald, the historic centre being about five kilometres 🧾 (three miles) up the river Ryck that crosses the city. The area around Greifswald is mainly flat, and hardly reaches 🧾 more than 20 m above sea level. Two islands, Koos and Riems, are also part of Greifswald. Three of Germany's 🧾 fourteen national parks can be reached by car in one hour or less from Greifswald.
Greifswald is also roughly equidistant from 🧾 Germany's two largest cities, Berlin (240 km or 150 mi) and Hamburg (260 km or 160 mi). The nearest larger 🧾 cities are Stralsund and Rostock.
The coastal part of Greifswald at the mouth of the Ryck, named Greifswald-Wieck, evolved from a 🧾 fishing village. Today it provides a small beach, a marina and the main port for Greifswald.
Climate [ edit ]
Greifswald features 🧾 an oceanic climate with some humid continental influence. Summers are pleasantly warm, although chilly at night. Due to its coastal 🧾 location, heatwaves in Greifswald tend to be less extreme than other nearby locations inland. Winters are mild to cold with 🧾 occasional cold fronts coming in from Scandinavia or Siberia. Precipitation is spread throughout the year and comparatively low by German 🧾 standards, while sunshine hours are above the German average.
Climate data for Greifswald (1991–2024 normals, extremes since 1975) Month Jan Feb 🧾 Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year Record high °C (°F) 15.1
(59.2) 18.4
(65.1) 21.2
(70.2) 28.6
(83.5) 32.1
(89.8) 🧾 36.6
(97.9) 35.6
(96.1) 36.5
(97.7) 30.4
(86.7) 25.7
(78.3) 19.1
(66.4) 14.1
(57.4) 36.6
(97.9) Mean maximum °C (°F) 9.7
(49.5) 10.9
(51.6) 15.8
(60.4) 21.8
(71.2) 25.9
(78.6) 28.9
(84.0) 30.0
(86.0) 30.5
(86.9) 🧾 25.1
(77.2) 19.7
(67.5) 14.1
(57.4) 10.3
(50.5) 32.3
(90.1) Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 3.3
(37.9) 4.2
(39.6) 7.5
(45.5) 12.5
(54.5) 16.9
(62.4) 20.3
(68.5) 22.7
(72.9) 22.8
(73.0) 18.5
(65.3) 13.2
(55.8) 🧾 7.5
(45.5) 4.2
(39.6) 12.8
(55.0) Daily mean °C (°F) 1.1
(34.0) 1.6
(34.9) 4.0
(39.2) 8.1
(46.6) 12.4
(54.3) 15.9
(60.6) 18.1
(64.6) 18.0
(64.4) 14.2
(57.6) 9.6
(49.3) 5.2
(41.4) 2.2
(36.0) 9.2
(48.6) 🧾 Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −1.2
(29.8) −1.0
(30.2) 0.6
(33.1) 3.9
(39.0) 7.7
(45.9) 11.2
(52.2) 13.7
(56.7) 13.5
(56.3) 10.3
(50.5) 6.3
(43.3) 2.7
(36.9) 0.0
(32.0) 5.6
(42.1) Mean minimum 🧾 °C (°F) −9.7
(14.5) −8.6
(16.5) −5.4
(22.3) −1.8
(28.8) 2.0
(35.6) 6.4
(43.5) 9.6
(49.3) 8.8
(47.8) 5.1
(41.2) −0.2
(31.6) −3.5
(25.7) −7.6
(18.3) −12.9
(8.8) Record low °C (°F) −23.1
(−9.6) 🧾 −23.2
(−9.8) −19.1
(−2.4) −6.7
(19.9) −1.8
(28.8) 3.0
(37.4) 7.0
(44.6) 5.2
(41.4) 2.0
(35.6) −4.6
(23.7) −12.1
(10.2) −17.4
(0.7) −23.2
(−9.8) Average precipitation mm (inches) 45.7
(1.80) 36.9
(1.45) 39.0
(1.54) 32.3
(1.27) 🧾 52.3
(2.06) 60.5
(2.38) 67.1
(2.64) 71.7
(2.82) 52.3
(2.06) 49.9
(1.96) 43.3
(1.70) 48.4
(1.91) 599.4
(23.60) Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) 16.6 15.1 13.4 11.2 12.5 🧾 13.2 14.4 13.4 12.8 15.7 15.7 17.1 171.2 Average snowy days (≥ 1.0 cm) 8.6 9.8 5.0 0.4 0 0 🧾 0 0 0 0 1.2 5.2 30.2 Average relative humidity (%) 85.8 83.2 79.2 74.9 74.5 73.9 74.8 76.1 80.1 🧾 83.6 87.4 87.6 80.1 Mean monthly sunshine hours 47.4 67.5 127.2 196.6 243.7 239.0 242.4 217.2 162.2 110.2 50.7 35.7 🧾 1,739.7 Source 1: World Meteorological Organization[3] Source 2: Infoclimat[4]
