Aachen Cathedral

Aachen Cathedral keeps the throne room of Europe's first millennium - Charlemagne raised his octagonal palace chapel here around 800, modelled on Ravenna's San Vitale, and its dome of mosaics and ancient columns still centres everything built since. The emperor was buried here in 814; thirty-one German kings were crowned here between 936 and 1531; and the objects match the resume - Charlemagne's golden shrine behind the altar, the Barbarossa chandelier ringing the octagon, and upstairs the plain marble throne on which the coronations turned. The Gothic choir hall glows like a glasshouse beside the Carolingian core, and the treasury nearby ranks among the richest church collections north of the Alps. In 1978 the cathedral became Germany's first World Heritage site - one of the original twelve inscribed worldwide - which is simply the modern paperwork for a status it has held for twelve centuries.

History

Charlemagne began the Palatine Chapel around 796 with the rest of his palace, built by Odo of Metz on the model of San Vitale in Ravenna, and Pope Leo III consecrated it in 805; the emperor was buried here in 814, a Viking raid of 881 badly damaged it, and it was restored in 983. From 936 to 1531 thirty-one German kings were crowned in it, and after Charlemagne's canonisation in 1165 pilgrims crowded in, so a Gothic choir hall, the glass chapel, was added from 1355 and consecrated on the 600th anniversary of his death. In the Second World War the glazing of the choir hall and part of the cloister were destroyed, though the structure survived and many treasures had been moved to safety, and in 1978 the cathedral was one of the first twelve sites on the World Heritage List (Wikipedia, Aachen Cathedral).

The main sights

• The octagon - Charlemagne's domed chapel of mosaics and ancient columns.
• The shrine of Charlemagne - the golden casket behind the altar.
• The marble throne - the coronation seat upstairs, guided tours only.
• The treasury - reliquaries and crosses among Europe's richest hoards.

When to go

Year-round; weekday mornings give the octagon its stillness. Services close the church to sightseeing at intervals, so check times, and December pairs the visit with Aachen's Printen-scented Christmas market.

What to expect

The throne gallery is only reachable on the guided tour, and the treasury is a separate ticket - budget for both, they are the point. The interior is smaller than its fame suggests; give the mosaics time to work. Photography permits are asked for inside.

Nearby

Aachen's Rathaus on the old palace site, the Elisenbrunnen springs and the Dutch and Belgian borders minutes away.

Key facts