A town hall that survived
Among the few Gothic town halls in Europe not destroyed in the war.
Jürgen Howaldt — CC BY-SA 2.0 de · Luis Antonio Carrasc… — CC BY 3.0 · Tim Rademacher — CC BY-SA 4.0 · MatheusMe at Slovenian Wikipedia — CC BY-SA 3.0
The central square of Bremen, and among the finest historic squares in northern Europe. Its town hall and the Roland statue are jointly inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list, since 2004. The town hall dates from the early fifteenth century with a Renaissance facade added in the seventeenth, and is among the few Gothic town halls in Europe never destroyed in the war — it survived the bombing of Bremen that levelled most of the city. Around the square stand St Peter's Cathedral, the guild house and the modern state parliament building, so four centuries of architecture enclose a single space. In a side corner stands the Bremen Town Musicians — the donkey, dog, cat and cockerel standing on each other's backs, from the Brothers Grimm tale. Visitors traditionally grasp the donkey's forelegs with both hands, which is why they shine. The square is open and free at all times; the town hall interior is seen on a guided tour.
Among the few Gothic town halls in Europe not destroyed in the war.
Donkey, dog, cat and cockerel from the Grimm tale — visitors grasp the donkey's legs.
From Gothic to the modern state parliament around the same square.
The old centre of Bremen
A stone figure about ten metres high raised in 1404, representing Roland the knight of Charlemagne, holding a raised sword. It was not ornament but a political declaration: Roland statues in northern German towns symbolised the town's rights, its trading freedom and its independence from the local bishop or prince. Bremen's is the oldest and best known, and its presence in the square meant: this is a free city.
The square first, then the Schnoor quarter — the city's oldest, with narrow lanes and small medieval houses — and Böttcherstraße with its strange Expressionist architecture of the 1920s. Then the Übersee-Museum near the station. The city is small and entirely walkable, and one day from Hamburg covers it.
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