Chronicle of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
Around 10,000 B C:
End of the Vistula Ice Age: hills, lakes and rivers develop
From the 8th millennium B C:
Hunters, gatherers and fishermen settle in the area of
present day Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
4th and 3rd millennium B C:
The people of the "funnel beaker culture" erect megalithic graves.
4th century A D till 6th century A D:
In the course of the migration of peoples German tribes leave the area of present day Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Slavic
tribes immigrate.
995:
The Slavic "Michelenburg" in present day
Dorf Mecklenburg is mentioned for the first time. Later this fortress gives the state of Mecklenburg its name.
Hence 995 is considered to be the "year of birth" of Mecklenburg.
1046:
The name "Pommern" is used for the first time in the chronicle "Annales Altahenses".
1160:
Henry the Lion defeats the Slavic prince Niklot and founds the town of
Schwerin.
1167:
Pribislaw, the son of Niklot, is enfeoffed with Mecklenburg. The noble lineage rules Mecklenburg until the year
1918.
1181
Bogislaw I receives Pomerania as a feudal tenure from the German emperor Friedrich I. Hence, Pomerania becomes a
principality of the empire.
1229/35:
First major division of the state: the grandsons of Heinrich Borwin I divide Mecklenburg into four principalities.
13th century:
Wismar,
Rostock,
Stralsund,
Greifswald,
Demmin,
Anklam become Hanseatic cities.
1325:
Rügen falls to Pomerania.
1370:
Peace of Stralsund: King Waldemar IV of Denmark acknowledges the power of the Hanseatic cities in the Baltic Sea
area.
1419:
The
University of Rostock is founded.
1456:
The
University of Greifswald is founded.
1471:
Mecklenburg is reunited in the hands of the dukes of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.
From 1520 on:
The Reformation reaches churches and monasteries in Mecklenburg and Vorpommern.
1618 - 1648:
Numerous towns and villages are destroyed in the Thirty Years' War. A major part of the population dies during military
actions as well as of starvation and from the plague. Only 50,000 to 75,000 out of 300,000 inhabitants survive.
1621-1695:
Second major division of the state: Mecklenburg is divided into the dukedoms Mecklenburg-Schwerin and
Mecklenburg-Güstrow.
1628:
The emperor's commander Wallenstein becomes duke of both parts of the state for two years.
1648:
The Peace of Westphalia: Western Pomerania including Rügen, Wismar, the island of Poel and the district of
Neukloster become part of Sweden. Mecklenburg-Schwerin receives the dioceses of Schwerin and Ratzeburg.
1701:
Third major division of the state: The "Hamburg Compromise" divides the state into the dukedoms Mecklenburg-Schwerin
and Mecklenburg-Strelitz.
1720:
The Peace of Stockholm: Prussia receives those parts of western Pomerania which lie south of the Peene and Usedom.
1793:
Friedrich Franz I, the Duke of Mecklenburg, founds Heiligendamm. It is the first German seaside resort.
1813-1815:
In the Wars of Liberation Mecklenburg and Vorpommern are freed from the rule of Napoleon.
1815:
The Congress of Vienna: Prussia receives the Swedish part of Pomerania. Now all of Pomerania is a Prussian province.
Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Mecklenburg-Strelitz become grand dukedoms.
1848/49:
Revolution in Germany: A constitutional assembly is elected in Mecklenburg-Schwerin and a civil democratic constitution
is adopted.
1850:
The parliament is dissolved and the new constitution is annulled.
1868:
Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Mecklenburg-Strelitz join the Zollverein (Tariff Union).
1871
The grand dukedoms of Mecklenburg become federal states in the newly founded German Empire.
1903:
The end of the Swedish era: the city of Wismar, the island of Poel and the district of Neukloster belong once
again to Mecklenburg.
1918:
The November Revolution: The grand dukes of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Mecklenburg-Strelitz as well as the German
emperor, who was also the Prussian king, abdicate.
1934:
The free states of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Mecklenburg-Strelitz are united.
1936:
The completion of the Rügen Dam creates the first land connection between the island of Rügen and the mainland.
From 1942 on:
The Jews are deported from Mecklenburg and Prussian Vorpommern.
1945:
The end of the Second World War: British and Soviet soldiers meet along the line Wismar-Schwerin-Dömitz. Then the
British troops withdraw from the Soviet occupied zone. Mecklenburg and the former Prussian Vorpommern are united to
form one state.
1947:
A Soviet order strikes the name "Vorpommern" from the still young name of the state, which was
“Mecklenburg-Vorpommern”.
1952:
Administration reformation in the German Democratic Republic (GDR): The state of Mecklenburg is divided into the
districts of Neubrandenburg, Rostock and Schwerin.
1953:
"Action Rose": The leadership of the GDR expropriated boarding houses and hotels along the Baltic Sea coast.
From 1971 on:
Industrial companies settle or are modernised in order to improve the infrastructure in the north of the GDR.
1990:
Germany Unification: the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern is again formed by uniting the three districts of
Neubrandenburg, Rostock and Schwerin. The first Prime Minister of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern is Alfred Gomolka (CDU).
1992:
Alfred Gomolka resigns. His successor as Prime Minister is Berndt Seite (CDU) until 1998.
1998:
As a result of the Parliament election on 27th September 1998 the first coalition in Germany of the SPD and the PDS at
the state level is formed. On 3rd November 1998 Dr Harald Ringstorff (SPD) becomes the
Prime Minister of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
2002:
In the Parliament election on 22nd September 2002 the existing government alliance is confirmed. The SPD and the PDS
continue to govern together. Dr Harald Ringstorff (SPD) remains Prime Minister.
2006:
In the Parliament election on 17th September 2006 the SPD and the CDU obtain a 59 per cent share of the votes. Together
both parties form a great coalition. On 7th November 2006 Parliament
elects Dr Harald Ringstorff Prime Minister of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern for a third term of office.
2008:
Dr. Harald Ringstorff steps down after ten years as Prime Minister. The State Parliament elects Erwin Sellering as his successor on 6th October.