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Old Villages Travel 2005
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Before the village was founded that bore the name Berlin and which grew to absorb, at least in name, all of the surrounding populace, there were several other villages in the immediate area. A common feature in the location of these early settlements was water transport — good communications and easy transportation of goods. Berlin itself was founded on a plain along the river Spree; it had a twin across the Spree by the name of Kölln. Unlike Buda and Pest, which merged to become Budapest, Berlin absorbed its twin and only its name remained. Two names that do live on are Spandau and Köpenick, both also on the Spree. They were founded before Berlin and undoubtedly their sites were chosen, again, for transport. Both are older than Berlin; perhaps colonists were sent out by them to found Berlin. If so, it would be an earlier parallel to San Gabrielenos of California sending out colonists to found Los Angeles and ultimately being overshadowed and swallowed by their daughter. Spandau
Spandau sits at the junction of the Spree and the larger Havel, a bit under 15 km to the west of Berlin Mitte. Undoubtedly in the early days of Spandau it was a marshy junction, not like today's tightly controlled locks that regulate commerce that goes as far north as the Baltic. Nobody can say with precision when Spandau was founded but it is conventionally taken to be 1234, a dozen years before Berlin. The difficulty in dating is a matter of definition; fortified settlements in this location date to the eight century. In fact, this was a border area that once belonged to German tribes, then Slavs, and then Germans again. So settlement cannot be equated with founding.
Sitting to the east across the Havel, and on the north bank of the Spree is Spandau fortress. Its earliest version was founded in 1160; seventy years later it, or more precisely nearby settlements, had grown into the town of Spandau. Over the centuries the fortress was converted from its early, primitive wood and mud structure to bricks and stone. In the late 16th century the development of gunpowder made its old shape too weak and it was developed into a a large Italian Renaissance-style fortress. Today Spandau Castle is a large complex with walls or remnants of walls from many periods and an interior with buildings with dates stretching from about 1400 to 1900. During World War II some of the buildings were converted to research on chemical warfare. On the day we visited we had some good and bad luck: half of the buildings, including the museum of 18th-19th century life, were closed. Because of this entry to the grounds was free. We toured them and got a feel for what the place must have been like centuries ago. Spandau is most famous as the place where Nazi criminals of war were imprisoned. But the famous jail no longer exists; it was torn down after its last resident (Rudolph Hess) died in 1987. Aparently many people think that the Castle, with its fortress walls, is the prison, but it isn't so.
The town center of Spandau in this early 21st century retains the feel of centuries ago. It is easy to tell that it is not a medieval village, for the shops have all the modern conveniences, including plate glass fronts and there is even a charity store. But the streets are narrow, and to some extent windy, not like a modern suburb built for cars. The buildings themselves are largely two and three stories, and a few (but only a few) half-timbered. This contrasts with Berlin (and in particular Kreuzberg) where the norm is six stories. Just off the main street is the Gothic House, dating to the end of the 15th century; it has undergone many additions and alternations but parts can be recognized as belonging to the original.
Just two blocks west of the main street, in what was the center during the middle ages, is the 15th century St Nicholas Church. (It should not be confused with Berlin's St Nicholas; good old Nick was very popular in bygone years.) After Martin Luther posted his theses and set off the Protestant Reformation, this was one of the first churches in Germany to officially adopt the new doctrines. Köpenick
Today Köpenick is a very attractive suburb of Berlin. This is a role it has played for many years. In the early days of the industrial revolution in Germany right through the first third of the twentieth century the poor and working class were more likely to live in the center of Berlin, near their factories, and the more affluent liked to live in more pleasant place like Köpenick. We certainly felt that way; on our walk around we said to ourselves, "Why not a home here?" While it is just far enough out that neither U-Bahn nor S-Bahn connect it directly to Berlin Mitte it is still easy enough at 15 kilometers to get into the city. Royalty felt the same way. Schloss Köpenick was built in the late 17th century as a country estate. The castle now houses a museum of art. We didn't get to see it but did tour the more modest History Museum, housed in plainer, almost simple 17th century home. Best of all in this museum were the keepers who were retired residents of the town volunteering their time and only too pleased to have visitors from so far away able to speak German and interested in the history of their hometown. The exhibits were well presented and covered the whole gamut of the town's history. In the 1920s an amusing event took place in town. A neer-do-well dressed himself up as a colonel and took over the town hall. In his fancy uniform he had people fooled for a while. When they realized he was an impostor they had to set siege to the building to get him out.
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