Online-Card - Osnabrück

Osnabrück is surrounded by beautiful countryside and lies between the mountain ranges of the Teutoburg forest and the Wiehengebirge hills.  The city has an outstanding reputation for its University, industries and for being a member of the Hanseatic league.  It is the centre of a region where over 700,000 people live.  Osnabrück’s existence owes itself to a decision that was made by Charlemagne more than 1200 years ago when he founded a mission at the intersection of two major trade routes in 780.  Today there is still an intersection here between the routes travelling from Scandinavia to Western Europe and from the Netherlands to Eastern Europe.

History was written in Osnabrück.  “Pax Optima rerum – peace is the highest virtue”: this was the mindset in 1684 at the end of the Thirty Year’s War and it was the central message of the Peace of Westphalia, which was negotiated in Osnabrück and Münster, and was announced from the steps of the town hall in Osnabrück.

The Hall of Peace can be found in the historical town hall, in the old quarter of Osnabrück, surrounded by narrow streets that date back to the middle ages.  In the Hall of Peace there is a display of portraits which show the rulers and envoys who were involved with the negotiations that led to the Peace of Westphalia.  Amongst these portraits are the French “Sun King” Louis XIV, the German Emperor Ferdinand III, and Queen Christina of Sweden.  In 1998 twenty European Monarchs and Head of States met in the Hall of Peace to celebrate the 350 year anniversary of the Peace Agreement.  This gathering is regarded as the biggest event on record in the history of the federal republic of Germany.

The Imperial Cup and the oldest Marksman’s chain in Osnabrück, which were both made in the thirteenth century, are in the Treasury Chamber in the town hall.  In addition a copy of the Westphalian Peace Treaty, the “Osnabrück Peace Instrument” is also there.

The marketplace in Osnabrück, which can be found in front of the town hall, is part of the most beautiful collection of medieval architecture.  It is bordered on one side by St. Mary’s Church, which was built in 1300, and on the other side by the town houses.

The late romantic Cathedral can be found not far from the marketplace.  In 2008 the diocese museum was reconstructed and modernised.  Part of the museum is the Cathedral Treasury Chamber and here there are many things to admire including liturgical articles, relics, sculptures, paintings, religious textiles, pieces of furniture, and jewellery made of gold, silver, ivory and crystal rocks.  Amongst these treasures are some examples of the finest artistic standard, including the chapter cross – a distinctive piece of goldwork from the 11^th century.  There is also an ivory comb which dates back to the 10^th century and “Charlemagne’s chess game” which is made out of lead crystal.  The numerous sculptures made at the most significant sculptor’s work shop in Osnabrück in the middle ages are of particular emphasis – the “master craftsman of Osnabrück” and the painting of the “master of Soest from 1473” with the portrayal of the holy trinity.  The highlight of the collection of textiles is Bishop Berno II’s cassock which is made from Byzantine silk.

The picturesque alleyways lead the way from the town hall to the Heger-Tor quarter and then further on to the oldest museum in Osnabrück, the Museum of Cultural History.  It presents a permanent exhibition about the history of the city, which is well worth seeing, and houses a small room with over 200 prints of Albrecht Dürer’s work.

Nearby is the Felix Nussbaum Museum, which was opened in 1998.  The museum is extremely unusual in architecture and was designed by the famous American architect Daniel Libeskind.  Over 180 of Felix Nussbaum’s canvases are on display.  The Jewish painter from Osnabrück portrayed his fear for the Jews and the horrors of National Socialism in his paintings.  He was murdered in Auschwitz in 1944 and the collection of his work in the Felix Nussbaum Museum is the largest in the world.

The famous writer Erich Maria Remarque, who became well known worldwide after his novel “All is quiet on the Western Front”, and who was one of the most widely read authors in the 20^th century, also came from Osnabrück.  The Erich Maria Remarque Peace Centre is situated on the marketplace and presents an exhibition of his life and works.  Here, amongst other things, some extracts from the novel “All is quiet on the Western Front” are displayed.  This archive of materials concerning his biography and works is the largest collection in the world.

Not far from the Erich Maria Remarque Peace Centre is one of the most atmospherically interesting art galleries in Northern Germany; the Art Gallery Dominican Church.  The nave, which was built around the year 1300, is used to present modern art exhibitions of national importance.  Every May artists from all over the world meet here for the European Media Art Festival.

The Buck’s Tower, which is close to the Art Gallery Dominican Church, was originally used as a watchtower and was built in the 13^th century as part of the city walls.  The “Johanniskasten”, a small box in which Count Johann von Hoya sat as a prisoner of war from 1441 until 1447, is displayed inside as a reminder that the tower was used as a prison.  During the witch-hunts of the 16^th and 17^th centuries the Buck’s Tower was used as a torture chamber.  For this reason the ideological motivations and the witch-hunting process are illustrated there.

The Baroque Palace was built in the 17^th century and was formerly the residence of the Prince-Bishop.  Today it is home to the University and its handsome gardens are very inviting and worth a visit.

Osnabrück’s zoo, which houses 2500 animals, along with the Schölerberg Planetarium, and Museum for Nature and Environment can all be found south of Osnabrück in the outskirts of Schölerberg.  The architectural structure of the museum is modelled on the spiral form of an ammonite.  The museum offers information about the eco-system of the Osnabrück region and an introduction to the history of the earth in the Osnabrück highland from the past 300 million years; its oldest and biggest testimony is a Sigillaria root.  In the central area of the building there is a genuine example of peat and in addition there is a climatised display case with a living high moor on show, which is unique in a museum.  Different landscape types from the region are on show and visitors are invited to use them as a real hands on experience.  In 2001 the museum opened a new permanent exhibition called “under.World” in its “ground” section.  This exhibition focuses on learning through experiences and is unique in Germany.  In 2009 a new underground zoo will be opened.

The Museum of Industrial Culture shows the history of the industrialisation of Osnabrück and can be found in Piesberg, in the northern part of the city.  Here there is a permanent exhibition which shows the following main topics “coal mining”, “steam engines”, “early fabrics” and “early industrialisation”.  Guests of the museum can see two moving steam engines.  Changing exhibitions deepen the insight into aspects of regional industrial history.  Since 2000 visitors to the museum have been able to travel into a former mine in a glass lift.