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Rügen (; la, Rugia, ) is
The chalk cliffs of the
Rügen (; la, Rugia, ) is Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...
's largest island
An island or isle is a piece of subcontinental land completely surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island in a river or a lake island may be ...
. It is located off the Pomerania
Pomerania ( pl, Pomorze; german: Pommern; Kashubian: ''Pòmòrskô''; sv, Pommern) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The western part of Pomerania belongs to t ...
n coast in the Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain.
The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and fr ...
and belongs to the state of 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 pop ...
.
The "gateway" to Rügen island is the Hanseatic city
The Hanseatic League (; gml, Hanse, , ; german: label=German language, Modern German, Deutsche Hanse) was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Norther ...
of Stralsund
Stralsund (; Swedish: ''Strålsund''), officially the Hanseatic City of Stralsund ( German: ''Hansestadt Stralsund''), is the fifth-largest city in the northeastern German federal state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostock, Schwerin, ...
, where it is linked to the mainland by road and railway via the Rügen Bridge and Causeway, two routes crossing the two-kilometre-wide Strelasund
The Strelasund or Strela Sound is a sound or lagoon of the Baltic Sea which separates Rügen from the German mainland. It is crossed by a road and rail bridge called the Rügendamm in Stralsund. It runs northwest to southeast from a small shallow ...
, a sound
In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid.
In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by ...
of the Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain.
The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and fr ...
.
Rügen has a maximum length of (from north to south), a maximum width of in the south and an area of . The coast is characterized by numerous sandy beach
A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shell ...
es, lagoons () and open bays (), as well as projecting peninsula
A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on al ...
s and headlands
A headland, also known as a head, is a coastal landform, a point of land usually high and often with a sheer drop, that extends into a body of water. It is a type of promontory. A headland of considerable size often is called a cape.Whittow, John ...
. In June 2011, UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. I ...
awarded the status of a World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
to the Jasmund National Park
The Jasmund National Park ( German: ''Nationalpark Jasmund'') is a nature reserve on the Jasmund peninsula, in the northeast of Rügen island in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is famous for containing the largest chalk cliffs in German ...
, famous for its vast stands of beeches and chalk cliffs like King's Chair, the main landmark of Rügen island.
The island of Rügen is part of the district of Vorpommern-Rügen
Vorpommern-Rügen is a district in the north of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is bounded by (from the west and clockwise) the Baltic Sea and the districts Vorpommern-Greifswald, Mecklenburgische Seenplatte and Rostock. The district seat is ...
, with its county seat in Stralsund
Stralsund (; Swedish: ''Strålsund''), officially the Hanseatic City of Stralsund ( German: ''Hansestadt Stralsund''), is the fifth-largest city in the northeastern German federal state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostock, Schwerin, ...
.
The towns on Rügen are: Bergen
Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula o ...
, Sassnitz
Sassnitz (, before 1993 in german: Saßnitz) is a town on the Jasmund peninsula, Rügen Island, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The population as of 2012 was 9,498.
Sassnitz is a well-known seaside resort and port town, a ...
, Putbus
Putbus () is a town on the southeastern coast of the island of Rügen, in the county of Vorpommern-Rügen in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, close to the Baltic Sea. The town has 4,741 inhabitants and is a significant tourist destinat ...
and Garz. In addition, there are the Baltic seaside resort
A seaside resort is a resort town, town, village, or hotel that serves as a Resort, vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requirements, suc ...
s of Binz
Binz is the largest seaside resort on the German island of Rügen.
It is situated between the bay of Prorer Wiek and the ''Schmachter See'' (a lake) in the southeast of the island. To the north of Binz stretches the Schmale Heide (the "narrow h ...
, Baabe
Baabe is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
Sights
* ''Baaber Bollwerk'' viewing point
* Thatched
Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw, water reed ...
, Göhren, Sellin
Sellin is a municipality on the Island of Rügen, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
History
First mentions of Sellin date to 1295. From 1880 on, the town gained importance as a Baltic Sea spa town.
After the '' Wende'' in 1989, the building ...
and Thiessow.
Rügen is very popular as a tourist destination
A tourist attraction is a place of interest that tourists visit, typically for its inherent or an exhibited natural or cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, offering leisure and amusement.
Types
Places of natural b ...
because of its resort architecture
Resort architecture (german: Bäderarchitektur) is an architectural style that is especially characteristic of spas and seaside resorts on the German Baltic coast. The style evolved since the foundation of Heiligendamm in 1793, and flourished espec ...
, the diverse landscape and its long, sandy beaches.
Geology
The chalk cliffs of the Jasmund
Jasmund is a peninsula of the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is connected to the Wittow peninsula and to the Muttland main section of Rügen by the narrow land bridges Schaabe and Schmale Heide, respectively. Sassnitz, ...
peninsula belong to the Rügen Chalk
Rügen chalk (German: ''Rügener Kreide'' or ''Rügener Schreibkreide'') is the common name for a very pure, very fine-grained, white, crumbly and highly porous chalk that forms the highest member of the German Upper Cretaceous, and is of Maastric ...
unit and were formed during the Maastrichtian
The Maastrichtian () is, in the ICS geologic timescale, the latest age (uppermost stage) of the Late Cretaceous Epoch or Upper Cretaceous Series, the Cretaceous Period or System, and of the Mesozoic Era or Erathem. It spanned the interv ...
stage of the Late Cretaceous
The Late Cretaceous (100.5–66 Ma) is the younger of two epochs into which the Cretaceous Period is divided in the geologic time scale. Rock strata from this epoch form the Upper Cretaceous Series. The Cretaceous is named after ''creta'', ...
, around 70 million years ago.
Geography
The main body of the island, known asMuttland
Muttland comprises the main section of the German island of Rügen, excluding the Rugian peninsulae and small surrounding islands.
The predominant land use is agriculture. Grasslands are found in very small proportions. There are nature conservati ...
, is surrounded by several peninsulas. To the north lie the peninsulas of Wittow
Wittow is the northernmost peninsula of the island of Rügen. Wittow was a separate island until the High Middle Ages, but since then has been connected to the Jasmund peninsula of Rügen by the Schaabe spit. Wittow is most famous for Cape Arkona ...
and Jasmund
Jasmund is a peninsula of the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is connected to the Wittow peninsula and to the Muttland main section of Rügen by the narrow land bridges Schaabe and Schmale Heide, respectively. Sassnitz, ...
, connected to each other by the Schaabe
The Schaabe is a bar, almost twelve kilometres long, on the German Baltic Sea island of Rügen. It joins the peninsulas of Jasmund and Wittow.
Washed up and shaped by the sea, it forms a sickle-shaped shoreline on the bay of Tromper Wiek an ...
sandbar
In oceanography, geomorphology, and geoscience, a shoal is a natural submerged ridge, bank, or bar that consists of, or is covered by, sand or other unconsolidated material and rises from the bed of a body of water to near the surface. It o ...
and to Muttland by the Schmale Heide
The Schmale Heide (literally "Narrow Heath") is a 9.5-kilometre-long and roughly 2-kilometre-wide bar between the Baltic seaside resort of Binz and the village of Neu Mukran near Sassnitz on the German island of Rügen. It lies in the municipality ...
, an embankment at Lietzow
Lietzow is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
References
External links
Official website of Lietzow
Towns and villages on Rügen
{{VorpommernRügen-geo-stub ...
and the Wittow Ferry. The northern peninsulas are separated from Muttland by several lagoons or , the largest of which are the Großer Jasmunder Bodden and Kleiner Jasmunder Bodden. Major peninsulas in the south are Zudar
The Zudar is a peninsula on the German Baltic Sea island of Rügen. It is about 18 square kilometres in area and sharply divided.
Location
The peninsula lies between the bay of Schoritzer Wiek, the lagoon of Rügischer Bodden (the northe ...
and Mönchgut
Mönchgut (''Monk's Estates'' in German) is a peninsula of 29.44 square kilometers with 6600 inhabitants in the southeast of Rügen island in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. It lies just between the Greifswalder Bodden and the rest of ...
which both face the Bay of Greifswald
The Bay of Greifswald
Rügen has a total area of , or if the adjacent small islands are included. The maximum diameter is from north to south, and from east to west. Of an overall coastline, are sandy
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain.
The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and fr ...
beaches, and sandy beaches. The highest elevations are on the Jasmund
Jasmund is a peninsula of the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is connected to the Wittow peninsula and to the Muttland main section of Rügen by the narrow land bridges Schaabe and Schmale Heide, respectively. Sassnitz, ...
peninsula: Piekberg () and Königsstuhl ().
