History of the Hanseatic City of Stralsund

The article History of the Hanseatic City of Stralsund deals with the development of the German city of Stralsund . Founded as a Slavic settlement in the 10th century, the town of Stralow was granted the town charter of Lübbecke in 1234 . Stralsund came to Pommern-Wolgast in 1325 after the Principality of Rügen had died out . Since the 14th century it has been the most important Hanseatic city in the southern Baltic region after Lübeck .

From the 17th to the early 19th century, Stralsund was owned by the King of Sweden in the Holy Roman Empire , after which it became part of the Prussian province of Pomerania and was the seat of an administrative district. Stralsund lost its status as the district town of a "mantle district" in 1994, and its own district freedom in 2011 - making it the district town of the Vorpommern-Rügen district . Today, the Hanseatic city of Stralsund, together with Greifswald , is the regional center in the Western Pomerania part of the German state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania .

Stralsund after Mattheus Merian d. Ä.

10th to 13th centuries

Slavic settlement

The island of Rügen and parts of the opposite mainland belonged to the settlement area of the Slavic Ranen , who had retained their political independence until the middle of the 12th century and were one of the last non-Christian peoples in Central Europe. In 1168 the long-standing dispute with the Christian neighbors ended with the victory of the Danish king Waldemar I over the Ranen and the conquest of their main sanctuary, the Jaromarsburg at Cape Arkona . After the victory of the Danes, the Slavic princes became feudal men of the Danish crown and adopted the Christian faith. The princes then went to the field against the Pomeranian surrounding areas and thought about expanding their power on the mainland as well. The Strale settlement was strategically located at the crossroads of trade routes between Rostock , Demmin , Rügen and Stettin . The offshore island of Stralow offered a natural harbor, one of the reasons for the settlement of the city.

The historian Saxo Grammaticus reported that the Danes used the island of Stralow as a berth for their ships during military campaigns inland as early as the 12th century . Long before the city was founded, there was a Slavic fishing village on this island. What is certain is that at the time the city was founded, it was already a large settlement. There was also the fact that swamps and ponds made defense easier. The city ponds were only expanded later. The location on the Strelasund enabled access to the Baltic Sea on two sides. Due to the rich herring stocks in the waters, many merchants settled there, who saw it as their basis for trade.

City charter certificate from 1234

City charter

On October 31, 1234, the Slavic Prince Wizlaw I of Charenza (Rügen) granted the fishing village Stralow am Strelasund the town charter with the following text:

“Witzlaw, Prince of the Ruians by the grace of God , greetings in the Lord to all faithful to whom the present letter reaches. We want to have made it known to everyone, both the present and the future generation, that we have given our town of Stralow the same justice and freedom that is given to the town of Rostock. So that this promise made by us will now be kept firmly and inviolably, we confirm and affirm it by current writing and by attaching our seal. Given at Charenz, in the year of grace 1234, on October 31st. "

The certificate consists of a strip of parchment measuring just 5.5 × 15 centimeters . Not only the sparse content and size are unusual, but also that no witnesses are named for this act. The document is kept in the Stralsund City Archives .

The founding of the city was not selfless on the part of the Rügen princes: the trade was supposed to serve the economic development and the expected taxes of the princely treasury. According to the castellan constitution in force at the time, a village was subordinate to the respective governor, while a city was directly subordinate to the prince. The Stralsund merchants also benefited, as the granting of town charter was also linked to customs exemption.

13th to 16th centuries

German settlement

In the course of Christianization, people from the West Elbe areas soon came: Lower Saxony , Westphalia , Holsteiners , Frisians , Dutch and Flemings moved to the East Elbe area. Little by little, they took possession of the new settlement areas, as evidenced by the wave of founding cities along the Baltic coast. The town charter shows that the founders of Stralsund were probably Rostock merchants. There were also other immigrants. Based on the names in the city register from 1270 and in the city register from 1319, which often indicated their regional origin, it can be seen that almost a third came from the immediate vicinity (mainland and Rügen) and two thirds from more distant areas - up to Novgorod , Italy , Bohemia - moved here. Although the city was on formerly Slavic territory, the Germans soon predominated. The Slavs soon had to adapt to the German immigrants in language and way of life.

On February 25, 1240, Prince Witzlaw I issued a second certificate at his Prohner Castle, which was important for Stralsund. In the text Witzlaw I once again mentioned the city charter based on the Rostock model, and Stralesund was also mentioned for the first time as a city name. The city received the ferry village (antiquus navalis transitus) against payment of ninety marks Rügen coin and the island of Strale as well as forests (today: Frankenvorstadt) and fields (today: Kniepervorstadt) within the city limits as a gift. In addition, the certificate allowed the people of Stralsund to fish freely and to hunt small game. It also guaranteed duty-free throughout the Principality. The young city quickly developed into a flourishing trading location and as a competitor to the existing trading cities. In 1249, a fleet of the Hanseatic city of Lübeck under Alexander von Soltwedels unexpectedly attacked the city and reduced it to rubble, but the city was quickly rebuilt.

The plant of the city

The original city extended to today's streets Papenstraße and Apollonienmarkt . In the old town, based on the old market as the city center at that time, impressive buildings were erected. The Nikolaikirche was first mentioned in 1276; the long inner corridor of the adjoining town hall originally housed the stalls of many traders. The area southwest of it initially still belonged to the Rügen prince, who probably had his curie there since 1242 and founded a Dominican monastery in 1251 . Since the original old town soon reached its spatial limits, the citizens also settled in the new town. This was first mentioned in a document in 1256. In 1270 there was the first mention of the New Market , with which the Marienkirche was mentioned in 1298 . This parish church replaced the Peter and Paul Church , of which nothing has survived; it was probably on the corner of Frankenstrasse and Badstüberstrasse .

