Mirow () is a town in the

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

of Mecklenburgische Seenplatte in southern

Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (MV; ; ), also known by its Anglicisation, anglicized name Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania, is a Federated state, state in the north-east of Germany. Of the country's States of Germany, sixteen states, Mecklenburg-Vorpom ...

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 ...

Name (Etymology)

"Mir" in Slavonic languages means "peace" or "glory". The name "Mirow" was derived from "villa mirowe", translating as "location of peace".

Geography

Mirow lies in the middle of the Mecklenburg Lake District (''Mecklenburgische Seenplatte'') on the southern shore of Lake Mirow, which is connected to the Müritz and the

Havel The Havel () is a river in northeastern Germany, flowing through the States of Germany, states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Brandenburg, Berlin and Saxony-Anhalt. The long Havel is a right tributary of the Elbe. However, the direct distance from ...

by a system of

lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from ...

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

s, and

canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface ...

s. There are several more lakes on the territory of this municipality. The neighboring towns of Diemitz, Fleeth, Granzow, Peetsch, and Starsow were incorporated into the town in 2004 and are now part of the municipality.

Town division

The following districts belong to the town of Mirow: In addition, the residential areas of Mirowdorf, Blankenfelde, Hohenfelde, Birkenhof, Holm, Forsthof, Weinberg, Niemannslust, Diemitzer Schleuse, Fleether Mühle, Kakeldütt, Schillersdorfer Teerofen and Hohe Brücke are parts of the town of Mirow.

History

In 1227, the Order of Saint John founded a

commandry In the Middle Ages, a commandery (rarely commandry) was the smallest administrative division of the European landed properties of a military order. It was also the name of the house where the knights of the commandery lived.Anthony Luttrell and G ...

on the shore of Lake Mirow after Lord Borwin II had given them land there; the first quarter of the coat-of-arms of the town still displays the cross of the ''Johanniterorden'' (the Order of Saint John) in commemoration of that gift. In 1701, the town became part of the

duchy A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a country, territory, fiefdom, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or Queen regnant, queen in Western European tradition. There once existed an important differe ...

of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. In 1919, it gained

town privileges Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the traditio ...

. Mirow is the birthplace of

Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (Sophia Charlotte; 19 May 1744 – 17 November 1818) was List of British royal consorts, Queen of Great Britain and Ireland as the wife of King George III from their marriage on 8 September 1761 until her ...

Queen consort A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king, and usually shares her spouse's social Imperial, royal and noble ranks, rank and status. She holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles and may be crowned and anointed, but hi ...

George III of the United Kingdom George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Great Britain and Ireland into the United Kingdom of Great ...

. The baroque palace, under construction from 1749 to 1760, was designed by Christoph Julius Löwe. It is notable for a ballroom with stucco decoration, and for the Red Salon lined with silk Chinese-style wallpaper. The English-style park of the palace includes the burial place of the last reigning Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, who died in 1918. The grand-ducal tomb is situated in the Gothic Church of Saint John, which was rebuilt after its complete destruction in 1945. Duke Adolf Friedrich IV of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Duke Adolf Friedrich IV of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Notable people

* Ludwig Giesebrecht (1792–1873), a German poet and historian. * Walter Gotsmann (1891–1961), a German painter, art teacher and conservationist.

Aristocracy

* Adolphus Frederick IV (1738–1794),

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

of Mecklenburg-Strelitz from 1752 to 1794. * Charles II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1741–1816),

duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

grand duke Grand duke (feminine: grand duchess) is a European hereditary title, used either by certain monarchs or by members of certain monarchs' families. The title is used in some current and former independent monarchies in Europe, particularly: * in ...

of Mecklenburg-Strelitz from 1794 to 1816. *

(1744–1818), Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, wife of King

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and ...

* Duke George Augustus of Mecklenburg (1748–1785), a German nobleman, sailor and soldier.

Gallery

File:Mirow Schloss.jpg, Baroque and early Classicist ''Mirow Castle'', standing on the ''Castle Island'' inside the lake Mirower See File:Mirow Schloss Liebesinsel Brücke 2010-04-07 057.jpg, Bridge connecting Mirow's ''Castle Island'' to ''Love Island'' File:Mirow Kirche1.jpg, Castle Church of Mirow File:Mirowersee.jpg, Boat houses at Mirower See File:Diemitz Vilzsee 2010-04-07 116.jpg, Vilzsee File:Mirow Schleuse Jul 2010 a.jpg, Watergate at Müritz- Elde waterway

References

External links

Website of Mirow
(German) {{Authority control Cities and towns in Mecklenburg 1226 establishments in Europe Populated places established in the 1220s