Altmark is located in the northern part of the German region of Saxony-Anhalt. This area of the country is sparsely populated and rural, and is mostly defined by agriculture and a rather frugal architecture reminiscent of that of the Hanseatic cities. It's here that an extensive military site was built in the 1930s. It is used as a training area for the German army and also includes a garrison town, in which parts of the military corps reside. The site covers a surface area of 323 square kilometres. It is the third-biggest military area in Germany and the most modern in Europe.