One of the best-preserved medieval hospital complexes in the whole southern Baltic region.
Together with its counterpart in Lübeck, the Holy Spirit Hospital in Stralsund is one of the best-preserved medieval hospital complexes in the whole southern Baltic region. The oldest part of the hospital is the Holy Spirit Church, which dates from the early fifteenth century. This little church has a straight chancel and a Baroque altarpiece dating from around 1770. As well as the western entrance leading to Wasserstrasse, the church also has an eastern entrance and two doors from the which lead to a passageway called the Kirchgang formed by the space between two long parallel two-storey buildings that were added to the church itself in 1645 to house the old, the sick, and the infirm. The passageway is closed at the eastern end by a gate that separates it from the rest of the hospital. The gallery that was added to the passageway in 1680 served as a model for a similar one built later in the City Hall. Until 1945 the Holy Spirit Church served as a garrison church; now it is where the Parish of St Jacob holds its services. As part of the restoration, the buildings along the Kirchgang passageway have been turned into fla
