Naumburg is 70km west of Leipzig, an hour by train or car. Over one thousand years old, Aachen Cathedral (Aachener Dom) is simply put one of the best cathedrals in Germany. Standing face-to-face with millennium-old buildings, you can only think of the ingenuity and sacrifices made at the time to erect such massive and innovative structures. An early and ambitious 18th-century restoration programme ensured this imposing red sandstone building has essentially been preserved in its original form, a proud millennium-old reminder of immense imperial power, influencing church design across Europe. and Uta, the benefactors of Naumburg Cathedral Lookphotos/Guenther Bayerl. The monastery is a 10-minute walk from the station. Corvey Abbey is 25km east of Hxter Rathaus station, 1.52 hours by train or car south of Hanover. To see a perfectly preserved medieval monastery complex, look no further than Maulbronn, where a Cistercian abbey was founded in 1147. Since the reformation the complex has been used by a Protestant seminary, where writer Hermann Hesse spent some unhappy years, later featuring it in a semi-autobiographical novel.

Corvey Abbey was established on the banks of the Weser river in 822, and staffed by Benedictine monks from Corbie Abbey (hence the name) in what is now northern France. The Cistercians put the surroundings to good use, running several farms and channelling waterways for watermills, fish farms and sewage systems still in use today. This content was created in partnership with the German National Tourist Board.

5 of Germanys most elegant castles, palaces and gardens, 7 of the most unusual World Heritage sites in Germany, Germanys significant historic World Heritage sites, The most beautiful places in Scotland reader vote 2022, The 20 best places to visit in Europe on a budget 2021, Plan your tailor-made trip with a local expert, Travel stress-free with local assistance and 24/7 support, Basel Switzerland Travel Guide (2022 update), Northeast Switzerland and Liechtenstein Travel Guide, Travel Tips Germany for planning and on the go, Getting around Germany: Transportation Tips. This quirky brick building with three arches and colourful exterior sandstone decorations was once part of a majestic monastery complex, first founded in 764. The so-called Paradise Hall from the 13th century is a masterpiece and the first example of Gothic architecture in the German-speaking world. These seven extraordinary spiritual World Heritage sites, with their unique architecture and priceless artworks, document the first steps that were made towards the society that is now modern Germany. Nearby, Hildesheim's main square was completely reconstructed in the 1980s and features a Gothic house and the massive wooden Butchers' Guild Hall. Planning to travel here? For six hundred years, the relics of St Nazarius guaranteed the abbeys' wealth and popularity with pilgrims, before reforms, war and extensive use as a stone quarry destroyed the complex, leaving only a wall and fragments of buildings standing. Inside Aachen Cathedral Lookphotos/Guenther Bayerl. An anonymous stonemason known as the Naumburg Master carved the twelve extraordinary statues of the cathedral's donors, with special attention for the noblewoman Uta, who was considered the most beautiful woman of her time, and whose statue possibly inspired Disney's wicked queen in Snow White. Emperor Charlemagne started construction around 796 and was buried there in 814. In the summer months, you can visit the Emperors Hall, with restored wall paintings added in the 1950s, and continue up the stairs to the 60-metre-high viewing platform in one of the fours towers. Its sensitive restoration has ensured that Speyer remains among the most beautiful cathedrals in Germany. Corvey Castle and Westwerk in Hxter in the evening light Lookphotos/Guenther Bayerl. If you're adventurous you can book a tour of the dwarf gallery, an arcaded walkway just below the roof that encircles the whole building. Originally the chapel of Charlemagne's imperial palace, the octagonal core of the cathedral was inspired by church design from the eastern part of the Holy Roman Empire, and is richly decorated with a massive chandelier, bronze doors, antique columns taken from Rome and Ravenna and golden shrines and altars dating back to the 11th century. When it comes to very old buildings in northern Europe, you have to be happy with what's still standing and the late 9th-century King's Hall (Knigshalle) of Lorsch Abbey is certainly a pleasant surprise. St Mary's and St Michael's are both in Hildesheim, a 30-minute drive or train ride south from Hanover.

