Cölln
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- This article is about Cölln on an island of the Spree. Cölln is also an old spelling for Köln on the Rhine, for this city see Cologne.
Originally Cölln was the sister town of old Berlin located on the southern Spree Island in Germany's Mark Brandenburg of the 13th century. Today this twin city zone is located in the center of modern Berlin in the vicinity of the Museum Island, then called Fisher's Island or Spree Island.
Cölln is first mentioned in writing in 1237, Berlin in 1244. The two towns were separated only by the river Spree, hence there was a close connection right from the start. Since the trade road from Magdeburg to the East crosses the twin town the inland water-transportation routes also passed through the town, Cölln/Berlin quickly came to prosperity.
A common policy of Berlin and Cölln led 1308 to a first alliance with other towns in the Mark (Brandenburg an der Havel, Frankfurt (Oder) and Salzwedel) to defend their rights against the sovereign. The Elector Frederick II ended the autonomy of Cölln/Berlin and declared the twin town to his residence in 1451. In 1709 the twin cities Cölln and old Berlin merged to form a single city which was the base of today's Berlin. As old Berlin was twice as big as Cölln at that time, the merged city was named Berlin. The name survives in the Berlin suburb of Neukölln (New Cölln), which was originally a southern extension of Cölln, as well as in the park "Köllnischer Park" and the street "Am Köllnischen Park", both located in the area of the ancient town. An outdoor enclosure, situated directly in the park, is home of three brown bears (the bear is the heraldic animal of the City of Berlin), representing the cradle of the city.