Both parts of the city were protected by a common fortification ring from 1261 , which was completed at the end of the 13th century. The location of the city, which was bordered on all sides by water (Strelasund, ponds), proved to be favorable. Ten city gates, namely six water gates and four land gates, consisting of an outer and an inner gate, were located in the city wall. A fifth landside gate is suspected. This is said to have been reserved for the sovereign alone. (See map of 1647)

Since the spatial situation in the old town became more and more difficult due to the prosperous trade, expansion began in the 1260s with the merging of the old and new towns at the end of the 13th century. In 1271 large parts of the predominantly wooden town were destroyed by fire. After that, the city was renewed with a significantly higher proportion of brick buildings . In 1283 there were three brickworks in Stralsund.

In 1269, Prince Wizlaw II announced in a document that he would withdraw the town charter from the new town of Schadegard (“Gray Castle”) and “give it up for the prosperity and benefit of his beloved citizens of Stralsund” (“propter melius bonum et propter utilitatem futuram […] Burgensium nostrorum videlicet dilectorum Stralesund ”) . Some historians suspect an identity between Neustadt and Schadegard. This is contradicted by the documentary mention of the Neustadt as such around 1256.

Although the city developed very quickly, many areas within the city limits were still undeveloped in the first 50 years. The so-called Feldmark , whose fields, pastures and gardens belonged to the citizens of the city and the arable citizens , formed the basis for supplying the Stralsunders with food . The numerous trades were mostly located in smaller companies . Grain was z. B. partly processed directly in the city, which the name Mühlenstraße proves.

The great importance of beer production was shown in the presence of a hop market mentioned in the first city book . The character as a seaside town was formative for other branches of trade such as shipbuilding. The first records report that eight shipyards in the area of what is now Frankenvorstadt were not reported until 1393 , but other sources suggest that ships were built before the city was founded. In 1284 Wismar reported about the purchase of Stralsund ships. But also all trades related to shipbuilding and trade had settled in Stralsund, for example Böttcher , because at that time almost all products were traded in barrels and barrels .

Trade and commerce

The artisans did not play an important role in politics. The Lübische Stadtrecht forbade the membership of members of the craftsmen in the city council. Over the years, this repeatedly led to quarrels with the merchants who determined the town's fate in the council. They mainly exported agricultural products, firewood and construction wood, fish, oil, grain, hops, cattle and pigs, and beer. In the beginning, the trade was mainly limited to domestic products, but the range was soon expanded, especially in long-distance trade. The Stralsund merchants had thus become middlemen, which promised more profit.

Since Stralsund was in the area of a Danish fief, it was almost a matter of course that the Stralsunders established their first trade relations there. These are first proven in the year 1249. For this year, a document showed that shipwrecked people from the Rügen principalities were exempt from beach law . It was important for the city's merchants to establish and maintain trade relations with merchants from Flanders ( Bruges ), Spain , Italy , France and southern Germany . Trade relations also existed with England and Sweden , relations with Norway caused problems . On the other hand, business with dealers from the Baltic region was excellent. Novgorod , Riga , Reval and Pskov were destinations for long-distance trips. The Novgorod driver's stalls in St. Nicholas' Church still show that trade with Novgorod ( Peterhof ) made significant profits . At that time, the most important guild of the merchant class in Stralsund was the dressmaker .

The increasing economic power brought with it the advantage that the Stralsunders could buy far-reaching privileges from their sovereigns, the Rügen and later the Pomeranian princes, which almost led to autonomy. However, Stralsund was always denied the legal status of a Free City , as achieved in Lübeck or Hamburg - Stralsund played too big a strategic role in the plans of the rulers.

With the second award of town charter in 1240, Stralsund had acquired the forest and the field mark of the old ferry village from Prince Wizlaw I and also received fields and pastures next to the island of Strale . These areas, called Stadtfeldmark , were leased to Stralsund citizens. The rent, which was paid in cash or in kind, quickly became one of the main sources of income for the city, alongside customs on goods and consumption taxes and rents. In times of urgent need for money, urban real estate was sold exclusively to Stralsund citizens; according to Lübischem law, sales to “ clergymen , knights or knights” were forbidden: the citizens did not want to cede property once they had won to the nobles or the church.

In the 13th century, the city expanded its land holdings well beyond the former borders of the Feldmark . In 1290 the villages of Voigdehagen and Lüdershagen were acquired. Wizlaw I. had the city confirmed its ownership again in writing and also granted the right to acquire property outside the city walls in the future. In 1301 the village of Vogelsang came into municipal possession , in 1302 Lüssow . In 1306 Stralsund acquired pasture land on the Zingst , in 1321 the villages Devin , Tessekenhagen , Zitterpenningshagen , Wendorf , Lützow , Langendorf and Kedingshagen .

Member of the Hanseatic League

The (founding) membership and in some cases an important role in the Hanseatic League shaped the character of the city, gave it a self-image, which in turn was reflected in an increase in political and economic power. With the founding of the city, the economic interests of the other Baltic Sea cities were affected: Lübeck had previously held various trading privileges in the Principality of Rügen, which did not officially end, but were effectively curtailed by the existence of an up-and-coming competitor. In 1249, after defeating the Danish king and conquering Copenhagen Castle , Lübeck and its fleet conquered the new competitor on the Strelasund and burned her down. Stralsund was rebuilt, other competitors such as Schadegard ousted by the influence of the Stralsund in the Rügen prince. However, it was clear to the trading citizens of the cities along the Baltic Sea coast that their well-being would lie in coming together rather than in eternal strife; only in this way could they assert their interests against those of the nobles in the long term. In 1265 Stralsund signed a contract with Demmin and in 1267 with Tribsees , in which extensive legal aid was sealed. In 1278 Stralsund, together with Lübeck , Rostock , Wismar and Greifswald, acquired duty-free status on the markets in Hvidanger (Denmark). In 1283 it was again these cities, as well as Stettin , Demmin and Anklam , that concluded treaties with the sovereigns in the Rostock Land Peace . For the first time, cities were also given the right to form alliances.

Already at the end of 1283 this alliance proved itself for the first time in the blockade of the Norwegian ports in the dispute between Norway and the German trading cities. In 1293, Stralsund, Lübeck, Rostock, Wismar and Greifswald pledged to provide mutual assistance, which after diplomatic measures by the cities also provided for the creation of joint war fleets for one another. The foundation stone for the Städtehanse ("Hanse" means "crowd") was laid.

