Early settlers laid the town’s foundations in the 13th century, and Anklam was first mentioned in a charter in 1243. The Peene River with its passage to the Baltic Sea soon brought forward domestic and foreign trade. In 1283 Anklam became a member of the Hanseatic League. In the 15th century the power of Hanseatic towns was on the wane and the Anklam slowly succumbed to the influence of the Dukes of Mecklenburg.
The 16th and 17th century signalised the downfall of the formerly prosperous trading town, shaken by repeated afflictions of the plague. During the Thirty Years’ War the town was occupied by Prussian and Swedish troops. In 1659 a great fire destroyed large parts of the town. In 1648 Anklam was ceded to the Swedish part of Pomerania. As a result of the Great Nordic War the town was divided in two in 1720: The territory south of the Peene River had now become Prussian. The Peene River remained the frontier between Sweden and Prussia until 1815.
The railway line to Berlin and the advent of steam navigation on the Peene River, reflated the economic situation in this area in the 19th century thanks to the foundation of two iron foundries. In the nineties Otto Lilienthal ventured his first flight attempts.
The Arado Aircraft Factory made Anklam the target of allied bombing raids during World War II: At the end of the war 70 % of the town was in ruins. In the decades following the war, the town of Anklam was reconstructed, and its historical buildings were restored.
Anklam is the administrative centre of the district of Ostvorpommern.
Anklam-Information
Markt 3
17389 Anklam
phone: 03971-835154
fax: 03971-835175
e-mail: info@anklam.de
Internet: www.anklam.de