The Hanseatic city of Greifswald with its university ranks among the finest cites on the Baltic coast. Many of the buildings are in Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque style and are reminders of the various stages of urban development which was especially influenced by the Hanseatic era (Greifswald was one of the founder towns of the Hanseatic League in 1299) and the Swedish occupation from 1648 to 1815. Many reminders of those times have remained intact, thanks to the uncontested surrender of the city in 30.04.1945. The St. Nikolai Cathedral dominates the skyline, there are also the Marien and Jakobi Churches, the historic Market Square, the University buildings (the second oldest in North Germany), the former Cistercian Monastery in nearby Eldena and the hundred year old Wiecker wooden suspension bridge. The city museum houses several world famous paintings by Caspar David Friedrich. Residents and visitors alike enjoy excellent shopping facilities