Petzow parish
Glindow parish
Bliesendorf parish
Plötzin and Plessow - Neuplötzin parishes
Phöben parish
Kemnitz parish
Töplitz
Derwitz/Krielow
Golm
General map
For more information about the "island paradise" visit the website:
www.
inselparadies-
petzow.de
Werder upon Havel - Petzow parish
Petzow, located on the land bridge between the Schwielowsee and Glindower See lakes, was the southernmost place covered by the "Improvement plan for the surroundings of Potsdam" issued by Peter Joseph Lenné in 1833.
Petzow village was first mentioned in a document of 1419, became an administrative village in 1542 and is today a parish of the city of Werder upon Havel. Petzow was incorporated in the city of Werder on 01/01/1929.
The family properties were considerably marked by the works of Carl Friedrich August Kaehne (from 1814). The achievements of this generation were, among others, the building of the manor house - by using plans of the master builder Schinkel (1825) - and the park (about 1838). The new Petzow village church was opened officially by Frederick William IV in 1842.The Petzow village church, built in 1842 according to plans by Schinkel, is today the cultural centre of Petzow. Here exhibitions, concerts, theatre plays and also church services take place frequently, organised by cultural associations, artists and the church.
In addition, church as well as civil marriage ceremonies and christenings are held here. Because of its idyllic location Petzow is a tourism centre. In this connection our camping sites should be mentioned, the so-called island paradise, various holiday cottages, the hotel "Schloss Petzow", a selection of restaurants and guest houses – provide the best prerequisites for you to find tranquillity and relaxation.
Laundry house Petzow in the Petzow palace park
| Opening hours: | |
| From 01.04 through 15.10. | Sat/Sun 1 - 4 p.m. |
| Groups by appointment | |
| Contact: Mr. Friedrich | |
| Phone: 03327 - 66 83 79 | |
| Mobile: 0177 - 3 05 44 36 | |
| Petzow church/look-out tower Bliesendorfer Straße 14542 Werder / OT Petzow |
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| Opening hours: | |
| March through October: Fri 1 p.m. - 6 p.m. Sat/Sun 11 a.m. - 6 p.m. November through February: Sat/Sun 1 p.m. - 5 p.m. Groups by appointment |
TOPWerder upon Havel - Glindow parish
Glindow was first mentioned in writing in 1351. At that time the Glindowers in particular lived from the fishery in the Glindower See lake. The first residential buildings were built around that parish. It was only in the years between 1850 and 1890 that Glindow began to flourish.The monks living in the Lehnin monastery were occupied with the baking of bricks. At the time that Theodor Fontane visited the village of Glindow, he could see smoke stacks from more than 30 brickworks.
The Glindow community is located at the west bank of the Glindower See lake. Glindow has excellent conditions for recreation and tourism. There is, for example, the camping site at the Glindower See lake, the so-called Glindow Alps and the historic brickwork
Brickwork museum (Märkisches Ziegeleimuseum) Glindow
This museum's exhibits depict the ways in which the clay has been mined and processed here since 1462. On the grounds of the adjacent brickwork two protected Hoffmann ring ovens from the year 1868 are on display. Guided walks include watching the production of historic building materials. The owner of the brickwork had the brickwork tower built about 1890 which is now also a protected historic monument. From that tower you gain a wide lookout into the Brandenburg Mark, across the Glindower See lake and to the nature reserve of the "Glindow Alps".
Frequent exhibitions by various artists are part of the museum.You have the opportunity to take a few circuits in the "Alpenexpress". The "Glindow Alps" begin directly at the museum with their remarkable nature instruction path. The museum is accessible by all means of transport, also by ship during the summer months.
Support Society for the Glindow Historic Brickwork e. V.
Alpenstraße 47,
14542 Glindow
Phone/fax: +49- (0) 33 27 - 66 93 95
Opening hours:
March through October Wed-Sun 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. and by appointment
Nature instruction path "Glindow Alps"
The teaching path on the right of the Alpenstraße street in front of the brickwork tower. After passing small gardens you reach the first remarkable spot, characterised by its sandy soil, dry grass, moss and lichens. You are now standing at the highest point of the Glindow Alps. You can see all the small gardens along the banks of the Glindower See lake, the "Jugendhöhe" restaurant in Werder, the radio tower in Phöben, but you can also observe beetles, lizards, butterflies and other animals here. Bushes, ferns and trees grow densely along the banks of the lake.
