Bützow is a town in the district of Rostock 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 ...

in north-eastern

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 ...

, centered on Bützower See.

History

The town was first mentioned in 1171. From 1815 to 1918 Bützow was part of the

Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin The Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin () was a territory in Northern Germany held by the House of Mecklenburg residing at Schwerin. It was a sovereign member state of the German Confederation and became a federated state of the North German C ...

, from 1871 within the

German Empire The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...

. From 1933 to 1945, during Nazi rule and

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, a Nazi prison was operated in the Dreibergen district with multiple

forced labour Forced labour, or unfree labour, is any work relation, especially in modern or early modern history, in which people are employed against their will with the threat of destitution, detention, or violence, including death or other forms of ...

subcamps located in various places in the region. After the war, the town was part of

East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

until 1990. On 5 May 2015, the town was struck by an F3

tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with the surface of Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, although the ...

which caused severe damage to many buildings, including the local hospital. This tornado grew to 1.5 km wide (1500m)

Culture

Medieval Bützow Castle is located in Bützow. The town also has a medieval

Brick Gothic Brick Gothic (, , ) is a specific style of Gothic architecture common in Baltic region, Northeast and Central Europe especially in the regions in and around the Baltic Sea, which do not have resources of standing rock (though Glacial erratic, ...

church, which contains an

altarpiece An altarpiece is a painting or sculpture, including relief, of religious subject matter made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting or sculpture, ...

made by the Master of the Bützow Altarpiece (1503). Bützow also has one of the last German monuments dedicated to Lenin, a memorial stone located at Leninring.

Notable people

* Dietrich Ludwig Gustav Karsten (1768-1810),

mineralogist Mineralogy is a subject of geology specializing in the scientific study of the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical (including optical mineralogy, optical) properties of minerals and mineralized artifact (archaeology), artifacts. Specific s ...

* Karl Johann Bernhard Karsten (1782–1853),

. * Else Hirsch (1889-1943), Jewish teacher and member of the German Resistance

Sport

* Eckhard Martens (born 1951), rower, team silver medallist at the

1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and officially branded as Munich 1972 (; ), were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. It was the ...

* Torsten Fröhling (born 1966), soccer player and football coach; played 109 games * Andrea Philipp (born 1971), sprinter and three time Olympic competitor

People who have worked in Bützow

* Sophie Charlotte of Hesse-Kassel (1678-1749), Duchess of Mecklenburg, lived in Bützow and founded the German Reformed Church * Wenceslaus Johann Gustav Karsten (1732-1787), mathematician, grew up locally with his grandfather; twice rector of the University of Bützow

References

Cities and towns in Mecklenburg 1230s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1236 establishments in Europe Populated places established in the 13th century {{LandkreisRostock-geo-stub