Brandenburg on the Havel, expansion by going across the river

The city of Brandenburg is an old city on the banks of the Havel that lent its name to the medieval Bishopric of Brandenburg, the Margraviate of Brandenburg and the present-day German State of Brandenburg. Although of great historical significance for north-eastern Germany, the city has been eclipsed in importance by the neighbouring cities of Postdam and off course Berlin.

The first historic mentions of a settlement in this riverside location date back to 948 (as Brendanburg) and 967 (as Brennaburg). The old place name doesn't refer to the Irish Saint Brendan, but is most likely of Germanic origin combining the words branda (fuel or firewood) and burg (secure place, later fort or castle). An alternative explanation links the prefix to the Germanic word brendh meaning well or rising water. Both are equally possible as both tie in with the original landscape of a wooded river valley. The Slavic tribe Stodorani had a stronghold (a ring fort) on an island in the Havel, that was conquered by Henry the Fowler (König Heinrich der Erste) in 929. In 948 (or possibly not until 965) the Bishopric of Brandenburg was founded here. After the recapture of the fortress by Slavic forces in 983, the Bishop went into exile in Magdeburg for the next 170 years whilst Brandenburg was ruled by the Prince of the Hevelli. These princes ruled from the fortress with the Chapel of Saint Peter (Petrikapelle) on what is now the Dominsel (Cathedral Island). After the death of the last Slavic prince Pribislav in 1150 the land fell to Margrave Albert I (Albrecht der Bär). The land of Brandenburg was raised to a Margraviate (Mark Brandenburg) in 1157. By that time a service settlement had come into existence further west called Parduin. Before 1147 White Canons had settled near the Church of St Godehard in this trade settlement north of the river. The moved to the fortress in 1165 where they founded an abbey at the same time the decision was made to erect a cathedral (Dom in German). In 1170 the trade settlement was granted city status by Margrave Otto I. The smaller trade settlement of Luckenberg (named after a hill now called Marienberg) around the Church of St Nicolas wasn't granted these privileges and dwindled to a small village in de the decades that followed. The city of Brandenburg however grew quickly.

A tentative reconstruction of the earliest Brandenburg (B), consisting of a ring fort (in green) with two small villages on the northern river bank of the Havel Parduin (P) and Leckenberg (L) along an old trade route. As Parduin served as a service quarter for the burgh it had a place of worship (dedicated to St. Godehard - G) and a market square (M). Where later the Neustadt would be built only a large farmstead (Bauhof - H) stood.

In 1196 the city was enlarged, not by adding a wider encircling wall and city moat, but by the foundation of a completely new city on the other side of the river directly south of the old fortress. The Court of the Margraves was transferred to a location in the south of this new city. This new city (literally called Brandenburg Neustadt)  was granted separate city rights and had a large market square at its centre next to the Church of St. Catherine. The three component parts Cathedral Island, Old City and New City were seen as separate entities. Together this Greater Brandenburg was an important trade centre. In 1314 and 1315 respectively the Old and New City joined the Hanseatic League. In 1431 The double city became part of the city alliance with Cöln, Berlin (together a twin city on either side of the Spree), Salzwedel and Frankfurt on the Oder. Thus rectifying an older alliance of 1307 within the new reality after 1412 when viscount Fredrick of Nuremberg became the first ruler of Brandenburg in the House of Hohenzollern. In 1598 the city lost its status as the seat of the Elector (the margrave of Brandenburg was one of the four worldly members of the collage of seven within the Holy Roman Empire) was moved to Berlin. The two cities were united in 1715. The cathedral island was added only in 1928. The twin city was never expanded until the age of industrialisation at the end of the 19th century.

