Müritz Sail
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The Müritz (; from
Slavic Slavic, Slav or Slavonic may refer to: Peoples * Slavic peoples, an ethno-linguistic group living in Europe and Asia ** East Slavic peoples, eastern group of Slavic peoples ** South Slavic peoples, southern group of Slavic peoples ** West Slav ...
"little sea") is a
lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from ...
in
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (MV; ; ), also known by its Anglicisation, anglicized name Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania, is a Federated state, state in the north-east of Germany. Of the country's States of Germany, sixteen states, Mecklenburg-Vorpom ...
, northern
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. Its area is , which makes it the second largest lake in Germany (after
Lake Constance Lake Constance (, ) refers to three bodies of water on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps: Upper Lake Constance (''Obersee''), Lower Lake Constance (''Untersee''), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Seerhein (). These ...
) and the largest lake located entirely within German territory. Its maximum depth is . It is fed and drained by the river
Elde The Elde () is a river in northern Germany (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and a few km in Brandenburg), a right tributary of the Elbe. Its total length is . The Elde originates near Altenhof, south of Malchow. It first flows southeast towards the south ...
. Part of the Müritz and adjacent forests and wetlands are protected by the
Müritz National Park The Müritz National Park () is a national park situated roughly in the middle between Berlin and Rostock, in the south of the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. It extends over large portions of the Müritz lakeland in the district of Meck ...
. The former Müritz district was named after the lake. The biggest towns bordering the lake are
Waren (Müritz) Waren (Müritz) (; also Waren an der Müritz) is a town and Luftkurort, climatic spa in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It was the capital of the former district of Müritz (district), Müritz (''Kreis Müritz'') until the distric ...
and
Röbel Röbel () is a Municipalities of Germany, municipality in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte (district), Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district, in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. It is situated on the western shore of Lake Müritz, 25 k ...
, both major centres of tourism in the
Mecklenburg Lake District The Mecklenburg Lake Plateau or Mecklenburg Lakeland
- Federal Ministry of Economics ...
. Lake Müritz is part of the
Müritz-Elde Waterway The Elde () is a river in northern Germany (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and a few km in Brandenburg), a right tributary of the Elbe. Its total length is . The Elde originates near Altenhof, south of Malchow. It first flows southeast towards the southe ...
, a Class I federal waterway. It is managed by the Lauenburg Waterway and Shipping Authority (''Wasser- und Schifffahrtsamt Lauenburg'').


Geography


Divisions

The Müritz Basin is divided into several large bays. Unlike the shallow eastern part of the lake, the western side is divided into several channel-like inlets like the Bays of Röbel and Sietow (''Röbeler Bucht'' and ''Sietower Bucht''). By the town of Waren on the northern shore of the lake is the
Binnenmüritz The Binnenmüritz is a lake in the Müritz National Park, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. At an elevation of 62.4 m, its surface area is 0.184 km². It is really a bay of Germany's largest inland lake, Lake Müritz A lake is often a n ...
, which contains the deepest point of the lake (−31 metres), and only has a narrow strait connecting it to the main basin of Lake Müritz. At the southern shore is the Little Müritz (''Kleine Müritz'') from which the Müritzarm and the Müritzsee branch off further to the south. Lake Müritz measures about from north to south and about from east to west; and has a catchment area of about . The Müritz is crossed by the
River Elde The Elde () is a river in northern Germany (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and a few km in Brandenburg), a right tributary of the Elbe. Its total length is . The Elde originates near Altenhof, south of Malchow. It first flows southeast towards the southe ...
from south to north and has a link to the
Kölpinsee Kölpinsee is a lake in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. At an elevation of , its surface area is . The marshy shore of the lake was the probable site of the crash of Avro Lancaster The Avro Lancas ...
in the west from the Binnenmüritz via the Reeck Canal (also Eldenburg Canal) which is a good two kilometres long. Because it also feeds the River Havel to the east via the
Mirow Canal Mirow () is a town in the district of Mecklenburgische Seenplatte in southern Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Name (Etymology) "Mir" in Slavonic languages means "peace" or "glory". The name "Mirow" was derived from "villa mirowe", translating a ...
, which is part of the Müritz-Havel Waterway, and the
Bolter Canal Bolter may refer to: * Bolter (aeronautics), a term in naval aviation when a pilot misses the arrestor cable on an aircraft carrier and performs a go-around * Bolter, a type of sieve * Bolter, someone who walks out of a political convention or ...
as well as via the chains of adjoining lakes, it has artificially been turned into a bifurcated waterway.


Creation

Lake Müritz was formed during the Weichselian glaciation between the Pomeranian and the Frankfurt Stages. Originally the entire
Mecklenburg Lake District The Mecklenburg Lake Plateau or Mecklenburg Lakeland
- Federal Ministry of Economics ...
was a huge lake, that split into several smaller lakes, linked to one another, as a result of a fall in sea level.


Water level

The water level of Lake Müritz has changed several times in the preceding centuries, primarily as a result of human influences. In the 12th century the surface of the lake was still above sea level. By 1737 the lake surface had risen to as a result of the waterway being impounded in several positive and negative stages in order, for example, to drive mills along the River Elde downstream. But by 1739 the mill reservoir had been lowered by around . In the wake of two adjustments to the Elde and two further changes to the mill impoundment the water level reached its present level of in 1836.Fred Ruchhöft: ''Der Wasserstand der „Oberen Seen“ in Mecklenburg in Mittelalter und früher Neuzeit'' in: ''Archäologische Berichte aus Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Vol. 6, 1999''


Settlements

The largest town on Lake Müritz is
Waren (Müritz) Waren (Müritz) (; also Waren an der Müritz) is a town and Luftkurort, climatic spa in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It was the capital of the former district of Müritz (district), Müritz (''Kreis Müritz'') until the distric ...
. Other settlements are (clockwise)
Rechlin Rechlin is a municipality in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany, around 100 km (60 mi) northwest of Berlin. The town's airport has a long history and was the Luftwaffe's main testing ground for new aircraft designs in Nazi Germany. ...
,
Priborn Priborn is a municipality in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Se ...
, Vipperow,
Ludorf Ludorf is a village and a former Municipalities of Germany, municipality in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte (district), Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Since May 2019, it is part of the new municipality SÃ ...
, Röbel/Müritz,
Gotthun Gotthun is a municipality in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Se ...
,
Sietow Sietow ( Polabian ''Żytko'') is a municipality in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Balti ...
and Klink.


References


External links

* *
Müritz-NationalparkMüritzeum - Nature Discovery Centre in WarenOfficial website of Waren (Müritz)Official website of Röbel (Müritz)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Muritz Lakes of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Federal waterways in Germany