Meet the Middle Ages
BackStralsund
Stralsund lies on the German Baltic coast near the island of Rügen. From the Middle Ages and onwards, the town was one of the most important commercial towns in northern Europe. Stralsund was granted a town charter in 1234 and was a leading Hanseatic town from the end of the 13th century. The merchants in Stralsund bought herring, timber, limestone and tar from Sweden and grain, tar and fur from Russia. From Stralsund, mainly beer and different goods from countries in the south, was exported.
The war between the Hanseatic League and Valdemar Atterdag ended when peace was made in Stralsund. By this peace, the League got the right to control the towns and citizens of Skåne.
In the peace of Westfalen in 1648, Vorpommern and Stralsund became Swedish. During the great war in 1700-1721, almost all Swedish territories around the Baltic were occupied by Russia and Poland. After the peace in Nystad in 1721, Vorpommern and the town of Wismar was all that remained of the Swedish great kingdom. The Governor ´s residence remained in Stralsund until 1814, when Sweden gave up the territory to Denmark in return for Norway. After further negotiations between Prussia and Denmark, Stralsund and its surroundings were given to Prussia in 1815.
Today, several old buildings, many ruins of monasteries and the medieval town-wall give us an impression of Stralsund ´s significance.