Clocks and Watches

Slavic Ranen lived on the island of Ruegen and the mainland opposite the island. They were independent heathens up to the middle of the 12th century, and so maybe the last non-Christian people in Central Europe. In 1168 Danish King Valdemar I defeated the Ranen and destroyed "Jaromarsburg" their main sanctuary. After the Danish victory, the Slavic princes became feudatories of the Danish crown and accepted the Christian faith. They founded Strale, which prospered because of the rich herring stocks in the waters, many merchants settled here who saw this as their basis for trade. Already in 1234 Slavic Prince Wizlaw I granted the village the town charter (Lübsches Stadtrecht). Stralsund now became an important trading town in the Baltic region, mainly due to settlers from Westphalia. The German settlers clearly outnumbered the Slavic population already around 1300. From 1325 on Stralsund belonged to Pomerania-Wolgast. In the 14th century, it was the most important Hanseatic city in the southern Baltic region after Lübeck. The 15th century was Stralsund's heyday. Long-distance trade was the most important economic factor. Around 1450, 350 merchants were involved in such trade. In 1488, 50 skippers founded the "St. Marienbruderschaft der Schiffer", the forerunner of the still existing "Stralsund Schiffercompagnie". As early as 1525, the majority of Stralsund's citizens converted to the Protestant faith. After the Thirty Years' War Stralsund belonged to the Kingdom of Sweden for almost 200 years. In 1815 Stralsund came to Prussia. - The town hall and the Nikolaikirche form an impressive architectural ensemble. The planning and construction of the church went hand in hand with the planning of the town hall. The city council was even the trustee for the construction of the new church. The church was initially built as a hall church but following the example of Lübeck's Marienkirche, the unfinished Nikolaikirche was rebuilt into a basilica around 1270. From the beginning, the church was built with brick produces in the region. Around 1308, the enclosing wall of the choir was closed. This is the result of dendrochronological investigations. With the start of construction work on the new choir pillars, the eastern part of the predecessor church, which had still been used until then, was finally demolished. An invoice from 1314 for the ridge turret of the choir indicates the date of completion of this section. Construction of the tower to the west began as early as 1300. Around 1314, when the tower had reached the height of the choir enclosure at 13 metres, the council decided to have two towers built. Around 1350, the construction of the nave between the two towers was completed. Astronomical clocks were marvels of technology in the Middle Ages. Very expensive high-tech devices that only a few communities could afford. The astronomical clock of the Nikolaikirche is an astrolabe clock. It is the oldest mechanical clock in the world to have been preserved in its original state. According to an inscription on it, the clock was completed by Nikolaus Lilienfeld on St. Nicholas' Day 1394. It was probably damaged in 1525, when the Protestants raided the church, and has not worked since then. So it has been preserved almost entirely in its original condition. The clockwork and the indications have never been restored. The clock's case is square is about 16m³. The dial is round. In the four corners, four men are depicted. Top left: Ptolemy, Greek mathematician, geographer, astronomer and astrologer. His banner reads "Inferiora reguntur a superioribus" (Lower things are ruled by higher things.) Top right: Alfonso X, King of Castile, Léon and Galicia and sponsor of the Alfonsine tables of astronomical data. His banner: "Motus solis et planetarum in obliquo circulo est" (The motion of the sun and the planets is in an oblique circle.) Bottom left: Ali ibn Ridwan (labelled Hali), the Islamic physician and astrologer. His banner: "Dies est elevacio solis super orizontem" (The day is the elevation of the sun above the horizon.) Bottom right: Abu Ma'shar (labelled Albumazar), the Persian mathematician, astronomer and astrologer. His banner: "Sapiens vir dominabitur astris" (The wise man will rule over the stars.) The small portrait of Master Nikolaus Lilienfeld, the clockmaker, is not visible from here.

