Hanseatic City of Lübeck
Lübeck, Germany
05.04.2015
The Hanseatic City of Lübeck – A Gem of Northern Germany
Lübeck, located in the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein in Germany, is a city steeped in history and culture. Founded in the 12th century, it quickly became a powerful trading center and a member of the Hanseatic League, a medieval alliance of merchant guilds. Its strategic location on the Baltic Sea made Lübeck an important hub for trade between Northern Europe and the rest of the world.
One of the most striking features of Lübeck is its well-preserved Old Town, surrounded by the Trave River. This historic center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, recognized for its outstanding architecture and urban design. The cityscape is dominated by the iconic Lübeck Holstentor, a gate built in the 15th century as part of the city's fortifications. It is a symbol of Lübeck and can be found on many postcards and souvenirs.
Another must-see attraction in Lübeck is the Lübeck Cathedral, also known as the Church of St. Mary. This impressive Gothic structure was built in the 13th century and is the third largest church in Germany. It is home to many valuable works of art, including the famous Astronomical Clock.
For a taste of Lübeck's maritime history, a visit to the Holstentor Museum is a must. Housed in a 16th-century merchant's house, this museum showcases the city's trading history and displays artifacts from the Hanseatic era.
But Lübeck is not just about its past – it is a vibrant and modern city with a thriving cultural scene. The Lübeck Christmas Market, held annually in the Old Town, is one of the most popular in Germany and attracts visitors from all over the world. The city also hosts several festivals throughout the year, celebrating music, literature, and art.
Whether you are interested in history, architecture, or simply want to experience the charm of a traditional German city, Lübeck has something for everyone. It is no wonder that this gem in Northern Germany continues to be a popular tourist destination.
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Lübeck – the former capital and Queen City of the Hanseatic League – was founded in the 12th century and prospered until the 16th century as the major trading centre for northern Europe. It has remained a centre for maritime commerce to this day, particularly with the Nordic countries. Despite the damage it suffered during the Second World War, the basic structure of the old city, consisting mainly of 15th- and 16th-century patrician residences, public monuments (the famous Holstentor brick gate), churches and salt storehouses, remains unaltered.
Lübeck (German: [ˈlyːbɛk] ; Low German: Lübęk or Lübeek [ˈlyːbeːk]; Latin: Lubeca), officially the Hanseatic City of Lübeck (German: Hansestadt Lübeck), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 220,000 inhabitants, it is the second-largest city on the German Baltic coast and the second-largest city in the state of Schleswig-Holstein, after its capital of Kiel, and is the 36th-largest city in Germany.
The city lies in the Holsatian part of Schleswig-Holstein, on the mouth of the Trave, which flows into the Bay of Lübeck in the borough of Travemünde, and on the Trave's tributary Wakenitz. The island with the historic old town and the districts north of the Trave are also located in the historical region of Wagria. Lübeck is the southwesternmost city on the Baltic Sea, and the closest point of access to the Baltic from Hamburg. The city lies in the Holsatian dialect area of Low German.
The name "Lübeck" ultimately stems from the Slavic root lub- ("love-"). Before 819, Polabian Slavs founded a settlement which they called Liubice on the mouth of the Schwartau into the Trave. Since the 10th century, Liubice was the second-most important settlement of the Obotrites after Starigard. Lübeck was granted Soest city rights in 1160, and, in 1260, it became an immediate city within the Holy Roman Empire. In the middle of the 12th century, Lübeck developed into the cradle of the Hanseatic League, of which it was considered the de facto capital and most important city from then on. The Lübeck law was eventually adopted by around 100 cities in the Baltic region. Lübeck could preserve its status as an independent city, which it held since 1226, until 1937.
Lübeck's historic old town, located on a densely built-up island, is Germany's most extensive UNESCO World Heritage Site. With six church towers surpassing 100 metres (330 ft), Lübeck is the city with the highest number of tall church towers worldwide. Nicknamed the "City of the Seven Towers" (Stadt der Sieben Türme), Lübeck's skyline is dominated by the seven towers of its five Protestant main churches: St Mary's, Lübeck Cathedral, St James', St Peter's, and St Giles's. The cathedral from 1173–1341 was the first large brickwork church in the Baltic region. St Mary's Church from 1265–1351 is considered the model on which most of the other Brick Gothic churches in the sphere of influence of the Hanseatic League are based. It is the second-tallest church with two main towers after Cologne Cathedral (which only surpassed it in 1880), has the tallest brick vault, and is the second-tallest brickwork structure after St. Martin's Church in Landshut.
Lübeck is home to the University of Lübeck with its University Medical Center Schleswig Holstein, the Technical University of Applied Sciences Lübeck, and the Lübeck Academy of Music. There are 18 museums in Lübeck, among which the European Hansemuseum, Lübeck Museum Port, and the Niederegger Marzipan Museum, dedicated to the culinary specialty the city is best known, Lübeck Marzipan. Due to their southwestern location, Travemünde and the nearby seaside resorts of Niendorf, Timmendorfer Strand, Scharbeutz, Haffkrug, Sierksdorf, and Grömitz are among Germany's most visited.
Lübeck Main Station is located on the Vogelfluglinie railway line connecting continental Europe (Hamburg) to Scandinavia (Copenhagen) via the future Fehmarn Belt fixed link. The port of Lübeck is the second-largest German port on the Baltic Sea after the port of Rostock, and the Skandinavienkai in Travemünde is Germany's most important ferry port, with connections to Scandinavia and the Baltic countries. The city has its own regional airport at Lübeck-Blankensee, while nearby Hamburg Airport serves as Lübeck's main air hub.
