Schwedt

Coordinates: 53°03′N 14°16′E / 53.050°N 14.267°E / 53.050; 14.267
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Schwedt
Town
Old town
Old town
Coat of arms of Schwedt
Coat of arms
Location of Schwedt within Uckermark district
AngermündeBoitzenburger LandBrüssowCarmzow-WallmowCasekowFlieth-StegelitzGartzGerswaldeGöritzGramzowGrünowHohenselchow-Groß PinnowLychenMescherinMilmersdorfMittenwaldeNordwestuckermarkOberuckerseePinnowPrenzlauRandowtalSchenkenbergSchönfeldSchwedtTantowTemmen-RingenwaldeTemplinUckerfeldeUckerlandZichowBrandenburg
Schwedt is located in Germany
Schwedt
Schwedt
Schwedt is located in Brandenburg
Schwedt
Schwedt
Coordinates: 53°03′N 14°16′E / 53.050°N 14.267°E / 53.050; 14.267
CountryGermany
StateBrandenburg
DistrictUckermark
Government
 • Mayor (2021–29) Annekathrin Hoppe[1] (SPD)
Area
 • Total360.73 km2 (139.28 sq mi)
Elevation
6 m (20 ft)
Population
 (2021-12-31)[2]
 • Total33,524
 • Density93/km2 (240/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes
16303
Dialling codes03332, 033336
Vehicle registrationUM
Websitewww.schwedt.eu

Schwedt (or Schwedt/Oder; German: [ˈʃveːt] ⓘ) is a town in Brandenburg, in northeastern Germany. With the official status of a Große kreisangehörige Stadt (major district town), it is the largest town of the Uckermark district, located near the river Oder, which forms the border with Poland.

Overview[edit]

The formerly agrarian town today has one of the largest oil refineries (PCK Raffinerie GmbH) in Germany, established in 1958 and connected to the Russian Druzhba pipeline network.[3] The refinery uses 20 million cubic meters of water per year for the process.[4]

A large paper factory (UPM) is located near Schwedt.[5] Most industries were located in the remote area during communist rule in the 1960s and 1970s.

Large residential areas were built for the workers moving to Schwedt. About 9% of the town's flats are in prefab concrete buildings (Plattenbau) dating from the era. As many jobs were lost after German reunification and the return to market economy, Schwedt has lost a quarter of its population since 1990. In recent decades, Schwedt became a model town for the demolition of Plattenbau housing to combat urban decay.

Geography[edit]

Schwedt is situated in the east of the historic Uckermark region stretching from the Oder to the Havel River. It is situated on a sandur at the western edge of the Oder floodplain running along the German-Polish border, which in 1995 was declared as the Lower Oder Valley National Park nature reserve. Across the river and the border, about 10 km (6.2 mi) to the southeast, is the Polish town of Chojna. The nearest German towns are Angermünde (about 18 km (11 mi) to the west) and Gartz (18 km (11 mi) down the Oder).

Local districts[edit]

In a 1974 municipal reform, the neighbouring village of Heinersdorf was incorporated into Schwedt, followed by Blumenhagen, Gatow and Kunow in 1993, by Kummerow in 1998, by Criewen and Zützen in 2001, Stendell in 2002, the former town Vierraden in 2003, Schöneberg in January 2021 and Berkholz-Meyenburg, Mark Landin and Passow in April 2022.[6] With 360.73 km2 (139.28 sq mi) Schwedt is among the 10 largest German municipalities by area (9th as of Nov. 2023).

Nearest cities and towns[edit]

Gartz (Germany), Penkun (Germany), Szczecin (Poland), Gryfino (Poland), Cedynia (Poland), Chojna (Poland), Mieszkowice (Poland), Moryń (Poland), Trzcińsko-Zdrój (Poland), Myślibórz (Poland), Pyrzyce (Poland).

History[edit]

After the Migration Period, the area had been settled by Polabian Slavs. From 937 onwards the lands of the Slavic Ukrani tribes in the west were subdued by the Saxon forces of Margrave Gero and incorporated into his vast Marca Geronis, while the lands east of the Oder were held by Pomeranian tribes under sovereignty of the newly formed Duchy of Poland ruled by Duke Mieszko I. The Saxon Northern March was lost in the Great Slav Rising of 983, and not before 1147 the Saxon count Albert the Bear again invaded the lands on the Oder river, which remained disputed between the newly established Margraviate of Brandenburg and the Pomeranian dukes.

The settlement of Schwedt was first mentioned in a 1265 deed. In the course of the Brandenburg–Pomeranian conflict, the Brandenburg margrave Louis II the Roman ceded it to Duke Barnim III of Pomerania in 1354. It was again besieged by the first Hohenzollern margrave Frederick I in 1434, but to no avail. In 1481 the Thuringian counts of Hohnstein acquired the estates; they granted town privileges to Schwedt as well as to neighbouring Vierraden and introduced the Protestant Reformation.

