Sachsen-Anhalt  was formed in post-World War II Germany with the merger of several smaller states and cities. Anhalt was one of the major provinces of this merger and got its name from the castle near the center of the map below (also, the photo at right was taken at the ruins of Burg Anhalt). Most of the region traditionally was part of northern Thuringia.

The castles here are of interest partly because many were formed on the edge of the Holy Roman Empire, with the express purpose of securing the area from raids by people to the east. The area was originally drawn into the Holy Roman Empire in the 840s by Emperor Lothar I by using what the chronicler of the Annals of St. Bertin called "terror-tactics" and "conciliation."  The region was then subjected to repeated raids, mostly by Hungarians until they were suppressed by their defeat at the Lechfeld by Otto the Great in 955. Today, the castles are by and large not as well-maintained as in the west, but as a result they are more authentic, at least to their late medieval versions.

The countryside of the region is picturesque, especially the Harz Mountains. It was not too long ago that this region was largely inaccessible to westerners due to the existence of the "Iron Curtain" between West and East Germany. The region is today (2012) showing signs of continuous recovery from the mismanagement of the Communist government in the "Ost Zone."

Also included in this section are three battlefields, two from the Thirty Years War and one from Napoleon's campaign against the Prussians, culminating in the decisive twin actions of Jena-Auerstedt.

Right, driving the winding mountain roads of the Harz Mountains. These are not as challenging as other mountain roads I've driven, and you probably wouldn't to a four-wheel drift on these due to the need to avoid oncoming traffic. But these roads are more interesting due to that traffic, not to mention the historical scenery along the way.. Motorcyclists drive these routes at VERY high speed, and I saw one wipe out in the time I was there.