With the growth of the twin city the fortifications of the old Burgh became obsolete, and a dam (D) was made through the low-lying floodplain of the Havel to connect the Dominsel to the Neustadt. A bridge still connects the Neustadt and Altstadt. Each city had a market; (Ma) Altstädtische Markt and (Mn) Neustädtische Markt each with a town hall. Both cities had their own fortifications consisting of a moat and wall with gates: Plauer Tor (1), Rathenower Tor (2), Altstädtischer Mühlentor (3), Wassertor (4), Neutor (5), Neue Tor (6), Neustädtischer Mühlentor (7), Neustädtischer Wassertor (8), Annator (9), Steintor (10) and Grabentor (11, a small passage towards the river). On the City Canal, that secures the new city on the south side, a watermill (W) was built. Further south outside the city walls the Hospital (H) stood along the main road to Magdeburg. The oldest place of worship is the Petrikapelle (C1) on the former burgh. Other churches are: Sanct Gotthardkirche (C2), Sanct Nicolauskirche (C3), Sanct Johannis (C4), Domkirche Sanct Peter und Paul (C5), Sanct Katherinenkirche (C6), Heilge Dreifaltigkeitkapelle (C7) and Sanct Paulikloster (C8). This last monastery used to be the Margravial residence. The residence of the Bishop (B) was located in the Old City near the bridge.

A special feature of cities in Brandenburg and Pomerania are so-called Kietze. These were service settlements near a castle, fortified town or river crossing that sprang up all over north-eastern Germany during the middle ages. Historically a Kietz was settled by Slavic people who were serfs of the local ruler. They appear for the first time in the Mark Brandenburg during the 14th century. No charters relating to their foundation are known. They should be compared to regular suburbs, but with a distinct ethnic population. The city of Brandenburg boasted no less than 4 such Kietze: Altstädtischen Kietz (K1), Neustädtischen Kietz (K4), Großen Domkietz (K2)  and Kleinen Domkietz (K3). All are located directly against the former ring fort or on a river crossing.

Nuremberg, unification across the Pegnitz

Shortly after Neurenberg is mentioned as having gained market rights from the Holy Roman Emperor Henry III of Swabia in 1050 a charter also grants the citizens the right to erect city defences. These rights extended to both settlements, Berg and Wörd, on either side of a ford across the river Pegnitz on an important trade route linking Bavaria and Bohemia. This river was the borderline between the Bishopric Bamberg (with Norenc-Berg) and the Bishopric of Eichstätt (with Wörd or Wörth). This first city of 1050 was a true double city with an oval shaped walled area around a church on each side of the river. With the bestowal of city rights a bridge was constructed linking the two walled settlements thus cementing this Twin City.

The first city was a true double city with the old Salian Burgh (B) perched on a rock overlooking higher ground with a chapel (K) north of the river Pegnitz. The old ford (V) is located further upstream from the first bridge. The low city on the other bank was organised around a road crossing with another chapel (K) surrounded by a high earth bank (shown in green). Outside of these city defences on both sides a Manor House (H) stands on a main route over higher ground directly adjacent to both settlements.

The local Saint Sebald, venerated in a church reputedly built over his resting place in the northern settlement, drew large crowds of pilgrims. The small Salian castle on a rock north of Berg was expanded to guard the new city and its citizens. Quickly Nuremberg grew to be one of the major centres of Franconia. IN 1219 Frederic II grants Nuremberg the Great Letter of Freedom which includes more chartered freedoms and the Imperial Immediacy. This meant that the city became independent from feudal overlords en answered directly to the Holy Roman Emperor. Around 1245 work starts on the construction of a second larger defensive structure. This wall with 5 gates is completed by 1325 and envelopes both settlements across the river.

What is striking about the second city wall is that is connects both settlement in one continuous structure (shown in red) that crosses the river Pegnitz with two water gates. Most monastic freedoms are located outside of this second wall, as ground is cheap, and thus these institutions are exempt from urban taxes (for instance on brewing beer). The urban institutions and churches are all located within the defensive walls: (1) Castle, (2) Church of St Sebald, (3) City Hall, (4) Church of Our Dear Lady, (5) Church of St Lawrence, (6) Church of St Jacob, (7) Monastery of the Teutonic Order, (8) Friar House, (9) Carthusian Monastery, (10) Poor Clares Convent, (11) Hospital of the Third Order, (12) Convent of St Catherine, (13) Heilsbronnerhof, (14) Franciscan Monastery, (15) Ebracher Hof, (16) Carmelite Convent, (17) Hospital of the Holy Ghost, (18) Augustine Monastery, (19) Dominican Monastery, (20) Frauenauracherhof, (21) Neunkirchner Hof, (22) Eichstätter Hof, (23) House of the Dozen Friars and (24) Monastery of St Egid. In 1350 the New Market (the large square in orange) is created at the site of the Jewish Quarter after the Jews had been forcibly evicted. Other markets around the city are shown in orange.

