Hanseatic Town of Greifswald
Inspired by the beauty of the town's scenery, the romantic painter Caspar David Friedrich - Greifswald's most famous son - chose the brick buildings as motives for many of his works.
A university town with historic charm
Situated in the Greifswald Bodden halfway between the islands of Usedom and Rügen lies the Hanseatic town of Greifswald. Gothic brickwork and baroque, Art Nouveau and classicism – all the different stylistic periods are represented here. One of the most splendid and prestigious houses is the university's baroque main building, built by the Swedes in 1750 during their nearly 200-year reign. The university was founded as far back as 1456 and is the second oldest institution of higher learning in northern Europe.
Romantic abbey ruins before the gates of the city
Nowadays, all that remains of Eldena Abbey outside the city are its ruins. One of its greatest admirers was the romantic painter and most famous son of Greifswald: Caspar David Friedrich. He transformed the overgrown Gothic brickwork into a symbol of German romanticism. The prominent Greifswald citizen also immortalised the harbours and marketplaces of the region, perpetual themes were the sea and the ships, the chalk cliffs of Rügen and the old oaks and megalithic tombs in the area. Several now hang in the new Pommersche Landesmuseum (Pomeranian State Museum).
Your experts for Greifswald
Tourist Board Greifswald
Website - Tourist Board Greifswald
Telephone: +49 (0) 3834 521-0