The northern part of the Bay of Greifswald
The Bay of GreifswaldRügischer Bodden, is a large bay in the south of Rügen island, with the island of 
In the north-east of the island of Rügen is formed by the peninsula of 
The northwestern and western sides of Rügen are also highly indented, but a little flatter. Offshore are the larger islands of
Discoveries in the indicate that there has been settlement here since the Stone Age. All over Rügen are numerous stone monuments, such as megalithic tombs and altar stones that have survived to the present day. By the 1st century, the inhabitants of Rügen were part of the
The basis of their great military strength was a combination of the Ranian navy and a favourable location. Denmark, which was at that time very successful in Great Britain and Scandinavia, was neither able to match its Ranian rivals in the Baltic Sea region nor protect its coastline from Ranian armies until well into the 12th century. Meanwhile, the Ranians built numerous castles and temples in the Barth-
Vilm
The Baltic Sea island of Vilm lies in the bay south of the much larger island of Rügen, and is one of Germany's most remote and tranquil spots. Covering less than , Vilm is the remnant of a moraine left as the glaciers retreated about 6000 yea ...
lying just offshore. At the western end of the bay, the peninsula of Zudar
The Zudar is a peninsula on the German Baltic Sea island of Rügen. It is about 18 square kilometres in area and sharply divided.
Location
The peninsula lies between the bay of Schoritzer Wiek, the lagoon of Rügischer Bodden (the northe ...
runs out to the southernmost point of Rügen (Palmer Ort
The Palmer Ort is the southernmost point of the German Baltic Sea island of Rügen and its peninsula of Zudar. The cape lies on the territory of the municipality Garz/Rügen.
Location
Palmer Ort marks the boundary between the Bay of Greifsw ...
), at the eastern end the highly indented peninsula of Mönchgut
Mönchgut (''Monk's Estates'' in German) is a peninsula of 29.44 square kilometers with 6600 inhabitants in the southeast of Rügen island in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. It lies just between the Greifswalder Bodden and the rest of ...
projects into the sea. This peninsula ends in the east at the cape
A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck.
History
Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. T ...
of Nordperd
The Nordperd ''(Perd = Slavic for protrusion or prominence)'' is a cape on the German Baltic Sea island of Rügen. It is part of the Southeast Rügen Biosphere Reserve and the Mönchgut Nature Reserve.
The cape forms the eastern point of the is ...
near Göhren and in the south at the cape of ''Südperd'' by Thiessow. In the west of the peninsula of Mönchgut a narrow, bar
Bar or BAR may refer to:
Food and drink
* Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages
* Candy bar
* Chocolate bar
Science and technology
* Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment
* Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud
* Bar (un ...
, the Reddevitz Höft
The Reddevitz Höft or Reddevitzer Höft is a peninsular forming part of the Germany, German Baltic Sea island of Rügen. It is part of the Mönchgut peninsula, with which it is linked in the southeast by a good 130 metre wide isthmus. The Reddevi ...
, separates the two bays of Having and Hagensche Wiek.
In the north-east of the island of Rügen is formed by the peninsula of Jasmund
Jasmund is a peninsula of the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is connected to the Wittow peninsula and to the Muttland main section of Rügen by the narrow land bridges Schaabe and Schmale Heide, respectively. Sassnitz, ...
, which is joined to the heart of the island, ''Muttland
Muttland comprises the main section of the German island of Rügen, excluding the Rugian peninsulae and small surrounding islands.
The predominant land use is agriculture. Grasslands are found in very small proportions. There are nature conservati ...
'', by the bar
Bar or BAR may refer to:
Food and drink
* Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages
* Candy bar
* Chocolate bar
Science and technology
* Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment
* Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud
* Bar (un ...
of Schmale Heide
The Schmale Heide (literally "Narrow Heath") is a 9.5-kilometre-long and roughly 2-kilometre-wide bar between the Baltic seaside resort of Binz and the village of Neu Mukran near Sassnitz on the German island of Rügen. It lies in the municipality ...
between Binz-Prora
The Colossus of Prora, commonly known as simply "Prora", is a building complex in the municipality of Binz on the island of Rügen, Germany. It was built by Nazi Germany between 1936 and 1939 as part of the Strength Through Joy (Kraft durch F ...
and Sassnitz-Mukran and by a rail and road embankment at Lietzow
Lietzow is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
References
External links
Official website of Lietzow
Towns and villages on Rügen
{{VorpommernRügen-geo-stub ...
. The Schmale Heide separates the outer bay of Prorer Wiek from the lagoon of the Kleiner Jasmunder Bodden. On the peninsula of Jasmund are the Piekberg (), the highest point on Rügen, and the Königsstuhl, a chalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Cha ...
cliff in Stubbenkammer
The Jasmund National Park ( German: ''Nationalpark Jasmund'') is a nature reserve on the Jasmund peninsula, in the northeast of Rügen island in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is famous for containing the largest chalk cliffs in German ...
, which forms the most striking landmark on the island. Another bar, the Schaabe
The Schaabe is a bar, almost twelve kilometres long, on the German Baltic Sea island of Rügen. It joins the peninsulas of Jasmund and Wittow.
Washed up and shaped by the sea, it forms a sickle-shaped shoreline on the bay of Tromper Wiek an ...
, links Jasmund to the peninsula of Wittow
Wittow is the northernmost peninsula of the island of Rügen. Wittow was a separate island until the High Middle Ages, but since then has been connected to the Jasmund peninsula of Rügen by the Schaabe spit. Wittow is most famous for Cape Arkona ...
in the north of Rügen. The Schaabe, in turn, separates the outer bay of Tromper Wiek
The Tromper Wiek is a bay on the Baltic Sea between the peninsulas of Wittow and Jasmund on the island of Rügen in northeast Germany.''Die General Karte No. 1 – Schwerin-Rostock-Rügen'', 1:200,000 scale, Mairs Geographische Verlag/Falk Verla ...
from the lagoon of the Großer Jasmunder Bodden. The peninsula of Wittow and the long, narrow peninsula of Bug to the west are separated from the main body of Rügen by the Rassower Strom, the Breetzer Bodden and the ''Breeger Bodden''. The Wittow peninsula is adjoined in the north by Cape Arkona
Cape Arkona () is a 45-metre (150-foot) high cape on the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It forms the tip of the Wittow peninsula, just a few kilometres north of the Jasmund National Park. The protected landscape of Cape Ar ...
. Just under a kilometre to the northwest, located at 54°41' N, is the northernmost point of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Below this cliff
In geography and geology, a cliff is an area of rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion, with the effect of gravity. Cliffs are common on ...
() on the shoreline is the Siebenschneiderstein
The Siebenschneiderstein (''Söbenschniedersteen''glacial erratic">''Findling Söbenschniederst.'' at www.umweltkarten.mv-regierung.de. Retrieved 20 Jun 2019.) is a glacial erratic on the island of Rügen. It lies about 22 metres away from t ...
the fourth largest glacial erratic
A glacial erratic is glacially deposited rock differing from the type of rock native to the area in which it rests. Erratics, which take their name from the Latin word ' ("to wander"), are carried by glacial ice, often over distances of hundr ...
boulder on Rügen.
The northwestern and western sides of Rügen are also highly indented, but a little flatter. Offshore are the larger islands of Hiddensee
Hiddensee () is a car-free island in the Baltic Sea, located west of Germany's largest island, Rügen, on the German coast.
The island has about 1,000 inhabitants. It was a holiday destination for East German tourists during German Democratic ...
and Ummanz as well as the smaller islands Öhe Liebitz and Heuwiese. Sand removal and deposition by the Baltic Sea has to be constantly countered by dredging operations to the north and south of Hiddensee, otherwise Hiddensee would merge with Rügen within a few years. Rügen is dotted with many glacial erratic boulders, of which the 22 largest belong to legally-protected geotope
A geotope is the geological component of the abiotic matrix present in an ecotope. Example geotopes might be an exposed outcrop of rocks, an erratic boulder, a grotto or ravine, a cave, an old stone wall marking a property boundary, and so for ...
s (''see also: Erratics on and around Rügen
Erratic may refer to:
* Erratic, a project of music artist Jan Robbe
* Glacial erratic, a piece of rock that differs from the size and type of rock native to the area in which it rests
* Erratic ant
The erratic ant (''Tapinoma erraticum'') is a ...
).
Land use
The heartland of Rügen is gently rolling, and the area is characterized primarily byagriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled peop ...
. East of the town of Bergen auf Rügen the land climbs to (at Rugard where there is an observation tower) and to in the southeastern hill country of the Granitz
The Granitz is a wooded ridge in the southeast of Germany's largest island, Rügen, between the Baltic Sea resorts of Binz and Sellin. The woods cover an area of 982 hectares and are designated as a nature reserve. Since 1991 they have bee ...
. The soil on Rügen is very fertile and productive, particularly in Wittow, the breadbasket of the island. There are major cabbage-producing regions.
Two German national parks are situated on Rügen: the Western Pomerania Lagoon Area National Park
The Western Pomerania Lagoon Area National Park
at www.naturefund.de. Ac ...
, in the west (including at www.naturefund.de. Ac ...
Hiddensee
Hiddensee () is a car-free island in the Baltic Sea, located west of Germany's largest island, Rügen, on the German coast.
The island has about 1,000 inhabitants. It was a holiday destination for East German tourists during German Democratic ...
), and the Jasmund National Park
The Jasmund National Park ( German: ''Nationalpark Jasmund'') is a nature reserve on the Jasmund peninsula, in the northeast of Rügen island in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is famous for containing the largest chalk cliffs in German ...
