Walfisch is an uninhabited

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...

, in the

Bay of Mecklenburg The Bay of Mecklenburg ( or ''Mecklenburgische Bucht''; ), also known as the Mecklenburg Bay or Mecklenburg Bight, is a long narrow basin making up the southwestern finger-like arm of the Baltic Sea, between the shores of Germany to the south a ...

in the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

. It lies approximately north of the city of

Wismar Wismar (; ), officially the Hanseatic City of Wismar () is, with around 43,000 inhabitants, the sixth-largest city of the northeastern German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and the fourth-largest city of Mecklenburg after Rostock, Schwerin and ...

, south of the island of

Poel Poel () or Poel Island (), is an island in the Baltic Sea. It forms the natural northern and eastern boundaries of the Bay of Wismar on the German coast. The northern coast of the island is also on the south side of the large gulf known as the B ...

. The island is very flat and has a maximum circumference of about , a surface area of and is a

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...

History

During the

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

there was a

fort A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from La ...

ress located on the island, which today is mainly under water. Relics of this are still being discovered today through

aerial archaeology Aerial archaeology is the study of archaeological sites from the air. It is a method of Archaeology, archaeological investigation that uses aerial photography, remote sensing, and other techniques to identify, record, and interpret archaeological ...

.''Unterwasserarchäologische Prospektionen im Hafen von Wismar''
at uwa-mv.de. Retrieved 7 December 2023. The fortress of Walfisch was destroyed in the year 1717 after the

Northern Wars "Northern Wars" is a term used for a series of wars fought in northern Europe, northern and northeastern Europe from the 16th to the 18th century, primarily between the territorial rivals of the Swedish Empire, Tsardom of Russia, Poland–Lithuani ...

References

Literature

Friedrich Schlie Friedrich Schlie (12 December 1839 – 21 July 1902) was a German art historian and archaeologist. Life As the son of a Kantor and teacher, Schlie was taught by private tuition until his graduation examination in Rostock in 1863. He then studied ...

: ''Die Kunst- und Geschichts-Denkmäler des Grossherzogthums Mecklenburg-Schwerin.'' Vol. II: ''Die Amtsgerichtsbezirke Wismar, Grevesmühlen, Rehna, Gadebusch und Schwerin.'' Schwerin 1898. Reprint Schwerin 1992, ISBN 3-910179-06-1, pp. 23 ff., 226 ff. * Lutz Mohr: ''Aufgebaute und zerstörte Eilande an der Ostseeküste der DDR''. In: ''Greifswald-Stralsunder Jahrbuch'', Vol. 11. Böhlau, Weimar 1977, pp. 17–41 * Lutz Mohr: ''Zwischen Walfisch und Oie. Eilande an der Ostseeküste der DDR''. In: ''Jahrbuch der Schiffahrt''. Transpress Verlag, Berlin 1986, pp. 109–117, 17 Kartenabb. * Lutz Mohr: ''Die Insel Walfisch in Vergangenheit und Gegenwart''. In: ''Naturschutz in Mecklenburg'', Greifswald/Schwerin, Year 20 (double issue), No. 1/2/1977, pp. 32–35 * Gustav Willgeroth: ''Bilder aus Wismars Vergangenheit''. Verlag Willgeroth und Menzel 1903 * Uninhabited islands of Germany German islands in the Baltic Wismar Bay of Wismar Islands of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania {{Wismar-geo-stub