Quedlinburg – A Small Town with Significant History

When we go on a road trip from Sweden through the countries in the south, Germany has been our favourite country to explore. We would spend many stops and overnights in the country rather than rushing to drive through it. Although we plan our route, we sometimes stay overnight in a place we don’t know much about. By overnight, I don’t mean arriving in the place late at night. We would usually want to see around before dinner and relaxing at a hotel bar.

It was still early in the afternoon when we reached Hannover, so we decided to drive furthermore. The countryside route is always enjoyable on a day trip. When we find a hotel to stay, we settle on and find out about the place later. We found a Best Western Hotel in Quedlinburg, and after seeing around, it becomes one of the places we would want to stop by again.

This small town in northern Germany has been on the UNESCO World Heritage list since 1994. The timber-framed buildings in the old town reveal an impressive architecture belonging to the Middle Ages. The Romanesque style Collegiate Church of Saint Servatius displays some religious artefacts that once were stolen by an American soldier in the later months of the Second World War. Incidentally, the sale of one of the artefacts disclosed the theft after the death of the soldier.

Interestingly, Quedlinburg is another town in Germany which history involves Sweden in a way. In my further readings, I learned that the abbesses that ruled Quedlinburg in the 1800s did not take the veil and were allowed to marry. One of the abbesses and the last one was a Swedish princess and a fighter for women’s rights named Sofia Albertina.

The castle pictured above stands on a sandstone cliff. It’s beautiful at night when all the lights are lit. The hotel we stayed in is close to the castle, but it’s quite a walk uphill. We reached Quedlinburg by car; otherwise, it may not be easy to come to this town since the closest airport is in Magdeburg-Cochstedt, just served by a few airlines. I must say that Quedlinburg is just another historical find we happen to discover on a road trip.