In the period that followed, the great advantages that the alliance offered for the trading cities became apparent again and again. The German Hanseatic cities in Norway were granted favorable tariffs; In 1358 King Magnus assured the Stralsund citizens of his special protection if they visited Norway as traders. The Hanseatic League was also a trump card for merchants in trade with England . And when there were disputes in trade with Flanders over the Hanseatic office in Bruges in 1356 , which could not be resolved through diplomatic efforts, the Hanseatic cities used the tried and tested method of blockade: in 1360 Flanders gave in to the Hanseatic cities. Other trading partners were merchants from Westphalia (goods were also traded overland, so the Stralsund merchants are busy with Dortmund and Soest ), Elbing , Kolberg , Lithuania and Novgorod .

The manufacturing industry developed along with trade. These craftsmen had organized themselves in offices ( guilds ), which were differentiated according to trades . The first verifiable office in Stralsund was that of the shoemaker , which is documented in 1290. The elected senior men (guild leaders) were at the head of the offices . In contrast to the merchants, however, the offices had no political participation. Lübische law only allowed merchants to become members of the city council. Altermen could only be elected in the presence of a councilor and always had to comply with the councilors' resolutions. Opposition was severely punished: in 1340 a cooperage master who had demanded the removal of the senior man from his office, elected with the consent of the council, was banished from the city. Admission to an office was strictly regulated. The craftsman asking for admission had to prove his marital and, above all, free birth, show a masterpiece, pay a financial obolus to the office and a wine donation to the senior men, acquire citizenship before the council and prove a certain amount of property. The number of members of an office was limited. The offices also stipulated how many journeymen the masters employ and how many orders they were allowed to accept. Disputes were to be brought to the senior men first before the council was invoked. This resulted from the Lübschen law, which granted the offices the so-called morning language (morgensprak) . This concerned the regulation of internal affairs at meetings of the offices.

The cities were in a dire situation, which resulted from their location within countries of feudal rulers such as B. the Danes resulted. They gave them money in exchange for privileges. When the princes and kings saw themselves largely deprived of their influence on the rich cities, they mobilized against the seaside cities: In 1311, a united force moved from Denmark, Saxony , Braunschweig , Thuringia , Meissen , Poland , Brandenburg , Holstein , Magdeburg , in the Margrave War . Bremen and Wittenburg first against Wismar and Rostock, which were conquered by the armed forces. Stralsund bought itself free in 1313 and renounced a large part of its previous privileges. Three years later, however, the situation had fundamentally changed again: after Stralsund allied with the Brandenburgers, the siege of Stralsund was broken in 1316 by Danish troops allied with the Danes. The capture of the Duke of Saxony-Lauenburg brought the city high ransom money (probably the gable of the town hall was financed from this), after the break of the coalition against Stralsund, the re-strengthened city was even able to expand its privileges, so Stralsund acquired the Stralsund and the rügen Customs and the mint in the principality, plus patronage over the schools and the princely mills in front of the city.

After the death of the rügen prince Wizlaw III. When the question of ownership over the principality arose, the Danes and Mecklenburgers allied to take power there. Stralsund defeated the Mecklenburg allies with their Holstein ally in 1327; the Principality of Rügen united with the Duchy of Pommern-Wolgast . After the end of these long armed conflicts, which had severely hampered economic development, Stralsund's trade and economy quickly flourished again. Stralsund had great advantages through the expanded economic area thanks to the unification of the federal states and the expansion of long-distance trade. However, the Baltic Sea trade got a damper with the clashes between King Magnus of Sweden and Norway and the Holstein ruler in Denmark, as piracy became more and more of an obstacle. It was not until 1343 that the member cities of the Hanseatic League were able to remove these obstacles in a contract with King Magnus.

Document of the Stralsund Peace of 1370

The Stralsund Peace of 1370

See main article: Peace of Stralsund

Stralsund's role in the Wendish quarter of the Hanseatic League at that time was undoubtedly to be placed just after Lübeck . This political importance of Stralsund found its expression in the choice of Stralsund to seal the results of the negotiations between the Hanseatic League and the Danish Council, which went down in history as the Stralsund Peace .

The city constitution of 1391

After defeating Denmark, trade flourished again. Almost all classes in Stralsund benefited from this upswing. Politically, however, only the council was still decisive, neither the offices nor other craftsmen had rights of co-determination. This led to unrest in all Hanseatic cities, which was also expressed in surveys in Stralsund in 1391. The mayor Bertram Wulflam played a key role in determining the Stralsund council policy since 1361 . Between 1361 and 1385 he took part in 59 Hanseatic days as a representative of Stralsund , in the two wars against Denmark he had earned a great reputation and consolidated his power. At the Old Market, opposite the town hall, he had a trading and residential building ( Wulflamhaus ) built, which is still preserved today , the front of which was deliberately facing the town hall. His actions became more and more dictatorial and arrogant. In addition, his son Wulf Wulflam caused an uproar with his lust for power and arbitrariness. While Bertram Wulflam enjoyed a reputation for his achievements for Stralsund, Wulf Wulflam, who had received his political offices at the instigation of his father, could not come up with successes. A force commanded by him, which was supposed to take action against pirates , failed in 1385. As a result, the Hanseatic cities had to conclude a humiliating armistice with the noble pirates in 1386 . Unrest moved into Stralsund and led the council to set up the Wulflams unweighted councilors. One of them was Karsten Sarnow , who was able to defeat pirates in a company in 1391, which ensured him a good position in Stralsund. Sarnow, standing in opposition to the Wulflams and the traditional city constitution, forced a reform of this city constitution on May 2, 1391.

All current council constitutions (arbitrary) were repealed and u. a. a representation of the elderly men , the community elderly men’s council , created. This was the first time that the offices had a modest influence on the fortunes of the city. But in the same year 1391 a bad harvest occurred, which led to hardship and annoyance. The Wulflams, who had been driven out of the city, obtained a resolution from the other Hanseatic cities on October 18, 1392, threatening Stralsund with exclusion from the Hanseatic League, unless the old constitution was restored. The mood in Stralsund turned against Sarnow; he was executed on February 21, 1393 in the Alter Markt. The city constitution was withdrawn.

