Celle

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**Celle** i s a town and capital of the district of [|Celle], in [|Lower Saxony], [|Germany]. The town is situated on the banks of the [|River Aller], a tributary of the [|Weser] and has a population of about 71,000. Celle is the southern gateway to the [|Lüneburg Heath], has a castle (//[|Schloss Celle]//) built in the [|renaissance] and [|baroque] style and a picturesque old town centre (the //Altstadt//) with over 400 [|timber-framed houses], making Celle one of the most remarkable members of the [|German Timber-Frame Road]. From 1378 to 1705, Celle was the official residence of the [|Lüneburg] branch of the [|dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg] ([|House of Welf]) who had been banished from their original ducal seat by its townsfolk. =====



Main sights
The buildings in Celle’s old town centre date back to the 16th century, among them numerous (and some 480 restored) [|half-timber houses], making Celle an important city for tourism in the southern [|Lüneburg Heath] region. The most impressive building is the ducal palace, [|Schloss Celle], which was built in 1530 at the site of the former castle. Another major attraction is the Stadtkirche (town church, 1308) with its white tower, from where the town trumpeter blows a fanfare twice a day (an old tradition that was revived as a tourist attraction). Celle has a [|synagogue] built in 1740, one of the few that survived the [|Nazi] [|pogrom night]of 1938, thanks to its location in a narrow street of wooden half-timber houses next to an important leather factory that would have been collaterally damaged.

Celle is also known for being an entry point for tourists to the Lüneburg Heath.

During World War II, the [|Bergen-Belsen concentration camp], where [|Anne Frank] died, was located near Celle; today, a memorial and exhibition centre mark the camp site.

The Albrecht Thaer School, a school in Celle, was founded by [|Albrecht Daniel Thaer] in 1796.

Celle also hosts a Christmas market every year in the old town centre.

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