Havelberg - St. Laurentius

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.

After the re-establishment of the bishopric, the village on the island developed again. The town church St. Laurentius was built in the first half of the 15th century on the foundations of a previous building. The first written mention of the existing town church dates back to 1340. The Reformation came to Havelberg in 1541.

The church survived the Thirty Years' War and a town fire in 1627 but suffered serious damage. During the restoration that took place in 1660, the tower was completed to its present day.