St. Sebaldus Church is one of the most important and oldest churches of Nuremberg. It takes its name from Sebaldus, an 8th-century hermit and missionary and patron saint of Nuremberg. It has been a Lutheran parish church since the Reformation.
The construction of the building began in 1225. the church achieved parish church status in 1255 and was completed by 1273-75. It was originally built as a Romanesque basilica with two choirs. During the 14th century several important changes to the construction were made: first the side aisles were widened and the steeples made higher (1309–1345), then the late gothic hall chancel was built (1358–1379). The two towers were added in the 15th century. In the middle 17th century galleries were added and the interior was remodelled in the Baroque fashion. The church suffered serious damage during World War II and was subsequently restored. Some of the old interior undamaged includes the Shrine of St. Sebaldus, works by Veit Stoss and the stained glass windows.
The church had an organ by the 14th century, and another by the 15th. The main organ had been built in 1440–41 by Heinrich Traxdorf, who also built two small organs for Nuremberg's Frauenkirche. Until its destruction in the 20th century it was one of the oldest playable organs in the world. The Traxdorf organ was rebuilt in 1691. The modified case was destroyed by the Allied forces during a bombing raid on 2 January 1945.
References:The city walls of Avila were built in the 11th century to protect the citizens from the Moors. They have been well maintained throughout the centuries and are now a major tourist attraction as well as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Visitors can walk around about half of the length of the walls.
The layout of the city is an even quadrilateral with a perimeter of 2,516 m. Its walls, which consist in part of stones already used in earlier constructions, have an average thickness of 3 m. Access to the city is afforded by nine gates of different periods; twin 20 m high towers, linked by a semi-circular arch, flank the oldest ones, Puerta de San Vicente and Puerta del Alcázar.