DEUTSCHLAND	GERMANY
Bundesland: Schleswig-Holstein
Kreis: Herzogtum Lauenburg

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Ratzeburg is situated at an elevation of 3 m on an island sourrounded by the four lakes Küchensee, Stadtsee, Domsee and Ratzeburger See in the Lauenburg Lake District of southeastern Schleswig-Holstein.

The earliest written mention of Racesburg is found in a document of 1062. A monastery had been founded here by the monk Ansverus from the monastery of Harsefeld near Stade to further the christianisation of the region and in 1060 the bishopric of Ratzeburg was created. However, already in 1066 the monastery and church were destroyed during an uprising of the Slavic people of the area, Abbot Ansverus and 18 of his compagnions were stoned to death. After the victory over the Slavs in 1093, the monastery and the church were rebuilt again. Ansverus was canonized as a saint in 1142 and his relics, which until then had been kept hidden, were brought into the church which, in 1154, again became the seat of a bishop. A stone castle was founded on the island after 1143 and after 1300 an additional palisade fence was set up around the island. After the downfall of Heinrich the Lion in 1179 Ratzeburg came in possession of the Askanians and in 1296 became one of the two residencies of the duchy of Saxe-Lauenburg. The bishopric already became defunct during the Reformation.

After the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, the estates of the monastery and the cathedral were mediatised and became a principality which was given to the dukes of Mecklenburg (1701 to Mecklenburg-Strelitz), whereas the town remained part of Lauenburg. Until 1689 Lauenburg was ruled by the Askanian dukes of Saxe-Lauenburg; thereafter Lauenburg was united with Hannover (1689–1803), the Kingdom of Denmark (1814–1864) and Prussia (1865–1876). In 1876 Lauenburg was finally incorporated into the Prussian Province Schleswig-Holstein (District Duchy of Lauenburg). The Mecklenburg Principality of Ratzeburg was only reunited with the municipality of Ratzeburg in 1937 with the Groß-Hamburg-Gesetz (Gesetz über Groß-Hamburg und andere Gebietsbereinigungen, Greater Hamburg Act, Law regarding Greater Hamburg and Other Territorial Readjustments).

The cathedral [background centre] was built between ca.1170 and around 1220. The Romanesque brick basilica contains numerous important pieces of art of several art historical periods. The triumphant crucifixion group dates from ca. 1260, the winged altar with its passion relief was created in 1420, the carved Renaissance pulpit dates from 1576.

The German sculptor Ernst Barlach (1870 Wedel – 1938 Rostock) spent his youth in Ratzeburg.