With more than 200.000 inhabitants Rostock is the largest city in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Small Slavic settlements existed already in the 8th century. A settlement named Roztok was founded in the 11th century by Polabian Slavs. This town was burnt down by troops of the Danish king Valdemar I in 1161. Afterwards the place was settled by German traders. After 1226 Rostock became the seat of the Lordship of Rostock. In the 1250s the city became a member of the Hanseatic League. In the 14th century it was a powerful seaport town with 12,000 inhabitants and the largest city in Mecklenburg. Ships for cruising the Baltic Sea were constructed in Rostock. Until the last Hansa Convention in 1669, Rostock took a leading role in the Baltic Sea behind Lübeck. - Marienkirche is a large Brick Gothic church. Built in the 13th century, it was enlarged and modified at the end of the 14th century into the present basilica. The first reference to a church on this site is in 1232, which is thought to be the predecessor of the current building. The triple-nave cross-shaped basilica is in Brick Gothic, a building style typical of the Hanseatic port cities. The huge tower with a baroque lantern at the top was not completed until the end of the 18th century. In 1419, the University of Rostock was founded, the oldest university in the Baltic Sea area. It was ceremoniously opened in the Marienkirche. The parish priest of the church, Nikolaus Türkow, was personally involved in the founding of the university and the church remained closely associated with it for a long time. Even today, the "professors' pews" indicate that St. Mary's Church had the function of a university and council church until the turn of the century around 1900. The astronomical clock in Marienkirche was built in 1472 by Hans Düringer (~ 1420 - 1477), who lived in Danzig (Gdansk) where he built the astronomical clock in the Marienkirche (Bazyliką Mariacką). The clock here was built a little later. Both astronomical clocks have a close resemblance. It took Hans Düringer, whose official title was "Architekt der Zeit" (architect of the time), 6 years to finish this "wonder". Astronomical watches were very prestigious high tech items, that were extremely expensive. The clock has been little rebuilt or extended, so it is still in its approximate original condition today. It also still works and the five movements are wound by hand every day. In 1943, the clock was walled in to protect it from bombing and was not uncovered until 1951. In the 1970s the five movements, consisting of a total of 2,000 isndividual parts, were restored.

The area around Lübeck, today a large city with a population of more than 200,000, had been settled by Slavs since the 7th century. Slavs had a settlement north of the present city called "Liubice", which was razed by the pagan Rani tribe in 1128. 15 years later Adolf II, Count of Schauenburg and Holstein, founded the modern town as a German settlement on the river island of Bucu. He built a new castle, first mentioned as existing in 1147. Adolf II had to cede the castle to the Duke of Saxony, Henry the Lion, in 1158. After Henry's fall from power in 1181, the town became an Imperial city. Emperor Barbarossa ordained that the city should have a ruling council of 20 members. With the council dominated by merchants, trade interests shaped Lübeck's politics for centuries. In the 14th century, Lübeck became the "Queen of the Hanseatic League", being by far the largest and most powerful member of that medieval trade organization. In 1375, Emperor Charles IV named Lübeck one of the five "Glories of the Empire", a title shared with Venice, Rome, Pisa, and Florence. Conflicts about trading privileges resulted in fighting between Lübeck (with the Hanseatic League) and Denmark and Norway – with varying outcome. While Lübeck and the Hanseatic League prevailed in conflicts in 1435 and 1512, Lübeck lost when it became involved in a civil war that raged in Denmark from 1534 to 1536. From then on Lübeck's power slowly declined. The city remained neutral in the Thirty Years' War, but the devastation from the decades-long war and the new transatlantic orientation of European trade caused the Hanseatic League – and thus Lübeck with it – to decline in importance. However, Lübeck still remained an important trading town on the Baltic Sea. In 1160 Henry the Lion moved the bishopric of Oldenburg to Lübeck and endowed a cathedral chapter. In 1163 a wooden church was built, however, at the beginning of the 13th century, it was no longer sufficient to meet the representative demands of the self-confident burghers. St. Marien was built between 1250 and 1350. It has always been a symbol of the power and prosperity of the old Hanseatic city. It situated at the highest point of the island that forms the old town. Gothic cathedrals in France and Flanders made of natural stone were the models for the new construction of Lübeck's three-nave basilica. St. Marien epitomizes North German "Brick Gothic" and set the standard for many churches in the Baltic region. The church embodied the towering style of Gothic architecture using brick. The incentive for the City Council to undertake such an enormous project was rooted in the bitter dispute with the Lübeck bishopric. As a symbol of the long-distance merchants' desire for freedom and the secular power of the city, which had been free of the Empire since 1226, the church building in the immediate vicinity of Lübeck's city hall and the market square was intended to clearly and uncatchably surpass in size the city's bishop's church, Lübeck Cathedral. In March 1942, St. Marien (as well as the Cathedral and St. Peter) was almost completely burned out during the air raid on Lübeck, which destroyed one-fifth of the city centre. Reconstruction of the church began in 1947 and was essentially completed. Some centuries ago an astronomical clock was a very expensive piece of high tec only a few parishes could afford. This astronomical clock was built in 1561–1566, but this is a copy, as the original was completely destroyed in 1942. The "new" astronomical clock is the work of Paul Behrens, a Lübeck clockmaker, who planned it as his lifetime achievement from 1960 to 1967. The clock front is a simplified copy of the original. Calendar and planetary discs controlled by a complicated mechanical movement show the day and the month, the position of the sun and the moon, the signs of the zodiac.