In 1356 Charles VI issued his Golden Bull naming Nuremberg as the city where every German King should hold their first Imperial Diet. With this Golden Bull the city also becomes the location were the Imperial Mint is founded. Not long after, in 1375, work starts on an even more expansive defensive structure. This third city wall encompasses all the suburbs and religious institutions (churches, hospitals, convents and monasteries). From this moment onwards the northern part of the unified city is known as Sanct Sebald and the southern part as Sanct Lorenz, after both main churches and independent parishes. The new defensive structure consists of walls with towers, 7 city gates and after 1425 a second wall with a dry moat. Within 400 years the two separate settlements on either side of the river have been united into one of the larger cities of the German Holy Roman Empire.

Besides bridges built in the 13th century, new bridges were constructed from the 15th century onwards (shown in orange) to better link the upper and lower cities. The new city wall has 9 gates and a separate back gate: (1) Vestner Tor, (2) Laufer Tor, (3) Wörder Türlein, (4) Frauentor, (5) Sterner Barrier, (6) Spittlertor,  (7) Fürther Barrier, (8) Haller Türlein, (9) Neutor and (10) Tiergärtnertor.In the 19th century new gates were constructed to better link the old city with the suburbs around it: (11) Maxtor, (12) Spitzentor, (13) Königstor, (14) Marientor, (15) Kartäusertor, (16) Färbertor, (17) Ludwigstor, (18) Westtor and (19) Hallertor.

The city of Antwerp part 5: the outward expansion of the defences

For a long time the city defences of Antwerp were composed of the so-called Spaanse Omwalling (Spanish Walls) from 1542 with the Citadel of 1567 in the south. The citadel was built right outside the city walls where before the village of Kiel had stood. Apart from these city defences fortresses were built to defend the Scheldt river. These "forts" were Vlaams Hoofd (1576) opposite the city, Fort Sint Marie (1584), Fort Isabella (1605), Fort Lillo (1582) and Fort Liefkenshoek (1584). The latter two riverside fortresses were remodelled in 1782 and 1799 respectively. As part of that Napoleonic upgrade campaign a new fortress was built in 1812 north of the city near the village of Oosterweel: Fort Ferdinand. In 1862 this fort would be replaced by a much bigger fortress, the so-called Noordkasteel (literally: North Castle). This fortress was the crown of the new defensive system devised by Capt. Alexis Henri Brialmont (1812-1903).

The city of Antwerp after 1812 with the Fort Ferdinand north of the city. The fortress is a large rectangular structure constructed with earth banks and brick walls within an outer moat.

Until the autonomy of Belgium from the United Netherlands in 1830 the city of Antwerp was defended by the Spanish Walls and the riverside fortresses. The whole of the country was defended by some 20 fortified cities. After the rise of Napoleon III in 1851 it became apparent that the young Belgian state had an outdated army and defensive structure. It was decided that the important port city of Antwerp should be better defended by the erection of 7 small fortresses built in earth and stone and topped with wooden palisades. At the time the small fortresses were built hastily a few hundred yards around the existing defences, the ideas about fortifications were changing.

The French fortresses had a bastioned layout and a basic square or rectangular shape. German fortresses were considerably more reliable. So in 1846 Brialmont was sent to Germany to study fortress building. These German fortresses had a polygonal shape with caponiers and internal defensive rings. Brialmont formulated a plan for the Fortified Positions of Liège and Antwerp. The Fortifications Act of 1859 made his vision possible and work commenced in Antwerp in 1860. Brialmont had proposed a polygonal girdle to be built at 2 kilometres from the old Spanish Walls, thus encompassing the villages of Borgerhout and Berchem. He had based this design on the ideas of Marquis Montalembert, a French military engineer. This new defensive wall increased the surface area of the city six fold.