Beyond, the austere Romanesque church has carved choir stalls and wooden doors that date back to 1178. Speyer Cathedral Lookphotos/Guenther Bayerl. A popular myth links the state of the millennium-old rosebush in the cathedral courtyard to the prosperity of the city, and just weeks after it burnt during the bombings, new shoots were to be seen. The Cathedral Treasury is one of the best in Europe and is worth a visit for the thousand-year-old golden cross of Lothar and Charlemagne's original marble sarcophagus. The Carolingian stone throne in the church was used to coronate dozens of German kings and queens until the 1500s. The biggest Romanesque church in the world, Speyer Cathedral (Dom zu Speyer) from 1103 has been through tough times, sustaining severe damage when French troops set it on fire in 1689. The building styles of the towers are reflected in the 13th-century interior with its carved medieval choir stalls and unique double choir screens. You can enjoy the relatively unspoilt rural setting along the river by staying the night at the cheap and cheerful Weser Aktivhotel in the castle complex, which has basic rooms and a campsite, and rents out bikes and canoes. site may be reprodiced without our written permission. Four imposing towers two Romanesque, two Gothic overlook the attractive town centre of Naumburg Dropdown content, where the Cathedral (Naumburger Dom St Peter und St Paul) is a recent addition to the World Heritage List, despite being one of the best cathedrals in Germany. Speyer is around 1.5 hours' drive or train ride south of Frankfurt Dropdown content. The monastery courtyard has several half-timbered houses and the whole complex is encircled by walls and fortifications. Bearing witness to the missionary tasks of imperial monasteries at the time, the grand Westwork, the stone front part of the former abbey church, is the only remaining example of Carolingian-era church architecture. The crypt from 1041 is the largest hall of the Romanesque era and houses the simple graves of eight medieval emperors and kings of the Holy Roman Empire. Lorsch is an hour south of Frankfurt Dropdown content by car or train. Heritage is much more than bricks and mortar, and Hildesheim's two massive Romanesque churches prove that even reconstructed buildings can convey important ideas about the ingenuity of the original artwork and design, and the societal circumstances at the time. When you visit, think for a moment of the forty generations of visitors that, just like you, stood in awe in front of these venerable structures that are part of our common human history. The early cathedrals, abbeys and churches of Germany tell the tale of rival kings and emperors, of expanding Christianity and new forms of art and architecture. The King's Hall and an exhibition of the abbey's remnants can be visited on a tour of the site, which also includes a working farm where Carolingian agricultural methods are researched. From Aachen Central Station, it's a 15-minute walk to the cathedral. Inside, it has an original vaulted hall and an upper floor with galleries, featuring stucco figures and mythological friezes depicting ancient mythology. Amen. A few hundred metres away, St Marys Cathedral from 1046 has stunning bronze doors the oldest of their kind in Germany and a bronze column, both with biblical scenes. Find out more about Germany's World Heritage gems by downloading our free eBook Dropdown content. After Charlemagne conquered the Saxon lands, the area was Christianized by founding abbeys and bishoprics. Interior view of the Church of St Michael in Hildesheim GNTB/Florian Trykowski. Copyright 2022 Apa Digital AG, all rights reserved. From atmospheric abbeys to some of the best cathedrals in Germany, prepare to be amazed. The King's Hall was saved due to its use as a chapel for many more centuries, until modern conservation returned it back to its Carolingian state. We support you to make the most of your time on earth. Maulbronn Monastery grounds GNTB/Florian Trykowski. Maulbronn is 20km north of Pforzheim, taking 40 minutes by car or train. Use Rough Guides' trusted partners for great rates. After the construction of the church was finished in 885, the abbots controlled a huge area for almost one thousand years before it was refashioned into a castle. The former abbey buildings, or Civitas, only exist as excavated ruins, but indicate the abbey complex was as important as a city would be now, with a school, library, pilgrims' hospice and workshops. The ancient Benedictine abbey church of St Michael dates back to 1022 and looks much like it did at the time, with a fantastic painted wooden ceiling. No parts of this

However, its original purpose is still a mystery. Lorsch Monastery's Carolingian Gate Hall Lookphotos/Guenther Bayerl. Go tailor-made! Ekkehard II. Both churches were rebuilt to their original design after Hildesheim was bombed in the Second World War.