Germany in central Europe is one of our homeschool countries-of-the-week, so why not spend a few minutes today learning about one of Germany’s World Heritage Sites: the Collegiate Church, Castle, and Old Town of Quedlinburg.
Quedlinburg is one of the best-preserved medieval towns in central Germany:
Quedlinburg, in the State of Sachsen-Anhalt, was a capital of the East Franconian German Empire at the time of the Saxonian-Ottonian ruling dynasty (919 to 1024). It has been a prosperous trading town since the Middle Ages. The number and high quality of the timber-framed buildings make Quedlinburg an exceptional example of a medieval European town.
The extraordinary and worldwide cultural importance of Quedlinburg is based on the close link between its history and architecture, which is intertwined with that of the Saxonian-Ottonian ruling dynasty. Following the coronation of Henry I (876 to 936), the first German King from the Saxonian dynasty, the royal residence of Quedlinburg became the capital of the East Franconian German Empire, the “metropolis of the Reich” of the first German state. A visible testimony to this dynasty is the Collegiate Church dedicated to St Servatius, which was one of the most highly esteemed churches of the Empire during the Middle Ages. Its crypt, with cross vaults, capitals, tombs, and murals, constitutes one of the most significant monuments in the history of art from the 10th to the 12th century. The crypt of the original building is included in the impressive church, which was built on a basilica floor plan from 1070 to 1129.
Quedlinburg is of interest in a variety of ways. For medievalists, the town is an outstanding example of Middle Age history. It illustrates the typical development of a medieval town, originating from a castle village and several separate settlements. Its value as a monument of urban architecture is based on the preservation of the town wall of 1330, its surviving urban relations of the old parishes of St Aegidius, St Blasius, St Benedictus, and St Nicolas, and the urban building patterns with medieval and post-medieval timber-framed houses.
The splendour of the metropolis of Quedlinburg from the 10th to the 12th century can be seen in the buildings on the castle hill. The ground plan and very likely some original pieces inside the house have survived from the surrounding residential town of that time. The market settlement with merchants and craftsmen to the west, and later to the north, of the castle hill combined with smaller settlements to form the town of Quedlinburg. Its foundation and development until the 18th century under rule of the Imperial foundation contributed significantly to the town’s overall structure and appearance. Quedlinburg experienced an economic boom during and immediately after the Thirty Years’ War, and as a result, more timber-framed houses were built from the period of 1620 to 1720 than any comparable town in the region. This was the heyday of this type of architecture in Quedlinburg, and a number of special building types developed during this time. (World Heritage Centre #535)
You can find a gallery of additional photos of the Collegiate Church, Castle, and Old Town of Quedlinburg on the World Heritage Centre’s website.
World Heritage Sites are cultural or natural landmarks of international significance, selected for recognition by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. More than 1000 such sites have been recognized in over 160 countries, and we feature one every Wednesday, drawn from one of our homeschool countries-of-the-week. You can find a complete list of World Heritage Sites online at the World Heritage Centre and in Wikipedia.
The World Heritage Centre also has a free and comprehensive World Heritage education kit for teachers, as well as a wonderful full-color wall map of World Heritage Sites, available for the cost of shipping. Why not add them both to your own homeschool library. 🗺
What world treasures will you be exploring in your homeschool this Orion Term? 😊
❡ The great globe itself: This is one of our regular Homeschool States & Countries posts featuring cultural and natural sites of international importance. Download a copy of our River Houses World Heritage Calendar and follow along with us as we tour the planet, and add your name to our weekly mailing list to get great homeschool teaching ideas delivered right to your mailbox all through the year. 🌎 🌍 🌏
❡ This is a printable lesson: Down at the bottom of this post you’ll find a custom “Print” button and icon, along with several social-media share buttons. The Print button will let you create a neat and easy-to-read copy of this little lesson, and it will even let you resize or delete elements that you may not want or need (such as images or footnotes). Give it a try today! 🖨
❡ Books in the running brooks: You can always turn to your River Houses almanac, atlas, and history encyclopedia for more information about any of our countries-of-the-week. The almanac has profiles of all the nations of the world on pages 752–859; the endpapers of the atlas are indexes that will show you where all of the individual national and regional maps may be found; the history encyclopedia includes national histories on pages 489–599; and you can find additional illustrations, flags, and other mentions through the indexes in each of these volumes. For an ideal little lesson, just write the name of the Weekly World Heritage Site on your homeschool bulletin board, find its location in your atlas, read the WHC’s brief description aloud, look at a picture or two, and you’re done. Over the course of the year, without even realizing it, your students will absorb a wealth of new historical, geographical, and cultural information. 🇩🇪
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