, a smaller park including the famous chalk cliffs ( Königsstuhl). There is also a nature reserve, the Southeast Rügen Biosphere Reserve, consisting of the peninsulas in the southeast.
Climate
The climate is in thetemperate zone
In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout ...
. The winters are not particularly cold, with mean temperatures in January and February of ; and summers are mild and temperate, with a mean temperature in August of . There is an average rainfall of and approximately 1800–1870 hours of sunshine annually.
Administration
Administratively, Rügen is part of the districtVorpommern-Rügen
Vorpommern-Rügen is a district in the north of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is bounded by (from the west and clockwise) the Baltic Sea and the districts Vorpommern-Greifswald, Mecklenburgische Seenplatte and Rostock. The district seat is ...
. Its subdivisions are the Bergen auf Rügen
Bergen auf Rügen is the capital of the former district of Rügen in the middle of the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. Since 1 January 2005, Bergen has moreover been the administrative seat of the '' Amt'' of Bergen ...
(municipalities Bergen auf Rügen
Bergen auf Rügen is the capital of the former district of Rügen in the middle of the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. Since 1 January 2005, Bergen has moreover been the administrative seat of the '' Amt'' of Bergen ...
, Buschvitz
Buschvitz is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
References
External links
Official website of Buschvitz
Towns and villages on Rügen
{{VorpommernRügen-geo-stub ...
, Garz, Gustow
Gustow is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the Europ ...
, Lietzow
Lietzow is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
References
External links
Official website of Lietzow
Towns and villages on Rügen
{{VorpommernRügen-geo-stub ...
, Parchtitz
Parchtitz is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
Geography and transport
Parchtitz is about 3 kilometres northwest of Bergen auf Rügen and lies on the Duwenbeek, the only large stream on Rü ...
, Patzig, Poseritz
Poseritz is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The translator Christian Pistorius Christian Brandanus Hermann Pistorius (12 May 1763 or 1765 – 9 November 1823) was a German writer and translat ...
, Ralswiek
Ralswiek is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe ...
, Rappin, Sehlen and Thesenvitz), West-Rügen (municipalities Altefähr
Altefähr is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
Transport
* Altefähr railway station is served by local services between Rostock, Stralsund and Sassnitz
Sassnitz (, before 1993 in german: S ...
, Dreschvitz
Dreschvitz is a municipality in southwest Vorpommern-Rügen, a district on the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is managed from the '' Amt'' of West-Rügen with its head offices in the village of Samtens.
Geography
...
, Gingst, Hiddensee
Hiddensee () is a car-free island in the Baltic Sea, located west of Germany's largest island, Rügen, on the German coast.
The island has about 1,000 inhabitants. It was a holiday destination for East German tourists during German Democratic ...
, Kluis, Neuenkirchen, Rambin, Samtens, Schaprode, Trent and Ummanz), Nord-Rügen (municipalities Altenkirchen
Altenkirchen () is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, capital of the district of Altenkirchen. It is located approximately 40 km east of Bonn and 50 km north of Koblenz. Altenkirchen is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' ("co ...
, Breege
Breege is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the Europ ...
, Dranske, Glowe
Glowe is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is a state-recognised resort.
Geography
Glowe lies about 18 kilometres north of Bergen auf Rügen and is located at the western end of the bounda ...
, Lohme, Putgarten
Putgarten is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
The municipality is managed by the '' Amt'' of Nord-Rügen with its seat in Sagard.
Putgarten is the northernmost municipality in the state of ...
, Sagard, Wiek) and Mönchgut-Granitz (municipalities Baabe
Baabe is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
Sights
* ''Baaber Bollwerk'' viewing point
* Thatched
Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw, water reed ...
, Göhren, Lancken-Granitz, Middelhagen, Sellin
Sellin is a municipality on the Island of Rügen, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
History
First mentions of Sellin date to 1295. From 1880 on, the town gained importance as a Baltic Sea spa town.
After the '' Wende'' in 1989, the building ...
, Thiessow and Zirkow
Zirkow is a municipality on the German Baltic Sea island of Rügen in the county of Vorpommern-Rügen in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
Geography
Zirkow lies in the Southeast Rügen Biosphere Reserve between the small town of ...
) and the Amt-free municipalities of Binz
Binz is the largest seaside resort on the German island of Rügen.
It is situated between the bay of Prorer Wiek and the ''Schmachter See'' (a lake) in the southeast of the island. To the north of Binz stretches the Schmale Heide (the "narrow h ...
, Putbus
Putbus () is a town on the southeastern coast of the island of Rügen, in the county of Vorpommern-Rügen in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, close to the Baltic Sea. The town has 4,741 inhabitants and is a significant tourist destinat ...
and Sassnitz
Sassnitz (, before 1993 in german: Saßnitz) is a town on the Jasmund peninsula, Rügen Island, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The population as of 2012 was 9,498.
Sassnitz is a well-known seaside resort and port town, a ...
. Overall, there are 45 municipalities on Rügen, four of which have town status (Bergen, Garz, Putbus and Sassnitz).
History
Pre-history and the Germani
Discoveries in the indicate that there has been settlement here since the Stone Age. All over Rügen are numerous stone monuments, such as megalithic tombs and altar stones that have survived to the present day. By the 1st century, the inhabitants of Rügen were part of the East Germanic
East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth.
Etymology
As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...
tribe of Rugii
The Rugii, Rogi or Rugians ( grc, Ρογοί, Rogoi), were a Roman-era Germanic people. They were first clearly recorded by Tacitus, in his ''Germania'' who called them the ''Rugii'', and located them near the south shore of the Baltic Sea. So ...
, who occupied roughly the region that was later to become Western Pomerania and who gave the island its name. The Rugii may have originated from Scandinavia
Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Swe ...
or evolved from autochthonous
Autochthon, autochthons or autochthonous may refer to:
Fiction
* Autochthon (Atlantis), a character in Plato's myth of Atlantis
* Autochthons, characters in the novel ''The Divine Invasion'' by Philip K. Dick
* Autochthon, a Primordial in the ' ...
tribes. In the Migration Period
The Migration Period was a period in European history marked by large-scale migrations that saw the fall of the Western Roman Empire and subsequent settlement of its former territories by various tribes, and the establishment of the post-Roma ...
, many Rugii moved south and founded an empire in Pannonia
Pannonia (, ) was a province of the Roman Empire bounded on the north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia. Pannonia was located in the territory that is now wes ...
.
Slavic Rani
From the 7th century the West SlavicRani
''Rani'' in Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia, sometimes spelled ''Ranee'', is a Hindu/Sanskrit feminine given name. The term is the female form of the term for princely rulers in South and Southeast Asia and applies equally to the wife of ...
(or Rujani) built an empire on Rügen and the neighbouring coast between Recknitz
The Recknitz (historically known as ''Raxa'') is a river in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in northeastern Germany. The Recknitz's glacial valley stretches as far south as the heights at Glasewitz near Güstrow. The river has no definite source, but rathe ...
and Ryck
The Ryck is a river in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
From its source near Bartmannshagen, part of the Süderholz community northeast of Grimmen, the Ryck flows for about to the east, reaching Greifswald shortly before its mouth. The large ...
. It decidedly affected the history of the Baltic Sea area and the surrounding Obodritic (in the west) and Liutici
The Lutici or Liutizi (known by various spelling variants) were a federation of West Slavic Polabian tribes, who between the 10th and 12th centuries lived in what is now northeastern Germany. Four tribes made up the core of the federation: th ...
an (in the south) occupied mainland for the next few centuries. Many traces of their life can be found today.
The basis of their great military strength was a combination of the Ranian navy and a favourable location. Denmark, which was at that time very successful in Great Britain and Scandinavia, was neither able to match its Ranian rivals in the Baltic Sea region nor protect its coastline from Ranian armies until well into the 12th century. Meanwhile, the Ranians built numerous castles and temples in the Barth-Jasmund
Jasmund is a peninsula of the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is connected to the Wittow peninsula and to the Muttland main section of Rügen by the narrow land bridges Schaabe and Schmale Heide, respectively. Sassnitz, ...
- Gristow triangle.
The temple hill of Jaromarsburg
The Jaromarsburg was a cult site for the Slavic tribe of Rani dedicated to the god Svantovit and used from the 9th to the 12th century. It was located on the northeastern tip of the Baltic Sea island of Rügen at Cape Arkona, and was protect ...
, at the northern tip of Rügen and dedicated to the god Svetovid
Svetovit, Sventovit, Svantovit is the god of abundance and war, and the chief god of the Slavic tribe of the Rani, and later of all the Polabian Slavs. His organized cult was located on the island of Rügen, at Cape Arkona, where his main tem ...
, was significant well beyond the boundaries of the Ranian empire. After the fall of Radgosc
Rethra (also known as ''Radagoszcz'', ''Radegost'', ''Radigast'', ''Redigast'', ''Radgosc'' and other forms like ''Ruthengost'') was, in the 10th to the 12th centuries, the main town and political center of the Slavic Redarians, one of the four m ...
it became the chief shrine for the pagan northwestern Slavs. The administrative centre of the empire was Charenza
Charenza, also Karentia or Karenz, later also Gharense, was a medieval '' Slavic burgwall'' on the island of Rügen in the Baltic Sea. It was the administrative centre of the Rani tribe and of the Principality of Rugia. Today, the remnants are c ...
