Next came the northern section, which led to a conflict with the Augustinian Hermits, who were obliged to cover the cost of construction by their monastery. In the end, however, the town paid for this stretch of wall. The following stages of building the town’s fortifications were linked to the town’s adoption of Lübeck law in 1292, which resulted in the abolition of the castle town and the office of castellan, and the continuation of work on the southern section.
The walls, initially built of fieldstone, were later constructed of brick, reinforced with buttresses and fitted with loopholes. The whole was surrounded by double moats and earthen ramparts. The fortifications were strengthened by 9 towers, 45 watch turrets, 4 bastions, 4 gates and 4 posterns.
During the Thirty Years’ War (1618–1648), specifically after Albrecht Wallenstein’s troops entered Stargard in 1627, the town began to be transformed into a fortress – the ramparts were raised and roundels were built. The Swedes, who took over the town in 1630, planned to expand the fortifications further in the bastion system, but the town burned down during their retreat in 1635. The gradual dismantling of parts of the fortifications began after Prussia took over the Swedish part of Pomerania in 1720.
The walls had a circumference of 2,260 m, of which 46% survive today. Since 2010 they have been a Monument of History and are one of Stargard’s greatest tourist attractions.
