Discover Hagenow

Hagenow offers several different ways to explore its cultural and historical heritage. If you are looking for a hotel in Hagenow, a thematic overview can help: key topics include the history of the former Jewish community, collections on the town and everyday culture, individual historic buildings, and a cycling tour with visits to two churches. The topics differ in both subject matter and format. You can tailor your visit to your interest in historic sites, collections, or an active route.

Jewish life and its history

The ensemble of buildings belonging to Hagenow’s former Jewish community includes the synagogue, built in 1828, a religious school, and a ritual bath, the mikveh. Its historical context is therefore clearly tied to the former community. Since November 2010, the permanent exhibition “Traces of Jewish Life in Hagenow and West Mecklenburg” has been on display at the Hanna Meinungen House. Its title names both Hagenow and West Mecklenburg. The ensemble and the exhibition offer different perspectives: one identifies the buildings and their functions, while the other is a permanent exhibition with an explicitly regional focus.

Collections on town and everyday culture

The Museum of Everyday Culture of the GRIESEN GEGEND offers a different perspective. Its collections comprise several thousand objects relating to the town’s history, crafts, and the folklore of Southwest Mecklenburg. One of the main focuses is the Jabelheide folklore collection, from villages in the heart of the Griesen Gegend. This places town history and crafts alongside a specific focus on regional folklore. The Jabelheide collection’s origins in villages in the heart of the Griesen Gegend give this part of the collection its own geographical context.

Buildings from different periods

Individual buildings also offer contrasting historical and architectural highlights. Hagenow Water Tower is a brick building with Gothic windows, constructed between 1905 and 1908. Hagenow’s smallest house is at Königsstraße 15 and is a side-passage gable house. According to the inscription on its beam, it was built in 1751; it was renovated in 1993. The dates distinguish the two buildings: the year 1751 is recorded in the house’s beam inscription, while the water tower has a construction period of 1905 to 1908. The tower is notable for its brickwork and window design, while the house stands out for its architectural style and inscription.

Discover Hagenow by bike

The Hagenow Countryside Tour focuses on a cycling route rather than a single building. It starts at Rathausplatz in Hagenow and ends in Hagenow with visits to the Catholic Church of St. Elisabeth and the Protestant town church. The tour thus connects its starting point with two specifically named church destinations. The focus here is on cycling and the two visits; the other Hagenow topics, by contrast, lead to buildings, collections, and an exhibition.

More cultural topics in the wider destination of Ludwigslust-Parchim

In the wider destination of Ludwigslust-Parchim, Ludwigslust Palace offers a cultural and historical highlight of its own. It was the former residence of the Dukes of Mecklenburg. The palace, park, and town form an ensemble known as the “Little Versailles of the North.” The palace is also the focal point of an almost completely preserved late Baroque town layout, with a former court church and an English-style landscape park. The palace presents art and courtly domestic culture from the 18th and early 19th centuries. The region’s themes therefore include residential history, town planning, and courtly culture.

Another architectural landmark in Ludwigslust-Parchim is Dömitz Citadel. Designed on the Italian model, it is a pentagonal Renaissance fortress with bastions, casemates, and a drawbridge. The museum in Dömitz Fortress covers the history of the fortress and town, as well as the history of the Elbe, its harbor, and its bridges; it also features Fritz Reuter. The focus here is on the Renaissance fortress and the history of the fortress and town, while Ludwigslust Palace is associated with a late Baroque town layout and courtly domestic culture.

Discover more destinations: Amt Ostufer Schweriner See, Amt Banzkow, Amt Stralendorf, Amt Plau Am See, Parchim, Boizenburg/Elbe, Amt Wittenburg, Amt Hagenow-Land

Go to the overview of the wider destination: Ludwigslust-Parchim.