Freiburg im Breisgau is a city of about 236,000 in southwestern Germany. Known simply as Freiburg, the city was founded in 1120 as a free market town. Its location on the Rhine plain and its proximity to established trade routes ensured its success as a trade centre.
The University of Freiburg was founded in 1457 and is one of the city’s largest employers. It’s worth noting that the university was the first in Germany to accept female students, in 1900. We visited Freiburg on a sometimes drizzly day in August 2019.
Between the mountains and the river. Freiburg sits on the Dreisam River, between the foothills of the Black Forest and the Rhine River. A funicular railway provides easy transport to the 456-metre Schlossberg hill, from where this photo was taken. The 116-metre tower of Freiburg Minster rises from the centre of the Altstadt (Old Town.)
New-Old Town. Many buildings in Freiburg’s market square were destroyed during an Allied bombing raid in 1944. New buildings were erected after the war to resemble the old buildings that were lost. Almost 2800 people were killed in the raid, which was dubbed “Operation Tigerfish” by the Allies.
Freiburg Minster. The Gothic cathedral was begun in 1200 and completed in 1320. The minster, which sits in the middle of Freiburg’s market square, was not heavily damaged in the 1944 bombing raid on the city. Visitors can tour the minster’s interior.
Schwabentor. Built around 1250, the Schwabentor (Swabian Gate) is one of only two remaining city gates. The other gate, the Martinstor, is the older of the two.
Water courses. In addition to the Gewerbekanal (pictured here) that flows through the Old Town, Freiburg is famous for its “Bächle”, small, shallow channels of clean water. The Bächle were originally constructed to provide fresh water to the town (it was forbidden to discharge refuse into them). Today they help cool the city, and to provide photo ops for tourists.
The Real Thing. Since we were in the Black Forest region, a wedge of Black Forest cake was high on my list. Genuine German Black Forest cake is a delectably light layered cake, bearing little similarity to the version generally offered in North America. I enjoyed my cake at the Gmeiner Pastry Shop.
Travel note: Freiburg has direct railway connections to Frankfurt and Basel. The Basel airport, 70 kilometres south of Freiburg, is located in France near the borders of both Germany and Switzerland. The local public transportation service, VAG Freiburg, operates an extensive network of trams in the city.