Peace did not move into Stralsund. Stralsunders always had disputes with their sovereigns or foreign powers, but internal disputes were not uncommon either. For example in 1407, when the Stralsund people burned three priests in the Papenbrand thom Sunde , whom they accused of arrogance. In the dispute between Denmark and Holstein at the beginning of the 15th century, both rulers tried to win the Hanseatic League on their side. In 1423 the Hanseatic League concluded an alliance with the Danish King Erich , which he broke as early as 1426 by issuing strict trade restrictions such as the Sundzoll , which hit the Hansa hard. On September 22nd, 1426 Lübeck, Hamburg, Lüneburg, Wismar, Rostock and Stralsund signed a war alliance against King Erich and then allied with the dukes of Schleswig . Only 18 Saxon Hanseatic cities joined the alliance, the Prussian cities refused to cooperate, and the two members of the Wendish quarter, Greifswald and Anklam , also refused. These two were then excluded from the Hanseatic League. Stralsund was under Pomeranian rule, which in turn was closely allied with Denmark, but rejected diplomatic pressure from that side.

In 1427 the conflict broke out and the Kalmar Union war against the Hanseatic League . After the initial great successes of the Hanseatic cities, the tide quickly turned. On July 11, 1427, the 36-strong Hansa fleet under the command of the Lübeck mayor Tidemann Steen suffered a heavy defeat in Strelasund. In the cities, protests against the council were loud, including in Stralsund. In January 1427, an opposition group was formed under the leadership of the brewers , which, however , was crushed by Mayor Nikolaus von der Lippe . Despite the internal unrest, the war continued. Pirate war and attacks on Denmark and Norway were accelerated. In return, Denmark equipped a 77-strong fleet that attacked Stralsund on May 5, 1429. Totally taken by surprise, there was no significant resistance from the city. The Danes captured the Stralsund ships; some kidnapped them, others were set on fire. Since the Danes allowed themselves a few days to return, which they used to pillage and rob the Strelasund, the Stralsunders were able to convert six newly arrived ships from Wismar and Lübeck into warships and pull them against the Danish fleet. This sea battle at Dänholm was a success that the Danes could only escape by fleeing and with great loss of people and ships. In memory of this success, the people of Stralsund called the island Strale the Dänholm from then on .

The following period was determined by diplomacy. In 1430, Stralsund concluded a separate peace with King Erich, which aroused resistance from the allies. Stralsund, however, had good reason for this peace agreement. Because as a result of the war, the trade of the neutral cities avoided the Strelasund and shifted to the land route. After the separate peace, Stralsund stood between the parties; only when King Eric concluded the peace of Vordingborg (1435) with all the Hanseatic cities did the situation ease. It had become apparent that the Hanseatic League was by no means as united as in the early years.

Heyday

The 15th century was Stralsund's heyday. Long-distance trade and shipping were the main economic drivers. Scotland and Spain joined the previous trading partners . Around 1450, 350 merchants conducted long-distance trade, half of them were tailors . The city register lists 13 shipyards around 1421. In 1488, 50 boatmen founded the St. Marienbruderschaft der Schiffer in Stralsund , the forerunner of the Stralsund boat company , which still exists today. The Stralsunders owned the trade monopoly on the entire island of Rügen and commanded both ferry connections between Rügen and the mainland, namely the ferry between Altefähr and Stralsund ( Strelasund crossing ) and between Glewitz and Stahlbrode . The construction industry experienced a tremendous boom, both through the renewal of the existing and the construction of additional fortifications and the construction of magnificent gabled houses by Stralsund merchants. The facade of the town hall has now also been built. The Stralsund churches were also expanded (or the Marienkirche rebuilt).

It was not until the 15th century that history was literally made in Stralsund. Unfortunately, there are no extensive records from Stralsund, such as those handed down in Lübeck. Only two very short chronicles from the 15th century, probably written by monks , have been preserved and bear witness to the a. about the installation of the clock at St. Mary's Church in 1411 or the construction of a water pipe in 1418. A third chronicle only exists in fragments - but it is possible that this was much more extensive than the other two. When researching Stralsund's history, one is therefore mostly dependent on sources from other cities. However, preserved city registers offer important clues. In addition, the Stralsund city archive is very extensive, it houses z. B. Denmark's oldest paper document .

At the end of the 15th century the conflict between the cities and the surrounding principalities became more and more apparent. Bogislaw X. Duke of Pomerania (1474–1523) centralized his empire and rejected the Pomeranian cities that were striving for more independence. He raised the tariffs, took up trade relations with foreign countries himself and had lands that had already been sold to citizens move in and then leased them to the citizens. Stralsund only managed to keep its privileges up to the beginning of the 16th century with great effort.

A picture of the social structure of Stralsund emerges from a preserved tax register from the beginning of the 16th century, which lists the city's income from a special tax to secure privileges in Denmark , Norway and Sweden . The list divides the residents into seven groups according to their wealth. According to this, the councilors who were members of the dressmaking corporation were among the wealthiest residents. They made up 0.5 percent of the Stralsund population. The second group, which also consisted of dressmakers and wholesale merchants, represented 1.2 percent. In the third group of citizens, comprising 3.9 percent, members of the dressmakers and wholesale merchants were also listed. In the fourth group, comprising 7 percent of the population, there are smaller merchants and occasionally also master craftsmen. Many of the master craftsmen, especially the bone cutters , bakers and cooperatives , can be found in the fifth group, which comprises 6.7 percent of the population. The sixth group, comprising 35 percent, unites the remaining master craftsmen. In the seventh group, which comprises 45.7 percent of the Stralsund population, there are the dispossessed: porters and day laborers . Employed workers ( journeymen , servants and poor people) were not taxed and therefore not included in the list .

