Editing Stralsund (section)

==Culture and sights==
{{Infobox UNESCO World Heritage Site
| Part_of = Historic Centres of Stralsund and [[Wismar]]
| Image = Stralsund Alter Markt 05.jpg
| Caption = Stralsund: Alter Markt Square with the city hall and the St. Nicholas Church
| Criteria = Cultural: ii, iv
| ID = 1067
| Year = 2002
| Area = 80 ha
| Buffer_zone = 340 ha
}}

===Main sights===
* The historic Stralsund old town island is a [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site]]. It features many valuable remnants of the Hanseatic time, [[Brick Gothic]], [[Renaissance architecture|renaissance]], [[Baroque architecture|baroque]], [[Revival architecture|historicist]] and [[Art Nouveau|Jugendstil]] buildings.<ref name = "unesco"/>
* The heart of the old town is the Alter Markt Square ("Old Market"), with the Gothic city hall (13th century). Behind the city hall soars the imposing [[St. Nicholas' Church (Stralsund)|St. Nicholas' Church]], built in 1270–1360. The square is surrounded by houses from different periods, including the Gothic ''Wulflamhaus'' (a 14th-century patrician house, today a restaurant), and the Baroque ''Commandantenhus'' of 1751, the old headquarters of the Swedish military commander.
* Saint James' Church, built in mid-14th century. It was destroyed several times, e.g. by [[Wallenstein]] and in [[World War II]].
* [[St. Mary's church, Stralsund|Saint Mary's Church]], built in 1383–1473 in [[Gothic style]], is the largest church in Stralsund, and from 1625 to 1647 it was the [[List of tallest buildings and structures in the world#History|world's tallest structure]]. Its octagonal tower (104 meters high) offers a panorama view of Stralsund and the neighboring islands of [[Rügen]] and [[Hiddensee]].
[[File:Western portal of St Nikolai in Stralsund-2614.jpg|thumb|Portal of the St. Nicholas Church]]
* St. John's Abbey (Franciscan monastery built in 1254) is one of the oldest buildings in the city.
* Stralsund is the port of registry for the former German [[Reichsmarine]] Navy Sail Training ship ''[[Gorch Fock (1933)|"Gorch Fock" 1]]''. It is now a floating museum.
* The Monastery of Saint Catherine, mainly built in the 15th century, houses two museums today: Stralsund's ''Museum of Cultural History'' (known for e.g. the ''[[Hiddensee treasure|Gold Jewellery of Hiddensee]]''),<ref>[http://museum.stralsund.de/en/ Museum of Cultural History Stralsund]</ref> and the [[German Oceanographic Museum]], Germany's largest aquarium and oceanographic collection. The ancient [[refectory]] of the monastery is one of the most spectacular Gothic interiors in Germany.
* Besides the mentioned [[German Oceanographic Museum]] at the Katharinenkloster, Stralsund has other museums dedicated to marine life, including the popular [[Ozeaneum]] that was voted ''[[European Museum of the Year Award|European Museum of the Year]]'' in 2010. There is also a nautical centre, the Nautineum, on [[Dänholm]] island and the ''Marinemuseum Dänholm'', showcasing the military history of the German Navy, especially the interwar [[Reichsmarine]]. It also hosts one of the last remaining GDR [[Volksmarine]] (People's Navy) torpedo boats.

===Buildings and monuments===
[[File:Alter Markt Stralsund.jpg|thumb|Alter Markt Square|left]]
;Old Town (''Altstadt'')
The centre of Stralsund has a wealth of historic buildings. Since 1990, large parts of the historic old town have been renovated with private and public capital, and with the support of foundations. As a result of the contempt for historic buildings in [[German Democratic Republic|East Germany]] many houses were threatened by ruin. The Old Town in particular offers a rich variety of historic buildings, with many former merchants' houses, churches, streets and squares. 

