Brandenburg on Havel is the town with the third biggest population and with the biggest surface federal state of Brandenburg. The independent city has a history which dates back more than thousand years and was mentioned for the first time in documents in 1170 which makes it the eldest town in the state of Brandenburg.

The seven churches of the town are impressive, among them St. Katharine, St. Gotthardt and the Cathedral of St. Peter & Paul, but you will also find four town gate towers and the town wall, an old monastery, historical market squares and other historical buildings. Numerous bridges over river Havel, three lakes in the town’s outskirts and bank promenades give the town a special atmosphere.

The Cathedral of Brandenburg is main church of the country of Brandenburg. Otto the Great in 948 founded the diocese of Brandenburg in midst of a marshland where Slavic tribes had settled. Though the diocese was destroyed by an uprising of the Slavs, it was re-established in the 12th century after the last Slav's prince had be christened. The construction of the cathedral started in 1165. Due to the traces of architectural styles and liturgical uses of the past this cathedral is a unique document of the history of culture and worship in Brandenburg. A Protestant foundation (Stift) looks after its preservation and takes care of the artifacts having been handed down through centuries. In the cathedral‘s museum altars and sculptures, documents, liturgical devices and parts of the textile treasure are shown, among them the important “Hungertuch” (Cloth of Hunger) stemming from the late 13th century.

The Old City Hall at the Old Market Square is a Gothic brick building that has been built in the middle of the 15th century. It was administrative seat and centre of the Old Town for quite a long time. The Prussian Royal Government appointed it as state and city court in 1819. With time the city hall decayed until just a ruin was left which had to be removed in 1904 because of its state of dilapidation. When in 1910 the town repurchased the Old City Hall reconstruction started. Worth seeing is the statue of “Roland” of 1474 on the right side beside the main entrance.

One of Brandenburg’s most important remaining medieval buildings are the well-preserved Town Fortifications. Its walls and water pumps were built during the 14th and 15th centuries and surrounded both the Old and the New Town in order to repel hostile attacks. Access to town in the Middle Ages was provided by just five gates. With the introduction of a tax raised at the town gates, walls and gates gained further importance for a short time. However, with growing traffic they turned out obstructive and were torn down at the beginning of the 19th century. Large parts of the town wall were also torn down. Some sections of these gaps were later filled with buildings.

More information: http://www.stadt-brandenburg.de/

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