reformation

At the beginning of the 1520s, the Reformation also penetrated northern Germany . Starting primarily from Belbuck Abbey , at whose monastery school Johann Bugenhagen worked as a lecturer , the teaching spread in the north. Two of Bugenhagen's students, Christian Ketelhot and Johann Kureke , came to Stralsund in 1523 on the run because of their reformatory views; their destination was Livonia . However, neither of them continued their flight, but preached in Stralsund, which was particularly popular with the lower and middle classes of the population. They were supported by members of the citizenry , such as Franz Wessel . The city council, however, took a clear position against it and thus soon against a large part of the citizens. After conflicts with the citizens, the council, above all Nikolaus Smiterlow , also accepted the Reformation teachings. The Catholic clergy rebelled against these currents . She tried to slander Ketelhot in particular. The Hanseatic League also saw the Reformation as a nuisance. However, she had to refrain from her request to Stralsund and Wismar at the 1525 Hanseatic Congress in Lübeck to pursue the new faith and the martian sects . At the end of 1525, the next Hanseatic Congress gave each city the right to decide on its own preacher. The Pomeranian dukes, the majority against the Reformation, could not stop the spread in Stralsund. Johannes Aepinus created the new church order , the first Protestant one in Germany.

The city council, which put almost all power into the hands of a minority of citizens, supported the Reformation, but continued to refuse the social changes that the citizens were also striving for. With the support of the Franciscans from the Stralsund Johanniskloster , the civic movement strengthened. The spokesman was Roloff Möller , who, although a member of the dressmaking guild , joined the opposition movement and even spurred it on. Spontaneously in 1524 citizens moved to the town hall and had the council sign a recess that a so-called “ 48 committee ” (named after the number of members) should rule over the council from now on. On April 10, 1525, the 48 committee ordered all the poor to be inspected in the Nikolaikirche to mark those who were allowed to beg. This created a general turmoil , in which the displeasure of the poor about their situation also discharged. As a result, altars and chapels were damaged. The uprising spread quickly, the St. John's Church was stormed and looted, as well as the monks' houses . Further destruction and looting followed in the Brigittenkloster and in the monastery of St. Annen and St. Katharinen . Above all journeymen, boatmen, maids, day laborers, servants and the poor were involved in this breaking of the church . The insurgents could only be stopped by the formation of a force of 900 men.

Taking advantage of the fear of the church breaking, the 48 committee allowed the council to grant it further privileges. In addition, nine of the members were appointed mayors in 1525, including Roloff Möller and Franz Wessel. In the following years, almost the entire council was newly appointed in this way, so that now the citizens assumed the dominant role. The old council families had been pushed back almost completely. However, the master craftsmen continued to receive no power participation. The church breakers of 1525 were soon referred to by both the 48 Committee and the Reformers as loose rabble and godless . The members of the committee took advantage of the position in the council more and more in their own favor, which in 1534 led to the overthrow of the committee. The merchants expanded their newly acquired power position and soon ruled unrestrictedly like the patrician councilors before.

In 1575 a separate Stralsund consistory was established for the Stralsund city area , which existed as a church court until 1849.

Education and school system

After the Reformation , the school system in Pomerania was also fundamentally changed, including in Stralsund. In 1534, the state parliament passed a reformed order by Johann Bugenhagen , which was to be gradually implemented throughout Pomerania. Stralsund 1560, the three parish schools were no more than 1,555 since the monastery used Katharinenkloster merged. The seven-class Latin school , at which reading, writing and the new religion were also taught, had become the central educational institution of the Stralsund citizens and was soon called the Stralsund Gymnasium . Kaspar Jentzkow was a long-time rector from 1569–1598.

School and education became increasingly important. This is reflected in numerous records that report on life in Stralsund from the 16th century. Wealthy merchants and appointed or self-appointed chroniclers show life in the Middle Ages . The Lutheran preacher Johann Berckmann wrote a "Stralsundic Chronicle" covering the years 1124 to 1560, in which he describes the last 50 years particularly extensively based on his own experience. The mayor Nikolaus Gentzkow recorded his life in a diary between 1558 and 1567 , which also contains very precise information about the private life of the merchants in Stralsund. A memorial book begun by Joachim Lindemann in 1531 (written in Early New High German ) was continued by other writers until 1611. In Middle Low German , Gerhard Hannemann , Unter vogt desgericht , wrote his diary for the years 1553 to 1587. The life of the mayor Franz Wessel was described in detail by Gerhard Dröge . And also the mayor Bartholomäus Sastrow allows - in an autobiography from 1520 to 1555 - insights into the life of the councilors and citizens of Stralsund. These chronicles bear witness to the will of the Stralsund citizens in the 16th century to acquire, increase and pass on knowledge. Until then it had been unusual to record daily events outside of monasteries. The bourgeoisie of the 16th century had taken on a new role here. These chronicles are supplemented by the important "Pomerania" by the Pomeranian chronicler Thomas Kantzow .

Turning away from the Hanseatic League

Stralsund's trade with the cities along the Baltic Sea coast and with north and north-west Europe continued to flourish. Above all, agricultural products from Stralsund's area were traded and sought-after. Above all fish, salt, spices and wine were imported. Trading companies were established with several advantages: It could by the Bereedung a ship by several dealers, the risk of losing a full shipload due to pirate raids, are reduced because the cargo of the merchants was distributed to several vessels; the skipper then had to sell the goods in the best possible way. The participants shared the profit according to their shares. Merchants' money trading also gained in importance. Money was lent and thus brought capital. The fact that 111 Stralsund houses were pledged between 1574 and 1595, the owners of which were unable to repay the borrowed money, proves that this was often a matter of usury . The citizens also bought land in the Stralsund area to secure their trading activities and to lease to the previous owners.

Beer production also became increasingly important. In 1594, 171 breweries are recorded in Stralsund, the majority of which produced strong beer for export by sea. Stralsund was also pursuing its own interests more and more within the Wendish quarter that was left over from the Hanseatic League. Thus, against the previous statutes and against the express expressions of displeasure in Lübeck, trading “over the beach”, i.e. H. forced outside the offices . After negotiations with Denmark about the lifting of the restrictions imposed after the Three Crowns War (1563-1570) had failed, Stralsund successfully directed its efforts to Sweden . Against the interests of Lübeck, trade and customs freedoms were negotiated with Sweden. Stralsund developed into Sweden's bridgehead on the continent.

