Rostock - Steintor

With more than 200.000 inhabitants Rostock is the largest city in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.

Small Slavic settlements existed already in the 8th century. A settlement named Roztok was founded in the 11th century by Polabian Slavs. This town was burnt down by troops of the Danish king Valdemar I in 1161. Afterwards the place was settled by German traders.

After 1226 Rostock became the seat of the Lordship of Rostock.

In the 1250s the city became a member of the Hanseatic League. In the 14th century it was a powerful seaport town with 12,000 inhabitants and the largest city in Mecklenburg. Ships for cruising the Baltic Sea were constructed in Rostock. Until the last Hansa Convention in 1669, Rostock took a leading role in the Baltic Sea behind Lübeck.

In 1419, the University of Rostock was founded, the oldest university in the Baltic Sea area.

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The Steintor led via the cobbled (stone) Steinstraße to Neuer Markt, the centre of the city with the town hall.

In its present form, it was built in 1574 to 1577 in the Renaissance architectural style and replaced an older gate from 1279.