, possibly on the site of the present-day hillfort known as Garz or Venz. The main trading centre of the empire was Ralswiek
Ralswiek is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe ...
at the southernmost point of the Großer Jasmunder Bodden.
Principality under Danish suzerainty
In 1168, theDanish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish ance ...
king, Valdemar I, and his army commander and advisor, Bishop Absalon of Roskilde destroyed the Svetovid
Svetovit, Sventovit, Svantovit is the god of abundance and war, and the chief god of the Slavic tribe of the Rani, and later of all the Polabian Slavs. His organized cult was located on the island of Rügen, at Cape Arkona, where his main tem ...
temple in the hillfort at Cape Arkona
Cape Arkona () is a 45-metre (150-foot) high cape on the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It forms the tip of the Wittow peninsula, just a few kilometres north of the Jasmund National Park. The protected landscape of Cape Ar ...
, ending both the territorial and religious autonomy of the Rani; their former monarchs became Danish princes of Rügen
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...
. The Rani prince Jaromar I Jaromar is a masculine given name. It is the Polabian form of the West Slavic name, Jaromir. It may refer to:
People:
Jaromar, also Jaromar of Rügen, is the name of several members of Rügen's princely house:
* Jaromar I (1141–1218), Prince o ...
(died 1218) was a vassal of the Danish king and Christianized
Christianization ( or Christianisation) is to make Christian; to imbue with Christian principles; to become Christian. It can apply to the conversion of an individual, a practice, a place or a whole society. It began in the Roman Empire, conti ...
the island's inhabitants. In 1184, the Pomeranians, whose rule had previously extended as far as the land of Gützkow and to Demmin and thus made them the immediate neighbours of the now Danish Principality of Rugia, were commissioned by their overlord, the Holy Roman Emperor, to seize Rügen for the empire, but were defeated in the Bay of Greifswald
The Bay of GreifswaldHilda Abbey, today Eldena Abbey, in 1199). German colonists were introduced into the land and soon they became the largest and most culturally influential group within the population. The Slavic cultural element disappeared, mostly due to the lack of their own Slavic church structures, so that the Rani were absorbed in the period that followed into the now German-influenced people of Rügen. In addition to the colonization of the country and the building of new monasteries and churches, towns were also re-established. In 1234 the Rügen Prince Wizlaw I founded the town of
After the death of the last Slav prince of the ''Wizlawiden'' (''House of Wizlaw'') dynasty, Wizlaw III, in 1325, the principality was acquired by the duchy of 
In 1816 the first bathing resort was founded at
The Nazis added a large resort:
In 1990, Rügen became part of the new state of
Today the most popular seaside resorts are the
The
Until October 2007, individual traffic from the mainland to the island of Rügen was mainly routed along the two-lane Rügendamm causeway, running between
Two car ferries belonging to the operate every half-an-hour between the Zudar peninsula on Rügen and Stahlbrode on the mainland, halfway between Stralsund and Greifswald .
Another car ferry, the Wittow Ferry runs from the heartland of Rügen (''Muttland'') to Wittow.
A ferry sails from
Rügen Airport is located about from Bergen. After the '' Wende'', the first sightseeing flights over the island were offered on the former agricultural airfield. In May 1993, the first tarmac runway was inaugurated. Since then, charter flights to Berlin, Hamburg and other cities in Europe have been available.
The Baltic Sea Airport Stralsund also offers flights to and from the region of
* Preben von Ahnen (1606–1675) a German-born Norwegian civil servant and landowner.
* Count Baltzar Bogislaus von Platen (1766–1829) a Swedish naval officer and statesman.
*
*
Official site
Map of Rygensko by Ján Kollár
(English) {{DEFAULTSORT:Rugen German islands in the Baltic Biosphere reserves of Germany Geography of Pomerania Islands of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania
Stralsund
Stralsund (; Swedish: ''Strålsund''), officially the Hanseatic City of Stralsund ( German: ''Hansestadt Stralsund''), is the fifth-largest city in the northeastern German federal state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostock, Schwerin, ...
and granted Greifswald
Greifswald (), officially the University and Hanseatic City of Greifswald (german: Universitäts- und Hansestadt Greifswald, Low German: ''Griepswoold'') is the fourth-largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostoc ...
market rights in 1241. The power of the towns grew rapidly, forcing Rügen's rulers to make concessions—for example, the prince's castle at Barth was slighted and Schadegast, the princely "twin" of the municipally-controlled Stralsund, was ousted in favour of the latter.
In 1304 a storm surge
A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the ...
, known as the All Saints' Flood, devastated the island and flooded the peninsula between Mönchgut
Mönchgut (''Monk's Estates'' in German) is a peninsula of 29.44 square kilometers with 6600 inhabitants in the southeast of Rügen island in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. It lies just between the Greifswalder Bodden and the rest of ...
and Ruden.
Part of Pomerania
After the death of the last Slav prince of the ''Wizlawiden'' (''House of Wizlaw'') dynasty, Wizlaw III, in 1325, the principality was acquired by the duchy of Pomerania-Wolgast The Duchy of Pomerania-Wolgast, also known as the Duchy of Wolgast, and the Duchy of Wołogoszcz, was a feudal duchy in Western Pomerania within the Holy Roman Empire. Its capital was Wolgast. It was ruled by the Griffin dynasty.Edward Rymar, ''Ro ...
as a consequence of the 1321 inheritance agreement (), and from 1368/72–1451 was part of the estate of a branch line, the dukes of Pomerania-Barth
Duchy of Pomerania-Barth was a feudal duchy of the Holy Roman Empire located in Western Pomerania that existed in the Middle Ages between 1376 and 1478, and between 1569 and 1625.
The state consisted of its capital, Barth, and nearby areas. Du ...
. This state of affairs, together with the disputes over the Danish throne that occurred at that time, led to the Rügen wars of succession
Rügen (; la, Rugia, ) is Germany's largest island. It is located off the Pomeranian coast in the Baltic Sea and belongs to the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
The "gateway" to Rügen island is the Hanseatic city of Stralsund, where ...
. After they had played out, the former principality went in 1354 to Pomerania-Wolgast and thus became part of the Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars.
From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...
. In 1478, Pomerania-Wolgast and Pomerania-Stettin
The Duchy of Pomerania-Stettin, also known as the Duchy of Stettin, and the Duchy of Szczecin, was a feudal duchy in Farther Pomerania within the Holy Roman Empire. Its capital was Szczecin. It was ruled by the Griffin dynasty.B. Dopierała, ''Po ...
were united and, 170 years later, the combined state went to Sweden in 1648 as a result of the Treaty of Westphalia
The Peace of Westphalia (german: Westfälischer Friede, ) is the collective name for two peace treaties signed in October 1648 in the Westphalian cities of Osnabrück and Münster. They ended the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) and brought peac ...
(see Swedish Pomerania
Swedish Pomerania ( sv, Svenska Pommern; german: Schwedisch-Pommern) was a dominion under the Swedish Crown from 1630 to 1815 on what is now the Baltic coast of Germany and Poland. Following the Polish War and the Thirty Years' War, Sweden hel ...
). Rügen was part of Swedish Pomerania from 1648 to 1815. The largest landowners, owning at least one-fifth of the island until 1945, was the House of Putbus, which was an offshoot of the earlier ruling princes of the Wizlawid dynasty. In 1727, they were created counts of Holy Roman Empire and 1731 counts in Sweden, ultimately Swedish princes in 1807.
Under Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden
Gustav IV Adolf or Gustav IV Adolph (1 November 1778 – 7 February 1837) was King of Sweden from 1792 until he was deposed in a coup in 1809. He was also the last Swedish monarch to be the ruler of Finland.
The occupation of Finland in 1808– ...
the town of Gustavia was constructed on the Mönchgut
Mönchgut (''Monk's Estates'' in German) is a peninsula of 29.44 square kilometers with 6600 inhabitants in the southeast of Rügen island in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. It lies just between the Greifswalder Bodden and the rest of ...
peninsula, but was abandoned during the Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
. In the years 1678 and 1715, Rügen was briefly wrested from the Swedes by the Elector of Brandenburg, Frederick William The name Frederick William usually refers to several monarchs and princes of the Hohenzollern dynasty:
* Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg (1620–1688)
* Frederick William, Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (1675–1713)
* Frederick William I of ...
and by the King in Prussia, Frederick William I. For example, a Brandenburg-Danish army landed on the island as part of the invasion of Rügen in 1678. After the Treaty of Saint-Germain
A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal pers ...
in 1679 the island passed from Danish to Swedish ownership again. At the time of Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
, Rügen was held by the French from 1807 to 1813. In the Treaty of Kiel
The Treaty of Kiel ( da, Kieltraktaten) or Peace of Kiel (Swedish and no, Kielfreden or ') was concluded between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the Kingdom of Sweden on one side and the Kingdoms of Denmark and Norway on the ...
of 1814, it was transferred initially from Sweden to Denmark and then fell to Prussia
Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...
