Tom`s travels: Magdeburg (17/07/2019)

The day after my trip to Dresden, I decided to head once more on a day-trip this time to the historic city of Magdeburg, just west of Berlin. After taking a bus I reached the city in just two hours' drive. Founded by Charlemagne, it is one of the oldest cities in Germany, and thanks to the Holy Roman Emperor Otto I, it became an extremely important archbishopric just 100 years later. One of the largest and most prosperous cities in the Empire, it also spread throughout central and Eastern Europe its version of German town laws known as Magdeburg rights. Unfortunately, its demise came in 1631 when, during the Thirty Years' War, it was sacked by the Catholic League and a large part of the population was killed. The city then suffered another fatal blow during WWII when it was nearly completely destroyed by Allied bombings. So after reaching the bus station, I got off the bus and headed towards the city center on foot. I first reached and entered the Cathedral Church of St Sebastian, known as a Cathedral as it is the seat of the Catholic Church in the diocese. Built in 1170 in the Romanesque style, it was later turned into a Gothic structure in the 15th century after several fires had damaged it. From the Romanesque period remain the transept and the two towers of the facade typical of this area's architecture. From the church, it was then a short walk to reach the Domplatz, the large square next to the Magdeburger Dom, or the city's main Cathedral dedicated to Saints Maurice and Catherine. I first decided to walk around the building and first passed through what looked like the remains of some defensive structures. Known as Bastion Cleve this defensive tower, now just showing the foundations, was once part of the large fortress structure used to defend the city back in the 16th century. I then completed the tour of the Cathedral's perimeter and decided to enter and visit the interior. The first church was built in 937 which was then substituted by the current one begun in 1209 and completed 300 years later in 1520 with the two steeples reaching 99m and 100m in height respectively. It is considered as the country's oldest Gothic cathedral. Its height and size were impressive, and I marveled at the beautiful interior while walking along the main nave. As I reached the apse I then admired the tombstone where Emperor Otto I the Great was buried. To the south of the church building, I then went through a door and reached the cloister with beautiful greenery at its center and an interesting perspective of the side and towers. Its southern side was spared by a fire during the beginning of the cathedral's construction and thus featured some interesting Romanesque capitals. After a thorough visit of the Cathedral, I then headed out and crossed the Cathedral square to reach the so-called Grune Zitadelle or Green Citadel. This complex building made up of apartments, shops, cafes, etc, was supposed to be an "oasis for humanity and nature in a sea of rational houses" with its colorful and uncommon structure. In the sunlight, it gleamed and gave a sense of happiness and color and filled with trees and plants among buildings that were built during the communist and now modern times without character to their design. The structure was completed in 2005 and was the last design of the Austrian architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser. To the north of the Cathedral square, I then passed by the Monastery of Our Lady built during the 11th century and now housing the city's art museum which I decided not to visit. Continuing on I then passed yet another church, dedicated to Saint John. A mix of Romanesque and Gothic architecture with the former showing in its facade and towers and the latter in the rest of the building. It was closed so I continued a little further and reached the Alter Markt, the old town market square. At one end stands the town hall and close to it the typical Roland statue, the knight with the drawn sword signaling the town privileges of a medieval city in the Holy Roman Empire. Another structure, in from of the town hall was also the so-called Magdeburg Knight, a niche holding the sculpture of a knight on horseback. The current sculpture is a gilded bronze copy of a stone original from the 13th century now held in the city's art museum. As I continued northwards I then encountered two more religious buildings: the university church of St Peter, with a single thick romanesque steeple and gothic nave, with the gothic Magadelene Chapel standing apart from it to the south and the Wallon church built in Gothic style and completely rebuilt at the end of the 1960s after the war. Both were closed so that prompted me to head back towards the city center, this time by walking alongside the banks of the Elbe river. After a nice stroll, I reached the city center once again and decided to find a nice spot in the small park just south of the Cathedral to enjoy the sun and view. After relaxing for a bit there I then decided to have a last look at the impressively detailed facade of the city's main monument, the Cathedral, before finally heading back to the bus station from where I took my ride back to Berlin.