The Most Beautiful Medieval Cathedrals in Germany
6 places ยท updated 14 October 2026
In short: By our ranking, the most beautiful medieval cathedrals in Germany are Bamberg Cathedral, Speyer Cathedral and Cologne Cathedral. The list covers 6 medieval cathedrals. Last updated 14 October 2026.
Germany has 6 of the 48 medieval cathedrals in our collection. Ranked by how they look, the list opens with Bamberg Cathedral, Speyer Cathedral and Cologne Cathedral.
In this list
| # | Place | Type | UNESCO |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bamberg Cathedral | Cathedral | |
| 2 | Speyer Cathedral | Cathedral | โ |
| 3 | Cologne Cathedral | Cathedral | โ |
| 4 | Hildesheim Cathedral | Cathedral | โ |
| 5 | Aachen Cathedral | Cathedral | โ |
| 6 | Naumburg Cathedral | Cathedral | โ |
01 Bamberg Cathedral
Bamberger Dom
Germany49.891ยฐ N 10.883ยฐ E
ะะฒะปะฐัะตะฝะบะพ ยท CC BY-SA 3.0 Bamberg Cathedral, dedicated to Saints Peter and George, is the late Romanesque heart of the UNESCO World Heritage town of Bamberg in Upper Franconia. It was founded in 1002 by King Henry II, later Holy Roman Emperor, who made Bamberg his favourite residence and the seat of a new diocese, and was first consecrated in 1012.
02 Speyer Cathedral
Speyerer Dom
Germany ยท 20.5 km from Mannheim49.317ยฐ N 8.443ยฐ E
- UNESCO World Heritage
Image by PhotoEnduro from Pixabay Speyer Cathedral was built as a statement of imperial power. In 1025 the Salian emperor Conrad II ordered what was meant to be the largest church in the Christian West, in a Rhineland town of perhaps 500 people, and to serve as his tomb. Work began in 1030 on a rise beside the Rhine safe from floods, using red sandstone from the Palatinate Forest.
Did you know? Excommunicated Emperor Henry IV lay for five years in the unconsecrated Saint Afra chapel until the papal ban was lifted in 1111 and he could be buried properly.
03 Cologne Cathedral
Kรถlner Dom
Germany ยท 1.3 km from Cologne50.941ยฐ N 6.958ยฐ E
- UNESCO World Heritage
Sandeepdattaraju ยท CC BY-SA 4.0 Archbishop Konrad von Hochstaden laid the foundation stone on 15 August 1248, and the building he began was meant for one purpose above all: to house the relics of the Three Magi, which Archbishop Rainald of Dassel had brought from Milan in 1164 as spoils of Frederick Barbarossa's war. The ground plan and the proportions of the nave follow Amiens closely.
Did you know? The Pretiosa bell, hung in 1448 and weighing about 10.5 tonnes, was then the largest bell in the Western world.
04 Hildesheim Cathedral
Hildesheimer Dom
Germany ยท 28.9 km from Hanover52.149ยฐ N 9.947ยฐ E
- UNESCO World Heritage
Roland Struwe ยท CC BY-SA 4.0 Hildesheim's cathedral is one of the great treasure houses of early medieval Europe, a church whose bronzes and chandeliers show what the craftsmen of Ottonian Germany could achieve around the year 1000. Its story begins with the founding of the diocese in 815 by the emperor Louis the Pious, and it has been the seat of the bishops of Hildesheim ever since.
Did you know? The bronze Bernward Doors, dated 1015, pair scenes from Genesis with episodes from the life of Christ.
05 Aachen Cathedral
Aachener Dom
Germany ยท 30 km from Maastricht50.775ยฐ N 6.084ยฐ E
- UNESCO World Heritage
Image by ThomasWolter from Pixabay At the heart of Aachen Cathedral is a building Charlemagne commissioned around 796 as the chapel of his palace, consecrated by Pope Leo III in 805. 5 metres across, ringed by a sixteen-sided ambulatory with a gallery above. For more than two hundred years no vault north of the Alps matched its span and height.
Did you know? According to legend, Aachen built the chapel with the devil's money, then palmed off a wolf as his promised soul; the cheated devil tore his thumb in the door.
06 Naumburg Cathedral
Naumburger Dom
Germany ยท 29.5 km from Jena51.155ยฐ N 11.804ยฐ E
- UNESCO World Heritage
Image by Makalu from Pixabay The twelve stone figures standing high in the west choir of Naumburg Cathedral are among the most famous sculptures of the German Middle Ages, and one reason is that they are not saints.
Did you know? The east rood screen, built around 1230, is the oldest surviving example of a hall-type rood screen.
How this list is ranked
Places are chosen for how they look, not for how famous they are: each one has its own description and a photograph credited to its author. The order is a single world ranking that weighs the beauty of the place in curated photography together with how widely it is documented โ the number of language editions of its encyclopedia article and how often that article is read in a year. The list is rebuilt as places are added, so the order and the counts on this page are always current.
Questions people ask
- What are the most beautiful medieval cathedrals in Germany?
- On our list, Bamberg Cathedral ranks first, followed by Speyer Cathedral and Cologne Cathedral.
- How many medieval cathedrals are on this list in Germany?
- The list covers 6 medieval cathedrals.