The Open Monument Day has been coordinated nationwide by the German Foundation for Monument Protection since 1993. The day of action takes place every year on the second Sunday in September and attracts several million visitors each year.
Interested guests are invited to discover the citadel through the eyes of the Italian architect Alessandro Paqualini and his contemporaries from 11 am to 6 pm, as the layout of the citadel and the city represented a radical change in the 16th century. Pasqualini built the new residential palace in a modern fortress, a “palazzo in fortezza”. It served as a princely residence, was later converted into barracks and used for military purposes until 1944. Areas of the fortress were used as air raid shelters during the Second World War. A guided tour of the Ravelin Leyebeck, which is rarely open to the public, takes you back to this time.
The aim of the day of action is to bring the importance of architectural heritage to life. The day of action is the German contribution to the European Heritage Days taking place throughout Europe. Many otherwise inaccessible monuments are open on Open Monument Day. Every year, around 7,500 monuments in over 2,700 municipalities open their doors on this day. Guided tours are offered in many places. The Open Monument Day is a protected trademark of the German Foundation for Monument Protection.
