Lewitz

Lewitz card

The Lewitz

The Lewitz is a protected landscape in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania , which is characterized by wide and flat meadows and arable land, fish ponds and isolated forest areas.

geography

The Lewitz area extends south-west of Mecklenburg south of Schwerin between the places Crivitz , Parchim , Neustadt-Glewe and Banzkow . The surface area is about 16,800 hectares. The landscape is traversed by the Elde , whose original river bed has been preserved in parts, its canalised course, the Müritz-Elde waterway (MEW), the Stör Canal , which flows into the MEW, the New Canal and the Brenz Canal . Lewitz, which has been placed under landscape protection, is criss-crossed by numerous drainage ditches. The standing waters include the extensive Friedrichsmoorer and Neuhöfer carp ponds north of Neustadt-Glewe and the Neustädter See .

Within the Lewitz are the nature reserves Klinker Plage , fish ponds in Lewitz , Friedrichsmoor and Töpferberg .

Origin of name

The name is derived differently. It is widely believed that the word Lewitz is derived from the Slavic lowit and thus means to collect , hunt or area rich in game . Lowej (Bohemian for wood, forest ) is also mentioned . It is also possible to have a relationship with the Old Slavic li, liv-, lijati for watering , raining , the Russian lyva or liva for swamp forest or the Bulgarian / Serbian livada for meadow .

history

Friedrichsmoor carp ponds and Müritz-Elde waterway

Like all of Mecklenburg , the Lewitz was formed in the last ice age . When the glaciers melted, the Lewitz and Störtal were filled with meltwater, which washed away a depression of 12,000 hectares. A lake 16 meters deep was created. Later there was a sudden drain to the south. The lake swamped and deepened over the course of the following millennia. Flat waters and fens emerged . In the Middle Stone Age , this landscape , characterized by island-like elevations, small lakes and forests, offered collectors, hunters and fishermen, and the dry, sandy moorland to the arable farmers and cattle breeders of the Neolithic period . During this time, several earthworks were created.

In the 13th century the Lewitz lowlands were still covered with oak, beech, black alder and birch. The growing cities of the Hanseatic era moved here, among other things, their timber. From the beginning of the 16th century to the 18th century, Neustadt-Glewe was one of the centers for the smelting of lawn iron ore , which could be mined in open-cast mining. In addition to the existing river system, the extensive forest areas of the Lewitz represented favorable conditions for this "wood-fed" branch of industry. Charcoal was extracted from the wood, which in turn supplied the energy for the smelting furnaces. In 1577 alone, in addition to 6300 tons of coal, 8300 cubic meters of wood were required. In addition, so-called wood deputants took care of the princely house and yard rules, wood donations to the surrounding cities and a flourishing timber trade for a shrinking of the tree population. In the 17th century it was only 25% of its original value. In 1620, the last beeches and oaks were felled in Tuckhude for the Kraak castle building. Unsustainable timber management ultimately led to the last iron smelter in Neustadt closing in 1717 due to a lack of wood. At that time, the forests in the surrounding area were almost completely cleared and as a result, boggy meadows were created where hay was harvested. The Friedrichsmoor Forestry Office, which has existed since the 18th century, has been responsible for reforestation on small areas over the years. A complete restoration of the original forest areas was not pursued, because as early as the late 1820s it was expected that the income from pasture management would exceed that of forestry.

The Brenz Canal was built in 1862/63 to drain areas northwest of Brenz and thereby make it usable for agriculture. In Tuckhude the seat of the administrative authority of the ducal court for the Lewitz was established in 1862, which was responsible for the maintenance of the ditches, paths, bridges, the regulation of the irrigation and drainage, the observation of the water levels and the securing of the hay harvest.

As early as 1938, parts of the Lewitz were placed under nature protection because of their importance as a marsh bird breeding area. The curlew , the redshank , the godwit and the ruff breed here . During the GDR period, from 1958 to 1962 and 1976 to 1980 with the introduction of industrial agricultural production, extensive, complex amelioration took place in order to gain grassland for cattle breeding. Many animal and plant species and also the meadow breeding bird population disappeared.