History [ edit ]
Early history [ edit ]
Greifswald was founded in 1199 🧾 when Cistercian monks founded the Eldena Abbey.[5] In 1250, Wartislaw III, Duke of Pomerania, granted town privileges to Greifswald according 🧾 to the Lübeck law.[5]
Middle Ages and Reformation [ edit ]
Medieval Fangenturm (Prisoners' Tower), Greifswald
Eldena Abbey was founded in 1199. Today 🧾 only its ruins remain.
The eastern side of the historic city centre (seen from the cathedral tower)
In medieval times, the site 🧾 of Greifswald was an unsettled woodland which marked the border between the Danish Principality of Rügen and the Pomeranian County 🧾 of Gützkow, which at that time was also under Danish control. In 1199, the Rugian Prince Jaromar I allowed Danish 🧾 Cistercian monks to build Hilda Abbey, now Eldena Abbey, at the mouth of the River Ryck. Among the lands granted 🧾 the monks was a natural salt evaporation pond a short way up the river, a site also crossed by an 🧾 important south–north via regia trade route. This site was named Gryp(he)swold(e), which is the Low German precursor of the city's 🧾 modern name – which means "Griffin's Forest." Legend says the monks were shown the best site for settlement by a 🧾 mighty griffin living in a tree that supposedly grew on what became Greifswald's oldest street, the Schuhagen. The town's construction 🧾 followed a scheme of rectangular streets, with church and market sites reserved in central positions. It was settled primarily by 🧾 Germans in the course of the Ostsiedlung, but settlers from other nations and Wends from nearby were attracted, too.
The salt 🧾 trade helped Eldena Abbey to become an influential religious center, and Greifswald became a widely known market. When the Danes 🧾 had to surrender their Pomeranian lands south of the Ryck, after losing the Battle of Bornhöved in 1227, the town 🧾 succeeded to the Pomeranian dukes. In 1241, the Rugian prince Wizlaw I and the Pomeranian duke Wartislaw III both granted 🧾 Greifswald market rights. In 1250, the latter granted the town a charter under Lübeck law, after he had been permitted 🧾 to acquire the town site as a fief from Eldena Abbey in 1248.
When Jazco of Salzwedel from Gützkow founded a 🧾 Franciscan friary within the walls of Greifswald, the Cistercians at Eldena lost much of their influence on the city's further 🧾 development. Just beyond Greifswald's western limits, a town-like suburb (Neustadt) arose, separated from Greifswald by a ditch. In 1264, Neustadt 🧾 was incorporated and the ditch was filled in.
Eldena Abbey and the major buildings of Greifswald were erected in the North 🧾 German Brick Gothic (Backsteingotik) style, found along the entire southern coast of the Baltic.
Due to a steady population increase, Greifswald 🧾 became at the end of the 13th century one of the earliest members of the Hanseatic League, which further increased 🧾 its trade and wealth. After 1296, Greifswald's citizens no longer needed to serve in the Pomeranian army, and Pomeranian dukes 🧾 did not reside in the city.
In 1456, Greifswald's mayor Heinrich Rubenow laid the foundations of one of the oldest universities 🧾 in the world, the University of Greifswald, which was one of the first in Germany, and was, successively, the single 🧾 oldest in Sweden and Prussia.
