Easy hikes and walks in Altmark

In the premises of the former town hall of the Hanseatic city of Salzwedel, the Salzwedel District Court is located today. The northern part, built from 1490 to 1509, is the oldest part of the historic town hall. At the beginning of the 17th century, the town hall was extended by a corner building. The use of the building as a town hall ended in 1714. Afterwards, the structure served, among other things, as a guardhouse, warehouse, and council cellar. In 1820, the judiciary moved into some of the premises of the Renaissance building. Since the middle of the 19th century, the court has been located in the entire building. The adjacent building was erected in 1867 as a prison. https://erlebnisland.de/sachsen-anhalt/hansestadt-salzwedel/sehenswuerdigkeiten/ehemaliges-rathaus-altstadt-amtsgericht-salzwedel

The St. Catherine's Church in the Hanseatic city of Salzwedel is a significant, three-nave Gothic brick basilica. The documented construction start of the house of worship dates back to the year 1280. It was built as the main parish church for the then newly founded Salzwedel Neustadt. After the founding of the Neustadt (1247), the church was designed as a purely community church, which is why historically there was no separation between the chancel and the nave. While the massive tower base still bears Romanesque features, North German brick Gothic dominates the rest of the building. In the mid-15th century, the complex was extended to the west with a Late Gothic hall. During the GDR era, the building was acutely threatened by decay and demolition. Only through the massive, courageous commitment of the community members could the church be saved. During the Wende in autumn 1989, it was a central place for local peace prayers. As the church, located near the old Hanseatic port, is presumably built on marshy ground, its structural integrity has suffered from cracks for centuries; extensive renovations (supported, among others, by the German Foundation for Monument Protection) secure the foundation and the tie rods. Since 1981, the chancel has housed the valuable Late Gothic carved altarpiece from the Dambeck monastery church, which shows the rare depiction of a unicorn fleeing into the lap of the Virgin Mary. The original high altar was sold to Frankfurt Cathedral in the 19th century to finance renovations. Three of the originally nine colored glass windows from the 15th century have been preserved. They survived World War II unscathed because they were stored away in time. https://gemeinde-bunt.de/gemeinden/st-katharinenkirche

so that not everyone leaves their feces in the Jeetze, this spot was established.

In the red brick style today District Court Salzwedel

The towers are easily accessible from outside the wall and are well signposted.

The Rosspforte is located at the Elbe Gate and, together with the Rossfurt, formed the only access road from the Elbe into the town of Tangermünde for a long time. The Rossfurt is a 100-meter-long hollow way. The Elbe Gate once had a portcullis, the niches of which are still recognizable today, and features faithful replicas of the gate wings and the Elbe's water level marks. In 2013, it reached its highest level to date at 8.38 meters. Source: https://www.blutana.de/sehenswuerdigkeiten/Rosspforte-Tangermuende-2155.html

The Marktstraße leads on to the Putinnen. These are two towers, standing about 30 meters apart on the city wall. They protect a small staircase that serves as access to the river. The people of Tangermünde frequently relied on the water of the Tanger. For instance, in the 18th century, the city had only 12 wells, which could sometimes barely supply the necessary drinking water. The eastern tower served as a citizens' jail for a time. The already mentioned staircase leads through the western tower. Both towers were built around 1470. Source: https://www.portalsaeule.de/index.php?cat=Mauern%2C%20Tore%20und%20T%C3%BCrme%2FStadtbefestigungen%20in%20Deutschland&page=Tangerm%C3%BCnde_2

The former border complex near Rade (a district of Wittingen) is an impressive and at the same time depressing place of contemporary history. It is located directly on the state border between Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt and was part of the approximately 1,400 km long inner-German border.