The city of Antwerp around 1900 has now completely filled in the space within the Brialmont-Walls. The harbour had been expanded northwards with the Kattendijkdok (D1), Houtdok (D2), Kempisch Dok (D3), Asiadok (D4) and Sasdok (D5) stretching out from the older Bonapartedok (D6) and Willemsdok (D7) that were both constructed between 1811 and 1813 to replace the 16th-century Noordervliet and Middelvliet. Damme (D) has been developed as a result of its close proximity to the harbour docks with housing and industry. Borgerhout (B) has been completely developed intra muros. On the edge of the old city the new Central Station (S), Zoo (Z) and City Park (P) form a high status cluster at the heart of the enlarged city. Berghem (b) has been completely urbanised in the typical Paris-inspired star-like middle and upper-class neighbourhoods with a park where once the gallows (G) stood on the edge of the city freedom. The Citadel was demolished and replaced by docks and a new neighbourhood with cultural and public buildings to form 't Zuid (tZ). The former city moat was filled in and replaced by a boulevard (shown in green) lined with representative buildings.

Outside this new defensive wall with lunettes and a moat with glacis 8 outlying fortresses were built. These were positioned 2.8 - 4.5 kilometres away from the new defensive walls at regular intervals of 2 kilometres. These new fortresses curved around the city from the Scheldt at Hoboken op to Wijnegem in the northeast. To the north no fortresses were built as these polders could be easily inundated. Building work on these fortifications took a mere 5 years and was completed by 1866. The existing fortresses on the left bank of the Scheldt in the Waasland were remodelled and improved. To complete the girdle of fortresses two new fortresses were built on the left bank between 1870 and 1880: Fort Eepoel and Fort van Zwijndrecht. Also an extra fortress was added north of the Kempische Vaart (Campine Shipping Canal): Fort van Merksem (1879).

Each fortress had a similar layout with a 40 to 50 metre wide moat surrounding the defensive structure. Beyond these moats, that were aimed at making a direct surge on the fortress impossible, a sloping glacis was created. The structure within the moat consisted of the fortress built in brick and concrete and covered by high earth banks and a separate reduit built in brick and again covered in earth that was connected to the fortress by a bridge and placed within the moat. The reduit was the final defence from where the fortress could be defended even if the enemy had gained access to the rest of the fortress.

The Fortified Position of Antwerp (Stelling van Antwerpen) by Brialmont with an inner ring that ran from the Noordkasteel (N) to the Kielstelling near the relocated village of Kiel (nK). Three lunets (L1-3) stood before this inner wall. Two of the old, small forts in Berghem (f1) and Deurne (f2) are still in place. The outer ring of polygonal fortresses starts at Fort Merksem (fM) and continues across the Kempische Vaart (V) to the ring of fortresses (F1-8) and then across the river via Fort Eepoel (fE) and Fort Zwijndrecht (fZ) to Fort Sint Marie (fS). The Brialmont fortresses 1 to 8 are often named after the nearby villages: Oosterweel (O), Wijnegem, Schoten (S), Merksem (M), Deurne (D), Eksterlaar (E), Groenenhoek (G), Borsbeek (B), Mortsel (Mr), Luythagen (L), Wilrijk (W), Hoboken (H),Kruibeke (K) and Zwijndrecht (Z).

After WW2 the Brialmont-walls would be replaced by the Motorway R1 that still run through the massively expanded city of Antwerp that now incorporates most of the former villages around it.

The city of Antwerp part 4: the completion of the fortified city

During Antwerp's so-called Golden Age, that lasted from 1490 until 1565, the city grew rapidly and most of the area within the defensive walls and moat was developed. On the north side of the city further expansion was pre-empted by the development of the Nieuwstad (literally: New City). This Golden Age was preluded by a rapid increase in the number of institutions within Antwerp during the whole of the fifteenth century.

Around 1400 the Vlasmarkt (Flax Market) was built. In 1408 the Carmelite nuns founded their convent. Shortly after, in 1409, two burgomasters were sworn in; one for the inner burgh and one for the outer burgh respectively. This new self governance lead to a rapid increase in trade and this lead to the foundation of more religious institutions: Cistercian Monastery (1433), Friars Minor Monastery (1446), Dulhuis (Insane Asylum - 1453), St. Clare Convent (1461), De Munt (The Mint -1474), Chapel of Grace (1493), Chapel of Jesus (1493), Alexian Chapel and Cellites Monastery (1494), Burgundy Chapel (1497), Refuge house of the St Bernard Abbey (1498) and several foundations for the poor that were called Godshuizen (God's Houses) often aimed at specific groups. This pattern continued into the early part of the sixteenth century: IJzerenwaag (Metal Weigh House - 1505), Church of St. Jacob (1506), Chapel of St Anna (1513), Augustinian Monastery (1514), Oude Waag (Old Weigh House - 1514), Hof van Liere (Manorial Court of Lierre - 1515), Ossenmarkt (Ox Market - 1522), Church of St Andrew (1529), Nieuwe Beurs (New Bourse - 1532), New Courts Beguinages (1546), Nieuwe Waag (New Weigh House - 1547), Friday Market (1548), Grain Market (1552), Tapissierspand (Tapistry Hall - 1555), Gildehuis (Guild Hall (1563) and the new City Hall (Stadhuis - 1565). The new city hall of Antwerp was the crowning glory of the cities Golden Age, as after this turmoil ensued which in the end lead to the splitting up of the Netherlands in the northern Republic of the Seven United Provinces and the Southern or Spanish Netherland in 1585.