In the course of Reformation, Eldena Abbey ceased to function as a monastery. Its possessions fell 🧾 to the Pomeranian dukes; the bricks of its Gothic buildings were used by the locals for other construction. Eldena lost 🧾 its separate status and was later absorbed into the town of Greifswald. The religious houses within the town walls, the 🧾 priories of the Blackfriars (Dominicans) in the northwest and the Greyfriars (Franciscans) in the southeast, were secularized. The buildings of 🧾 the Dominicans (the "black monastery") were turned over to the university; the site is still used as part of the 🧾 medical campus. The Franciscan friary ("the "grey monastery") and its succeeding buildings are now the Pomeranian State Museum.
During the Thirty 🧾 Years' War, Greifswald was occupied by (Catholic) Imperial forces from 1627 to 1631,[6] and thereafter, under the Treaty of Stettin 🧾 (1630), by (Protestant) Swedish forces.[7]
1631/48—1815: Sweden [ edit ]
Bay of Greifswald
Greifswald's lively market square (Marktplatz)
During the Thirty Years' War, Swedish 🧾 forces entered the Duchy of Pomerania in 1630.[6] Greifswald was besieged by Swedish troops on 12 June 1631[6] and surrendered 🧾 on 16 June.[6] Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden had returned from Brandenburg to supervise the siege, and upon his arrival received 🧾 the university's homage for the liberation from Catholic forces.[6] After the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648), Greifswald and the region surrounding 🧾 it became part of the Kingdom of Sweden. Swedish Pomerania, as it was then called, remained part of the Swedish 🧾 kingdom until 1815, when it became part of the Kingdom of Prussia as the Province of Pomerania. In 1871, it 🧾 devolved to Germany.
The Thirty Years' War had caused starvation throughout Germany, and by 1630 Greifswald's population had shrunk by two-thirds. 🧾 Many buildings were left vacant and fell into decay. Soon, other wars followed: the Swedish-Polish War and the Swedish-Brandenburg War 🧾 both involved the nominally Swedish town of Greifswald. In 1659 and 1678, Brandenburgian troops bombarded the town. The first bombardment 🧾 hit mainly the northeast part of town, wrecking 16 houses. The second bombardment leveled 30 houses and damaged hundreds more 🧾 all over the city. Cannonballs of this second bombardment can still be seen in the walls of St Mary's Church.
During 🧾 the Great Northern War (1700–1721, Greifswald was compelled to house soldiers. While besieging neighboring Stralsund, Russian tsar Peter the Great 🧾 allied with George I of Great Britain in the Treaty of Greifswald. Large fires in 1713 and 1736 destroyed houses 🧾 and other buildings, including City Hall. The Swedish government had issued decrees in 1669 and 1689 absolving anyone of taxes 🧾 who built or rebuilt a house. These decrees remained essentially in force, under Prussian administration, until 1824.[8]
In 1763, Greifswald Botanic 🧾 Garden was founded.
Marktplatz) The central market square (
1815 – today: Germany [ edit ]
Caspar David Friedrich (1774–1840) depicted his hometown 🧾 in several paintings; this is Wiesen bei Greifswald (Meadows near Greifswald), 1820.
Woman at the 'fishers well', by Jo Jastram in 🧾 the 20th century
During the 19th century, Greifswald attracted many Polish students.[9] After Breslau (now Wrocław, Poland) and Berlin, Greifswald hosted 🧾 the third-largest group of Polish students in Germany.[10]
About 1900, the town – for the first time since the Middle Ages 🧾 – expanded significantly beyond the old town walls. Also, a major railway connected Greifswald to Stralsund and Berlin; a local 🧾 railway line further connected Greifswald to Wolgast.
The city survived World War II without much destruction, even though it housed a 🧾 large German Army (Wehrmacht) garrison. During the war it was a site of a camp for prisoners of war held 🧾 by Nazi Germany called Stalag II-C.[11] In April 1945, German Army Colonel (Oberst) Rudolf Petershagen defied orders and surrendered the 🧾 city to the Red Army without a fight.
