Richly and thoughtfully illustrated, this description presents regional peculiarities and spans the arc of historical representation - from the earliest human traces to the most recent contemporary history. The reading experience takes you from the chalk cliffs to the sea's gold, from the Sternberger cake to the Stone Dance, and from the Devil's Oven to legendary, vanished cities. Wars, mostly of a secular nature, are traced alongside the intriguing connections of a sinful queen to a monastery in Rostock. Those who wish to know how Hanseatic cities and regional princes vied for power or how Catholics and Protestants fought will find answers in clear and factually reliable chapters. The periods of Swedish and French rule, the Wars of Liberation, industrialization, and revolution are vividly depicted, alongside city and highway planning on the drawing board, as well as scientific errors and...