City tour through the historic old town of the Hanseatic city Gardelegen

Short Description

Immerse yourself in the Gardelegen of earlier times. Visit the numerous historical half-timbered houses, churches, and other monuments of our beautiful Hanseatic city!

Description

Welcome! We invite you on a journey through the over 800-year history of the Hanseatic city of Gardelegen. The following directions will lead you to the most interesting and historically significant buildings of our Hanseatic city. The plaque at each of the featured sights provides information about the respective structure. The suggested tour takes about 90 minutes. However, many beauties only reveal themselves at second or even third glance. So feel free to visit us more often! We look forward to seeing you!

 

More information can be found in the directions!

One of the most popular walking or cycling destinations for guests and locals - whether big or small, young or old - are the Gartenträume Wallanlagen.

Information about this circular tour can be found at the following link:

https://www.outdooractive.com/de/route/themenweg/altmark/gartentraeume-wallrundgang-um-die-hansestadt-gardelegen/54822773/

Directions

On one of the very few triangular town squares in Europe, the intersection of old Hanseatic trade routes, stands the venerable Gardelegen Town Hall, the seat of the city administration. The Adlerbrunnen and the Roland statue, redesigned according to old patterns, remind us of the centuries-old history of the city. Turning left from Roland, you will see two of the numerous half-timbered houses - the Deutsche Haus and the Lotsche-Haus - with their remarkable architectural decorations.

 

Now leave the Town Hall Square towards the pedestrian zone Ernst-Thälmann-Straße. To your right was once the button factory, one of the citys most important employers. Today, on its premises stands the Johanniterhaus Pfarrer Franz, a nursing home. A few steps further, you will find the oldest stone secular building in our city, probably the former headquarters of General Heinrich zu Pappenheim. Nearby is the monument to the humorist and cabaret singer Otto Reutter, Gardelegens greatest son, created by Heinrich Apel. Now turn left towards Aschberg.

 

Next to the old post office, an alley leads to Marienkirchplatz with the St. Marien Church, the cradle of the Reformation in the Altmark. Back at Aschberg, follow the street to the right and pass the Small Hospital of the Holy Spirit on the left side of the street. You reach Philipp-Müller-Straße and face the former district office. Now turn left towards Rudolf-Breitscheid-Straße, pass a few steps and you will find the Catholic Church of St. Michael with its freestanding bell tower and picturesque weather vane. Follow Philipp-Müller-Straße to the intersection and turn right onto Rudolf-Breitscheid-Straße.

 

At the end of the row of houses on the left side of the street are the remnants of the Stendal Gate, one of the four representative city gates from the 16th century. They were part of the medieval city fortification, on the grounds of which today the green ring of the Wallanlagen encircles the old city center. This is one of the most beautiful parks in Saxony-Anhalt, rightfully part of the Gartenträume network. Follow the park path to the right. You will pass the Kaiserstein, remnants of the old cemetery of St. Marien, and the city wall with a restored powder tower. At the intersection with Ernst-Thälmann-Straße, there was once the hardly recognizable Magdeburg Gate.

 

Turn right onto Ernst-Thälmann-Straße, and after a few meters, you will see the lovingly restored building of the Great Hospital St. Spiritus with its magnificent gable. If you cross the street intersection and turn left onto Sandstraße, you will see on the left side of the street a townhouse from a bygone era. The plaque above the portal tells that Wilhelm Bornemann, the creator of the song Im Wald und auf der Heide, was born here.

 

Opposite stood Otto Reutters birthplace until 1961. On the left side of the street, you will see typical Altmark historical building structures, such as the Förstersches Haus from 1579, the oldest preserved half-timbered house in the city, and some notable townhouses with beautiful sandstone portals. Most of them once brewed the well-tasting Garley beer, known far beyond the city limits.

 

Continuing along the street, you will pass through the Golden Ring, until its demolition one of the most romantic corners of the city, past the Reutterhaus into Salzwedeler Torstraße. Here you will find a real piece of the Middle Ages with the architectural ensemble Ziesemeisterhaus, Toreinnehmerhäuschen, and the gate mill built on foundations from the 13th century. In times past, this is what it looked like near every city gate.

 

One of the most important sights of our city, the Salzwedeler Tor from the mid-16th century, lies before you. Passing through the gateway out of the city, after a few steps you will reach the Hospital St. Georg with its small chapel, which has existed since the 14th century. The path leads back to the Salzwedeler Tor.

 

Admire the impressive bastions and beautiful stepped gable on its show side. Then turn left and walk past the Wallanlagen, the animal enclosure, and the remnants of the old city wall to St. Nikolai Church. Here you leave the site to the right and reach the Holzmarkt dominated by the church, one of the oldest residential areas of the city. Several historical buildings, such as the old Oberpfarre, the former Latin school, and the vicarage of St. Nikolai, bear witness to this. On the way through Nicolaistraße towards the Town Hall Square, you will pass more interesting townhouses and the old district court. On the left side of the Town Hall Square, you will see the building of the old Löwenapotheke with its beautiful Renaissance gable and the visible golden lion above the portal. Here you will find the Tourist Information and can take a little journey through the centuries to modern times in the museum part of the building.

More Information

https://www.gardelegen.de/Tourismus/

 St. Marienkirche is usually open daily from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Worth a visit for every guest!

Travel Information

The Hanseatic city of Gardelegen is located at the junction of the federal highways B 71 and B188, directly at the core city. The rail connection in local passenger traffic is provided through the train stations in the districts of Gardelegen, Jävenitz, Solpke, Mieste, and Miesterhorst. An airfield with special landing site status is located on the outskirts of the core city.

Parking Information

- Holzmarkt Parking Lot

- Administrative Parking Lot (Rudolf-Breitscheid-Straße 3)

- On-street parking

- Golden Ring (time-limited)

- Tivoli Parking Lot (Schillerstraße)

Safety Instructions

No restrictions currently in place

Equipment

Light luggage