Ludwigslust

Ludwigslust
Ludwigslust Palace
Coat of arms
Ludwigslust
Location of Ludwigslust within Ludwigslust-Parchim district
Coordinates:
Country	Germany
State	Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
District	Ludwigslust-Parchim
Government
• Mayor	Petra Billerbeck (Ind.)
Area
• Total	78.30 km2 (30.23 sq mi)
Population (2013-12-31)
• Total	12,095
• Density	150/km2 (400/sq mi)
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes	19288
Dialling codes	03874
Vehicle registration	LWL
Website	stadtludwigslust.de

Ludwigslust (German pronunciation: [luːtvɪçsˈlʊst]) is a central castle town of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany, 40 km south of Schwerin. Since 2011 it is part of the Ludwigslust-Parchim district.

Ludwigslust is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region. The former royal residential town is known for its rich heritage, especially the famed Ludwigslust Palace, that is also called Versailles of the North.

History

Ludwigslust

In 1724 Prince Ludwig, the son of Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, decided to build a hunting lodge near a small hamlet called Klenow. Later on, after his succession to the Dukedom, this became his favourite residence and he named it accordingly Ludwigslust ("Ludwig's pleasure/desire"). In 1765 Ludwigslust became the capital of the duchy in place of of Schwerin. The town was enlarged by a residential palace (the castle). This situation continued until 1837, when Grand Duke Paul Friedrich returned the capital status to Schwerin.

The Wöbbelin concentration camp—sometimes referred to as Ludwigslust concentration camp—was established by the SS near the city of Ludwigslust in 1945. At the end of World War II, as the Line of contact between Soviet and other Allied forces formed, Ludwigslust was captured by British troops initially, then handed over to American troops. After several months the US troops departed and allowed Soviet troops to enter per the Yalta agreement designating the occupation of Mecklenburg to be administered by the Soviets.

Citizens of Ludwigslust, Germany, inspect a nearby concentration camp under orders of the 82nd Airborne Division

Sights

• Schloss Ludwigslust, a Baroque residential palace built in 1772-1776, after plans by Johann Joachim Busch. It is called as the "Little Versailles of Mecklenburg". The palace is located in the middle of the palace garden (Schlosspark), a vast park (120 ha.), created in English style, with canals, fountains and artificial cascades.
• The Stadtkirche (Municipal- / City-Church), built in 1765-1770 in Neoclassical style with Baroque sway. Its classical design, with a portico resting on six doric columns, gives the church an appearance similar to a Greek temple.

Transport

• Ludwigslust railway station is served by ICE, EC, IC and RE services.

Twin towns — sister cities

Main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in Germany

Ludwigslust is twinned with:

• Ahrensburg, Germany
• Muscatine, United States

External links

• official site (town)
• official site (county)
• The Embracing Forest An American visits Ludwigslust and vicinity in 2005 and finds more history than he expected.