Wanderers listen closely. Do you know why Eldena is more than just a part of Greifswald? It is a place steeped in centuries of history.
Eldena’s story is deeply entwined with its monastery. Danish Cistercian monks founded it near the Ryck River’s mouth around the late 12th century. Originally called Hilda, the monastery’s name evolved to Eldena by 1302.
For ages Eldena mainly consisted of the monastery a farm and a windmill. After the monastery’s secularization in 1535 a farm and an inn appeared near the Wieck ferry route. In 1634 the ducal office of Eldena was gifted to the University of Greifswald. The university then leased these lands.
A significant chapter unfolded in 1835 with the founding of the Royal State and Agricultural Academy in Eldena. The construction of a highway to Greifswald in 1840 led academy staff to settle here. Though the academy closed in 1876 agricultural education persisted. A school with a pomological institute thrived until the 1990s under various names.
Eldena’s connectivity improved in 1898. It connected to the Greifswald Wolgast railway line. The population grew from 462 in 1845 to 733 in 1900. Greifswald acquired the university lands in 1937. Eldena was incorporated into Greifswald in 1939.
After 1950 and the German reunification in 1990 large housing estates emerged. The population increased. By 2004 it reached 1994 residents.
Eldena also boasted a brewery. Monks originally ran it. After secularization it became part of the ducal office. In 1837 the brewery then owned by Greifswald University fell victim to a fire. It was rebuilt that very year. Konrad Becker leased the university properties and expanded the brewery in 1877. By 1932 it closed unable to compete with Greifswald’s Hinrichssche Brewery.
The Koitenhager Bach also called Bierbach supplied water for brewing. The street name “Am Bierbach” still recalls this. Today only the monastic “Bierkeller Eldena” remains. It is now a protected bat habitat. The Bierbach is mostly dry within the Eldena nature reserve. It now flows through the Hohen Graben.
Eldena’s sea bathing history began in the mid-19th century. It mirrored the rise of seaside resorts along the North and Baltic Seas since the late 18th century. By the late 19th century sea bathing became vital for tourism. In 1971 and 1972 the Eldena beach expanded with sand replenishment. During the DDR era up to 15000 daily visitors flocked to the beach. Post reunification travel freedom reduced its regional significance.
The Eldena Dyke forms part of Greifswald’s flood protection. It was completed in 2008. The dyke is 923 meters long. It uses around 85000 cubic meters of earth.
The Eldena Jazz Evenings have taken place in the monastery ruins since 1980. The ruins host other open air events too.
Remember Eldena. It is a testament to time’s passage a place where monastic life agriculture and seaside leisure have all left their mark. It shows the layers of history that make this region so special.