Boizenburg (, ) is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the

Ludwigslust-Parchim Ludwigslust-Parchim is a district in the west of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The district seat is Parchim, a branch office of the administration is located in Ludwigslust. After Mecklenburgische Seenplatte, it is the second-biggest distri ...

district in

Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (MV; ; ), 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 population; it covers an are ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. It is situated on the right bank of the

Elbe The Elbe ( ; ; or ''Elv''; Upper Sorbian, Upper and , ) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Republic), then Ge ...

, west of Ludwigslust, northeast of

Lüneburg Lüneburg, officially the Hanseatic City of Lüneburg and also known in English as Lunenburg, is a town in the German Bundesland (Germany), state of Lower Saxony. It is located about southeast of another Hanseatic League, Hanseatic city, Hambur ...

and east of

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

. It is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region. Boizenburg's historical old town stretches along the Elbe, has a harbour and offers heritage baroque timberframe and brick buildings. As per the dictates of the

Yalta Conference The Yalta Conference (), held 4–11 February 1945, was the World War II meeting of the heads of government of the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union to discuss the postwar reorganization of Germany and Europe. The three sta ...

, Boizenburg was placed just a few kilometers behind the perimeter of the

Iron Curtain The Iron Curtain was the political and physical boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. On the east side of the Iron Curtain were countries connected to the So ...

, otherwise known as the 'Inner German Border'.

History

The German name ''Boyceneburg'' was first documented in 1158. The written form changed to ''Boiceneburg'' (1171) and then ''Boizeneburg'' (1195). The old

Low German Low German is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language variety, language spoken mainly in Northern Germany and the northeastern Netherlands. The dialect of Plautdietsch is also spoken in the Russian Mennonite diaspora worldwide. "Low" ...

name for the town and river (Boize) likely stems from the Slavic ''boj'' for war. Boizenburg suffered during the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

and its old castle was burnt down by Swedish troops in 1628. In 1709 the church and 160 or more medieval dwellings were incinerated by a fire. The Town Hall was rebuilt in 1712 and the layout of the town was redesigned by

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

n architects sent from

Schwerin Schwerin (; Mecklenburgisch-Vorpommersch dialect, Mecklenburgisch-Vorpommersch Low German: ''Swerin''; Polabian language, Polabian: ''Zwierzyn''; Latin: ''Suerina'', ''Suerinum'') is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Germ ...

. They focused on incorporating efficiency of movement with fire-resistance, better sanitation and public space. During the

Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...

French troops were quartered in Boizenburg in 1807. A battle was fought with the retreating French army near Boizenburg in 1813. From 1815 to 1918, Boizenburg was part of the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. In 1826 a highway was built, connecting

, Berlin, and subsequently Boizenburg (Highway "B5"). In 1846 the railway between Berlin and Hamburg was constructed. Boizenburg was included with its own train station along this important route. The shipbuilding yard Lemmsche founded in 1793 became highly industrialized in 1852 and produced many wooden and steel ships. The shipbuilders Thomsen & Co supported the German war effort during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In 1973 the SED reactivated the shipbuilding facilities for the production of smaller inland ships for the

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. After being privatized in 1989, the yard was declared bankrupt in 1997. Smaller, independent companies are active in the old shipyard. The Boizenburg Tile Factory established by Hans Duensing in 1903, became Europe's largest tile manufacturer by 1937. After being re-established in 1991, it remains one of the town's main employers. Artistic impressions of the tile work produced in Boizenburg—particularly in the

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...

style - can be found at the Erstes Deutsches Fliesen Museum. During the communist East German era, residents of Boizenburg were kept under close scrutiny by the

Stasi The Ministry for State Security (, ; abbreviated MfS), commonly known as the (, an abbreviation of ), was the Intelligence agency, state security service and secret police of East Germany from 1950 to 1990. It was one of the most repressive pol ...

. Many deemed "politically untrustworthy" had their property confiscated during a state-sponsored terror campaign code-named Operation Vermin ().

Climate

Sightseeing

One of the advantages of Boizenburg's isolation during the Cold War is the pristine natural landscape of the Elbe Valley region stretching to the north, south and east. Much of the architecture and infrastructure in the old city remained 'perfectly untouched' during the DDR regime. In addition to significant restoration projects, new installations such as the modern redesign of the harbor and the addition of a topiary garden have greatly added to the old town's charm. Some noteworthy buildings and structures in Ludwigslust-Parchim: Wallanlage Bollenberg.jpg, Old Moat on the ''Bollenberg'' Wallanlage Boizenburg.jpg, Ship model along the Old Moat Boizenburg Elbhafen.jpg, Boizenburg Harbour looking towards the

and shipbuilding docks Topiary Garden Boizenburg Marcel Kalberer.jpg, Topiary garden Topiary Garden Boizenburg Marcel Kalberer 2.jpg, Topiary garden: water snail Marienkirche Boizenburg.jpg, View of the East wing of the St. Marien Church Boizenburg Friedhof.jpg, Mausoleum in Boizenburg's Graveyard Boizenburg Friedhof Weg.jpg, Path in Boizenburg's Graveyard

Miscellaneous

Until 30 April 1945 a

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

concentration camp A concentration camp is a prison or other facility used for the internment of political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or ethnic minority groups, on the grounds of national security, or for exploitati ...

was established in Boizenburg. The camp was a subcamp to the

Neuengamme concentration camp Neuengamme was a network of Nazi concentration camps in northern Germany that consisted of the main camp, Neuengamme, and List of subcamps of Neuengamme, more than 85 satellite camps. Established in 1938 near the village of Neuengamme, Hamburg, N ...

. On 12 March 1953 a

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

Avro Lincoln heading to Berlin was shot down over Boizenburg by two

Soviet Air Forces The Soviet Air Forces (, VVS SSSR; literally "Military Air Forces of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics"; initialism VVS, sometimes referred to as the "Red Air Force") were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Sovie ...

MiG-15 aircraft.ww.ndr.de/kultur/geschichte/schauplaetze/abschussboizenburg101.html

Transport

The town lies on the Berlin-Hamburg railway.

Personalities

* Hermann Burmeister (1849–1935), jurist, 40 years (1879-1919) mayor of Boizenburg, since 1922 honorary citizen

Sons and daughters

* Georg Christian Benedict Ackermann (1763–1833), theologian and teacher * Leonhard Adelt (1881–1945), bookseller, writer and journalist * (born 1955), chemist * (1892–1972), Evangelical theologian

References

*Official German list of concentration camp
Verzeichnis der Konzentrationslager und ihrer Außenkommandos
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Mecklenburg Neuengamme concentration camp Ludwigslust-Parchim Populated places established in the 13th century 1260s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1267 establishments in Europe Populated riverside places in Germany Populated places on the Elbe