Fortress Magdeburg-Kaserne Mark

From the beginning of the 18th century until 1912, the Fortress of Magdeburg was one of the strongest fortresses in Prussia.

Development up to the Thirty Years' War

The first fortifications of Magdeburg can be traced back to the 13th century. The city walls then ran around the area of today's northern Old Town between Krökentor and Otto-von-Guericke-Straße, and immediately south of the Cathedral. Remains are preserved in the Wallonerkirche - Tränsberg area. Due to the development of firearms, the existing fortifications could no longer withstand enemy attacks. Therefore, extensive reconstruction and expansion work on the city's fortifications took place in Magdeburg between 1450 and 1550. This included, among other things, the new construction of wall sections, the erection of a second city wall and a new moat, the first-time fortification of the Elbe front, and the construction of new city gates with gun towers. In addition, the fortifications were also extended to the eastern bank of the Elbe. The thus reinforced fortification proved its worth during the unsuccessful siege of 1550/51 on the occasion of the execution of the Imperial Ban in connection with the introduction of the Lutheran Reformation. The Magdeburg fortress also withstood the siege of 1629 during the Thirty Years' War. In the further course of the war, the fortification was expanded from 40 to up to 150 meters in depth under the direction of the Swedish Colonel Dietrich von Falkenberg. Redoubts and hornworks were erected in front of the gates. However, since the expansion of the southern front was neglected, the imperial troops succeeded in taking the city at this point in 1631. The fortifications were razed on the orders of General Pappenheim.

Prussia's Strongest Fortress

Until the end of the war, the fate of Magdeburg was guided by the Archbishopric of Magdeburg, after which the city came under the rule of Brandenburg-Prussia. Elector Friedrich Wilhelm ordered the repair of the fortifications in 1666. Work began with the reinforcement of the Elbe front, which led to the creation of the Cleve and Prussia bastions. A parapet was erected in front of the city moat, and a citadel of about 800 m² was built on the Elbe island of Werder. In 1702, a second phase of expansion began, under the direction of Magdeburg Governor Prince Leopold I of Anhalt-Dessau. By 1713, a belt of eleven bastions had been created. In a third construction phase, under the fortress builders Hans Martin von Bosse and Gerhard Cornelius von Walrave, another eleven bastions were built, as well as the Turmschanze and Fort Berge. Around 1740, the fortifications of the northern front were staggered to a depth of 400 meters, the western front 600 meters, and the southern front between 300 and 600 meters. The entire defensive system covered an area of 200 hectares, compared to 120 hectares of urban area.

Fortress Expansion in the 19th Century

Although Magdeburg was subsequently considered the strongest fortress in Prussia, Magdeburg surrendered almost without a fight to Napoleonic troops during the Fourth Coalition War in 1806. In 1807, Magdeburg was incorporated into the French Kingdom of Westphalia, and the city became an important link in the French Elbe defense line. The most important measure for the further expansion of the fortifications was the enlargement of the glacis facilities, which was accompanied by the relocation of the Neustadt and Sudenburg suburbs. Their former area was declared a free firing range, or rayon. During the Wars of Liberation from 1813 to 1815, Magdeburg withstood the sieges by Prussian-Russian troops. After Napoleon's defeat, Prussian troops re-entered the city on May 24, 1814. With the introduction of the New Prussian Fortress Style, the Magdeburg fortress underwent a renewed expansion and reconstruction of its defensive facilities. The ramparts were modernized, the Elbe riverbank was further fortified, and fortress gates were newly built or rebuilt. Numerous military buildings such as barracks and magazines were constructed within the fortress. The Magdeburg-Leipzig railway line, completed in 1840, and the creation of further railway connections brought about profound changes in Magdeburg's defense system. To allow the railway lines to enter the city, new railway gates had to be built, of which the Old Leipzig Gate was the first to be completed in 1840. By 1873, a total of eight railway gates had been built in the fortress belt. With the introduction of the "rifled gun barrel," the necessity of expanding the fortifications arose again. For this purpose, a belt of 14 forts was built starting in 1866, located at a distance of 1000 to 3000 meters from the core fortress. After the rayon area had been expanded, the fort belt was started from 1890 with the construction of eight intermediate works.

Dismantling of the Fortress

After the general dismantling of fortresses in Germany had already been decided with the imperial cabinet order of December 8, 1886, the fortress status of Magdeburg was lifted with the cabinet order of January 23, 1900, and the fortress area was released for sale. The city used the abandonment of the fortifications to acquire most of the areas for the expansion of residential development and the improvement of infrastructure. In the north, the connection to Neustadt, incorporated in 1886, was created; in the west, Wilhelmstadt was built, and the development in the south established the connection to Buckau, incorporated in 1887. The demolition of the city gates had already begun in 1888. The two largest fortifications, Fort Stern and the Citadel, were demolished in 1903 and 1922, respectively. Only large parts of the fortress buildings of the western front remained. Five forts were completely removed, the others were initially converted for civilian use. After the Second World War, only remnants of these also remained.

Mark Barracks (Source Text)

The Mark Barracks, often also referred to as Fortress Mark, is a former "defensive barracks" of the Magdeburg Fortress. Today it is used as a center for cultural events in Magdeburg.

The Mark defensive barracks were built between 1863 and 1865. It served as the last city-side obstacle for the defense of the city. It was built during the last phase of the expansion of the Magdeburg Fortress. Up to 800 soldiers were housed in it.

In the 1920s, the building served as an employment office. Several social institutions were housed here, including the municipal health department.

During the Second World War, the Mark Barracks became a residence for approximately 600 Italian workers. These worked in the Friedrich Krupp AG Grusonwerk in Magdeburg. The buildings suffered considerable damage in parts due to bomb hits. The remains of the east wing were removed after the end of the Second World War.

From 1947, the first small and craft businesses moved into the western, undamaged part of the building. Later, a brush factory and a basket weaving workshop followed, among others. As early as 1987, the idea arose to convert the Mark Barracks into a student cultural center. Due to the political change in 1989/90, these plans were abandoned. The trades left the barracks.

In the 1990s, several attempts were made to repurpose the "Mark Barracks" or sell it to investors. All efforts failed. On September 17, 2001, the city council revoked the decision to sell the property. At the same time, KulturSzeneMagdeburg e.V. presented the city council with a concept for its conversion into a "Cultural Fortress for Magdeburg." Initial clean-up work began at the end of the year and continued in the following years.