Glindow local history museum – the cook’s house
The "Büdner house" was built by the Dürre family in 1769. Today it is a protected monument.
A very special attraction is the so-called "soot-blackened kitchen" where the meals were once cooked on an open fire and which has been preserved in its original condition. Many of the exhibits from the 19th century, such as furnishings, dishes and other kitchen artefacts, pictures etc. have been provided by citizens of Glindow and other neighbour villages.
Art courtyard (Kunsthof) Glindow
Dorfstr. 40
14542 Glindow
Phone: +49 - (0) 33 27 - 7 00 06
Fax: +49 - (0) 33 27 - 73 01 01
Internet: www.kunsthof-glindow.de
e-mail: kunsthof-glindow@web.de
Silk painting workshop and gallery
Jahnufer 7
14542 Glindow
Phone: +49 - (0) 33 27 - 4 93 60
Business hours: by appointment
Glindow local history museum
Contact: Mrs. Ingrid Baitz
Phone: +49 - (0) 33 27 - 4 01 42
Opening hours: Sat/Sun 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. and by appointment
TOPGeneral map
Werder upon Havel – Bliesendorf parish
The first documented mention of Bliesendorf was in 1296 when the community still bore the name "Blisendorp". About one hundred years later the name changed to "Blisendorp", then to "Blysendorp" (until 1580), and finally to Bliesendorf.
Around 1727 the Bliesendorf church was built along the border of the village green. It was supplemented by the erection of a baked brick tower around 1860. The church was restored in 1996/97. In addition to the religious services, concerts are performed there in the summer months and Advent season.
Not only the church but the entire parish participated in a beautification programme from 1996 to 1998. The old school building (built 1905) has also regained its old glamour and is the meeting point of local groups and clubs.Bliesendorf covers an area of about 1,300 hectares and has some 380 inhabitants. The village is surrounded by forests and some fruit growing and arable areas. The vast forests are crowded by mushroom gatherers every year. The tiny and remote parish of Resau lies in the direction of Busendorf. It was once a secondary residence of the landlord. Today four families are living there. The handful of houses are administratively part of the Bliesendorf parish.
General map
On the way there one has to go past "The Three Stout Men of Bliesendorf" –
three great boulders.
Until 1998 Bliesendorf was an independent commune which was administered by the Werder authorities. The local council and also the citizens of Bliesendorf then elected to become part of the city of Werder upon Havel from 31 December 1998.
TOPWerder upon Havel - Plötzin and Plessow - Neuplötzin parishes
The Plötzin parish and its sectors of Neuplötzin and Plessow can look back on a history of more than eight hundred years since they were first mentioned in a document of 1179.General map
1187 the village had the name "Reinholdesdorp" and the margrave Otto II transferred it to the Brandenburg chapter together with all the rights and the church patronage; in 1726 the Brandenburg chapter sold it to the minister von Görne.
In 1817 it devolved to the bailiff Bennecken of Aken. From him it passed to the widow of the preacher Tiebe of Gollwitz in 1831 who finally sold it to the von Rochows family in 1872.
The Cistercians of Lehnin are credited with the development of fruit growing as an addition to the usual agriculture.
Nowadays the village is surrounded by large fruit plantations which display a picturesque white during the blossom season. During the harvest season fruit growers sell the sun-ripened fruits, and you are also invited to pick them for yourself.
The village church, a square fieldstone building of the 18th century, which probably was built on the foundations of another structure from the 13th century, is in the middle of the village green and surrounded by a small cemetery. The reflection of its western tower is seen in the village pond. The church, village ponds and the old farmhouses provide a bit of village romance and let one imagine how life must have been during the "good old times".In the Plessow parish there is a neo-Gothic church from the year 1866. Heraldic figures, brasses, gravestones and the interior of the church contain memories of the family landowner von Rochow. You can reach Plötzin via the B1 national road, but also along signposted bicycle paths.
TOPWerder upon Havel - Phöben parish
There is evidence that this region was settled as long as 4,000 years ago. About the year 700 Slavs arrived in the uninhabited Havel river area. They had named themselves "Hevellers" after their original homeland, which was the Baltic Sea coast. This is also the origin of the name of the river "Havel".
