Aachen City Information

Aachen is one of the most wonderful cities of Germany, which prides itself for having a glorious history. In the Middle Ages, Aachen was an imperial city, the home of kings and emperors and site of many coronations and Imperial Diets. It is said that Emperor Charlemagne chose Aachen as his favorite residence and site of the Frankish Court because of the hot springs . Parts of Charlemagne's original palace have survived in the cathedral and the Town Hall, which are now main tourist attractions.

Elisa Fountain is a popular tourist spot in Aachen. You can really smell the Aachen hermal water here. It flows into two marble basins at the back of the rotunda. The water smells a little bit of bad eggs due to its high sulphur content. You can try it too. It's very good for the digestion. The Elisenbrunnen was named after crown princess Elisabeth, the wife of King Friedrich Wilhelm IV. It was she who made taking the waters fashionable and influenced the aristocracy and the famous to come to Aachen. Nowadays, almost all of Aachen's spa facilities are situated in Burtscheid - a suburb of Aachen. It's a place to convalesce from all rheumatic illnesses and many other disorders.

Yet another impressive and valuable fountain in Aachen is the Fountain of Charlemagne. It carries the statue of the emperor with his crown, orb and scepter and stands in the middle of the market place. The bronze bowl of the fountain was made in Aachen at the same time. Charlemagne is wearing a knight's amour. What you see, however, is only a replica of the original statue which is now preserved in the Coronation hall of the Town Hall.

Couven Museum got built in 1786 by the Aachen architect Jacob Couven for the pharmacy Andreas Monheim. The style of the house is very typical for the so-called "Couven Style". In the 18th century Couven influenced the building and furnishing style in the Aachen region. The museum shows examples of 18th century interior decoration. The museum houses vast collection of antiques and other impressive artistic works, which will allure you to gape your mouth with surprise.

The "Marktplatz" (market square) is the highest point of medieval Aachen. Here, around 800 Charlemagne built "Aula Regia", a large royal hall in stone. This hall fell into ruins and in the 14th century, the citizens of Aachen built a Gothic Town Hall on the foundations of the dilapidated Carolingian palace. They copied the Draper's halls of Flanders. It had to be a building with two floors, because they had committed themselves to construct a King's hall where banquets could be held after the coronations.