, along with New Western Pomerania (), thanks to the Vienna Convention of 1815. In 1818 the island became part of the administrative district of Stralsund
Stralsund (; Swedish: ''Strålsund''), officially the Hanseatic City of Stralsund ( German: ''Hansestadt Stralsund''), is the fifth-largest city in the northeastern German federal state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostock, Schwerin, ...
and thus belonged to the Prussian Province of Pomerania. Wilhelm Malte I (1783–1854), 1st prince of Putbus, was the last Governor of Swedish Pomerania and the first under Prussian rule.
In 1816 the first bathing resort was founded at Putbus
Putbus () is a town on the southeastern coast of the island of Rügen, in the county of Vorpommern-Rügen in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, close to the Baltic Sea. The town has 4,741 inhabitants and is a significant tourist destinat ...
. Later more resorts were established, and Rügen remained the most famous holiday resort of Germany until World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
.
Nazi era
The Nazis added a large resort: Prora
The Colossus of Prora, commonly known as simply "Prora", is a building complex in the municipality of Binz on the island of Rügen, Germany. It was built by Nazi Germany between 1936 and 1939 as part of the Strength Through Joy (Kraft durch F ...
, planned by the Strength through Joy
NC Gemeinschaft (KdF; ) was a German state-operated leisure organization in Nazi Germany. Richard Grunberger, ''The 12-Year Reich'', p. 197, It was part of the German Labour Front (german: link=no, Deutsche Arbeitsfront), the national labour or ...
organisation, which aimed to occupy people's free time. However, Prora was never completed.
In 1936 the first bridge connecting Rügen with the mainland was constructed (Rügendamm
Strelasund Crossing is the two links to the German island of Rügen (''Rugia'') over the Strelasund to the West Pomeranian mainland near Stralsund: the Rügen Bridge or Rugia Bridge (german: links=no, Rügenbrücke) and the Rugia Causeway (ger ...
), replacing the former ferry shuttles.
The operation commanded by Wolfram von Richthofen
Wolfram Karl Ludwig Moritz Hermann Freiherr von Richthofen (10 October 1895 – 12 July 1945) was a German World War I flying ace who rose to the rank of '' Generalfeldmarschall'' in the Luftwaffe during World War II.
Born in 1895 into a f ...
that bombed the town of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlism, Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebeli ...
, was named after the island. An Abwehr
The ''Abwehr'' ( German for ''resistance'' or ''defence'', but the word usually means ''counterintelligence'' in a military context; ) was the German military-intelligence service for the '' Reichswehr'' and the ''Wehrmacht'' from 1920 to 1944. ...
Signals intelligence
Signals intelligence (SIGINT) is intelligence-gathering by interception of '' signals'', whether communications between people (communications intelligence—abbreviated to COMINT) or from electronic signals not directly used in communication ...
Operation during the same conflict was titled Operation Bodden after the strait separating Rügen from the German mainland.
In the aftermath of World War II, East German and Soviet authorities exiled landholders from the mainland to the island.
GDR era
After theSecond World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
Rügen became part of the state of Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg (; nds, label=Low German, Mękel(n)borg ) is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The largest cities of the region are Rostock, Schwer ...
within the German Democratic Republic
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
(GDR). In 1952 the island became part of the district of Rostock.
The island was the focal point of Project Rose (''Action Rose'') by the GDR government designed to nationalize hotels, taxis and service companies on 10 February 1953. The occasion was supposed to have been a visit by Walter Ulbricht
Walter Ernst Paul Ulbricht (; 30 June 18931 August 1973) was a German communist politician. Ulbricht played a leading role in the creation of the Weimar-era Communist Party of Germany (KPD) and later (after spending the years of Nazi rule in ...
to the island of Rügen, during which he had been annoyed by the many surviving private hotels and guest houses. Many of the hotel owners were convicted by kangaroo court
A kangaroo court is a court that ignores recognized standards of law or justice, carries little or no official standing in the territory within which it resides, and is typically convened ad hoc. A kangaroo court may ignore due process and come ...
s under the pretext of having been engaged in economic crime
Financial crime is crime committed against property, involving the unlawful conversion of the ownership of property (belonging to one person) to one's own personal use and benefit. Financial crimes may involve fraud (cheque fraud, credit card fra ...
or as agents working for the West. Their property was then confiscated and they were sent to prison. Many of the owners and small businessmen were incarcerated in Bützow prison. The hotels were supposed to have been expropriated by the Free German Trade Union Federation
The Free German Trade Union Federation (german: Freier Deutsche Gewerkschaftsbund or ''FDGB'') was the sole national trade union centre of the German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany) which existed from 1946 and 1990. As a mass organisa ...
(FDGB). In fact, they were used as accommodation for the barracks-based "people's police" ( or CPI). As a result of the confiscation of hotels, tourism on Rügen in 1953 came almost to a complete standstill for a time.
In the following nearly four decades, the island became one of the main tourist areas in the GDR. The FDGB played a dominant role in tourist accommodation. In 1963 the FDGB had 7,519 holiday places, the Reisebüro der DDR
The ''Reisebüro der DDR'' ("Travel Bureau of the GDR") was the state travel organization of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). The ''Reisebüro'' had several travel-related functions, including:
# Arranging domestic travel for GDR ci ...
2,906 places and a further 5,025 were available for businesses and organizations. In addition, there were 12,245 places for children in summer camps and another 20,800 places for campers. The plots were located mainly near the beaches. Increased holiday capacity was not however generated until the 1970s and 1980s.
Reunited Germany
In 1990, Rügen became part of the new state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
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 pop ...
and, together with the neighbouring islands of Hiddensee
Hiddensee () is a car-free island in the Baltic Sea, located west of Germany's largest island, Rügen, on the German coast.
The island has about 1,000 inhabitants. It was a holiday destination for East German tourists during German Democratic ...
and Ummanz, formed the district of Rügen. Since the 2011 Mecklenburg-Vorpommern district reforms Rügen has been part of Vorpommern-Rügen
Vorpommern-Rügen is a district in the north of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is bounded by (from the west and clockwise) the Baltic Sea and the districts Vorpommern-Greifswald, Mecklenburgische Seenplatte and Rostock. The district seat is ...
.
In 2007 a second bridge, the Rügen Bridge (), was built to replace the first one built in 1936.
Rügen has now surpassed Sylt
Sylt (; da, Sild; Söl'ring North Frisian: ) is an island in northern Germany, part of Nordfriesland district, Schleswig-Holstein, and well known for the distinctive shape of its shoreline. It belongs to the North Frisian Islands and is the ...
as the most popular German island again.
Tourist resorts
Rügen is one of the most popular holiday destinations in Germany. The island receives about one quarter of all overnight stays in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Most visitors come to Rügen between April and October, the peak season being from June to August, but its quiet atmosphere in winter is also appreciated. The first bathing facility on Rügen opened in 1794 at the mineral-rich spring in Sagard. In 1818, thePutbus
Putbus () is a town on the southeastern coast of the island of Rügen, in the county of Vorpommern-Rügen in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, close to the Baltic Sea. The town has 4,741 inhabitants and is a significant tourist destinat ...
village of Lauterbach became Rügen's first seaside resort. In the 1860s Sassnitz
Sassnitz (, before 1993 in german: Saßnitz) is a town on the Jasmund peninsula, Rügen Island, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The population as of 2012 was 9,498.
Sassnitz is a well-known seaside resort and port town, a ...
became a seaside resort, followed by Binz
Binz is the largest seaside resort on the German island of Rügen.
It is situated between the bay of Prorer Wiek and the ''Schmachter See'' (a lake) in the southeast of the island. To the north of Binz stretches the Schmale Heide (the "narrow h ...
in the 1880s. During World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
Prora
The Colossus of Prora, commonly known as simply "Prora", is a building complex in the municipality of Binz on the island of Rügen, Germany. It was built by Nazi Germany between 1936 and 1939 as part of the Strength Through Joy (Kraft durch F ...
was constructed as a mass tourist resort but it was never finished.
Today the most popular seaside resorts are the Schaabe
The Schaabe is a bar, almost twelve kilometres long, on the German Baltic Sea island of Rügen. It joins the peninsulas of Jasmund and Wittow.
Washed up and shaped by the sea, it forms a sickle-shaped shoreline on the bay of Tromper Wiek an ...
beaches between Altenkirchen
Altenkirchen () is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, capital of the district of Altenkirchen. It is located approximately 40 km east of Bonn and 50 km north of Koblenz. Altenkirchen is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' ("co ...
and Juliusruh
Juliusruh is a village on the northern coast of the island of Rügen in northeastern Germany. Juliusruh is part of the municipality of Breege
Breege is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
G ...
including Drewoldke, Glowe
Glowe is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is a state-recognised resort.
Geography
Glowe lies about 18 kilometres north of Bergen auf Rügen and is located at the western end of the bounda ...
and Breege
Breege is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the Europ ...
