Ahrensfelde

Ahrensfelde (German pronunciation: [aːʁənsˈfɛldə] ) is a municipality in the district of Barnim, in Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated on the Barnim Plateau at the city limits of Berlin, about 13 km (8.1 mi) northeast of the city centre. The municipal area comprises the villages of Ahrensfelde, Blumberg, Eiche, Lindenberg, and Mehrow. Ahrensfelde, like the neighbouring village of Eiche, was first mentioned in the 1375 Landbuch (domesday book) survey executed for Emperor Charles IV, after he had acquired the Margraviate of Brandenburg two years before. The oldest village however is Blumberg, once a possession held by the Bishops of Brandenburg, which was first mentioned as Blumenberch in 1253. Blumberg manor was acquired by the poet and diplomat Friedrich von Canitz in the late 17th century, the castle was later rebuilt according to plans by Karl Friedrich Schinkel with a park designed by Peter Joseph Lenné. It was destroyed by the advancing Red Army during the 1945 Battle of Berlin. The art historian Adolf Bötticher was a native of Blumberg. From 1815 to 1947, Ahrensfelde was part of the Prussian Province of Brandenburg, from 1947 to 1952 of the State of Brandenburg, from 1952 to 1990 of the East German Bezirk Frankfurt and since 1990 again of Brandenburg. In 1908 the Ahrensfelde Cemetery was established by the Evangelical Church of the Prussian Union as a multi-regional burial site outside of Berlin.