The Moritzburg in Halle was commissioned by Archbishop Ernest II of Saxony as a fortress and residence. Andreas Günther built the walls from 1533. Ernest laid the cornerstone on May 25, 1484 and moved in on May 25, 1503. The style is early Renaissance with late Gothic features.
The walls are mainly quarrystone around a main quadrangle about 236 by 279 feet (72 by 85 m), with a moat 66 to 82 feet (20 to 25 m) wide. A staircase built into the courtyard wall was one of the first of its kind in Germany. The Mary Magdalene Chapel, built from 1505 and dedicated in 1509, is 49 feet (15 m) high.
Fires and sieges from 1637 to 1639 destroyed upper floors and the chapel roof. Fuensanta Nieto and Enrique Sobejano led a reconstruction that finished in 2008. It houses the art museum of Saxony-Anhalt. The article gives no hours.
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