Neubrandenburg

1 - In earlier times, life was much more dangerous than it is today. The land was sparsely populated. Armed bands of robbers roamed the countryside, plundering and murdering. Soldiers were especially feared. They usually marched across the land and waged war on behalf of a noble prince. In those days, people said, “War feeds war.” In other words, soldiers lived off what they seized and stole. 2 - Everyone tried to protect themselves as best they could. Wealthy people had castles built, often on hills or on islands in rivers and lakes. In time, towns sprang up with houses standing close together. High, thick walls were built around the houses, often with towers from which people could see far across the land. Sometimes the walls were also surrounded by moats and ramparts. People entered and left the town through narrow gates. The residents’ fields lay outside the walls. Anyone wishing to enter the town had to hand over their weapons first, and the gates were closed at night. 3 - Remains of these town walls can still be seen in many places today. A particularly well-preserved example can be found in Neubrandenburg, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Construction began more than 700 years ago. The wall is about 2,300 metres long, with four gates and several watchtowers. It is about 7 metres high, up to 1.40 metres thick, and built mainly from fieldstone. 4 - Special houses were built into the wall every 30 metres, where defenders could hide and fight off attackers. They are called Wiekhäuser. 5 - Today, about 64,000 people live in Neubrandenburg, most of them outside the old town wall. The city has a concert church, a university of applied sciences and St. George’s Chapel. It is also home to a notable example of a prefabricated housing estate, a type of building known in the former GDR as “Wohnbauserie 70”. Tollensesee lies to the south of the city. 6 - The four gates in the town wall—the Friedländer Tor, the Treptower Tor, the Stargarder Tor and the Neue Tor—and the Fangelturm, which is connected to the wall, still define the city’s appearance today.