10 Locations
The Middle Ages feel far away in modern Berlin, but traces of the medieval city survive for those who look. From old churches to festivals, the Middle Ages here come alive at a handful of sites. This overview gathers Berlin locations tied to the era.
The Nikolaiviertel, the city's oldest quarter, recreates the medieval streetscape near the Marienkirche and the ruins of the Franciscan monastery. Museums display objects from the period, and medieval markets and festivals bring costumes, crafts and food to life through the year. Nearby Brandenburg towns add castles and old town centres.
Browse the venues below to explore the Middle Ages across Berlin, from old quarters to medieval markets.
On the RAW grounds in Friedrichshain, a place usually known for clubs and cultural events transforms into a medieval Christmas market. The Historische Weihnacht Friedrichshain celebrates its tenth anniversary this year, featuring torches, open fireplaces, and genuine craftsmanship instead of plastic decorations.
For Easter, Spandau Citadel transforms into a medieval adventure world: knight battles, jugglers, fire shows, and a large historical market make the Easter Knight Festival one of Berlin's most spectacular Easter programs.
At the Zehlendorf Open-Air Museum, Berlin dives 800 years into the past this Easter. From Good Friday to Easter Monday, Museumsdorf Düppel transforms into a lively medieval farming village, welcoming families with interactive programs, crafts, and a spring atmosphere.
On a site the size of ten football fields, the Düppel Museum Village showcases a village as it would have looked between 1170 and 1220 in the Mark Brandenburg region. Between the forge, bronze casting, and herb gardens, you'll find Skudde sheep, oxen, and the re-bred Düppel pasture pig. Children aged five and up can try archery and bake flatbread over an open fire.
The New Year's Eve Party at Spandau Citadel is an open air highlight for the whole family at one of Europe's best well-kept renaissance strongholds.
Slawenburg Raddusch (Slavic castle Raddusch) is a ring-shaped castle complex from the early Middle Ages and a popular destination amidst green nature in the Spreewald forest.
The Spandau Citadel is a 16th-century Renaissance fortress, at the center of which stands the Juliusturm (Julius Tower), Berlin's oldest secular building. Ceremonies are held in the Prince's Room of the Commander's House or in the Gothic Hall. As a wedding venue in Berlin, it offers ceremonies, a banquet hall, and open space behind a moat.
One of the most significant brick ruins in Northern Germany is not located in a city, but in the middle of the Schorfheide-Chorin Biosphere Reserve, just over an hour from Berlin. The former Cistercian monastery in the village of Chorin combines medieval architecture with one of Brandenburg's most beautiful music festivals.
One of Brandenburg's best-preserved medieval castles is enthroned in the Hoher Fläming Nature Park southwest of Berlin: Rabenstein Castle in the district of the same name, Rabenstein/Fläming, combines medieval architecture, lively castle tours, and an active falconry to create an excursion destination where history truly comes alive.
Just a few steps from Klosterstraße subway station stand the walls of a 13th-century monastery church. The ruin of the Franciscan Monastery Church is one of Berlin's oldest buildings and today serves as an open-air exhibition space for contemporary art, with free admission.