At the level of the Neustadt district of Hohes Feld , among other things, equestrian sports in VEG "Lewitz" were not only used for cattle but also for horse breeding. Since 1971 a new breed of horse has emerged, known as Lewitzer or, due to the piebald color, also known as Lewitzscheck . After the fall of the Wall, Gut Lewitz was run by the German show jumper and entrepreneur Paul Schockemöhle .

Since 1990 amelioration measures have been partially reversed. Pasture and arable land became wet biotopes again with wet meadows and moors . As a result, some displaced plants and animals have become home again. There were again ospreys , hawks , otters , newts and grass snakes spotted. The Lewitz is a popular resting place for wild geese , cranes and other migratory birds. The rare plants in the Lewitz include orchid , pasque flower , bloodroot , devil's bite and the lung gentian . The Lewitz is today a landscape and in parts nature reserve . Parts of the landscape were designated as a European bird sanctuary at the end of the 20th century .

tourism

Friedrichsmoor hunting lodge

Efforts are being made to market the Lewitz as part of gentle tourism . Among other things, 24 information boards with the inscription "Die Lewitz" and the contours of Neustadt Castle and the landscape have been installed on the Autobahn . Especially nature lovers and water hikers are addressed. The Friedrichsmoor hunting lodge and the Banzkower mill are also worth seeing .

See also : "Wiesenmeisterei Tuckhude" in the article Neustadt-Glewe

literature

• Ralf Ottmann: The Lewitz - With adjacent areas - A natural pearl in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (With articles about the protected areas in and around the Lewitz area, bird life, beavers, dragonfly fauna, butterfly fauna, flora, flowing waters, towns and villages on the edge of Lewitz and the most beautiful cycling routes). Illustrated book, hardcover, 562 pages. Publisher: Naturforschende Gesellschaft Mecklenburg e. V. and Ralf Ottmann, ISBN 978-3-00-041609-5 .
• Ralf Ottmann: European bird sanctuary Lewitz, natural pearl in Mecklenburg. A little journey back in time from then to now. (With cities and villages, maps and extras for: bike tours, overnight accommodation, experiencing nature, events and culture). NGM et al., Ludwigslust et al. 2011, ISBN 978-3-00-034947-8 .
• Burkhard Fellner: Fascination Lewitz. A natural paradise in Mecklenburg. Fellner, Neustadt-Glewe 2006, ISBN 3-9811338-0-3 .
• Burkhard Fellner: Views from the Lewitz. In: Mecklenburg-Magazin. Regional supplement of the Schweriner Volkszeitung and the North German Latest News. 2004, ZDB -ID 1084691-8 , No. 5 P. 7, No. 6 P. 7, No. 8 P. 9, No. 11 P. 7 f., No. 15 P. 3 f. and No. 20 p. 7 f., 2005 No. 9 p. 9 f., No. 20 p. 1 f.
• Hans Mulsow: Origin and development of the Lewitz. ( Memento of April 6, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Rostock 1941 (Rostock, University, written dissertation, 1941), (PDF; 5.8 MB) together with an accompanying picture ( Memento of April 6, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 709 kB).
• Georg Christian Friedrich Lisch , Friedrich Wedemeier (ed.): Album of Mecklenburg castles and country estates in images of the residences, castles and manors of the Grand Duchies of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Mecklenburg-Strelitz accompanied by historical-statistical-topographically processed text. sn, Leipzig et al. 1860–1862.

Web links

Commons : Lewitz  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ List of landscape protection areas in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (PDF; 17 kB) on lung.mv-regierung.de
2. ↑ List of nature reserves in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (PDF; 25 kB) on lung.mv-regierung.de
3. ↑ State portal MV ( Memento of the original from January 19, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
4. ↑ LISCH / WEDEMEIER: Friedrichsmoor. Grand ducal hunting lodge in the Domanial-Amt Neustadt. on lexikus.de
5. ^ Paul Kühnel: The Slavic place names in Meklenburg. In: Yearbooks of the Association for Mecklenburg History and Archeology. Vol. 46, 1881, ISSN  0259-7772 , pp. 3-168, here p. 83.
6. ↑ Profile of the horse breed "Lewitzer" on lewitz-partner.de ( memento of the original from April 26, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
7. ^ Standard data sheet for the EU bird sanctuary in Lewitz

Coordinates: 53 ° 26 ′ 52 ″  N , 11 ° 36 ′ 24 ″  E