The Cathedral's square covers the southern part of Central Magdeburg. It has been called the "New Market" (Neuer Markt), although it was built a thousand years ago. The German emperor Otto the 1st built there a castle, the remains of which were uncovered in archaeological excavations in the 1950s and 60s. The fort burned down early in the 13th century, probably together with the first Dom.
Late in the 17th century the square was paved with stones, and was used as an exercise ground by the Prussian garrison. The cathedral is situated on its southern side. A block of houses on the north side of the square was built in Baroque style of the 18th century, and now serves as the parliament (Landtag) of the State of Saxony-Anhalt.
The Dom of Magdeburg is the first Gothic cathedral built in Germany. It's one of the largest churches in the country as well, and the tallest church in East Germany, 104 meters. It is placed where the historical St. Mauritius' monastery church used to be. That church was founded by the first German Emperor Otto in 937 (and was later called the Saint Catherine church).
Otto turned it later into a cathedral, the archbishop's seat, and when he died, he was buried in it. The cathedral was destroyed in a fire, and in 1307 the construction of the Gothic cathedral was completed. The church tower was only built 200 years later. It's 101 meters high.
Inside the cathedral there are today vestiges of almost every period: the remains of the medieval church and the tombs of Emperor Otto and his wife Edith, 14th century wooden carvings, Renaissance works of art, and the "warrior" memorial (1929), by the expressionist sculptor Ernest Barlach. Since 1567, the church is Evangelist.
From here we walk to the nearby monastery of Our Beloved Lady. Click here.