17th century - In the Kingdom of Sweden

politics

Stralsund increasingly took sides for Sweden's interests in the wars of the early 17th century. It broke out of the joint position of the Hanseatic cities in the war between the Netherlands, Spain and England, which had been declared in 1605. In 1628 this alliance with the Dutch States General had such an effect that Stralsund received strong financial aid from the Netherlands when Wallenstein's imperial troops were besieged . In Sweden's armed conflicts with Russia , Denmark and Poland , Stralsund relied on the promised trade privileges in the Swedish-occupied part of the Baltic States and Pomerania .

Although Stralsund never became a Free Hanseatic City and was under the rule of the sovereigns of Pommern-Wolgast, a large degree of independence was achieved. If the city did not agree to the resolutions of the state parliament in which it was represented, these resolutions were not enforced. The sovereign princes did not succeed either; their influence on the city remained small. Knowing this fact, the Pomeranian Duke Bogislaw XIII. at the site of the Neuenkamp monastery, the town of Franzburg , which Stralsund was supposed to offer competition. This plan failed; Franzburg was never able to take on the role of Stralsund's competitor.

The influence of the city lords also grew again within the city. The 48 Committee was dissolved and power returned entirely to the patricians . As early as 1559, large merchants, mainly the aged men of the dressmakers, founded a new citizens' committee, the Hundred Men College .

Inheritance contract with the duke and civil constitution

At the beginning of the 17th century the city's financial situation deteriorated drastically. Duties were to be paid to the empire, the sovereigns and ambassadors in commercial matters. Stralsund had to pay homage costs when a prince took office and feed the Pomeranian duke and his entourage as soon as he came into town. This gave rise to a huge mountain of debt that was no longer covered by taxes. The allocation of expenses to the city's residents increased the resistance of the citizens against the city council. The civil contract concluded in 1595 against strong resistance from the council, especially by Bartholomäus Sastrow , had not yet been implemented, and financial control by the citizens was not possible. In addition, nepotism within the council increased. The relationships between the council members fueled dissatisfaction. The Duke of Pommern-Wolgast , Philip Julius , took advantage of this situation . On February 3, 1612, he moved into the city and set up a commission of inquiry, which dealt with the misconduct of the council complained about by the citizens. The Duke presented the citizens with a draft contract which, in addition to the accountability of the council to the citizens, provided for the Duke himself to oversee the Stralsund churches. The duke should also appoint the clergy. The Hundred Man College was freed with the help of the Duke of relatives of the nobles, and the age of the men tailors. For citizens Worthalter was Justquinus of Goshen selected.

Since the Council did not comply with the contract, the Duke on March 18, 1612 moved again to Stralsund and appointed two mayors, the protonotary , four council members and the syndic of the city, Dr. Lambert Steinwich , exit . Heinrich Stamke succeeded von Gosen, who was considered too hesitant. At the Hanseatic Day in Lübeck, the two councilors Dr. Christof Krauthof and Niklas Dinnies on the Duke's influence. The Hanseatic League tried to persuade the duke to withdraw his changes to the balance of power. Philip Julius, however, saw the low power of the declining Hanseatic League and the opposition of the citizenry against the patriciate that fit into his concept and emphasized in a letter to the Hanseatic League that his interference in the fortunes of the city corresponded to his legal authority as imperial prince. The Stralsund threatened Verhansung d. H. the exclusion from the alliance, he saw calmly. In December 1612, the duke set up a citizens' commission to examine the city's spiritual property. It turned out that there was mismanagement on the part of the council - whether consciously or unconsciously, it could never be clarified - entire properties had been lost to property without proof. The citizenship was deeply divided. With regard to taxation in particular, there were unresolved differences of opinion. The emerging violent rioting caused Philip Julius to start negotiations with the council, which led to the conclusion of the inheritance contract on July 11, 1615. In it it was agreed that Stralsund, as the heir, should be obedient and loyal to the duke. The contract was sealed by the duke, the council, the representatives of the four most important trades and the Gewandhaus representatives who were once disempowered by Philip Julius. The duke had to drop several of his demands after the country knights successfully resisted him in view of the imminent great power of the duke, which again benefited Stralsund's relative independence. The bourgeoisie, however, had weakened itself through the disagreement.

On February 14, 1616, the demands of the citizens for inner-city changes were met with the sealing of a civil contract. The citizenship was granted co-determination rights. The council itself continued to manage and represent the city. The control of the finances was the responsibility of the eight men who met in the eight-man chamber. The Council and the Hundred Men College each provided four representatives, the former two mayors, a councilor and the treasurer, the latter four citizens. Agreement was also reached on the tax issue. Civil rights were reformed and limits were placed on the influx of idle rabble . Likewise, an obligation to work for the city has been established if necessary. The corruption worked against new regulations for municipal offices.

The civil contract dated from then on to 1870 the basis for the inner-city relations. Duke Philip Julius, who had made the treaty possible through his striving for power and his commitment, died in 1625; his successor Bogislaw XIV could not build on his power. The new order worked, and therefore issues such as the storm flood that struck Stralsund in February 1625 , which had caused great damage, the witch hunts and the weakness of the new duke were the determining issues in Stralsund.

Alliance agreement with Sweden

Leaflet describing the siege of Stralsund, 1628

For a long time Stralsund was only affected by the news of the Thirty Years' War . Stralsund belonged to the Reformed cities, but was not initially in opposition to the emperor. In 1626 imperial troops drove the Danes out of Mecklenburg under King Christian IV . After that, it was foreseeable that Pomerania would become a target for future conquests. At the beginning of 1627, preparatory measures to defend the city began in Stralsund: 100 mercenaries were recruited and the Stralsund city fortifications , which were urgently in need of renovation after a long period of peace , were rebuilt by spring 1628. The citizens had to stockpile for a year, the guard order also included councilors and the city acquired war material on a large scale.

