City history
9 places in Cologne
Bismarck Monument (Augustinerplatz)
An early Bismarck statue from 1879 on Augustinerplatz – lost during the Second World War.
Dombrücke
Cologne's first permanent modern Rhine crossing (1859), nicknamed the ‘mousetrap' – demolished in 1911 and replaced by the Hohenzollern Bridge.
Friesentor
A medieval city gate in the western ring wall – demolished in 1881; Friesenplatz now stands on its site.
Gereonstor
A medieval twin-tower gate in the north-west of the city wall – named after St. Gereon, demolished in 1881.
Hohe Pforte
The southern gate of the Roman city wall, through which the cardo maximus ran – today preserved only as a street name.
Kölnisches Stadtmuseum
Cologne's city-history museum with around 350,000 objects spanning 1,200 years – at a temporary home in the former Franz Sauer department store since 2024.
Museum für Vor- und Frühgeschichte
A former municipal museum in the Bayenturm (founded 1907), destroyed during the war in 1943 – no longer in existence.
St. Brigiden
A medieval parish church next to Groß St. Martin, demolished after 1802 – its ground plan is today traced in the paving.