, and the eastern beaches between Sassnitz
Sassnitz (, before 1993 in german: Saßnitz) is a town on the Jasmund peninsula, Rügen Island, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The population as of 2012 was 9,498.
Sassnitz is a well-known seaside resort and port town, a ...
and Göhren including Neu Mukran, Prora
The Colossus of Prora, commonly known as simply "Prora", is a building complex in the municipality of Binz on the island of Rügen, Germany. It was built by Nazi Germany between 1936 and 1939 as part of the Strength Through Joy (Kraft durch F ...
, Binz
Binz is the largest seaside resort on the German island of Rügen.
It is situated between the bay of Prorer Wiek and the ''Schmachter See'' (a lake) in the southeast of the island. To the north of Binz stretches the Schmale Heide (the "narrow h ...
, Sellin
Sellin is a municipality on the Island of Rügen, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
History
First mentions of Sellin date to 1295. From 1880 on, the town gained importance as a Baltic Sea spa town.
After the '' Wende'' in 1989, the building ...
and Baabe
Baabe is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
Sights
* ''Baaber Bollwerk'' viewing point
* Thatched
Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw, water reed ...
. The latter are accessible via an historic narrow gauge railway employing steam locomotives, called the Rügensche Bäderbahn. Tourist destinations, other than seaside resorts, include Cape Arkona
Cape Arkona () is a 45-metre (150-foot) high cape on the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It forms the tip of the Wittow peninsula, just a few kilometres north of the Jasmund National Park. The protected landscape of Cape Ar ...
, the wood-covered Stubbenkammer
The Jasmund National Park ( German: ''Nationalpark Jasmund'') is a nature reserve on the Jasmund peninsula, in the northeast of Rügen island in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is famous for containing the largest chalk cliffs in German ...
hills on Jasmund
Jasmund is a peninsula of the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is connected to the Wittow peninsula and to the Muttland main section of Rügen by the narrow land bridges Schaabe and Schmale Heide, respectively. Sassnitz, ...
with interesting chalk cliff formations, the wood-covered Granitz
The Granitz is a wooded ridge in the southeast of Germany's largest island, Rügen, between the Baltic Sea resorts of Binz and Sellin. The woods cover an area of 982 hectares and are designated as a nature reserve. Since 1991 they have bee ...
hills with their or hunting lodge, the classicist
Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...
buildings of Putbus
Putbus () is a town on the southeastern coast of the island of Rügen, in the county of Vorpommern-Rügen in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, close to the Baltic Sea. The town has 4,741 inhabitants and is a significant tourist destinat ...
and the inland villages of Bergen auf Rügen
Bergen auf Rügen is the capital of the former district of Rügen in the middle of the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. Since 1 January 2005, Bergen has moreover been the administrative seat of the '' Amt'' of Bergen ...
, Ralswiek
Ralswiek is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe ...
and Gingst.
The island offers a huge variety of different beach and shore areas. Rügen is often visited by windsurfers and kitesurfers and offers more than fifteen different locations for surfing. The most popular locations are Dranske, Rosengarten, Wiek, Suhrendorf and Neu Mukran.
On the peninsula of Jasmund is the Jasmund National Park
The Jasmund National Park ( German: ''Nationalpark Jasmund'') is a nature reserve on the Jasmund peninsula, in the northeast of Rügen island in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is famous for containing the largest chalk cliffs in German ...
, which consists of the beech forest of Stubnitz
The Stubnitz is a hilly, forested landscape region on the east coast of the Jasmund peninsula on the German Baltic Sea island of Rügen – Germany's largest island. It covers an area of about 2,400 ha and runs from the town of Sassnitz to ...
, including the famous chalk cliffs of Rügen. On the Königsstuhl itself is the Königsstuhl National Park Centre
The Königsstuhl National Park Centre (german: Nationalpark-Zentrum Königsstuhl) is the visitor centre for the Jasmund National Park on the German Baltic Sea island of Rügen. It was opened in 2004 and, with around 300,000 visitors per year ( 2 ...
, which has a multivision cinema and audio-guide exhibitions with information about the national park in several languages.
Transport
Rail
The railway
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in Track (rail transport), tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the ...
network consists of the electrified standard gauge stretch of the Deutsche Bahn
The (; abbreviated as DB or DB AG) is the national railway company of Germany. Headquartered in the Bahntower in Berlin, it is a joint-stock company ( AG). The Federal Republic of Germany is its single shareholder.
describes itself as the ...
Stralsund (Rügendamm)-Bergen-Sassnitz line (timetable route (KBS) 195), Lietzow-Binz (KBS 197), the non-electrified routes Bergen-Putbus-Lauterbach Mole of the PRESS (KBS 198) and the narrow gauge
A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and .
Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller struc ...
stretch () of the Rügen Resort Railway (): Lauterbach Mole-Putbus-Binz-Sellin-Göhren (KBS 199).
In addition to regional trains, there are also Intercity
InterCity (commonly abbreviated ''IC'' on timetables and tickets) is the classification applied to certain long-distance passenger train services in Europe. Such trains (in contrast to regional, local, or commuter trains) generally call at ma ...
services from Binz
Binz is the largest seaside resort on the German island of Rügen.
It is situated between the bay of Prorer Wiek and the ''Schmachter See'' (a lake) in the southeast of the island. To the north of Binz stretches the Schmale Heide (the "narrow h ...
via Bergen
Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula o ...
and Stralsund
Stralsund (; Swedish: ''Strålsund''), officially the Hanseatic City of Stralsund ( German: ''Hansestadt Stralsund''), is the fifth-largest city in the northeastern German federal state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostock, Schwerin, ...
to Berlin
Berlin is Capital of Germany, the capital and largest city of Germany, both by area and List of cities in Germany by population, by population. Its more than 3.85 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European U ...
, Hamburg
Hamburg (, ; nds, label=Hamburg German, Low Saxon, Hamborg ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (german: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg; nds, label=Low Saxon, Friee un Hansestadt Hamborg),. is the List of cities in Germany by popul ...
, Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its ...
, Stuttgart and the Ruhr. Night train services to Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
, Basle and the Ruhr area were deleted from the timetable on 9 December 2007, despite massive protests from the local hotel industry.
Bus
The bus service on Rügen is operated by the . Since 1996 it has been continuously expanded, and has developed an integral clock-face schedule. There is a service between all major towns and municipalities on the island at least every two hours, sometimes more frequently during peak season. Throughout the year, buses now run at least every hour on the routes between Sassnitz-Binz-Bergen, Schaprode–Bergen–Klein Zicker, Bergen/Sassnitz-Altenkirchen
Altenkirchen () is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, capital of the district of Altenkirchen. It is located approximately 40 km east of Bonn and 50 km north of Koblenz. Altenkirchen is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' ("co ...
- Wiek- Dranske and the Altenkirchen-Putgarten
Putgarten is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
The municipality is managed by the '' Amt'' of Nord-Rügen with its seat in Sagard.
Putgarten is the northernmost municipality in the state of ...
near Cape Arkona. In addition, the bus service is well-linked with the railway, especially in Bergen, but also at other railway stations.
Road
Until October 2007, individual traffic from the mainland to the island of Rügen was mainly routed along the two-lane Rügendamm causeway, running between Stralsund
Stralsund (; Swedish: ''Strålsund''), officially the Hanseatic City of Stralsund ( German: ''Hansestadt Stralsund''), is the fifth-largest city in the northeastern German federal state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostock, Schwerin, ...
and Altefähr
Altefähr is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
Transport
* Altefähr railway station is served by local services between Rostock, Stralsund and Sassnitz
Sassnitz (, before 1993 in german: S ...
over the sound of Strelasund
The Strelasund or Strela Sound is a sound or lagoon of the Baltic Sea which separates Rügen from the German mainland. It is crossed by a road and rail bridge called the Rügendamm in Stralsund. It runs northwest to southeast from a small shallow ...
.
The cornerstone for a second crossing over the Strelasund was laid on 31 August 2004. This bridge, the Rügen Bridge, running parallel to the Rügendamm, has a length of about and a vertical clearance for ships of , and was on opened on 20 October 2007. In order to relieve the town of Stralsund, a ring road
A ring road (also known as circular road, beltline, beltway, circumferential (high)way, loop, bypass or orbital) is a road or a series of connected roads encircling a town, city, or country. The most common purpose of a ring road is to assist i ...
has been built in the last few years, coming from the southwest. The B 96 federal road between Stralsund and Greifswald
Greifswald (), officially the University and Hanseatic City of Greifswald (german: Universitäts- und Hansestadt Greifswald, Low German: ''Griepswoold'') is the fourth-largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostoc ...
is also connected via an access road to the A 20 motorway. The B 96 runs from Stralsund via Bergen to Sassnitz. Here a new route with bypasses is planned (the "New B 96").
The main tourist attractions of Cape Arkona, the Königsstuhl and the Granitz hunting lodge
Granitz Hunting Lodge (german: Jagdschloss Granitz) is located on the German island of Rügen in the vicinity of the seaside resort of Binz. With over 200,000 visitors per year it is the most popular castle or ''schloss'' in Mecklenburg-Vorpomm ...
are, however, car-free in order to protect the countryside, as is the island of Hiddensee which belongs to Vorpommern-Rügen district. All these destinations can be reached using public transport, without needing a car.
