Idea to visit Wernigerode came to us after watching the Soviet movie "The Very Same Munchhausen" (1979). This is one of the few Soviet movies that were shot in Europe. Wernigerode was selected because Munchausen's real hometown Bodenwerder was in western part of Germany.
After the visit we can say that they selected the right place. This is one of the ideal towns to visit on a weekend. The chronicles of 1566 indicated that the first settlement on the site appeared in 938. And the first written reference was made in 1121, when Count Adalbert from Weymar chose Wernigerode as his residence and began to build a fortress on the site of the future castle.
There's no sense in describing the old town, it's in a good condition and was almost not affected during the war. The Town Hall is very interesting. At first glance it doesn't even look like a town hall. That's right, the building was constructed as a gambling house, a pleasure institution for local Counts! The building received its present form in 1494-1544, during the last renovation. The Town Hall is so unusual that many newlywed couples come here from different parts of Germany. People you see on the Market Square on the photo below are waiting for the bride and groom, who will appear in a moment.
Behind the Town Hall there is a stop where you can catch the tourist train that goes to the castle every 20 minutes starting from 9-30 am. The fee is 3 euros for a one way ticket and 4.5 euros for a return ticket.
Wernigerode Castle is the main attraction of the town and perhaps of the entire region. Since 1664, when the existing fortress was rebuilt in the baroque style, it was rebuilt several times. The castle received its present form in the second half of the 19th century. The owner of the castle, Otto Graf zu Stoltenberg-Wernigerode, had financial resources and influence. He had made tremendous progress in the civil service, and even was a deputy of the "Iron Chancellor" Otto von Bismarck. In 1890, he received the title of a Prince. The castle exposition shows the images of luxury audiences organized by the Prince.
Different epochs are visible on the castle walls during a walk, and that is what gives it a special flavor. Until 1929, the Count's family lived in the castle, and in 1949 a museum was opened. The entrance ticket costs 6 euros (2013). The castle looks gorgeous inside. This is despite the fact that after the war many things, including a library of 100,000 volumes, were taken to the Soviet Union as a war trophy. During the last 10 years extensive restoration works have been made and many works of art and furniture from the castle have been found.
The castle is located on a hill and it's impossible to take normal pictures from the old town. If you have time, energy and desire, then I will tell you from which places you can make beautiful photos. Find the maps on the boards in the town. You can also find the map with mountain trails in the end of this article. You should start with the mountain behind the castle, Agnesberg. Photo from this point is at the beginning of the article.
Then we went down to the Noeschenroeder Street, crossed a creek and walked in the district on the other side of the creek.
Photos from these streets are better, but still not perfect yet, so we went to the two observation decks in the mountains. The first one is Harburg. After climbing the mountain, go behind the green house and find an observation deck. By the way, we met a deer on the trail!
From the Harburg observation deck we saw the Kaiser Tower (Kaiserturm), to which we headed. We went down the hill on the other side of the mountain and came to a ski slope with ski lifts. Next you have to climb up along the ski slope. Don't worry, you won't get lost there, as signs are everywhere.
The tower can be reached by car, parking coordinates N 51 48.794 E 10 46.422. Next 750 meters on foot past the restaurant. If you arrive outside the opening hours of the restaurant, you can park near it N 51 48.918 E 10 46.591. Then the tower will be very close.
From the tower, you can get down in 30 minutes. By the way, at the exit of the forest we found the board with information that the paths on which we walked were designed for blind people!
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