Stendal

Stendal is a town of 38,000 people (2021) in the north of the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. Stendal has a well-preserved old town with a variety of historical, mostly medieval, buildings. Stendal is the biggest town in the Altmark region.

Understand
The town was founded in 1160. From its inception, it belonged to the Margraviate of Brandenburg that later developed into the Kingdom of Prussia. During the 14th to 16th century, Stendal was a member of the Hanseatic League and—despite being more than 150 km off the nearest seashore—had its own seafarer guild.

The 18th-century archeologist and art historian Johann Joachim Winckelmann (1717–1768) was born and went to school in Stendal. He significantly evoked a revival of classical antiquity and thereby paved the way for the Neoclassical movement in different arts. The Winckelmann Society that preserves his heritage has its seat in Stendal. The French writer Marie-Henri Beyle (1783–1842) was an admirer of Winckelmann and therefore chose the pseudonym "Stendhal" as a bow to his idol. Incidentally, Beyle/Stendhal lived in the region for a short time, serving in the administration of the French puppet state "Kingdom of Westphalia".

The population of Stendal grew rapidly during the 19th and early 20th century, quadrupling between 1830 and 1910. After the end of communist rule and the re-unification of Germany in 1989/90 however, the town lost 30 % of its population. The number of inhabitants could only be held relatively stable at 40,000 by incorporating several neighbouring municipalities.

Get in
Stendal is located approximately halfway between Berlin and Hanover, 65 km north of Magdeburg.

The closest major airports are Berlin Brandenburg Airport (, 150 km east of Stendal, 1:40 hours by train) and Hanover (, 180 km to the west, 1:50 hours by train).

High-speed trains (ICE) frequently pass through Stendal on their way between Berlin and Hanover—but rarely stop here. However, intercity trains between Berlin and Amsterdam (via Hanover) call every two hours. Moreover there are hourly local trains from Magdeburg and Wittenberge as well as two-hourly regional trains between Magdeburg and Uelzen.

See

 * Remains of the medieval town fortification, including two Gothic brick gates (Uenglinger Tor on the western and Tangermünder Tor on the southeastern end of the old town; especially the former is considered one of the most beautiful town gates in Northern Germany), magazine and walls

Do

 * Roland festival, in June of each year
 * Roland festival, in June of each year

Go next

 * Magdeburg, 65 km to the south (40–50 minutes by train)
 * Brandenburg an der Havel, 60 km to the southeast
 * Salzwedel, 65 km to the northwest (30–40 minutes by train)
 * Wittenberge, 50 km to the north (40 minutes by train)