After Wismar in October 1627, Rostock also capitulated in 1628 . The Mecklenburg dukes fled to Denmark . Duke Bogislaw XIV of Pomerania had always behaved in a friendly manner to the emperor; Nevertheless, the imperial troops under Hans Georg von Arnim also occupied Pomerania . In the Franzburg surrender of November 10, 1627, it was agreed that Pomerania would henceforth receive around 20,000 occupation troops as billeting. Barth and Greifswald as well as the island of Rügen were taken by the imperial family without any resistance worth mentioning.

From the beginning of 1628 Stralsund was in secret negotiations with the kings of Denmark and Sweden , both Protestants , and declared opponents of the emperor, who also saw their economic position in the Baltic region threatened. The Swedish King Gustav Adolf had already been to Stralsund in 1620 and established relationships here.

The merchants made money by supplying the imperial troops in the surrounding area with weapons and other goods, but the resistance to the occupation grew in Stralsund. Mayor Lambert Steinwich assured the commissioner Count Ernst Georg von Sparre of the goodwill of the city, which did not want to become a garrison. Negotiations with the imperial leaders had the aim of buying themselves free from billeting. Colonel von Arnim initially asked for 150,000 thalers, but by Christmas 1627 reduced this amount to 100,000 thalers. The Stralsund council, however, only wanted to pay 30,000 thalers.

On February 11, 1628, in the Greifswald settlement, a payment of 30,000 thalers and the completion of the work on the city fortifications were agreed in exchange for the assurance that they would not be quartered and that no entrenchments would be built on Dänholm . The payment was made, but the other conditions of the settlement were rejected by Stralsund. Further negotiations followed, but also fighting: On April 4, 1628, the occupying troops surrendered on the Dänholm in front of the Stralsund sea blockade, which was under the leadership of Peter Blomes and Justquinus von Gosens and evacuated the island. On April 18, 1628, Wallenstein from Jičín gave the order to von Arnim to either accommodate a garrison in Stralsund or to besiege the city. The siege began on May 13th ^July./ 23 May 1628 ^greg.. Troops were gathered in front of Stralsund, the access roads to the city were blocked, only the port remained free. 1,500 men from Stralsund's troops stood alone in the main camp of Arnims im Hainholz, compared to 8,000 men who were also better equipped. On May 25, 1628, at the request of the council, Danish aid arrived in the city, by the middle of August approximately 2,500 men. After negotiations with the Swedes, auxiliary troops were sent from there and landed in Stralsund on June 23, 1628. With the acceptance of the help of declared opponents of the emperor and the conclusion of an alliance treaty with Sweden, the city turned itself openly hostile to the empire . This called Wallenstein personally on the scene. He is said to have the saying (also in Schiller's trilogy "Wallenstein"): "And if the city with seven chains and locks hung in the sky, I will bring it down!" His arrival in the camp outside Stralsund on June 26, 1628 was with him associated with a change in strategy, which was increasingly successful. There were repeated negotiations between the council and the besiegers.

According to legend, a defender shot a wine glass out of his hand, whereupon Wallenstein, accompanied by mockery , pulled away from the Stralsund fortress walls in exasperation . Every year this is celebrated today with the Wallenstein Days.

What is certain is that after increasing aid from Sweden and Denmark and due to adverse weather, Wallenstein withdrew on July 15, 1628 and von Arnim gave up the siege entirely on July 21, 1628. The last imperial units moved on July 24th ^./ August 3, 1628 ^greg.in front of the city. The siege had cost the lives of around 12,000 mercenaries of Wallenstein. There were 4,700 soldiers from Denmark and Sweden in the city, the residents suffered from the consequences of the siege and the supply of foreign auxiliary troops. The ambassador of the Swedish king arrived in Stralsund in August 1628 and reminded the council of the agreements and the unconditional commitment to Gustav Adolf of Sweden. The Swedish era began in Stralsund.

In 2010, archaeological investigations were carried out in the Frankenhof district to the south-east of Stralsund's old town. In the area, 13 people were found buried in two mass graves, which were linked to the siege of 1628 or a later epidemic. All of the dead were male and mostly younger between 21 and 25 years of age, so that a military context could be assumed. The average height was 1.66 m. The men buried were in poor health. Diseases that indicate inadequate living conditions were particularly common, such as inflammation of the maxillary sinus or inflammation of the oral mucosa . Only two men showed unhealed blow injuries that probably did not lead to immediate death. Presumably, the deceased are not victims of a fighting, but inmates of a sick camp or a similar facility who died of infectious diseases (e.g. epidemics).

On September 10, 1630, at around 6 a.m., the Swedish King Gustav Adolf arrived in Stralsund, received with the thunder of cannons and the ringing of all the church bells in the city, and took up his quarters in Artushof . He informed the city council that he was expecting 100,000 Reichstaler to ensure the protection of Stralsund. Since the city was in financial difficulties - in addition to the liabilities that had been accumulated over the years, the mercenaries recruited to defend against the imperial army had to be paid - it was difficult to raise this money. Gustav Adolf assigned various princely goods to the city and private donors. The king personally inspected the Stralsund city fortifications and ordered their expansion. He also imposed a garrison on Stralsund - exactly what Stralsund had strictly rejected shortly before. The city's expenditures for the expansion of the fortifications and the garrison and other items arising from the occupation amounted to around 40 percent of the total expenditures in the following years. Sources of income were the bounty , a sum determined according to class, and the pound money , which had to be paid to the municipal treasury as a percentage of each commodity.

In the Swedish Empire

Representatives of the empire tried again and again to win back Stralsund, especially after Gustav Adolf's death in 1632. However, the city always rejected these requests, which were usually made in writing. A Stralsund delegation was sent to Osnabrück in 1645 in order to represent the rights of the city at the peace congress there and to gain the greatest possible freedom. Ultimately, these efforts failed on their main issue, independence. In the Peace of Westphalia , Stralsund was incorporated into Swedish Pomerania . The Swedish rule over the city brought further financial burdens because of the wars waged by King Karl X. Gustav and his successors. In return, however, the Swedes confirmed many of their privileges to the people of Stralsund, which benefited their trading activities.

