Hanentorburg ( German: Hahnentorburg ) - the western gate of the Cologne medieval city wall ( de: Festungsring Köln ) ( federal state North Rhine-Westphalia ). This gate served as the main entrance gate on the way to Julich and Aachen . Through them, emperors of the Holy Roman Empire solemnly entered the city when following the coronation in Aachen to worship the relics of the three Magi in Cologne Cathedral .
The gate is located on Hahnenstraße, next to the Rudolfplatz square in the southern part of the old town ( de: Köln-Altstadt-Süd ). Together with the Aigelstein Gate , the gates of St. Severin and Ulrefort, they are the most well-preserved parts of the medieval defensive wall of Cologne and make it possible to fully judge its fortification power.
Previously, it was mistakenly believed that the gate was built in 1264 , but now it is established that the gate existed already at the beginning of the XIII century .
The exact origin of the name of the gate is unknown. There is a version that the name comes from the early German word Hageno , which translates as farmers , or from the word Haho - grove . On the map of 1808, the gates were designated as Porte du Coq , and when numbering houses on the streets, carried out in December 1812 , the gates appear in the documents as Port des Coqs .
For a long time, this gate was used as a prison. So before the execution, the first victim of the Reformation on the Lower Rhine, Adolf Klarenbach , was kept here.
On May 18, 1877, the first station of Cologne Konka opened near this gate. In 1888 - 1890, the gates were restored by the architect Joseph Stubben ( de: Josef Stübben ) and housed the historical museum.
During the massive bombing of Cologne by British aircraft, the gates were badly damaged. After restoration, they served as the exhibition hall of the association of professional artists ( de: Berufsverband Bildender Künstler Berlin ). Since 1988, the headquarters of the guard of honor of the Cologne Carnival ( de: Kölner Karneval ) has been housed in the gate building.