Grabow () is a town in the

Ludwigslust-Parchim Ludwigslust-Parchim is a district in the west of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is bordered by (clockwise starting from the west) the state Schleswig-Holstein, the district Nordwestmecklenburg, the district-free city Schwerin, the distri ...

district, in

Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (MV; ; nds, Mäkelborg-Vörpommern), also known by its anglicized name Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania, is a state in the north-east of Germany. Of the country's sixteen states, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern ranks 14th in po ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

. It is situated on the river Elde, 7 km (4.35 mi) southeast of

Ludwigslust Ludwigslust () is a central castle town of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany, 40 km south of Schwerin. Since 2011 it has been part of the Ludwigslust-Parchim district. Ludwigslust is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region. The former royal re ...

, and 34 km (21.12 mi) northwest of

Wittenberge Wittenberge () is a town of eighteen thousand people on the middle Elbe in the district of Prignitz, Brandenburg, Germany. Geography Wittenberge is situated at the right (north-eastern) bank of the middle Elbe at its confluence with the Stepe ...

. It is twinned with

Whitstable Whitstable () is a town on the north coast of Kent adjoining the convergence of the Swale Estuary and the Greater Thames Estuary in southeastern England, north of Canterbury and west of Herne Bay. The 2011 Census reported a population of ...

, in

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

History

The name Grabow is of Slavic Polabian origin, ''grab'' means "

hornbeam Hornbeams are hardwood trees in the flowering plant genus ''Carpinus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The 30–40 species occur across much of the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Origin of names The common English name ''hornbeam ...

". Names with this root occur often in Mecklenburg. It was only slightly changed as ''Grabowe'' (1186, 1252, 1275) and ''Grabow'' (1189, 1298). Pope

Urban III Pope Urban III ( la, Urbanus III; died 20 October 1187), born Uberto Crivelli, reigned from 25 November 1185 to his death in 1187. Early career Crivelli was born in Cuggiono, Italy as the son of Guala Crivelli and had four brothers: Pietro, D ...

. mentions castle Grabow for the first time in a letter from February 23, 1186. The city received city law in 1252 from the

Count of Dannenberg The County of Dannenberg (german: Grafschaft Dannenberg) was a fief in the Duchy of Saxony. Its heartland was largely identical with the present-day collective municipality of Elbtalaue in north Germany. Its historical origins go back to the ...

. On 3 June 1725 the city was destroyed by a great fire. The palace was never rebuilt. At least since the 18th century there were Jews in the city, who left behind a synagogue and a cemetery. Both of them were damaged during the

Kristallnacht () or the Night of Broken Glass, also called the November pogrom(s) (german: Novemberpogrome, ), was a pogrom against Jews carried out by the Nazi Party's (SA) paramilitary and (SS) paramilitary forces along with some participation fro ...

. The Jews were murdered during the Nazi occupation of the town that began in 1939. Most were sent to nearby Chelmno and gassed there. The historical center of Grabow is distinguished by its close core of timber-framed houses of the 18th century. From 1815 to 1918, Grabow was part of the

Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin The Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin was a territory in Northern Germany held by the House of Mecklenburg residing at Schwerin. It was a sovereign member state of the German Confederation and became a federated state of the North German ...

. On 1 January 2016, the former municipality

Steesow Steesow is a former municipality in the Ludwigslust-Parchim district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Since 1 January 2016 it is part of the town Grabow Grabow () is a town in the Ludwigslust-Parchim district, in Mecklenburg-Western Pome ...

became part of Grabow. The painter

Wilhelm Langschmidt Wilhelm Heinrich Franz Ludwig Langschmidt, or ''Willem Langschmidt'', (10 January 1805 Grabow, Gustrow - 5 October 1866 Caledon) was a German-born South African painter and drawing master of 59 Long Street, Cape Town. He was the seventh chil ...

was born in Grabow. He settled in the Elgin valley in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...

