Havelberg Cathedral, Lutheran cathedral in Havelberg, Germany.
Havelberg Cathedral is a Romanesque Lutheran cathedral on a hill at the edge of the old town in Havelberg, Saxony-Anhalt. It has three naves whose lower walls date from the original construction, while the vaulting above was added later in the Gothic style.
King Otto I founded the Bishopric of Havelberg in 946, and construction of the cathedral began in 1147. It was consecrated in 1170, during a period when German settlers and clergy were establishing a presence east of the Elbe.
The cathedral holds grisaille windows from the 14th century, painted in shades of grey rather than the bright colors found in most medieval churches. The carved wooden choir stalls nearby show the kind of detail that took craftsmen several generations to complete.
The cathedral is easy to reach on foot from the center of Havelberg, with a short walk uphill to the hilltop. The building also houses the Prignitz Museum in the former cloister rooms, so a visit can take in both the church and a regional history exhibition.
The westwork of the cathedral has no doors or windows at ground level, giving it the look of a fortified tower rather than a church entrance. This feature is known as the Saxon westwork style and is rarely seen in this form outside of a handful of churches in this part of Germany.
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