Kathedrale Sankt Sebastian

Kathedrale Sankt Sebastian stands in Magdeburg as a Roman Catholic cathedral and the seat of the Diocese of Magdeburg. Its towers rise about 44 metres, while the building forms part of the Romanesque Road.

Archbishop Gero laid the foundation stone around 1015, and the church later absorbed Romanesque, Gothic, and late Gothic forms. Fires in 1188 and 1207 preceded a Gothic rebuilding during the first half of the 14th century. The nave became a late Gothic hall church in the early 15th century, retaining the earlier Romanesque ground plan. Destruction during the storming of Magdeburg in 1631 left the church in ruins until the choir was rebuilt in 1663. Catholic worship returned between 1845 and 1854, and the first Catholic Mass since the Reformation took place in 1878.

The cathedral became the seat of the newly established Diocese of Magdeburg in 1994, following extensive restoration and construction. A redesigned interior, covered cloister, new sacristy, and chapter cemetery followed in 2005. A tooth relic of Saint Sebastian rests within the people’s altar, while the west portal contains a room for remembering deceased children. Wheelchair access also forms part of the cathedral’s facilities.