Barth, Germany

Barth ( is a town in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in north-eastern Germany. It is situated at a lagoon (Bodden) of the Baltic Sea facing the Fischland-Darss-Zingst peninsula. Barth belongs to the district of Vorpommern-Rügen. It is close to the Western Pomerania Lagoon Area National Park. In 2011, it held a population of 8,706.

History

Middle Ages

thumb|left|Historical view of Barth in 1618, from the Lubin map made by [[Eilhard Lubinus]]

thumb|Former abbey of Barth

Barth dates back to the medieval German Ostsiedlung, before which the area was settled by Wends of the Liuticians or Rani tribe. Jaromar II, Danish prince of Rügen, granted the town Lübeck law in 1255. In the same document, he agreed to remove his burgh, Borgwall or Neue Burg, then on the northwestern edge of the town's projected limits. Another Wendish burgh, Alte Burg near today's train station, was not used anymore. The German town was set up on empty space between the burghs. Not a member of the Hanseatic League, the town never grew to the importance and size of neighboring Hanseatic towns like Stralsund. The last prince of Rügen, Vitslav III, erected a court at the site of former Neue Burg in 1315. He often resided in Barth.

After Vitslav's death without an issue in 1325, his principality was inherited by Wartislaw IV of the Duchy of Pomerania, who however had to enforce his claims by two subsequent wars with Mecklenburg. During these wars, Barth was fortified with a stone and brick wall. The wars as well as contemporary and subsequent Black Death epidemics (1349, 1405 and 1451) and floods hindered Barth's growth. In 1452, Barth was besieged by Mecklenburgian troops when Wartislaw IX did not pay his debts. Hostilities between the Pomeranian dukes Eric II and Wartislaw X on one side and the Hanseatic towns of Stralsund and Greifswald, Mecklenburg and the Margraviate of Brandenburg on the other side had an additional negative impact on the town. After a fire in 1722, the number of houses was reduced to 76. Stalag Luft I held mostly American and British POWs. From February 1945, many exhausted prisoners were evacuated from subcamps of Ravensbrück in Karlshagen and Police to Barth, where they eventually died.

With the Fall of the Iron Curtain and German reunification, an extensive renovation of the old town centre of Barth was initiated - mainly due to the urban development promotion programme of Germany. The town harbour and surrounding areas were revitalized with residential and commercial buildings. The city is a popular destination for tourists now, especially in connection with the Fischland-Darss-Zingst peninsula and the UNESCO World Heritage city of Stralsund.

In 2005, Barth celebrated 750 years of its town ordinances and privileges.

Since the local government reform on September 4, 2011, Barth has belonged to the Vorpommern-Rügen district in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

Climate

Barth has a moderate climate. Average temperature and precipitation between 1961 and 1990 are shown below.

thumb|[[Stralsund Barth Airport in the south of Barth]]

Transport

Barth railway station is served by local services to Stralsund.
Stralsund Barth Airport (also referred to as Baltic Sea Airport) is serving Barth and the UNESCO World heritage city of Stralsund and the adjacent economy and tourism regions of the Vorpommern-Rügen district.

Vineta

According to a theory by Goldmann and Wermusch, Barth is the site of the sunken town of Vineta. Barth is attracting tourists with the Vineta legend. Nowadays, there is a Vineta museum and a Vineta festival in the town.

Notable people

thumb|140px|[[Gustav Friedrich Wohlbrück, 1840's]]

thumb|140px|[[Ulrich, Duke of Pomerania, ca1650]]

Georg Ludwig Spalding (1762–1811), philologist
Gustav Friedrich Wohlbrück (1793–1849), a German actor and theatre director.
Ferdinand Jühlke (1815–1893), a Prussian horticulturist
Wilhelm Holtz (1836–1913), physicist, invented the "Holtz electrostatic influence machine"
Erich Gülzow (1888–1954), local historian, philologist and publisher.
Werner Fuetterer (1907–1991), film actor

Sport

Helmut Losch (1947–2005), world class weightlifter, bronze medallist at the 1976 Summer Olympics
Jürgen Heuser (born 1953), weightlifter, silver medallist at the 1980 Summer Olympics
Sylvia Rose, (born 1962), rower and team gold medallist at the 1988 Summer Olympics

Aristocracy

Anna of Pomerania, (1590–1660), daughter of Bogislaw XIII, Duke of Pomerania, who married into the Imperial House of Croÿ, was born in Barth
Francis, Duke of Pomerania (1577–1620), Duke of Pomerania
Bogislaw XIV, Duke of Pomerania, (1580–1637), last duke of Pomerania
George II, Duke of Pomerania (1582–1617), a non-reigning Duke of Pomerania
Ulrich, Duke of Pomerania (1589–1622), Protestant Bishop of Pomerania and non-reigning Duke of Pomerania