Spandau Citadel, Renaissance fortress in Haselhorst, Berlin, Germany.
The Spandau Citadel sits on a man-made island where the Havel and Spree rivers meet and shows high defensive walls with four projecting bastions. The complex forms a closed square with an inner courtyard, red brick buildings, and a medieval tower that is the oldest surviving part of the site.
Construction of the fortress started in 1594 under architects Francesco Chiaramella de Gandino and Rocco Guerrini, replacing an older medieval structure from 1157. The citadel served for centuries as a military stronghold and later as an ammunition depot into the twentieth century.
The fortress now shelters around forty artist studios in what is called House 4, where visitors sometimes meet the artists at work. The arsenal building stores important sculptures from Berlin parks that once decorated public spaces and are now protected from weather damage.
Visitors can explore the grounds on their own or join guided tours that lead through the casemates and onto the bastions. The inner courtyard is used for concerts and events during summer, while several exhibition rooms remain accessible year-round.
During winter months the fortress becomes a natural shelter for around ten thousand bats that hibernate in the old vaults and wall crevices. Biologists and conservationists monitor the colony regularly and keep parts of the site closed to visitors during this period.
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