UNESCO World Heritage Hanseatic City of Lübeck
As the "Queen of the Hanseatic League", Lübeck is the most culturally significant city in the country: The historic old town has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987.
Lübeck was founded in 1143 as the first "occidental city on the Baltic coast". It is exemplary of the Hanseatic family of cities in the Baltic region and is still considered the "Queen of the Hanseatic League" today. The town ensemble is considered one of the most important examples of Brick Gothic architecture: its medieval layout with street network, street structure, quarter and plot structure is virtually unchanged. This is why Lübeck's historic city center was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.
Since the Middle Ages, the city's silhouette has been dominated by the seven church towers. Lübeck's St. Mary's Church, for example, is considered the mother of North German brick basilicas. More than 70 churches were built in the entire Baltic region based on its model. From the 50-metre-high viewing platform on the tower of St. Peter's Church, you can enjoy a great overview of the old town. From there, your gaze wanders over a sea of red roof tiles and bricks - in fine weather all the way to Travemünde and the Baltic Sea.
UNESCO buildings
Did you know that the following buildings are part of the UNESCO protected area? Among them
- the building complex of the town hall,
- the castle monastery
- the Koberg - a completely preserved quarter from the late 13th century - with St. Jacob's Church, the Holy Ghost Hospital and the building blocks between Glockengießerstrasse and Aegidienstrasse,
- the quarter of patrician houses from the 15th and 16th centuries between St. Peter's and the cathedral,
- the Holsten Gate and the salt warehouses on the left bank of the Trave.
Even the archaeological subsoil of the Old Town, which is surrounded by water and now contains around three million finds, is part of the World Heritage Site.
The magical world of corridors and courtyards
An air of mystery and adventure surrounds the corridors and courtyards: visitors have to leave familiar paths, often ducking their heads at the entrances and exits, and it takes a few moments for the eyes to adjust to the somewhat dim light in the quiet oases. Many corridors lead into another corridor or unexpectedly release the visitor into a familiar street. The corridors and courtyards in Lübeck's Old Town are witnesses to medieval urban development and, thanks to the care and attention of Lübeck's citizens, they are still inhabited and often open to the public.
Here is a small selection of the most famous corridors:
Engelsgrube - Where the English were called angels
Hardly any other street in the Old Town has such a variety of residential corridors. Contrary to what one might think at first glance, the name of the street does not go back to the chubby-cheeked celestial beings, but to the Hanseatic relationship with the English, who were allocated their own part of the harbor for loading and unloading their ships.
Light green and dark green corridor
Through the low portal on the side of a baroque petty bourgeois house, you enter one of the most beautiful corridor complexes: the light green and dark green corridor. Situated between Engelswisch and Untertrave streets and accessible from both sides, a forgotten world opens up that conveys a hint of old Lübeck: an interplay of narrow corridors, small stalls, large courtyard-like areas, apparent dead ends and hidden exits.
Lüngreens Gang
Lüngreens Gang is one of the few corridors whose houses are listed buildings. It is also one of the few corridors that connect two pits. Immerse yourself in the idyllic Lüngreens Gang through the winding paths at the end of the Bäckergang and finally emerge in the Fischergrube.