The Hevellers founded the first village around the Räuberberg castle about the year 800. At that time the Räuberberg was surrounded by water and swampland, so it was not possible to attack the castle with the weapons then in existence. It was Heinrich I who was able to conquer and burn down the castle in his first winter war in 929.
Phöben was first mentioned in 1305 as Phöben Ford (ford over the border ditch). The first documentary record was in 1313 – when Phöben was already a village with preacher and church.
Phöben parish stretches along the left-hand Havel bank in the north-west of Werder. On the opposite bank is the Töplitz village. The village is protected from hard weather by the northern slope of the Haakberg hill, which belongs to the Phöben hills, and by the Wachtelberg hill. In the near environs the Haakberg and the Wachtelberg are the highest hills at 87 and 84 metres respectively.
The Fährstraße street and the individual buildings surrounding the church belong to the oldest members of the village. The church is a rectangular plastered building with apse and a square tower. It was built in 1758 and modified in the 19th century.A golf course with 27 holes was built in the region of Kemnitz and Phöben from 1994 to 1996. The planning for polo and riding facilities began in 1994. 1998/99 the polo pitches were laid out, the first games took place in 2000. Since August of 2000 a stables for 130 horses and a riding hall of 30 x 90 metres have been in operation.
On the grounds of the former agricultural co-operative near Schmergow a riding yard has been established.
There are bicycle paths signposted across the village. The village also has a natural swimming spot off the Seestraße street which is of course also very popular among guests.
TOPGeneral map
Werder upon Havel - Kemnitz parish
Kemnitz probably was founded by Slavs. At least the name of the village, which in Slavic language means "Stony field" or "Stony soil", lends credence to this view.
The first written reference of Kemnitz occurs in the "land book" of the Emperor Carl IV in 1357. The village was registered therein as "Kemnitz". The village was owned by Wichard von Rochow of Golzow. He had sold off the upper court and the vehicle services. Later the von Rochow family must have bought back these rights and services, since Hans von Rochow pledged the whole village with all the taxes and dues to Hans Retzow. 1530 Joachim von Rochow transferred the village and its jurisdiction to his wife Barbara as an agreement reserving to the outgoing farmer special rights. 1598 Thomas von Görne bought the village from the von Rochow family, who purchased it back again, however, in 1608.
In the period following the Thirty Years‘ War the ownership of the manor changed hands several times, until finally in 1735 it was purchased by the von Brietzke family. This family remained as the owner of the estate until 1945.
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The old Kemnitz village church is located only a few steps away from the estate. The church has a short, square, half-timbered tower and a pure and simple interior. The inventory consists of a pulpit with the heraldic figure of the Brietzke family, a U-shaped gallery and some epitaphs from 1813 and 1871.The modern Kemnitz invites all golfers, both accomplished and aspiring, to make use of its 27-hole facility which was constructed from 1994 to 1996. In the close neighbourhood you can find accommodations in any of the many holiday flats, private rooms and boarding houses and experience excellent cuisine in an attractive environment.
TOPGeneral map
Töplitz
Only a few kilometres west of the State capital Potsdam, behind the Wublitz river, lies Töplitz island. Embedded in a picturesque river landscape with many lakes, all those features which are typical for the whole Havelland landscape can be seen here in one place: vast woods, flat moors, hedgerows and grassland as well as reeded banks covering hidden swimming places. The leafless ridges with only dry grass enable the observer to look far out across the Havelland - to Berlin and to Ketzin and even further distant. Töplitz may be considered as a kind of landscape garden - with feeding horses and cattle on vast grasslands, cultivated fields and seemingly endless fruit plantations. There is dense brushwood along the paths, but also natural forests along the lake shores. Those who explore the countryside from the well sign-posted cycling paths will also arrive at the four island villages. Göttin is located in the most north-western part of Töplitz, consisting of only 14 houses. Here the people are primarily occupied with agriculture and fishing. From the village green you have a unique view of the Göttiner See lake. If you visit Göttin during the autumn or winter months you will experience a very special spectacle: Thousands of water birds use the lake and the adjacent fields as their place to stay in winter or to rest on their flight to warmer regions.After only a few minutes of cycling on the Göttiner Damm road you will arrive in Neu Töplitz. This village is marked by the large rectangle yards which quite suddenly appear in the landscape. Neu Töplitz is a village which was developed by Swiss colonists, who settled on Töplitz island and the neighbouring villages of Nattwerder and Golm 300 years ago. Almost without any transition one arrives in the main point on the island today, Alt Töplitz. In Alt Töplitz the activities of the Swiss colonists can be clearly seen, too. The yards were built on a sand dune south-west of the Havel river, right on the borderline between the original wilderness and the village of today. Many of these buildings have suffered the ravages of time, but they are being restored little by little. Nonetheless, the village formerly marked by extensive agriculture has changed its appearance greatly.
