Regensburg is a city in Bavaria, south-east Germany, located at the confluence of the Danube and Regen rivers, at the northernmost bend in the Danube. To the east lies the Bavarian Forest.

Attractions

• The Dom (Cathedral) is a very interesting example of pure German Gothic and counts as the main work of Gothic architecture in Bavaria. It was founded in 1275, and completed in 1634, with the exception of the towers, which were finished in 1869. Adjoining the cloisters are two chapels of earlier date than the cathedral itself, one of which, known as the old cathedral, goes back perhaps to the 8th century.
• The Church of St. James, also called Schottenkirche, a plain Romanesque basilica of the 12th century, derives its name from the monastery of Irish Benedictines (Scoti) to which it was attached; the principal doorway is covered with very singular grotesque carvings. It stands next to the Jakobstor, a mediaeval city gate named after it.
• The old parish church of St. Ulrich is a good example of the Transition style of the 13th century, and contains a valuable antiquarian collection. It houses the diocesan museum for religious art.
• Examples of the Romanesque basilica style are the church of Obermünster, dating from 1010, and the abbey church of St. Emmeran, built in the 13th century, and remarkable as one of the few German churches with a detached belfry. The beautiful cloisters of the ancient abbey, one of the oldest in Germany, are still in fair preservation.
• Wealthy patrician families competed against each other in who would be able to build the highest tower of the city. In 1260, the Goldener Turm (golden tower) was built in Wahlenstraße.
• The Town Hall, dating in part from the 14th century, contains the rooms occupied by the imperial diet from 1663 to 1806.
• Perhaps the most pleasing modern building in the city is the Gothic villa of the king of Bavaria on the bank of the Danube.
• St. Emmeram's Abbey, now known as Schloss Thurn und Taxis, is a huge castle owned by the powerful Thurn and Taxis family.

Near Regensburg are two very handsome classical buildings, erected by Louis I of Bavaria as national monuments of German patriotism and greatness. The more imposing of the two is the Walhalla, a costly reproduction of the Parthenon, erected as a Teutonic temple of fame on a hill rising from the Danube at Donaustauf, 6 miles to the east. The interior, which is as rich as coloured marbles, gilding, and sculptures can make it, contains the busts of more than a hundred German worthies. The second of King Louis' buildings is the Befreiungshalle at Kelheim, 14 miles above Regensburg, a large circular building which has for its aim the glorification of the heroes of the 1813 War of Liberation.