Usedom (alsoGerman:Stadt Usedom orUsedom Town) is a town onUsedom Island, in theVorpommern-Greifswald district inMecklenburg-Vorpommern, in north-easternGermany, close to the border withPoland. It is the seat of theAmt Usedom-Süd, to which 14 other communities also belong.

Usedom
Town
Church and town hall of Usedom
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Usedom within Vorpommern-Greifswald district
Usedom Show map of Germany Usedom Show map of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
Coordinates:53°52′N13°55′E / 53.867°N 13.917°E /53.867; 13.917
Country	Germany
State	Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
District	Vorpommern-Greifswald
Municipal assoc.	Usedom-Süd
Subdivisions	14
Government
• Mayor	Jochen Storrer
Area
• Total	38.54 km2 (14.88 sq mi)
Elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2023-12-31)[1]
• Total	1,723
• Density	45/km2 (120/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes	17406
Dialling codes	038372
Vehicle registration	VG

The whole island ofUsedom was named after the town in medieval times.

The town lies in the southeastern part of the island ofUsedom, in the so-calledAchterland, on the northwest shore of theSzczecin Lagoon. The town is bordered on the west and north by thePeenestrom, the aforesaid lagoon's western outlet to theBaltic Sea.

The following communities belong to the town of Usedom:

The region has been settled sinceNeolithic times, and from the 8th and 9th centuries by ancientSlavs, who built acastle on the hill now known as the Schloßberg. The town's name comes from theSlavic word "uznam", meaning river mouth. The town was destroyed by theDanes in the 1110s.^[2]

In the 1120s, Pomerania was conquered by Polish monarchBolesław III Wrymouth, who initiatedChristianization, entrusting this task toOtto of Bamberg.^[3] In 1128, the SlavicWest Pomeranian assembly with DukeWartislaw I adoptedChristianity, and shortly thereafter, aPremonstratensianmonastery,Usedom Abbey (also Grobe or Pudagla Abbey) was established in Usedom. In 1140 the local castle was first mentioned, as part of the newly establishedBishopric of Wolin, and firstcastellans were mentioned from 1159.^[2] In 1177 and 1178 the town was destroyed twice by KingValdemar I of Denmark.^[4] In the thirteenth century, the German settlement of Usedom began as part of the eastern colonization (Ostsiedlung) in progress in many places at that time. With the division of theDuchy of Pomerania, in 1295, it became part of theDuchy of Pomerania-Wolgast.^[5] On 23 December 1298, Usedom was granted town rights underLübeck law byBogusław IV.

The town burnt down twice in great fires in 1475 and 1688. During theThirty Years' War, it was captured by KingChristian IV of Denmark in 1628 and soon handed over to theHoly Roman Empire, then captured bySweden in 1630, and recaptured by the Holy Roman Empire in 1637.^[6] After thePeace of Westphalia (1648) and theTreaty of Stettin (1653), Usedom, along with all ofWestern Pomerania, became aDominion of Sweden (Swedish Pomerania) until 1720, when it was acquired byPrussia. In 1757, during theSeven Years' War, it was occupied by Sweden. From 1871, it formed part of theGerman Empire. The town had arailway connection from 1876.

In 1934, at Karnin, a railway bridge, theKarnin Lift Bridge, was built, but it was destroyed in theSecond World War. During the war, it was the location of a subcamp of theSachsenhausen concentration camp.^[7] In February 1945, a German-perpetrateddeath march ofAllied prisoners-of-war from theStalag XX-BPOW camp passed through the town.^[8] After the war, the town first belonged to the state ofMecklenburg-Vorpommern untilEast Germany abolished theLand system in 1952, whereafter it was in the Rostockregion. AtGerman reunification in 1990, Usedom once again found itself in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

Worth seeing in Usedom are theAnklamer Tor ("Anklam Gate"), St. Mary's (Marienkirche), theSchloßberg ("residence hill") with its memorial to the conversion to Christianity implemented byOtto of Bamberg in 1128, and the ruins of theKarnin Lift Bridge. Furthermore, the town's old railway station houses the nature park centre with very interesting displays about nature in the immediate vicinity.

Through Usedom runs the island's main south road (Federal Highway B110), connecting the town to Pinnow on the mainland, and farther afield,Anklam. In the other direction, the B110 joins the B111, the road that runs along Usedom island's north shore, at Seebad Ahlbeck. Until 1945, the town had a railway station on theDucherow-Swinemünde (Świnoujście) line, which now houses the island's nature park centre. Usedom today lies far from the island's only railway line, (Usedomer Bäderbahn). Usedom has a smallharbour on theUsedomer See, an inlet with a narrow opening – theKehle, or channel – into the lagoon.

Usedom istwinned with:^[9]

•  Henstedt-Ulzburg, Germany
•  Maurepas, France
•  Wolin, Poland

  Media related toUsedom (city) at Wikimedia Commons

• Official website (in German)