My Trip to Magdeburg

Last Thursday I was in Magdeburg and there I bought some cards for my collection. On three of the cards I put matching stamps and got them handcancelled at the local post office.

Magdeburg was first mentioned in 805. It soon became an important trading centre with the Slaws. In the Middle Ages the Magdeburg Rights, a set of town privileges, were spread in big parts of East Europa. They are considered to be a milestone in urbanisation of the entire region. The city later became an early centre of the Reformation. Due to this the city was destroyed during the Thirty Years's War by the Count of Tilly. In 1680 the city became a part of Prussia and was turned into an important fortress. During World War II the city was again destroyed. After the war it became an East German district capital and since 1990 it is the capital of the German State of Saxony-Anhalt.

With a matching stamp:
1200 years Magdeburg (issued 08-09-2005)

The State Diet of Saxony-Anhalt convenes in Magdeburg since 1990. It is housed in a Baroque building.

With a matching stamp:
State Diet of Saxony-Anhalt (issued 10-05-2001)

One of the most famous persons connected with Magdeburg is Emperor Otto the Great. Otto was German King from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962. In 968 he founded an archdiocese in Magdeburg and the city thus turned into a centre for the christianisation of Eastern Europa.

With a matching stamp:
1100th birthday of Otto the Great (issued 09-08-2012)

The Magdeburg Cathedral is the most famous landmark of Magdeburg. The current church was built over a period of 300 years starting in 1209, but earlier there was also a church from the time of Otto the Great. It is the oldest Gothic church in Germany and one of the tallest cathedrals in Eastern Germany. The tomb of Otto the Great is housed inside.

The Cathedral Museum Ottonianum was opened in 2018. In a modern exhibition it presents the findings of excavations carried out in the cathedral area between 2001 and 2010.

The Cultural History Museum is a museum about Magdeburg's history. It was opened in 1906 and is especially known for its special exhibitions. The most famous exhibit of the museum is the original Magdeburg Rider.

The Natural History Museum showed its first exhibition in 1875 and is since 1948 housed in the same building as the Cultural History Museum, as the museum's building was destroyed in World War II. It mainly shows the flora and fauna of Saxony-Anhalt.