The richness of the Rammelsberg in silver and particularly copper ores led to the founding of the palace by Emperor Heinrich II at the beginning of the 11th century; in the year 1009 the first Imperial Assembly was held in Goslar. The imposing palace was erected in the Romanesque style. Goslar was a residence for German kings and emperors until 1253 and a centre for the Christian faith – the ‘Rome of the North’.