Bautzen

Bautzen stands on a granite outcrop above the Spree with an old town of narrow streets and seventeen towers, including a leaning water tower and the Reichenturm, which leans about one and a half metres out of true. It is the cultural centre of the Sorbs, a Slavic people who have lived in Lusatia for over a thousand years and still speak Upper and Lower Sorbian; street signs are bilingual, there is a Sorbian institute, theatre and museum, and the Easter egg decorating and Easter riding traditions are Sorbian. St Peter's is a Simultankirche, used by Catholic and Protestant congregations since 1524 with the space divided between them.

History

The region was inhabited from the late Stone Age, an eastern Germanic settlement stood here in the 3rd century AD, and Sorbs arrived in the 6th century. The town is first recorded in 1002 as Budusin; the Peace of Bautzen of 1018 left it under Polish rule, it passed to Meissen in 1032 and to Bohemia in 1075, and in 1346 it joined the Lusatian League of Upper Lusatian towns. The Hussites besieged it without success in 1429 and 1431, the Battle of Bautzen was fought here in 1813, and in 1868 its name was officially changed from Budissin to Bautzen; the Sorbian student society was founded here in 1839, the Sorbian anthem was first performed publicly in 1845, and the Sorbian House opened in 1904 (Wikipedia, Bautzen).

Highlights

• The seventeen towers - a skyline of towers including a leaning one.
• The Sorbian culture - bilingual signs, a museum and Slavic traditions.
• The shared cathedral - Catholic and Protestant use since 1524.
• The Spree gorge - the river below the granite outcrop the town sits on.

When to go

April to October; Sorbian Easter traditions, including decorated eggs and Easter riding, fall in spring. Museums close Mondays. The town is quiet year-round.

What to expect

The town is small and seen in a day. Tower climbs are steep and seasonal. Sorbian cultural events are concentrated around Easter.

Nearby

Görlitz lies east; Dresden is west.