Ueckermünde

Ueckermünde (ʏkɐˈmʏndə) is a seaport town in northeast Germany, located in the district of Vorpommern-Greifswald, Western Pomerania, near Germany's border with Poland's Police County. Ueckermünde has a long and varied history, going back to its founding by Slavs, the Ukrani, mentioned in 934 by Widukind of Corvey. The name Ucramund appears in documents from 1178. Since May 1, 2013 Ueckermünde has been an officially recognized seaside resort. The name Ueckermünde translates into "mouth of the Uecker". The Uecker River flows from Brandenburg, where it is called Ucker, into the Oder Lagoon. The river's name corresponds to the name of the adjacent region (Uckermark) and the name of the medieval Wendish tribe of the Ukr(an)i who inhabited the area prior to the German Ostsiedlung or eastern expansion. The first known reference to Ucramund is in an 1178 document. Later spellings included Ukeremund, Ukeremunde and Ukermunde (1284). In the old Slavonic era Ueckermünde's location made it a settlement of fishermen. In 1178 (according to other sources 1223) Ucramund was first mentioned and in 1243 the Monastery Grobe was built in Usedom. In 1260 Barnim I, the duke of Pomerania, founded a monastery and the original trade center was awarded a town charter under Lübeck Law. In 1276 the place was named Civitas, and in 1284 the Castrum Ukermunde, a fortress castle, was built by the Dukes of Pomerania. In the 13th century, Ueckermünde was a city within walls with two gates, to withstand the siege by troops of Brandenburg. On 5 September 1327 by the Treaty of Ueckermünde the Pomeranian dukes and the Brandenburgian margrave agreed on a formal peace. The question of fiefdom was spared. Barnim III, Duke of Pomerania agreed to marry Mechthild (also Mathilda), daughter of Rudolf I, Duke of Bavaria, yet the marriage never takes place. In the great fire of 1473 many of the medieval houses and the church were destroyed. In 1540 construction of the four wings of a castle was started by Pomeranian Duke Philipp I. In 1753 construction of the late-Gothic City Church St.