You are now at Bremen’s “cozy space”, the picturesque “Marktplatz” (farmers’ market), which is surrounded by the dome, the township, the “Schütting” or merchantship of 1537/38, the beautiful gable houses and the “Rathaus” with the Roland statue in front of it.Please approach Bremen’s landmark “Roland statue” which was ordered in 1404 by merchants as a symbol of freedom and merchant rights. Previously, the Bishop of Verden ruled Bremen for many years but the local traders finally emancipated themselves with an advanced reform. Now you know why the curly-headed boy’s smiling face is looking toward the dome.Although many German cities have a “Roland statue”, the Roland of Bremen is located in one of the most beautiful cities in the world. In 2004 UNESCO appointed “Roland Statue” along with the Rathaus World Cultural Heritage. . The stone statue measures 5.5 m – with the base up to the gothic style canopy, an even 10.21 m. The distance between Roland’s pointed knees is the exact distance of a “Bremer Elle” (an old measuring tool of approximately 57 cm), and he is dressed according to the 14th century fashion: chain mail, a leather vest, a chain belt, a shiny sword and the leg wear customarily worn by knights back in this era. The shield in his right hand is adorned with the dual-headed “kaiserlichem Reichsadler” (imperial eagle) and historic lettering, which means: “I announce the freedom given to all of you, which was granted by Karl (the Great) and many other Counts of this city. My advice: “Thank God for it.”People who would like to return to Bremen should touch Roland’s pointed knees. Unfortunately, you would need really long arms to reach Roland’s popular metal knees through the elaborately decorated fence. Due to vandalism and graffiti, it became necessary to create a distance between the freedom statue and the citizens of Bremen.The Bremen natives love to tell the story that the city of Bremen will remain independent and free as long as Roland remains in his current position and watches over the city.
Photo Bremen-roland-marktplatz-häuser by Roland.h.bueb is licensed under CC BY 3.0