Of more than 800 listed buildings in Stralsund, more than 500 are designated as individual monuments in the Old Town. In twenty years, from the ''Wende'' (turning point) in 1990 to November 2010, 588 of the more than 1,000 old buildings were completely refurbished, including 363 individual monuments.<ref>''64 Häuser in der Altstadt auf der Missstands-Liste'', in: [[Ostsee-Zeitung]] Stralsund dated 4 November 2010</ref> Because of its historical and architectural significance, in 2002 Stralsund's old town together with the old town of [[Wismar]] were added to entitled the [[List of World Heritage Sites in Germany|UNESCO World Cultural Heritage list]] as the "Historic Centres of Stralsund and Wismar".<ref name="unesco"/>[[File:Rathaus Stralsund nächtlich erleuchtet.jpg|thumb|The city hall]]
;Alter Markt Square
On the Alter Markt Square there is the main landmark of Stralsund: the [[Brick Gothic]] city hall from [[Hanseatic League|Hanseatic]] times. This building from 1278 features a remarkable "show façade" that serves the sole purpose of displaying wealth of the city. Citizens can walk through the city hall and its [[:File:Fotothek df ps 0005696 Rathäuser ^ Durchfahrten - Durchgänge.jpg|gallery]]. It also features one of Europe's largest Gothic [[:File:0110_Stralsund_13.09.2010.jpg|cellar vaults]]. The ensemble of buildings on the Alter Markt Square includes the St. Nicholas Church, the Artushof, the Wulflamhaus, the Commandantenhus, the Gewerkschaftshaus and a new apartment complex. 
;Old Town houses
The historic houses with their distinctive gables, often renovated at a high financial cost, dominate the scene in the streets of the Old Town. The former Swedish Government Palace is now home to the city construction department. The Museum of Cultural History Museum in ''Mönchstrasse'', in one of the most important surviving original houses of the [[Hanseatic League|Hanseatic]] era, was refurbished with funds from the [[Deutsche Stiftung Denkmalschutz|German Foundation for Monument Conservation]] It offers a guide to understanding the city's history over seven centuries.

;Churches
Three large [[medieval]] [[Brick Gothic]] buildings – [[St. Mary's Church, Stralsund|St. Mary's Church]], [[St. Nicholas Church, Stralsund|St. Nicholas Church]] and St. James Church, point to the medieval significance of Stralsund. Today St. James' is used purely as a cultural venue, its parish being served now by the Church of the Holy Spirit, which also dates from the 14th century. Two other churches on the Alter Markt Square and the Neuer Markt are still used for church services. The tower of St. Mary's on the Neuer Markt offers a panoramic view over Stralsund and the island of Rügen. 
;Monasteries
St. John's Abbey, a [[Franciscan]] monastery from 1254, now houses the Stralsund City Archives. Regular cultural events also take place here, such as open-air theatre productions.

The Gothic abbey of St. Anne and St. Bridget in ''Schillstrasse'' was established around 1560 from the merger of the abbey of ''St. Anne'' (1480) and the double abbey of ''Mariakron'' (1421).

The Abbey of St. Jürgen on ''Mönchstrasse'' was mentioned in 1278 for the first time. It served in the 14th century as an old people's home. In 1743 a new building, the ''Kleines St. Jürgen Kloster'', was built at ''Kniepertor'' and the site was extended in 1754 to create old people's flats and in 1841 for widow's apartments.

First mentioned in 1256, the ''Heilgeistkloster'' is now the Hospital of the Holy Spirit.

[[File:Stralsund, am Hafen (2013-07-11), by Klugschnacker in Wikipedia (39).JPG|thumb|Old Port with [[Ozeaneum]], warehouses and historical ships including the ''[[Gorch Fock (1933)|Gorch Fock]]'']]
;Port
Ferries to [[Hiddensee]] and [[Altefähr]], as well as harbor tour boats, dock at the port. In the summer months the port is a berthing places for river cruisers. There are several yacht harbors and marinas near the Old Town. Hundreds of yachts and boats tie up along the north mole in summer. Architecturally the pilot station and the harbor warehouse (''Hafenspeicher''), as well as the silhouette of the Old Town, form a unique tableau of different historical eras. The barque and former sailor's training ship, ''[[Gorch Fock (1933)|Gorch Fock]]'' is another tourist attraction at the harbor.