Cycling
Rügen has a signposted network of cycle paths. The condition and signing of this network varies considerably from one place to another, from very good in the seaside resorts to poor in the area between Garz and Zudar. There is a circular cycle path around the whole island. During the summer season there is the option on some routes to carry bicycles on the buses. This is always possible on the railways.Ship
Two car ferries belonging to the operate every half-an-hour between the Zudar peninsula on Rügen and Stahlbrode on the mainland, halfway between Stralsund and Greifswald .
Another car ferry, the Wittow Ferry runs from the heartland of Rügen (''Muttland'') to Wittow.
A ferry sails from Sassnitz
Sassnitz (, before 1993 in german: Saßnitz) is a town on the Jasmund peninsula, Rügen Island, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The population as of 2012 was 9,498.
Sassnitz is a well-known seaside resort and port town, a ...
ferry port in Mukran to the Danish island of Bornholm
Bornholm () is a Danish island in the Baltic Sea, to the east of the rest of Denmark, south of Sweden, northeast of Germany and north of Poland.
Strategically located, Bornholm has been fought over for centuries. It has usually been ruled by ...
, to Swedish Trelleborg
Trelleborg () is a town in Skåne County, Sweden, with 43,359 inhabitants as of December 31, 2015. It is the southernmost town in Sweden located some west from the southernmost point of Sweden and the Scandinavian peninsula. It is one of the m ...
, to Klaipėda
Klaipėda (; ; german: Memel; pl, Kłajpeda; russian: Клайпеда; sgs, Klaipieda) is a city in Lithuania on the Baltic Sea coast. The capital of the eponymous county, it is the third largest city and the only major seaport in Lithuani ...
(formerly Memel) in Lithuania, to Baltiysk
Baltiysk (russian: Балти́йск; german: Pillau; Old Prussian: ''Pillawa''; pl, Piława; lt, Piliava; Yiddish: פּילאַווע, ''Pilave'') is a seaport town and the administrative center of Baltiysky District in Kaliningrad Oblast ...
(formerly Pillau) and to Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
.
The island of Hiddensee
Hiddensee () is a car-free island in the Baltic Sea, located west of Germany's largest island, Rügen, on the German coast.
The island has about 1,000 inhabitants. It was a holiday destination for East German tourists during German Democratic ...
, which also belongs to the county of Vorpommern-Rügen, is connected by a regular ferry service from Schaprode to Rügen, and is increasingly integrated into the clock-schedule timetable on the main island. In addition, there is a regular ship service from Stralsund, Wiek and Breege
Breege is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the Europ ...
to Hiddensee. Tourist services include ferry connections from Lauterbach to Gager, and between Sassnitz, Binz, Sellin and Göhren. There are also round-trips mainly from Sassnitz, but also from Lohme, to the Königsstuhl.
Pleasure steamers also ply between the resorts and Peenemünde
Peenemünde (, en, " Peene iverMouth") is a municipality on the Baltic Sea island of Usedom in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is part of the ''Amt'' (collective municipality) of Usedom-Nord. The co ...
on Usedom, where there is a connection to the Usedom Railway (UBB).
Ferries
Sassnitz
Sassnitz (, before 1993 in german: Saßnitz) is a town on the Jasmund peninsula, Rügen Island, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The population as of 2012 was 9,498.
Sassnitz is a well-known seaside resort and port town, a ...
– Neu Mukran is the international ferry terminal on Rügen, with ferry services to
*Trelleborg
Trelleborg () is a town in Skåne County, Sweden, with 43,359 inhabitants as of December 31, 2015. It is the southernmost town in Sweden located some west from the southernmost point of Sweden and the Scandinavian peninsula. It is one of the m ...
( Sweden, served by Stena Line
Stena Line is a Swedish shipping line company and one of the largest ferry operators in the world. It services Denmark, Germany, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latvia, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland and Sweden. Stena Line is a major unit of Ste ...
),
*Rønne
Rønne ( sv, Rönne) is the largest town on the Danish island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea. It has a population of 13,807 (1 January 2022). It was a municipality in its own right from 1970 until 2002, when Bornholm was a county ( Danish: ''Born ...
(Bornholm
Bornholm () is a Danish island in the Baltic Sea, to the east of the rest of Denmark, south of Sweden, northeast of Germany and north of Poland.
Strategically located, Bornholm has been fought over for centuries. It has usually been ruled by ...
, Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establishe ...
, served by Bornholmslinjen
(previously called ) is a Danish company that operates ferry services between Jutland (Jylland) and the island of Zealand
(Sjælland). In March 2017, the routes in the Kattegat were renamed to Molslinjen, while the Bornholms services would co ...
),
*Klaipėda
Klaipėda (; ; german: Memel; pl, Kłajpeda; russian: Клайпеда; sgs, Klaipieda) is a city in Lithuania on the Baltic Sea coast. The capital of the eponymous county, it is the third largest city and the only major seaport in Lithuani ...
(Memel, Lithuania, served by DFDS Lisco
DFDS Seaways is a Danish shipping company that operates passenger and freight services across northern Europe. Following the acquisition of Norfolkline in 2010, DFDS restructured its other shipping divisions ( DFDS Tor Line and DFDS Lisco) ...
),
*Baltiysk
Baltiysk (russian: Балти́йск; german: Pillau; Old Prussian: ''Pillawa''; pl, Piława; lt, Piliava; Yiddish: פּילאַווע, ''Pilave'') is a seaport town and the administrative center of Baltiysky District in Kaliningrad Oblast ...
(Pillau, Kaliningrad Oblast
Kaliningrad Oblast (russian: Калинингра́дская о́бласть, translit=Kaliningradskaya oblast') is the westernmost federal subject of Russia. It is a semi-exclave situated on the Baltic Sea. The largest city and admini ...
, Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...
, served by DFDS Lisco
DFDS Seaways is a Danish shipping company that operates passenger and freight services across northern Europe. Following the acquisition of Norfolkline in 2010, DFDS restructured its other shipping divisions ( DFDS Tor Line and DFDS Lisco) ...
),
*Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
(Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...
, served by ''TransRussiaExpress'')
*Ust-Luga
Ust-Luga (russian: Усть-Луга, lit. ''mouth of the Luga'', Votian: ''Laugasuu'', lit. ''mouth of the Luga'', fi, Laukaansuu) is a settlement and railway station in Kingiseppsky District of Leningrad Oblast, Russia, near the Estonian borde ...
(near Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
, Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...
; planned).
Sassnitz-Mukran is the largest railway ferry terminal in Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...
and the only one in Europe where different tracks allow switching from standard gauge to broad gauge
A broad-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge (the distance between the rails) broader than the used by standard-gauge railways.
Broad gauge of , commonly known as Russian gauge, is the dominant track gauge in former Soviet Union (CIS ...
.
Local passenger ferries connect the pier
Seaside pleasure pier in England.html" ;"title="Brighton, England">Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century.
A pier is a raised structure that rises above a body of water and usually juts out ...
s of Sassnitz
Sassnitz (, before 1993 in german: Saßnitz) is a town on the Jasmund peninsula, Rügen Island, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The population as of 2012 was 9,498.
Sassnitz is a well-known seaside resort and port town, a ...
, Binz
Binz is the largest seaside resort on the German island of Rügen.
It is situated between the bay of Prorer Wiek and the ''Schmachter See'' (a lake) in the southeast of the island. To the north of Binz stretches the Schmale Heide (the "narrow h ...
, Sellin
Sellin is a municipality on the Island of Rügen, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
History
First mentions of Sellin date to 1295. From 1880 on, the town gained importance as a Baltic Sea spa town.
After the '' Wende'' in 1989, the building ...
and Göhren with the adjacent islands of Hiddensee
Hiddensee () is a car-free island in the Baltic Sea, located west of Germany's largest island, Rügen, on the German coast.
The island has about 1,000 inhabitants. It was a holiday destination for East German tourists during German Democratic ...
, Vilm
The Baltic Sea island of Vilm lies in the bay south of the much larger island of Rügen, and is one of Germany's most remote and tranquil spots. Covering less than , Vilm is the remnant of a moraine left as the glaciers retreated about 6000 yea ...
and Greifswalder Oie. Passenger and car ferries connect Rügen's centre of Muttland
Muttland comprises the main section of the German island of Rügen, excluding the Rugian peninsulae and small surrounding islands.
The predominant land use is agriculture. Grasslands are found in very small proportions. There are nature conservati ...
, to both Wittow
Wittow is the northernmost peninsula of the island of Rügen. Wittow was a separate island until the High Middle Ages, but since then has been connected to the Jasmund peninsula of Rügen by the Schaabe spit. Wittow is most famous for Cape Arkona ...
in Rügen's north via the Wittow Ferry and to the mainland via the Glewitz Ferry () between Stahlbrode near Greifswald
Greifswald (), officially the University and Hanseatic City of Greifswald (german: Universitäts- und Hansestadt Greifswald, Low German: ''Griepswoold'') is the fourth-largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostoc ...
and Glewitz on Rügen's Zudar
The Zudar is a peninsula on the German Baltic Sea island of Rügen. It is about 18 square kilometres in area and sharply divided.
