Experiencing Germany

For a long time, the name of the former prison town of Bautzen conjured up images of injustice and political persecution. This overshadowed not only the town's 1000-year history, but also the fact that Bautzen plays a very different and important role as the cultural centre of the Sorbs in Upper Lusatia.

A town and its reputation

Bautzen: in GDR times, the name stood for the notorious prison of the Stasi, the secret police, in which mainly political prisoners were held between 1956 and 1989. Bautzen II, which was unofficially placed under the management of the Ministry of State Security, was populated chiefly by opponents of the regime like Erich Loest, Walter Janka and Rudolf Bahro.

Today, the former Stasi prison is a memorial to the victims of political tyranny. An exhibition documents the suffering of the victims in Bautzen's two prisons.

Bautzen I, the prison on the northern outskirts of the town, which has been dubbed the "yellow misery" because of its yellow brickwork, was also a place of political persecution. Firstly, between 1933 and 1945, the Nazis kept political opponents locked up here, including Ernst Thälmann, the leader of the German Communist Party. For five years after 1945, the Soviet occupiers used the building as a special camp for former Nazis and for opponents of the Stalinist system. Innumerable people were subject to arbitrary arrest and were held here under inhumane conditions; at least 2,700 prisoners died here and were disposed of on "Rabbit Hill". This is now the site of a memorial chapel for the victims.

A town and its symbol

It will probably be quite some time before Bautzen can shake off this negative reputation. But the 42,600 inhabitants took in 2002 advantage of the celebrations marking the 1000th anniversary of the founding of the town to draw attention to its attractions.

The expensively restored historic centre of "civitas Budusin" is located on a granite plateau above the river Spree. Whilst this situation offered advantages in the Middle Ages when it came to fending off attacks from outside, it did pose a serious problem, because even during enemy sieges, the water had to be brought up from the river into the town. For this reason, a wooden tower with a pumping station was built as early as the end of the 15th century, and around 60 years later Wenzel Röhrscheidt replaced it with a stone structure integrated into the town's defences. Today, the tower, known as "Alte Wasserkunst", is the town's symbol.

A town with two languages

Alongside Cottbus, Bautzen is the cultural and political centre of the 60,000 or so Sorbs living in Lusatia. The Sorbs are a west Slavic ethnic group which has lived in the region since the 6th century. In Budyšin – the town's name in the Sorb language – the survival of the culture of the smallest Slav ethnic group is witnessed by more than the bilingual traffic signs.

In three schools in Bautzen, lessons are taught in Sorb, and numerous Sorb institutions are based here. In addition to the Sorb Institute and the Sorb Museum, the professional displays by the Sorb National Ensemble save the rich cultural traditions – the folk dances and songs, the costumes and other customs – from being forgotten. Bautzen's German-Sorb Folk Theatre is also Germany's only bilingual theatre.

Every year, the many Easter customs of the Sorbs attract thousands of visitors. The richly decorated Easter eggs are particularly popular, and are sold at special markets, and another major attraction is the traditional Easter ride – a horseback procession in which songs are sung about Christ's resurrection.

Bautzen is trying to throw off the old labels of injustice and political persecution with openness and tolerance – values which have a long tradition here: St. Peter's Cathedral has been used jointly by Catholic and Lutheran Christians since 1524.