. The town which grew around his trading store there still bears the name

Grabouw Grabouw is a town located in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Grabouw is located some 65 km south-east of Cape Town, over Sir Lowry's Pass from Somerset West, along the N2 highway.The town is the commercial centre for the vast Elg ...

, after his hometown.G. de Beer, A. Paterson, H. Olivier: ''160 Years of Export''. PPECB. Plattekloof, South Africa. 2003.

Number of inhabitants

* 1877: 4,200 * 1910: 5,500 * 1939: 5,900 * 1946: 8,900 * 1970: 8,500 * 1984: 8,600 * 1990: 8,098 * 1995: 7,240 * 1997: 6,934 * 2000: 6,741 * 2005: 6,231

Pictures

Image:Grabow_Zwerchhaus.jpg, Pferdemarkt 5 Image:Grabow Germany cityview.jpg Image:Grabow_Gr_Strasse.jpg, Große Straße File:Grabow Rathaus.jpg, Grabow Town hall File:GrabowWandrahmMarktCanalstr.jpg, Grabow

Notable people

Ludwig, Hereditary Prince of Mecklenburg-Schwerin by Georg David Matthieu (Schweriner Schloss)

Frederick, Duke of Mecklenburg-Grabow Frederick I of Mecklenburg-Grabow, Duke of Mecklenburg-Grabow (13 February 1638, Schwerin – 28 April 1688, Grabow) Life He was the son of Adolf Frederick I, Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and his second wife Marie Katharina (1616-1665), dau ...

also '' Friedrich zu Grabow '' (1638–1688), Duke's Grave in the crypt of the castle at Grabow. * Karl Leopold, Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (1678–1747), duke at the time of the Grabower Brandes of 1725 * Karl Leopold, Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (1678–1747), reigning duke in Mecklenburg-Schwerin *

Christian Ludwig II, Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin Christian Ludwig II of Mecklenburg (15 May 1683 – 30 May 1756) was the Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin from 1747 to 1756. He was the son of Frederick, Duke of Mecklenburg-Grabow, and Landravine Christine Wilhelmine of Hesse-Homburg. Mecklenb ...

(1683–1756), reigning duke in Mecklenburg-Schwerin *

Sophia Louise of Mecklenburg-Schwerin Sophia Louise of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (Sofie Luise; 6 May 1685 – 29 July 1735) was Queen consort in Prussia by marriage to King Frederick I of Prussia. She was famed for her beauty. Life Sophia Louise was the fourth child of Frederick, Duk ...

(1685–1735), Queen of Prussia *

Duke Louis of Mecklenburg-Schwerin Ludwig, Hereditary Prince of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (; 6 August 172512 September 1778) was heir to the Dukedom of Mecklenburg-Schwerin for twenty-two years from 1756 to his death in 1778. He was also the father of the first Grand Duke of Mecklenbur ...

(1725–1778), Hereditary Prince of Mecklenburg-Schwerin * Marco Küntzel (born 1976), footballer, played from 1981 to 1990 at Empor Grabow *

(1805–1866), German-South African painter * (1909–1987), politician ( FDP) *

(1638-1688), resided from 1669 until his death in Grabow * The Mann family, a Hanseatic family * (born 1936), architect *

Bastian Reinhardt Bastian Reinhardt (born 19 November 1975 in Ludwigslust) is a former German footballer. He is the currently managing the Under-17 squad of Hamburger SV. Career Reinhardt began his career 1983 with Empor Grabow/Grabower FC and joined 1. FC Mag ...

(born 1975), footballer, played at Empor Grabow / Grabower FC, now sports director of

Hamburger SV Hamburger Sport-Verein e.V. (), commonly known as Hamburger SV () or Hamburg (), is a German sports club based in Hamburg, with its largest branch being its football section. Though the current HSV was founded in June 1919 from a merger of three ...

References

External links

Official website (German)
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Mecklenburg Ludwigslust-Parchim Populated places established in the 13th century 1250s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1252 establishments in Europe Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin Holocaust locations in Germany