The new religious institutions were mostly located outside the crowded old city as land was cheaper in the semi-rural areas within the city moat and walls. The Carmelite Convent (M1), Carthusian Monastery (M6), Friars Minor (M3), Clara Convent (M4), Augustinian Monastery (M5), The Chapel of Grace (C1), Jesus Chapel (C2), Alexians Monastery and Chapel (C3), Burgundy Chapel (C4), Church of St Jacob (C5), Chapel of St Anna (C6) and the Church of St Andrew (C7) are all located beyond the old city. Also within this rapidly urbanising area we see IJzerwaag (IJ), Nieuwe Waag (nW), Nieuwe Beurs (nB), Mint (M), Hof van Liere (L), Ossenmarkt (O), Begijnhof (B), Tapissierspand (T) and Graanmarkt (G). Some of these replaced similar amenities within the old city: Oude Beurs (oB) and Oude Waag (oW). Within the old city some land could still be developed: Friday Market (F), Vlasmarkt (V) and the new City Hall (H).   

In the 1530s, as a result of a siege on the city, the city councillors decided to modernise the city's defences to come in line with the then current attack weapons. This new defensive structure with a bastioned outer wall with enforced earth banks was completed in 1542. At the same time the plans for a northerly expansion were drawn. The new moats and defences around this Nieuwstad were completed in 1552. It was aimed at better facilitating trade and shipping, so the old city moat of Brouwersvliet was dredged to provide better docking facilities. North of this two new so-called vlieten were excavated as harbour docks. The ground around the docks was raised with the spoil and by bringing in sand from further afield. The Nieuwstad was laid out in an orthogonal manner to be most attractive for wharfs, goods yards and warehouses. Trade in Antwerp was basically foreign controlled, with the city governed by a small clique of bankers and manufacturers. During its Golden Age the city experienced three distinct booms. The first was bases on the pepper trade with the East Indies, the second on silver from the Americas and the third on textile manufacturing and trading.

The turning point for Antwerp were the violent riots of August 1566 as a result of the Protestant Reformation that resulted in the well known Iconoclasm that saw many Catholic churches and religious institutions looted and trashed. To control this uprising in the Low Countries the King of Spain sent the Duke of Alba as the new governor to re-establish control. He immediately started work on a large citadel south of the city, that was completed in 1567. The walls, bastions and moats were to be extended to connect this citadel (called 't Zuiderkasteel in Dutch) to the rest of the city's defences. During the period of Calvinist Rule (1577-1585), when the city of Antwerp was part of the Republic, the defences were completed and the ferry landing point on the other side of the Scheldt was fortified by the erection of a bulwark called Vlaams Hoofd (The Head of Flanders) between 1577 and 1584.

After the city had been recaptured by the Spanish in 1584, the role of Antwerp as a leading merchant city was over. Most of the traders, merchants, bankers and craftsmen had fled north to Dordrecht, Leiden, Harlem and Amsterdam. To reinvigorate the city the Spanish rulers reinstated the churches, convents and monasteries and made funds available for new foundations: Jesuit Church (1615), Refuge House of St Catherine (1619), Convent of the Sisters Capuchins (1619), Carthusian Monastery (1639) and Grey Sister Convent (1693).

The city of Antwerp with the so-called Spanish Walls that start at the Nieuwstad (N)and end at the Zuiderkasteel (Z) or Citadel. Across the Scheldt the Bulwark of Flemish Head (FH) defended the river.