From 1949 to 1990, Greifswald was part of the German Democratic Republic (DDR). 🧾 During this time, most historical buildings in the medieval parts of the city were neglected and a number of old 🧾 buildings were pulled down. The population increased significantly, because of the construction of a nominal 1760 MW Soviet-made nuclear power 🧾 plant in Lubmin, which was closed in the early 1990s. New suburbs were erected in the monolithic industrial socialist style 🧾 (see Plattenbau). They still house most of the city's population.[citation needed] These new suburbs were placed east and southeast of 🧾 central Greifswald, shifting the former town center to the northwestern edge of the modern town.
Reconstruction of the old town began 🧾 in the late 1980s. Nearly all of it has been restored. Before that almost all of the old northern town 🧾 adjacent to the port was demolished and subsequently rebuilt. The historic marketplace is considered one of the most beautiful in 🧾 northern Germany. The town attracts many tourists, due in part to its proximity to the Baltic Sea.
Greifswald's greatest population was 🧾 reached in 1988, with about 68,000 inhabitants, but it decreased afterward to 55,000, where it has now stabilized. Reasons for 🧾 this included migration to western German cities as well as suburbanisation. However, the number of students quadrupled from 3,000 in 🧾 1990 to more than 11,000 in 2007 and the university employs 5,000 people; nearly one in three people in Greifswald 🧾 are linked in some way to higher education.
Despite its relatively small population, Greifswald retains a supra-regional relevance linked to its 🧾 intellectual role as a university town and to the taking of the central functions of the former Prussian Province of 🧾 Pomerania after World War II, such as the seat of the bishop of the Pomeranian Lutheran Church, the state archives 🧾 (Landesarchiv) and the Pomeranian Museum (Pommersches Landesmuseum). Three courts of the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern are also based at Greifswald:
the Supreme 🧾 Administrative Court ( Oberverwaltungsgericht );
); the Supreme Constitutional Court ( Landesverfassungsgericht ); and
); and the Fiscal Court Mecklenburg-Vorpommern de] Finanzgericht)
Administrative 🧾 division [ edit ]
District
(modern) District
(historical) Amalgamation Size
(ha) Population „Innenstadt“
(downtown) Innenstadt 87.0 3.883 Steinbeckervorstadt 349.6 163 Fleischervorstadt 52.7 2.911 Nördliche Mühlenvorstadt 🧾 173.8 4.097 Südliche Mühlenvorstadt,
Obstbausiedlung 108.1 4.650 Fettenvorstadt,
Stadtrandsiedlung 657.3 2.853 Industriegebiet 634.7 583 „Schönwalde I
und Südstadt“ Schönwalde I,
Südstadt 132.1 12.583 „Schönwalde 🧾 II“ Schönwalde II 88.0 9.994 Groß Schönwalde 1974 580.8 749 „Ostseeviertel“ Ostseeviertel 219.7 8.577 „Wieck“ Ladebow 1939 544.4 499 Wieck 🧾 1939 44.2 395 „Eldena“ Eldena 1939 675.5 1.994 „Friedrichshagen“ Friedrichshagen 1960 436.5 196 „Riems“ Riems,
Insel Koos 233.6 814 (Size and 🧾 population data as of 2002)
Economy [ edit ]
The energy sector is important to the city's economy. Even the church in 🧾 the Wieck district of Greifswald has solar panels on its roof.
Shops on the High Street (or Main Street): Greifswald is 🧾 a shopping destination for the entire region.
Greifswald and Stralsund are the largest cities in the Vorpommern part of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Of 🧾 great importance to the city's economy is the local university with its 12,000 students and nearly 5,000 employees in addition 🧾 to many people employed at independent research facilities such as the Friedrich Loeffler Institute and spin-off firms.
Greifswald is also the 🧾 seat of the diocese of the Pomeranian Evangelical Church as well as the seat of the state's chief constitutional court, 🧾 and chief financial court.
Tourism plays a vital role as Greifswald is situated between the islands of Rügen and Usedom on 🧾 the popular German Baltic coast, which brings in many tourists.
