Magdeburg (Saxony-Anhalt)

Magdeburg commented by Braun

“Magdeburg […] is the noblest city in Saxony […]. Here there are splendid houses, magnificent streets, large and richly decorated churches: the church of St Maurice built by Emperor Otto is particularly handsome. In Magdeburg there used to be a fortified castle surrounded by fishermen’s huts like a village or some other open bourg.
There used to be burgraves here as in Nuremberg: whether they were Saxons or Vandals, however, is uncertain. It is known, however, that after Otto a burgraviate was created by Imperial mandate and numbered amongst the four burgraves in the empire.”

TRANSLATION OF THE CARTOUCHE/ Magdeburg was called Parthenopolis (virgin city) after Venus, who was once worshipped here: it is the capital of Saxony, remarkable for its wealth and power and known for its narrow city walls and its proximity to the Elbe.

Taschen on Magdeburg

In this plan view seen from a lofty bird’s-eye perspective, Magdeburg – the name is probably derived from ‘Magadoburg” (Ger. mächtige Burg, “mighty fortress”) – lies on the right bank of the Elbe. The Gothic cathedral of SS Maurice and Catherine is clearly recognizable on the right (Der Dom).

Further left is the ensemble of St John’s church, where Martin Luther preached in 1524, and the town hall overlooking the Alter Markt, the old market square on which it is also possible to make out the famous equestrian statue of the Magdeburg Knight and a Magdeburg Roland statue.

Magdeburg gained a reputation as a stronghold of Protestantism and became the first major city to publish the writings of Martin Luther. St. John’s Church fell victim to a disastrous air raid of January 16, 1945. Only 46 years later, on 16th January 1991, reconstruction work began which was largely due to the initiative of a board of trustees and completed in 1999. Today St. John’s Church is open to the public and has become a popular venue for a wide variety of unusual events.