Dijon, today a city with a population of about 150.000, was a Roman settlement named Divio, located on the road from Lyon to Paris. Saint Benignus, the city's patron saint, is said to have introduced Christianity to the area before being martyred. The province was home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th centuries, and Dijon was a place of wealth and power. In 1513, Swiss and Imperial armies invaded Burgundy and besieged Dijon. The siege was extremely violent, but after long negotiations, Louis II de la Trémoille managed to persuade the armies to withdraw. During the siege, the population called on the Virgin Mary for help and saw the withdrawal of the invaders as a miracle. For those reasons, in the years following the siege the inhabitants began to venerate Notre-Dame de Bon-Espoir (Our Lady of Good Hope). Before the second half of the 12th century, the site of today's Notre-Dame was occupied by a simple chapel, which was outside the city walls. Beginning around 1220 the erection of the Gothic church of today started. Sunset in Dijon. Note Notre Dame´s clock with its jacquemart. It has four automatons. Two of them, called Jacquemart and Jacqueline, sound the hours by striking a large bell with a hammer. The other two, their "children", Jacquelinet and Jacquelinette, strike the quarter hours, each on a small bell. The Jacquemart was brought from Kortrijk in Belgium, after the looting of the town by the armies of Philip the Bold in 1382. At that time, only the male figure existed. A second automaton, depicting a woman, was added in 1651 to alternate with Jacquemart in sounding the hours. In 1714 the couple got the first kid (a boy) and in 1884 the second kid (a girl) joined the family.

Already in 748, the place was a palace of the Agilolfinger, dukes of Bavaria. Forty years later it became the Carolingian royal palace. King Carloman of Bavaria (aka "Karlmann"), the oldest son of Louis the German founded a collegiate church in Altoetting in 876. This church got destroyed by Hungarian troops in 917. Only the octagon of the baptistery survived the destruction. The collegiate got refounded and the church got rebuilt later. In 1489 there were reports of two healing miracles which started the pilgrimage to Altoetting, that became one of the most important pilgrimage destinations of its time. The Collegiate Church belonged once to a community of secular canons that was founded in about 1228. The collegiate church was built on the site of the earlier monastic church. From 1489 however, the rapidly growing importance of Altötting as a place of a pilgrimage made a bigger church urgently necessary and it was largely rebuilt between 1499 and 1511 in its present form as a late Gothic hall church. The "Tod von Ending" is a 50cm high carved skeleton. It stands on a clock and swings the scythe every second. It was probably created within the 16th century during the time of the plague. Memento Mori!

Jean de Nivelles is a more than 500 years old jacquemart (aka "quarter-jack"), who works high on the tower of the Collegiate Church of Saint Gertrude. During the 2018 FIFA World Cup he obviously supported the Belgian Team (aka "Red Devils"), who finished third in Russia.