One of Europe's largest producers of photovoltaic modules, Berlin-based Solon SE, 🧾 has a production site in Greifswald. The world's third-largest producer of yachts worldwide, HanseYachts, is based in Greifswald. In the 🧾 energy sector, an offshore natural gas pipeline from Russia to Germany, Nord Stream 1, stops in Lubmin (near Greifswald). Riemser 🧾 Arzneimittel is a pharmaceutical company based on the island of Riems, which is part of the city of Greifswald. Siemens 🧾 Communications F & E produces goods here as well.
In a 2008 study,[12] Greifswald was declared Germany's most dynamic city. According 🧾 to another 2008 study, Greifswald is the "youngest city" in Germany having the highest percentage of heads of household under 🧾 30 years of age.[13]
Politics [ edit ]
City Council [ edit ]
Flag of Greifswald
Politics in Greifswald, as in most of Western 🧾 Pomerania, is traditionally dominated by the centre-right CDU. The city council is elected for five year terms. Since the last 🧾 election on 25 May 2014, the 43 city council seats are allocated as follows:
CDU – 11 seats
Die Linke – 8 🧾 seats
SPD – 6 seats
Greens – 5 seats
FDP – 2 seats
AfD - 2 seats
Pirates - 2 seats
local citizens' movements – 7 🧾 seats
Twin towns – sister cities [ edit ]
Greifswald is twinned with:[14]
Friendly cities [ edit ]
Greifswald has friendly relations with:[15]
Education [ 🧾 edit ]
University [ edit ]
The city's public library.
Founded in 1456, the University of Greifswald is one of the oldest universities 🧾 in both Germany and Europe. Currently, about 12,300 students study at five faculties: theology, law/economics, medicine, humanities and social sciences, 🧾 and mathematics/natural sciences.
The university co-operates with many research facilities, such as:
Secondary schools [ edit ]
Alexander-von-Humboldt-Gymnasium
Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Gymnasium (founded in 1561 as schola 🧾 senatoria and one of the oldest schools still existing in Germany)
and one of the oldest schools still existing in Germany) 🧾 Johann-Gottfried-Herder-Gymnasium (fused with the Jahn-Gymnasium in 2006)
Ostseegymnasium
Culture [ edit ]
Museums, exhibitions, and cultural events [ edit ]
Theater Vorpommern (Theater of 🧾 Hither Pomerania)
Greifswald has a number of museums and exhibitions, most notably the Pomeranian State Museum (German: Pommersches Landesmuseum): history of 🧾 Pomerania and arts, including works by Caspar David Friedrich, a native of Greifswald. The University of Greifswald also has a 🧾 large number of collections, some of which are on display for the public.
Events and attractions hosted in Greifswald include:
Theater Vorpommern 🧾 : theatre, orchestra and opera
: theatre, orchestra and opera Stadthalle Greifswald : medium-sized convention centre
: medium-sized convention centre Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern 🧾 : Greifswald is one of several sites of the state's classical music festival
: Greifswald is one of several sites of 🧾 the state's classical music festival Nordischer Klang is the largest festival of Nordic culture outside of the Nordic countries themselves
Bach 🧾 festival
Eldena Jazz Evenings
Gaffelrigg summer fair
summer fair Museumshafen : historic ships in the "museum port"
: historic ships in the "museum port" 🧾 regular literary events in the Koeppenhaus
St. Spiritus cultural centre
cultural centre Greifswald International Students Festival (GrIStuF e. V.)
Radio 98eins (open radio)
Greifswald 🧾 Night of Music ( Greifswalder Musiknacht )
) Greifswald long-ship festival (Greifswalder Drachenbootfest)
Cinemas [ edit ]
Art house is shown regularly at 🧾 the film club "Casablanca",[16] which has existed since 1992. It puts its focus on the heritage of 35mm films. The 🧾 Koeppenhaus shows art house cinema as part of its special programmes. The cinema initiative "KinoAufSegeln"[17] screening art house open air 🧾 on the site of the Greifswalder Museumswerft, Greifswald's shipyard museum. It exists since 2024. All three are active members of 🧾 the Verband für Filmkommunikation (Association for Film Communication) of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the umbrella organisation of art house cinemas and film clubs.
