Altes Rathaus (old town hall)

The Old Town Hall stands right next to the New Town Hall - directly on the square of the same name. The two buildings are connected by a footbridge and are both used as the administrative headquarters of the city of Freiburg.

Freiburg was one of Baden's flourishing towns in the High Middle Ages, and so the administrative burden increased over time. The city was forced to buy more buildings or build new ones, and so the Old Town Hall was completed in 1559.

Typical Renaissance stylistic elements such as an attic supported by pilasters adorned the magnificent building, as did numerous colorful paintings by regional artists. Unfortunately, the Old Town Hall burned down during the bombing raid on November 27, 1944. Only the outer walls withstood the fire.

In the course of reconstruction, three new wings were added to the building and the façades were painted a uniform sandstone red. The centuries-old tradition of the painted town hall façade was continued in the gable, where the double-headed eagle of the Holy Roman Empire is emblazoned above the clock.

Today, the first floor of the Old Town Hall houses the Tourist Information Office. The entrance hall, steeped in history, welcomes you into an open space and leads you directly to us via exposed, historic cobblestones from the Middle Ages. Insider info: The New Town Hall is older than the Old Town Hall, and the oldest town hall in the city is called the Gerichtslaube. We reveal how this curious name came about in our text about the New Town Hall.

Author: Nicole Bee