The rise of Schwedt came to an end with the extinction of the Hohnstein counts in 1609 and the disastrous Thirty Years' War, when the town on the road from Stettin to Berlin was plundered several times. In 1631 King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden, after landing in Pomerania, camped here on his way to the Battle of Breitenfeld. Six years later the Swedish field marshal Johan Banér set the town on fire, after its citizens refused to capitulate.

During the Great Northern War, the Treaty of Schwedt was signed in the town.

From 1815 to 1945, Schwedt was part of the Prussian Province of Brandenburg.

Near the end of World War II, over two months of heavy fighting destroyed an estimated 85 percent of the town, including the Schwedt Castle. The Soviet Army occupied Schwedt on April 26, 1945, two weeks before the final defeat of Nazi Germany.[7] From 1945 to 1952, Schwedt was part of the state of Brandenburg and from 1952 to 1990 of the Bezirk Frankfurt of East Germany. During the 1960s, the government of the DDR expanded housing and encouraged people to move to Schwedt, a trend that ended with German reunification. Since 1990, Schwedt is again part of the State of Brandenburg.

Demography[edit]

  • Development of population since 1875 within the current Boundaries (Blue Line: Population; Dotted Line: Comparison to Population development in Brandenburg state; Grey Background: Time of Nazi Germany; Red Background: Time of communist East Germany)
    Development of population since 1875 within the current Boundaries (Blue Line: Population; Dotted Line: Comparison to Population development in Brandenburg state; Grey Background: Time of Nazi Germany; Red Background: Time of communist East Germany)
  • Recent Population Development and Projections (Population Development before Census 2011 (blue line); Recent Population Development according to the Census in Germany in 2011 (blue bordered line); Official projections for 2005–2030 (yellow line); for 2017–2030 (scarlet line); for 2020–2030 (green line)
    Recent Population Development and Projections (Population Development before Census 2011 (blue line); Recent Population Development according to the Census in Germany in 2011 (blue bordered line); Official projections for 2005–2030 (yellow line); for 2017–2030 (scarlet line); for 2020–2030 (green line)
Schwedt/Oder: Population development
within the current boundaries (2020)[8]
YearPop.±% p.a.
1875 15,127—    
1890 14,709−0.19%
1910 14,125−0.20%
1925 13,640−0.23%
1939 13,512−0.07%
1950 12,418−0.76%
1964 23,441+4.64%
YearPop.±% p.a.
1971 38,211+7.23%
1981 54,933+3.70%
1985 54,142−0.36%
1990 53,628−0.19%
1995 49,371−1.64%
2000 42,261−3.06%
2005 37,259−2.49%
YearPop.±% p.a.
2010 34,035−1.79%
2015 30,262−2.32%
2016 30,182−0.26%
2017 30,075−0.35%
2018 29,920−0.52%
2019 29,680−0.80%
2020 29,433−0.83%

Twin towns – sister cities[edit]

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Germany

Schwedt is twinned with:[9]

Notable people[edit]

General von Schmidt

References[edit]

  1. ^ Landkreis Uckermark Wahl der Bürgermeisterin / des Bürgermeisters, accessed 7 March 2022.
  2. ^ "Bevölkerungsentwicklung und Flächen der kreisfreien Städte, Landkreise und Gemeinden im Land Brandenburg 2021" (PDF). Amt für Statistik Berlin-Brandenburg (in German). June 2022.
  3. ^ "Möbel statt Braunkohle: Die größten Unternehmen in Brandenburg". manager magazin. 2019-08-28.
  4. ^ Heisterkamp, Lucia (16 September 2021). "Wo Brandenburger Industrie Millionen Kubikmeter Wasser verbraucht". www.rbb24.de (in German). Archived from the original on 19 September 2021.
  5. ^ "Möbel statt Braunkohle: Die größten Unternehmen in Brandenburg". manager magazin.
  6. ^ Gesetz über die Gebietsänderung der amtsangehörigen Gemeinden des Amtes Oder-Welse, Berkholz-Meyenburg, Mark Landin, Passow und Pinnow (Uckermark), Gesetz- und Verordnungsblatt für das Land Brandenburg, 25 March 2022.
  7. ^ Schwedt war menschenleer. In: Märkische Oderzeitung. 27. April 2005
  8. ^ Detailed data sources are to be found in the Wikimedia Commons.Population Projection Brandenburg at Wikimedia Commons
  9. ^ "Partnerstadt". schwedt.eu (in German). Schwedt/Oder. Retrieved 2021-03-09.

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Schwedt.
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