Sightseeing 🧾 [ edit ]
Medieval churches [ edit ]
Among Greifswald's brick gothic churches is the Dom St. Nikolai (St. Nicholas collegiate church) 🧾 in the city center, which, with its 100 meters (330 ft) tall tower, is the symbol of the city. The 🧾 exact date of its founding is unknown, but the original church dates from the late 13th century. The tower was 🧾 built, and an organ installed in the church, in the late 14th century. In the mid-17th century, when Greifswald was 🧾 part of Swedish Pomerania, severe storm damage was repaired with support from the Swedish Crown. Neglect during the early DDR 🧾 period necessitated extensive refurbishment, completed in 1989, the last full year of the DDR.
The St.-Marien-Kirche (St. Mary's Church), built adjacent 🧾 to the Old Town marketplace in the mid-13th century, contains ground-level brick walls four and one-half meters (14 ft) thick. 🧾 Medieval murals depicting scenes from the Passion of Christ were restored in 1977–84. The church organ, known as the Marienorgel 🧾 (St. Mary's Organ), was installed by the Stralsund organ builder Friedrich Mehmel in 1866, replacing an earlier instrument. It features 🧾 37 registers.
On the west side of the Old Town stands the St.-Jacobi-Kirche (St. James's Church), dating from the early 13th 🧾 century. In 1400 it was rebuilt to contain a nave and two transepts, requiring the addition of four buttresses. The 🧾 original half-timbered tower, heavily damaged in a 1955 fire, was rebuilt in brick.
Stolpersteine [ edit ]
Synagogue memorial plaque
Stolpersteine, part of 🧾 the European Stolperstein (literally "stumbling stone") memorial project, are scattered around Greifswald. The brass plaques, engraved with the names of 🧾 Jewish residents who were murdered in the Holocaust, are embedded in the sidewalk in front of houses where they once 🧾 lived. Some of the Stolpersteine in Greifswald mark the nationwide November 9, 1938, Kristallnacht pogroms in which members of the 🧾 Nazi SA and SS murdered many German Jews, vandalized Jewish property and burned down synagogues – including the Greifswald Synagogue, 🧾 dating from 1787. In 2012 all the 13 Stolpersteine were stolen, presumably by pro-Nazi extremists. The following year (2013) they 🧾 were replaced.[18][19]
A memorial plaque was installed on the site of the synagogue in 2008 in a ceremony attended by German 🧾 Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Objects named after Holocaust perpetrators [ edit ]
Transport [ edit ]
Greifswald is crossed by the Ryck river that 🧾 flows into the Bay of Greifswald.
According to a 2009 study, 44% of all people in Greifswald use their bicycle for 🧾 daily transport within the city, which, at the time, was the highest rate in Germany.[24] There are also public local 🧾 and regional bus operators. Local buses are run by SWG (Stadtwerke Greifswald).
Greifswald is situated at an equal distance of about 🧾 250 km (160 mi) to Germany's two largest cities, Berlin and Hamburg, which can be reached via the Autobahn 20 🧾 by car in about two hours. There are also train connections to and from Hamburg (via Stralsund and Rostock), and 🧾 Berlin. The popular summer tourist destinations Usedom and Rügen can be reached both by car and train.
Greifswald railway station connects 🧾 Greifswald with Stralsund, Züssow, Usedom, Angermünde, Eberswalde, Berlin and Szczecin (through Pasewalk). The station is also served by ICE and 🧾 EuroCity services to cities in Germany and the Czech Republic.
Greifswald has a port on the Baltic Sea as well as 🧾 several marinas. The historic city centre is about 3 kilometres (2 miles) off the shore, and can be reached by 🧾 yachts and small boats on the river Ryck. The Bay of Greifswald is a popular place for sailing and surfing, 🧾 with Germany's two largest islands, Rügen and Usedom, just off the coast.
Notable people [ edit ]
Edmund Hoefer, 1865
Max Lenz, 1897
Early 🧾 Times [ edit ]
19th C. [ edit ]
Doris Gercke, 2007
Luise Amtsberg, 2013
Toni Kroos, 2012
20th C. [ edit ]
See also [ 🧾 edit ]
