Discover Menzendorf

Menzendorf is an Angerdorf (village green village) with a through road. In the southern half, the layout of a farming village has been preserved; there, the buildings are arranged radially in the style of a Rundling (circular village). These different village layouts offer an introduction to the history of rural settlement patterns. Menzendorf and its surrounding areas are considered a place for recreation and walks—a theme that leaves room for time outdoors alongside the village’s history.

Villages with Distinctive Layouts

Rottensdorf is what remains of a small Rundling on the shore of Lake Menzendorf. Lübseerhagen, in turn, is a Waldhufendorf (forest-strip village), established on cleared woodland; it is considered the only village of its kind. Its farmland is nearly square and divided into eight long strips running across the road. The Angerdorf, Rundling and Waldhufendorf thus represent different settlement patterns. Anyone interested in the layout of rural communities can compare different patterns here, rather than assuming that a single village structure is typical of the whole area.

Building History and Art in Lübsee Church

Lübsee Church is a Romanesque building with Early Gothic elements. It is dated to 1236–1263; brickwork rests on granite foundations. The church was first mentioned in 1263 and restored in 1874. Inside, four layers of wall and vault paintings have been preserved, with extensive remains uncovered. Restoration work also uncovered and revealed wall paintings dating from the 13th to the 17th century. The former carved altar is now in the State Museum in Schwerin.

Burial sites also tell stories of family history: a Siemens family grave is located in Lübsee cemetery. Werner von Siemens’s parents are buried on the northwest side of the church. The Siemens family lived in Menzendorf as estate tenants. Natural paths run through the churchyard beneath lime trees, past stone crosses and faded inscriptions. In Lübsee Church, building history and paintings sit alongside the traces found in the churchyard and the history of the village.

Northwest Mecklenburg as the Wider Region

In the wider travel destination of Northwest Mecklenburg, the landscape in the north extends to the “Northwest Mecklenburg Hills with Wismar Bay” and in the south to the “West Mecklenburg Lake District with Lake Schwerin.” Terminal moraine ridges, gently undulating ground-moraine plateaus, stretches of steep and flat coastline, meltwater and drainage channels, and outwash plains shape the district’s landscape.

Cultural attractions in Northwest Mecklenburg include Gadebusch Castle in Gadebusch. Dating from 1573, the Renaissance castle is considered a rare example of Mecklenburg or North German Brick Gothic Renaissance architecture; it also features reliefs in the regional Johann Albrecht style. The Radegast Valley Landscape Protection Area offers a different experience: it covers around 600 hectares between the southern edge of Rehna and Lake Neddersee near Gadebusch. The protected area includes the strongly meandering, natural course of the Radegast, as well as adjoining grassland, reed beds, wooded areas and swamp forests.

Tailor your search to the themes you would like to explore more closely on your trip.

Discover more travel destinations: Roduchelstorf, Niendorf, Dassow, Selmsdorf, Lockwisch, Groß Siemz, Grieben, Papenhusen

View the wider travel overview: Amt Schönberger Land.