Havelberg - Dom Sankt Marien

With a victory in the Battle of Lenzen in 929, the Saxens made a significant advance into the dominion of the Slavic tribes. Shortly thereafter, the area around Havelberg was conquered and a castle complex was built on the ridge. Otto I continued the conquest of eastern Elbe areas and founded the bishopric of Havelberg as a suffragan diocese of the Archdiocese of Magdeburg. The settlement of a bishopric in Havelberg suggests that the place represented a regional center as early as the 10th century and possibly before. As early as 983, a rebellion broke out among Slavic groups, during which the bishopric of Havelberg was conquered. It was not until 1130 that King Lothar III succeeded. to recapture the place. The city was built in the middle of the 12th century, spatially separate from the cathedral district, on a promontory in a bend in the Havel River, that was made to an island for strategic reasons.

The first construction work on the church must have taken place in the middle of the 10th century. A chronicler reports that the church was destroyed during the uprising in 983. Around 1150, under the influence of the local Bishop, a cathedral was built. The basilica was consecrated in 1170. The church was about 70 meters long and 20 meters wide. The Romanesque building consisted of two tower-like crossbars with a three-aisled nave in between. A large triumphal arch visually separated the chancel from the nave. The chancel itself was rectangular and ended in a semi-circular apse. The westwork, appearing defensively closed from the outside, had five round-arched portals to the naves on the inside. A fire in 1279 destroyed significant parts of the cathedral. Using the existing Romanesque components, the basilica was rebuilt in a Gothic style with bricks. The entire conversion was probably not completed until 1330 when the high altar was consecrated.

After the Reformation, the cathedral chapter converted to Protestantism in 1561. The bishopric of Havelberg itself was dissolved in 1598 by Elector Joachim Friedrich of Brandenburg.
Structural changes then came in the course of the restorations of the 19th century. The appearance of some portals and windows was changed, the floor was renewed and the interior color scheme was changed several times. Finally, between 1907 and 1909, a neo-Romanesque portal was built into the tower and a brick story was added.

This winged altar has clearly suffered over the centuries. The "Crowning of the Virgin" is a very common icon during the Gothic time.