HALBERSTADT

city, Saxony-Anhalt Land (state), central Germany, on the Holtemme River in the foreland of the northern Harz mountains, southwest of Magdeburg. It became a bishopric about 814 and was granted market rights in 989. It was one of the most important German trading cities in the 13th14th century. The bishopric was suppressed and the town granted to Brandenburg by the Peace of Westphalia in 1648. Part of the kingdom of Westphalia from 1807 to 1814, it reverted to Prussia in 1815. Despite heavy bombing in World War II, it is still rich in old, timber-framed buildings. Notable landmarks include the Gothic cathedral (begun in 1230; consecrated 1491) and the Church of Our Lady (114660). A rail junction, Halberstadt has sugar-refining, metal-processing, and engineering plants; it also manufactures machinery, rubber and woven goods, and foodstuffs (notably sausage). Pop. (1992 est.) 44,380.