Location
The peninsula lies between the bay of Schoritzer Wiek, the lagoon of Rügischer Bodden (the northe ...
peninsula.
Aviation
Rügen Airport is located about from Bergen. After the '' Wende'', the first sightseeing flights over the island were offered on the former agricultural airfield. In May 1993, the first tarmac runway was inaugurated. Since then, charter flights to Berlin, Hamburg and other cities in Europe have been available.
The Baltic Sea Airport Stralsund also offers flights to and from the region of Western Pomerania
Historical Western Pomerania, also called Cispomerania, Fore Pomerania, Front Pomerania or Hither Pomerania (german: Vorpommern), is the western extremity of the historic region of Pomerania forming the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, Weste ...
. The larger Rostock–Laage Airport
Rostock Airport, German: ''Flughafen Rostock-Laage'' , is the airport of Rostock, the largest city in the German state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and is named after Laage, within the boundary of which it is located. Laage is a town in the Rostock di ...
offers regular international destinations.
Notable people
Significant Rüganer:
* Preben von Ahnen (1606–1675) a German-born Norwegian civil servant and landowner.
* Count Baltzar Bogislaus von Platen (1766–1829) a Swedish naval officer and statesman.
* Ernst Moritz Arndt
Ernst Moritz Arndt (26 December 1769 – 29 January 1860) was a German nationalist historian, writer and poet. Early in his life, he fought for the abolition of serfdom, later against Napoleonic dominance over Germany. Arndt had to flee to Sw ...
(1769–1860), German writer and deputy.
* Wilhelm Malte I Prince of Putbus
Putbus () is a town on the southeastern coast of the island of Rügen, in the county of Vorpommern-Rügen in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, close to the Baltic Sea. The town has 4,741 inhabitants and is a significant tourist destinat ...
(1783–1854), under his rule there was much construction work in the classical style
* Arnold Ruge
Arnold Ruge (13 September 1802 – 31 December 1880) was a German philosopher and political writer. He was the older brother of Ludwig Ruge.
Studies in university and prison
Born in Bergen auf Rügen, he studied in Halle, Jena and Heidelberg. ...
(1802–1880) a philosopher and political writer.
* Karl Schwarz
Karl Schwarz (19 November 1812 – 25 March 1885) was a German Protestant theologian.
Life Birth and early life
He was born at Wiek, Rügen. His father, Theodor Schwarz, pastor at Wiek, was well known as a preacher, and as the writer of a n ...
(1812–1885) a Protestant theologian.
* Theodor Billroth
Christian Albert Theodor Billroth (26 April 18296 February 1894) was a German surgeon and amateur musician.
As a surgeon, he is generally regarded as the founding father of modern abdominal surgery. As a musician, he was a close friend and con ...
(1829–1894), one of the greatest surgeons of the 19th century.
* Berthold Delbrück
Berthold Gustav Gottlieb Delbrück (; 26 July 1842 – 3 January 1922) was a German linguist who devoted himself to the study of the comparative syntax of the Indo-European languages.
Early life
Delbrück was born in Putbus. He studied at the un ...
(1842–1922), German linguist
* Anna Dabis (1847–1927) a sculptor who spent much of her career in Britain.
* Hans Delbrück
Hans Gottlieb Leopold Delbrück (; 11 November 1848 – 14 July 1929) was a German historian. Delbrück was one of the first modern military historians, basing his method of research on the critical examination of ancient sources, using auxiliary ...
(1848–1929), German historian and politician.
* Franziska Tiburtius (1843–1927), German doctor and campaigner for women's studies
* Hans Langsdorff
Hans Wilhelm Langsdorff (20 March 1894 – 20 December 1939) was a German naval officer, most famous for his command of the German pocket battleship ''Admiral Graf Spee'' during the Battle of the River Plate off the coast of Uruguay in 1939. ...
(1894–1939), German naval officer and captain of the Armoured Cruiser '' Admiral Graf Spee''
* Meinhard Nehmer (born 1941), East German bobsledder, Olympic and World Champion
* Christian Schwochow
Christian Schwochow (; born 23 September 1978) is a German film director. He has directed more than ten films since 2005, including TV movie ' on the ARD channel, a tragicomedy about the fall of the Berlin Wall. Schwochow also directed episodes ...
(born 1978) a German film director.
Individuals associated with the island
* Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher
Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, Fürst von Wahlstatt (; 21 December 1742 – 12 September 1819), ''Graf'' (count), later elevated to ''Fürst'' (sovereign prince) von Wahlstatt, was a Kingdom of Prussia, Prussian ''Generalfeldmarschall'' (field ...
Prince Wahlstatt (1742–1819), Prussian Field Marshal, spent his youth on the Venz estate.
* Caspar David Friedrich
Caspar David Friedrich (5 September 1774 – 7 May 1840) was a 19th-century German Romantic landscape painter, generally considered the most important German artist of his generation. He is best known for his mid-period allegorical landscape ...
(1774–1840), painter, stayed several times on visits by relatives of Pomerania and was inspired mainly by the chalk cliffs
* Ludwig Gotthard Kosegarten
Ludwig Gotthard Kosegarten (1 February 1758 – 26 October 1818), also known as Ludwig Theobul or Ludwig Theoboul, was a German poet and Lutheran preacher.
Kosegarten was born in Grevesmühlen, in the Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. After st ...
(1758–1818), theologian, pastor, professor and poet, famous pastor of the parish Altenkirchen at Rügen
* Joachim Nicolas Eggert (1779–1813), composer and musical director, member of the Royal Swedish Musical Academy
* Maximilian Kaller
Maximilian Kaller (10 October 1880 – 7 July 1947) was Roman Catholic Bishop of Ermland ( pl, Warmia) in East Prussia from 1930 to 1947. However, ''de facto'' expelled from mid-August 1945, he was a special bishop for the homeland-expellees unti ...
(1880–1947), Bishop of Warmia in Prussia, began his first pastorate as mission pastor of St. Boniface parish at Rügen
* Angela Merkel
Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German former politician and scientist who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), she previously served as Leader of the Op ...
(born 1954), German Chancellor (CDU), represented the constituency of Vorpommern-Rügen – Vorpommern-Greifswald I between 1990 and 2021; she therefore represented the island of Rügen in the Bundestag
The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet (assembly), Diet") is the German Federalism, federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representat ...
.
See also
*Åland
Åland ( fi, Ahvenanmaa: ; ; ) is an Federacy, autonomous and Demilitarized zone, demilitarised region of Finland since 1920 by a decision of the League of Nations. It is the smallest region of Finland by area and population, with a size of 1 ...
* Bornholm
Bornholm () is a Danish island in the Baltic Sea, to the east of the rest of Denmark, south of Sweden, northeast of Germany and north of Poland.
Strategically located, Bornholm has been fought over for centuries. It has usually been ruled by ...
* Buyan
In the Dove Book and other medieval Russian books, Buyan (russian: Буя́н, sometimes transliterated as Bujan) is described as a mysterious island in the ocean with the ability to appear and disappear with the tide. Three brothers—Northern, ...
* Gotland
Gotland (, ; ''Gutland'' in Gutnish), also historically spelled Gottland or Gothland (), is Sweden's largest island. It is also a province, county, municipality, and diocese. The province includes the islands of Fårö and Gotska Sandön to th ...
, Öland
Öland (, ; ; sometimes written ''Øland'' in other Scandinavian languages, and often ''Oland'' internationally; la, Oelandia) is the second-largest Swedish island and the smallest of the traditional provinces of Sweden. Öland has an area ...
* List of islands in the Baltic Sea
This is a list of islands in the Baltic Sea. The Baltic Sea proper is bordered to the north by the Bothnian Sea and, further north, the Gulf of Bothnia, neither being part of the Baltic Sea proper. The eastern basins the Gulf of Finland and the ...
* List of churches on Rügen
* Prora
The Colossus of Prora, commonly known as simply "Prora", is a building complex in the municipality of Binz on the island of Rügen, Germany. It was built by Nazi Germany between 1936 and 1939 as part of the Strength Through Joy (Kraft durch F ...
* Saaremaa
Saaremaa is the largest island in Estonia, measuring . The main island of Saare County, it is located in the Baltic Sea, south of Hiiumaa island and west of Muhu island, and belongs to the West Estonian Archipelago. The capital of the islan ...
, Hiiumaa
Hiiumaa (, ) is the second largest island in Estonia and is part of the West Estonian archipelago, in the Baltic Sea. It has an area of 989 km2 and is 22 km from the Estonian mainland. Its largest town is Kärdla. It is located withi ...
References
External links
* *Official site
Map of Rygensko by Ján Kollár
(English) {{DEFAULTSORT:Rugen German islands in the Baltic Biosphere reserves of Germany Geography of Pomerania Islands of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania