Germany´s Renaissance city

Having developed over two millennia, this city’s distinct cityscape was shaped by all the great stylistic epochs. Great buildings, monumental fountains, lavishly laid-out streets, and ultramodern architecture attest to the city’s tradition of cosmopolitan bounty.

Many of Augburg’s unique features can be credited to the premercantile times of Roman soldiers. The city’s wall dates from the Middle Ages, but you can still find traces of the Romans’ handiwork in stretches of the original wall. They were also responsible for the city’s intricate canal system. By one count, as many as 600 bridges cross the still-intact waterways – more, the citizens of Augsburg claim, than in Venice or Amsterdam.

Take time to appreciate the magnificent beauty that the Renaissance imparted on Augsburg’s façade. It is even nicknamed the "German Renaissance City". Enjoy an impressive panoramic view of the city’s architectural gems from the adjacent "Perlachturm" (Perlach Tower).

The "Rathaus" (City Hall) was built by the city architect Elias Holl between 1615 and 1620 and is considered the most important secular Renaissance structure north of the Alps - expressing the self-assurance of the then Free Imperial City of Augsburg. The façade was rebuilt after the building was severely damaged in 1944 in an air raid, followed by the interior in 1962.

In 1985, on the occasion of Augsburg's 2000-year jubilee, restoration was completed of the 100-foot-long "Goldener Saal" (Golden Hall), with its imposing portals, murals and 55-foot-high, gold-leaf coffered ceilings and murals.

The nearly 250-foot-high "Perlachturm" (Perlach Tower), a former guard tower located next to the City Hall, offers a spectacular panoramic view of Augsburg.

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There are two churches in Augsburg named Ulrich and Afra. One is Roman Catholic, the other Lutheran, a duality that resulted from the Peace of Augsburg concluded in 1555 between Catholics and Protestants.

Construction of the larger structure began in 1474 with the abbey church of the Benedictine monks. The choir, with three massive altars and the Crucifixion altar, was completed in the 16th and 17th centuries. The onion-domed tower is nearly 300 feet high.

The Late Gothic basilica is richly appointed in Renaissance and Baroque styles with an elaborate wrought-iron grille, numerous works of art, and the burial vaults of Augsburg's patron saints Afra, Ulrich and Simpert.

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Formerly a Carmelite monastery and a Protestant church since 1525, the "St.-Anna-Kirche" (St. Anna Church) contains the so-called "Lutherstiege", where Martin Luther slept during his time in Augsburg. The tomb chapel of the Fugger family is regarded as the first Renaissance church building in Germany. St. Anna also features valuable paintings by Lucas Cranach the Elder and the "Goldschmiedekapelle" (Goldsmith's Chapel) with 14th-century frescoes.

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The Fuggerei was founded in 1516 by Jakob Fugger the Rich and his brothers as the world's first social settlement for hardworking and honest but impoverished citizens of the Roman Catholic faith. The yearly rent was - and is - one Rhinish Gulden, equivalent to less than one Euro.

Daily recitation of The Lord's Prayer on behalf of the founders remains part of the house rules. Known as "the town within a town", the settlement comprises 67 two-story structures housing 147 apartments, a church and a simple, elegant fountain.

The Fuggerei Museum (next door to the former home of Franz Mozart, the great-grandfather of the famous composer) shows how residents of previous centuries lived and displays original furnishings.

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The city palace of the banker Liebert von Liebenhofen, with its richly adorned Rococo Banquet Hall, was built from 1765 to 1770. Considered the most impressive Rococo work in Augsburg, it is also one of the most impressive private Rococo buildings in Bavaria. The centerpiece of the "Schaezlerpalais" (Schaezler Palace) is the 70-foot-long Rococo ballroom with carved decorations, stucco work, wall mirrors and a ceiling painting by Gugliemi.

Today it also houses the "Deutsche Barockgalerie" (German Baroque Gallery) and the "Staatsgalerie" (State Gallery). Nearly 100 significant masterpieces of painting dating from the 17th and 18th centuries from the city of Augsburg's collection as well as from various donors. Special emphasis is given to the works of Baroque painters in Augsburg, for example Josef Heintz, Matthäus Gundelach, Johann König, Johann Georg Bergmüller, Johann Evangelist Holzer and Matthäus Günther, Dürer, Holbein and Cranach.

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The Romanesque and Gothic "Mariendom" (Cathedral of Mary), built between the 9th and 14th centuries, features impressive frescoes, an 11th-century bronze portal (now at the Diocesan Museum), a Romanesque crypt, and four panel paintings by Hans Holbein the Elder.

Twelfth-century windows displaying the prophets are said to be the oldest stained glass windows in Germany depicting figures. Many finds from the Roman era to be seen on the square.

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The Kurhaus Theater in Augsburg-Göggingen is a cultural monument of the highest European rank. This architectural jewel is regarded as unique and tangible evidence of the period of industrial expansion in Germany (late 1800s) and as the most significant monument of civil engineering in the city of Augsburg.

This splendid neo-Baroque theater with several tiers of boxes, erected in 1886, is a construction of iron and glass with an integrated palm garden and was perfectly restored in 1996.

Today, the palace of "light and glass" is once again used as a theater and here, the "Parktheater Augsburg" (Park Theater Augsburg) presents theatrical and musical performances on 250 days of the year.

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The "Fugger Stadtpalais" (Fugger City Palace) is a residential and business house of Jakob Fugger which was built from 1512 to 1515 and has charming and attractive inner courts like the "Damenhof" (Ladies' Court) built in the architectural style of the Italian Renaissance. Access by Maximilianstrasse 36.

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