Numerous restaurants, hotels and vacation cottages strive to make a pleasant stay here for all guests. There are special seasonal arrangements, as for example the Butcher's Fair and summer festivals. But you can also enjoy riding and bowling, go on coach drives or hire bicycles and rowing boats.
The tourist attractions also include a ride on a passenger ship going from Töplitz to Berlin, or by ferryboat to Werder, and the opportunity to join guided walking tours such as "Along the paths of famous painters" and "Swiss settlements".
Whoever enjoys a good meal, likes to exercise in fresh air and all those who want to experience events of true regional culture – they should always start their journey on Töplitz island.
The flat and level environment of Töplitz is perfectly suited to bicycle tours along the river Havel: via Wublitz, Golm, Nattwerder and Geltow to Werder upon Havel - this is one of the most beautiful cycling paths.
TOPGeneral map
Derwitz/Krielow
Derwitz was first mentioned in a document in 1348. Nobody knows for sure where the name of the village comes from.
1371 Derwitz was sold by Albrecht von Lindow and his mother, Domina Ketzin von Lindow, to the Lehnin monastery. From 1371 to 1859 the village was administered from Lehnin.
The Derwitz church is an old fortified church. Its oldest part is the eastern gable which goes back to the times of the Lehnin monks. Initially the old medieval fieldstone building with its beautiful constructed blind gable (about 1500) had no tower. The tower floors were only built in the 19th century.1542 - during the reformation period – the Elector seized all the monastic estates.
Along the mail and trade route from Brandenburg to Potsdam (today it is the B1 national highway) there was once a horse changing station, which later became the "Flying Steed" restaurant.
In 1846 the railway from Potsdam to Magdeburg was inaugurated. All the inhabitants of the Derwitz and Krielow villages met on the Spitzberg hill to watch the first train go huffing and puffing by. The railway still runs today through the Derwitz and Krielow villages.
In 1891 Otto Lilienthal achieved the record distance of 30 metres in his attempt at gliding flight from the 64 metre high Spitzberg hill. The Lilienthal monument can be seen here today. From the vantage point of the monument you will have a great panoramic view along to the Krielower Luch, which is an almost untouched nature landscape where great bustards, among others, also live.
In both villages at the turn of the century, but also for many years thereafter, the festivals had very special traditional highlights as for example the "cock riding" and the "wether bowling". When "cock riding" the village’s boys galloped past a suspended object with the challenge to touch it with their hands. And, of course, the first prize of the "mutton bowling" was, naturally, a mutton.
TOPGeneral map
Golm
The name "Golm" was derived from the Slavic "Chlum", what means "hill". Thus Slavs, who settled here during the 9th to 11th centuries, gave the village its name.
Golm was first mentioned in a document of 1289.
In the old centre of Golm is the evangelic church which was consecrated in 1886. It was built in the neo-Gothic style and was the present of Crown Prince Frederick William II, the subsequent Emperor Frederick William III, to the inhabitants of Golm to serve as a lasting memorial to the celebrations of his silver wedding. In respect of this church’s interior decoration it is one of the most beautiful churches of the March of Brandenburg.Already by the previous turn of the century, Golm was a popular destination for outings by the Berliners and the Potsdamers. At that time as well as today one can travel here by train and by bus. From the 68 metres high Reiherberg hill you gain a fine outlook over the Großer Zernsee lake, to the city of Werder upon Havel, to the Golmer Luch nature conservation area and into the surrounding countryside.
Many hiking trails go across Golm and the Golmer Luch. Via the Mühlendamm road and the Wublitz bridge you come to Töplitz island.
The Golm site of Potsdam university is continually being enlarged. In 1999 three Max Planck institutes, and in the year 2000, one institute of the Fraunhofer Society, commenced their work here.
TOPGeneral map