In 1675 Sweden invaded the Mark Brandenburg in the Swedish-Brandenburg War . They were defeated in the Battle of Fehrbellin and put on the defensive, which made Stralsund again a war target. For the first time in this layered Pomerania campaign in October 1675 in Lüdershagen Elector of Brandenburg Friedrich Wilhelm with an army in front of Stralsund, but soon moved due to the slump in winter again. Thereupon the Swedish field marshal Count Otto Wilhelm von Königsmarck set up an army of 14,000 men in the Rügen / Stralsund region. In September 1677, the Danes managed to land on Rügen and cut off Sweden's connection with Western Pomerania. In this situation, the Danish king and the elector of Brandenburg offered the city imperial immediacy, provided that it renounced Sweden. However, the council rejected this formerly sought-after status of the free imperial city and support for the Swedish troops in Königsmarck was intensified. Stralsund, which according to the alliance agreement did not have to provide any soldiers in the event of war, now voluntarily offered the Swedes all available soldiers. In January 1678, Rügen was recaptured within five days. Troops encamped in front of Stralsund, however, repeatedly attacked the city in individual actions and mainly captured cattle. The allied Danish and Brandenburg troops landed on Rügen at the end of September 1678 . With the capture of the island, the situation for Stralsund became hopeless.

Floor plan of Stralsund Fortress at the time of the siege in 1678

On September 20, 1678, the siege of Stralsund by Brandenburg troops began with the bombardment of the port. There was disagreement in the city between the Swedish occupation forces and the council. A common defense of the city was not possible because the council and the citizens openly sympathized with a peace agreement with Brandenburg. Despite the requests of both the council and Königsmarcks to spare the city, Friedrich Wilhelm began a bombardment on October 10, 1678 , as the Stralsunders refused a peaceful surrender. Many houses and large parts of the Jakobikirche fell victim to the bombardment . A major fire broke out and raged in the city. On October 11, 1678, Königsmarck sent a negotiator to the elector from the badly damaged city; On October 15, 1678, the Brandenburgers concluded the surrender agreement with Königsmarck , which enabled the Swedes to make an honorable withdrawal. The Stralsunders agreed in a separate contract the protection of their privileges and the prohibition of looting; Brandenburg wanted to support Stralsund in the reconstruction over the next ten years. The Brandenburg rule did not last long. With the peace treaty between France , Sweden and Brandenburg , Stralsund returned to the Kingdom of Sweden on June 9, 1679. Königsmarck returned to Stralsund as governor general .

Schematic representation of the siege of Stralsund by the Prussians, Danes and Saxons in 1715

economy

Even with the partial abandonment of the decisions of the Hanseatic League, it had become clear that the time of the Hanseatic League as an alliance of cities was over. Due to the strong pressure of the sovereigns of the countries surrounding the Hanseatic cities, who had different interests and aspirations for power, the cities were forced to represent their own interests above all. Due to its location in Denmark- friendly Pomerania, Stralsund hardly had any interests in common with the cities in Mecklenburg or Holstein . The Stralsund traders, hardly profiting from the Spanish trade, transferred their activities mainly to the Baltic trade. In the western trading cities of Stralsund, merchants mainly acted as intermediaries. In trade with the Netherlands , they were dependent on local traders; former privileges had become obsolete after the local traders gained strength. Even trade with Norway , once a flourishing and lucrative business, as evidenced by the Bergen driver stalls in the Nikolaikirche , was pushed back after the rise of the Norwegians. Stralsunders acted now - on the verge of legality - mostly no longer in the offices , but "on the beach", i. H. without involving the marketplaces. In addition to smaller trade relations with Scotland (export of beer ) and England , trade with Danzig , Reval and Lübeck was intensified. At the same time, the smaller cities in the Baltic Sea region in Denmark and Sweden also took up a larger place. The Swedish conquests in the Baltic states allowed preferential trade as far as Moscow . The nearby island of Rügen was also closely involved in trade relations. Stralsund had enormous disadvantages compared to the emerging new trading cities at the beginning of the 17th century, which were located at the estuaries and thus could better trade with the inland, which soon had an effect in the decline in importance for the developing "world trade" .

Around 1705 there were approximately 850 masters in the city on the Strelasund, almost half of them working without journeymen; a somewhat larger part of the master craftsmen together also employed around 850 journeymen. There were great differences in wealth between the guilds. The richest offices were those of blacksmiths and bakers, followed by cobblers, furriers, tailors, cooper, barbers, bonecutters and metal foundries. The poorer guilds included weavers, fishermen, basket makers and bricklayers. After more and more fish were caught by non-guild members around Rügen and also in the urban waters, this guild also descended to the poorer ones. It was the same with the boneheads, who faced competition from the cookers who had brought the cattle trade and the trade in slaughter cattle under their control. Despite this strong competitive situation, the production methods of the craftsmen, who combined everything from purchasing raw materials to selling the end product, stagnated in one hand.

The center of beer production in Stralsund was on Langenstrasse and Frankenstrasse . Beer carriers who had organized themselves in a guild-like manner were responsible for transporting the beer barrels to the nearby harbor. Because of the need to acquire the brewing rights and because of the very high financial outlay for profitable beer production, only financially strong merchants could carry out this business.

Immediately after the siege by Wallenstein ended in 1628, the farmers in the area who had fled to Stralsund returned to their farms. This soon resulted in a renewed economic upswing in the city, which traded in agricultural products, mainly by sea. This in turn resulted in an upswing in the shipyards , which were moved closer to the city after the siege, and in all the offices that were involved in the construction and equipment of the ships. Also since 1630 there was a “messenger service” run by the postmaster Otto Reimann in Stralsund for the transport of messages.

Urban planning

During the siege in 1628, some buildings were damaged in the densely built-up city (a drawing by Johannes Staude from 1644 shows that there were almost no vacant spaces within the city walls; construction in Stralsund was almost exclusively aimed at reconstruction) been. So the completely destroyed wretched house in the Heilgeisthospital was rebuilt in 1641. After a lightning strike, the tower of St. Mary's Church, which was one of the tallest structures in Europe, had to be replaced.

In the town, which was just being rebuilt after the siege in 1678, another major fire broke out on June 12, 1680, which also destroyed parts of the town hall .