Neumarkt (Dresden)

The Neumarkt in Dresden is a central and culturally significant section of the Dresden inner city. The historic area was almost completely wiped out during the Allied bomb attack during the Second World War. After the war Dresden fell under Soviet occupation and later the communist German Democratic Republic who rebuilt the Neumarkt area in socialist realist style and partially with historic buildings. However huge areas and parcels of the place remained untilled. After the fall of Communism and German reunification the decision was made to restore the Neumarkt to its pre-war look.

Due to its location on a slight rise above the flood-prone Elbe River, the Neumarkt was one of the first areas of Dresden's old city to be settled, with a small village arising around the old Frauenkirche. However, it was not actually located within the city walls until the city was expanded in 1530, from which point on, the old town contained two market squares. The square located around the Kreuzkirche was renamed Altmarkt (German for "Old Market"), and the square surrounding the Frauenkirche was named the Neumarkt ("New Market").

During the reign of August II the Strong, a great number of structures in Dresden were built in Baroque style, including the present-day Frauenkirche, and numerous other houses surrounding the Neumarkt. After damage sustained to buildings through artillery fire in the Seven Years' War, a number of structures on the Neumarkt were rebuilt in the Rococo and late Baroque styles.

During the 19th century and into the early 20th century, the Neumarkt remained largely unchanged, except for renovations to the Johanneum completed in 1873 and the construction of the Albertinum and Academy of Arts completed at the end of the 1800s.

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