Gdańsk is mentioned the Vita of Saint Adalbert of Prague who baptised the inhabitants of "urbs Gyddannyzc" in 997. Later the site was a duchy of Poland. In 1224/25, merchants from Lübeck were invited Significant German influence did not appear until the 14th century, after the takeover of the city by the Teutonic Knights. In 1300, the town had an estimated population of 2,000. Low on funds, the Pomeranian Samborides lent the settlement to Brandenburg, although they planned to give it to Poland. Poland threatened to intervene, and the Brandenburgians left the town. Subsequently, the city was taken by Danish princes in 1301. The Teutonic Knights were hired by Polish nobles to drive out the Danes. In 1308, the town was taken by the Teutonic Knights. Primary sources record a large massacre carried out by the Knights against the population. In 1358, Danzig joined the Hanseatic League. After a series of Polish-Teutonic Wars, the Order had to acknowledge that it would hold Pomerelia as a fief from the Polish Crown. The city thrived as a result of increased exports via the Vistula River trading routes. While under the control of the Teutonic Order German migration increased. A new war broke out in 1409, culminating in the Battle of Grunwald in 1410. The city came under the control of the Kingdom of Poland. Only a year later, with the Peace of Thorn, it returned to the Teutonic Order. In 1440, the city participated in the foundation of the "Prussian Confederation", an organisation opposed to the Teutonic Knights. Upon the request of the organisation King Casimir IV of Poland reincorporated the territory to the Kingdom of Poland in 1454. This led to a war between Poland and the Teutonic Order. Casimir IV of Poland granted the town the Great Privilege. With this, the town was granted full autonomy and protection by the King of Poland. The privilege removed tariffs and taxes on trade within Poland, Lithuania and Ruthenia. Gaining privileged access to Polish markets, the seaport prospered while simultaneously trading with the other Hanseatic cities. Being the largest and one of the most influential cities of Poland, it enjoyed voting rights during the royal election period in Poland. In the 1575 election of a king to the Polish throne, Danzig supported Maximilian II in his struggle against Stephen Báthory. Stephen became monarch but the city shut its gates against him. After the 6 months siege of Danzig in 1577 the city's army was defeated. A compromise was reached: Stephen confirmed the city's special status and its privileges. The city recognised him as ruler of Poland and paid the enormous sum of 200,000 guldens in gold as payoff. During the Reformation, most German-speaking inhabitants adopted Lutheranism. The "Battle of Westerplatte" was the first battle of the German invasion of Poland, marking the start of WW II in Europe. The historic city centre of Gdansk was 90% destroyed at the end of WWII. It was reconstructed by Poles at great expense and today attracts tourists. According to tradition in 1243 Duke Swietopelk had a wooden church built where the Bazyliką Mariacką is now. Construction of a new hall church on a Romanesque predecessor began in 1343. By 1447 the eastern part of the church was finished, and the tower was raised by two floors in the years 1452–1466. From 1485 the work was continued by Hans Brandt and after 1496, the church was finally finished under Heinrich Haetzl In the course of the Reformation most Danzigers adopted Lutheranism. After a short wave of turbulent religious altercations in 1525 and 1526 the authorities favored a smooth transition to Lutheran religious practice. In 1529 the first Lutheran sermon was given here. From 1536 on both Lutheran services and Catholic masses were held. After King Sigismund II Augustus had granted Danzig the religious privilege of celebrating communion with both bread and wine in 1557, the City Council ended Catholic masses in all Danzig churches except St. Mary's, where Catholic masses continued until 1572. The astromomical clock was constructed between 1464–1470 by Hans Düringer, a clockmaker originally from Nuremberg. The story goes that upon completion of his masterpiece, the authorities had Düringer blinded so that he would never be able to produce a beautiful clock to rival that of Gdansk. However, the fact that Düringer went on to create a clock in 1472 in the city of Rostock, makes the story a little dubious. The dials show the time and date, phases of the moon, the position of the Moon and Sun in relation to the zodiac signs, and the calendar of saints. Adam and Eve ring the bell on the hour, and at noon a procession appears that features Adam and Eve alongside the Three Kings, the Apostles, and Death. - The clock is 14 m high.

