Stadtschleuse Brandenburg, lock in the city canal, Brandenburg an der Havel, Germany

The Stadtschleuse Brandenburg is a lock in the city canal of Brandenburg an der Havel. Its chamber is 21.07 metres long and 5.30 metres wide, with a lifting gate at the upstream end and a mitre gate at the downstream end. It replaced a wooden chamber lock in 1996 and now handles only recreational boats.

In the 13th century, weirs were built in river branches near Brandenburg to control water flow and power mills. Around the 16th century, a wooden lock was constructed near the Steintorturm tower and operated for nearly 400 years until the current concrete and steel structure replaced it in the 1920s.

The wooden Kesselschleuse that preceded today's lock was used for nearly four centuries, until 1920. In 1870 alone, 12,779 barges passed through it, a figure that shows how heavily Brandenburg's canal was used for freight. The present lock, rebuilt in 1996, is reserved for recreational boats.

The lock is easy to reach on foot or by bicycle and sits along a walking path beside the canal. Activity increases in spring and summer when more boats are on the water, making these seasons the best times to observe it functioning.

The wooden Kesselschleuse that preceded today's lock had a chamber 69 metres long and 38.6 metres wide, with gates 7.89 metres (upper) and 7.20 metres (lower) wide. In 1870 alone, 12,779 barges passed through it, pushing it to its capacity limit and prompting construction of a larger lock in the Krakauer Vorstadt between 1881 and 1883.