Map - Grabow

Grabow is a town in the Ludwigslust-Parchim district, in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. It is situated on the river Elde, 7 km (4.35 mi) southeast of Ludwigslust, and 34 km (21.12 mi) northwest of Wittenberge. It is twinned with Whitstable, in Kent.

The name Grabow is of Slavic Polabian origin, grab means "hornbeam". Names with this root occur often in Mecklenburg. It was only slightly changed as Grabowe (1186, 1252, 1275) and Grabow (1189, 1298). Pope Urban III. mentions castle Grabow for the first time in a letter from February 23, 1186. The city received city law in 1252 from the Count of Dannenberg. On 3 June 1725 the city was destroyed by a great fire. The palace was never rebuilt. At least since the 18th century there were Jews in the city, who left behind a synagogue and a cemetery. Both of them were damaged during the Kristallnacht. The Jews were murdered during the Nazi occupation of the town that began in 1939. Most were sent to nearby Chelmno and gassed there.

The historical center of Grabow is distinguished by its close core of timber-framed houses of the 18th century.

From 1815 to 1918, Grabow was part of the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. On 1 January 2016, the former municipality Steesow became part of Grabow.

The painter Wilhelm Langschmidt was born in Grabow. He settled in the Elgin valley in South Africa. The town which grew around his trading store there still bears the name Grabouw, after his hometown.