Gdańsk is mentioned the Vita of Saint Adalbert of Prague who baptised the inhabitants of "urbs Gyddannyzc" in 997. Later the site was a duchy of Poland. In 1224/25, merchants from Lübeck were invited Significant German influence did not appear until the 14th century, after the takeover of the city by the Teutonic Knights. In 1300, the town had an estimated population of 2,000. Low on funds, the Pomeranian Samborides lent the settlement to Brandenburg, although they planned to give it to Poland. Poland threatened to intervene, and the Brandenburgians left the town. Subsequently, the city was taken by Danish princes in 1301. The Teutonic Knights were hired by Polish nobles to drive out the Danes. In 1308, the town was taken by the Teutonic Knights. Primary sources record a large massacre carried out by the Knights against the population. In 1358, Danzig joined the Hanseatic League. After a series of Polish-Teutonic Wars, the Order had to acknowledge that it would hold Pomerelia as a fief from the Polish Crown. The city thrived as a result of increased exports via the Vistula River trading routes. While under the control of the Teutonic Order German migration increased. A new war broke out in 1409, culminating in the Battle of Grunwald in 1410. The city came under the control of the Kingdom of Poland. Only a year later, with the Peace of Thorn, it returned to the Teutonic Order. In 1440, the city participated in the foundation of the "Prussian Confederation", an organisation opposed to the Teutonic Knights. Upon the request of the organisation King Casimir IV of Poland reincorporated the territory to the Kingdom of Poland in 1454. This led to a war between Poland and the Teutonic Order. Casimir IV of Poland granted the town the Great Privilege. With this, the town was granted full autonomy and protection by the King of Poland. The privilege removed tariffs and taxes on trade within Poland, Lithuania and Ruthenia. Gaining privileged access to Polish markets, the seaport prospered while simultaneously trading with the other Hanseatic cities. Being the largest and one of the most influential cities of Poland, it enjoyed voting rights during the royal election period in Poland. In the 1575 election of a king to the Polish throne, Danzig supported Maximilian II in his struggle against Stephen Báthory. Stephen became monarch but the city shut its gates against him. After the 6 months siege of Danzig in 1577 the city's army was defeated. A compromise was reached: Stephen confirmed the city's special status and its privileges. The city recognised him as ruler of Poland and paid the enormous sum of 200,000 guldens in gold as payoff. During the Reformation, most German-speaking inhabitants adopted Lutheranism. The "Battle of Westerplatte" was the first battle of the German invasion of Poland, marking the start of WW II in Europe. The historic city centre of Gdansk was 90% destroyed at the end of WWII. It was reconstructed by Poles at great expense and today attracts tourists. According to tradition in 1243 Duke Swietopelk had a wooden church built where the Bazyliką Mariacką is now. Construction of a new hall church on a Romanesque predecessor began in 1343. By 1447 the eastern part of the church was finished, and the tower was raised by two floors in the years 1452–1466. From 1485 the work was continued by Hans Brandt and after 1496, the church was finally finished under Heinrich Haetzl In the course of the Reformation most Danzigers adopted Lutheranism. After a short wave of turbulent religious altercations in 1525 and 1526 the authorities favored a smooth transition to Lutheran religious practice. In 1529 the first Lutheran sermon was given here. From 1536 on both Lutheran services and Catholic masses were held. After King Sigismund II Augustus had granted Danzig the religious privilege of celebrating communion with both bread and wine in 1557, the City Council ended Catholic masses in all Danzig churches except St. Mary's, where Catholic masses continued until 1572. The astromomical clock was constructed between 1464–1470 by Hans Düringer, a clockmaker originally from Nuremberg. The story goes that upon completion of his masterpiece, the authorities had Düringer blinded so that he would never be able to produce a beautiful clock to rival that of Gdansk. However, the fact that Düringer went on to create a clock in 1472 in the city of Rostock, makes the story a little dubious. The dials show the time and date, phases of the moon, the position of the Moon and Sun in relation to the zodiac signs, and the calendar of saints. The clock is 14 m high and is topped by Adam and Eve, who ring the bell.

Tallinn, the capital city of Estonia, is situated on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea. It is only 80 kilometres south of Helsinki. From the 13th century until the first half of the 20th century Tallinn was known as Reval. The first recorded claim over the place was laid by Denmark after a raid in 1219 led by Valdemar II. In 1227, the Order of the Brothers of the Sword conquered Reval and three years later recruited 200 Westphalian and Lower Saxon merchants from Gotland, who settled below the castle and were granted freedom of customs and land. In 1238 Reval fell back to Denmark, Under renewed Danish rule, the city rapidly grew in size and economic importance. In 1248, the Danish king granted it the Lübische Stadtrecht (town charter). Due to the strategic location, its port became a significant trade hub, especially in the 14–16th centuries when Tallinn grew in importance as the northernmost member city of the Hanseatic League. The king of Denmark sold Reval along with other land possessions in northern Estonia to the Teutonic Knights in 1346. The Püha Vaimu kirik (Church of the Holy Spirit) is mentioned in written sources for the first time in 1319. The church was part of a greater almshouse complex and dedicated to the Holy Ghost. In 1630, the tower received its current appearance, which however is a reconstruction as the tower was ravaged by fire in 2002. The church was the first church in Estonia to hold services in Estonian, and the first extracts of the catechism to be published in Estonian were printed here in 1535. The clock on the outside wall of the Church of the Holy Spirit was created by the local carver Christian Ackermann, who worked in Tallinn from 1675 to 1710. It is the oldest "public clock" in Tallinn.