Lüneburg (officially the ''Hanseatic City of Lüneburg'', German: ''Hansestadt Lüneburg'', , Low German ''Lümborg'',
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
''Luneburgum'' or ''Lunaburgum'',
Old High German
Old High German (OHG; german: Althochdeutsch (Ahd.)) is the earliest stage of the German language, conventionally covering the period from around 750 to 1050.
There is no standardised or supra-regional form of German at this period, and Old High ...
''Luneburc'',
Old Saxon
Old Saxon, also known as Old Low German, was a Germanic language and the earliest recorded form of Low German (spoken nowadays in Northern Germany, the northeastern Netherlands, southern Denmark, the Americas and parts of Eastern Europe). It ...
''Hliuni'', Polabian ''Glain''), also called Lunenburg ( ) in English, is a town in the German
state
State may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State
* ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States
* ''Our S ...
of
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...
. It is located about southeast of another
Hanseatic
The Hanseatic League (; gml, Hanse, , ; german: label=German language, Modern German, Deutsche Hanse) was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Norther ...
city,
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
, utc_offset1 = +1
, timezone1_DST = Central (CEST)
, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
, and belongs to that city's wider
metropolitan region
A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually com ...
district
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...
which bears its name, it is home to roughly 77,000 people. Lüneburg's urban area, which includes the surrounding communities of Adendorf, Bardowick, Barendorf and Reppenstedt, has a population of around 103,000. Lüneburg has been allowed to use the title " Hansestadt" (''Hanseatic Town'') in its name since 2007, in recognition of its membership in the former Hanseatic League. Lüneburg is also home to
Leuphana University
Leuphana (Λευφάνα) is a city name, first mentioned by Ptolemy in the year 150 in the Atlas Geographia.
Ptolemy mentioned in Geographica 2, that ten cities unified by their not being under Roman occupation, created a settlement named Leupha ...
.
History
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Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars.
From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...
Principality of Lüneburg
The Principality of Lüneburg (later also referred to as Celle) was a territorial division of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg within the Holy Roman Empire, immediately subordinate to the emperor. It existed from 1269 until 1705 and its territory ...
Kingdom of Westphalia
The Kingdom of Westphalia was a kingdom in Germany, with a population of 2.6 million, that existed from 1807 to 1813. It included territory in Hesse and other parts of present-day Germany. While formally independent, it was a vassal state of the ...
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
Kingdom of Hanover
The Kingdom of Hanover (german: Königreich Hannover) was established in October 1814 by the Congress of Vienna, with the restoration of George III to his Hanoverian territories after the Napoleonic era. It succeeded the former Electorate of Ha ...
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...
Prehistory
The first signs of human presence in the area of Lüneburg date back to the time of
Neanderthal Man
Neanderthals (, also ''Homo neanderthalensis'' and erroneously ''Homo sapiens neanderthalensis''), also written as Neandertals, are an extinct species or subspecies of archaic humans who lived in Eurasia until about 40,000 years ago. While the ...
: 56 axes, estimated at 150,000 years old, were uncovered during the construction in the 1990s of the
autobahn
The (; German plural ) is the federal controlled-access highway system in Germany. The official German term is (abbreviated ''BAB''), which translates as 'federal motorway'. The literal meaning of the word is 'Federal Auto(mobile) Track' ...
between Ochtmissen and Bardowick. The site of the discovery at Ochtmissen was probably a Neanderthal hunting location where huntsmen skinned and cut up the animals they had caught.
The area was almost certainly not continuously inhabited at that time, however, due to the various
glaciations
A glacial period (alternatively glacial or glaciation) is an interval of time (thousands of years) within an ice age that is marked by colder temperatures and glacier advances. Interglacials, on the other hand, are periods of warmer climate betwe ...
that lasted for millennia. The first indication of a permanent, settled farming culture in the area was found not far from the site of the Neanderthal discovery in the river Ilmenau between Lüne and Bardowick. This was an axe that is described as a ''Schuhleistenkeil'' or "
shoe last
A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot. They are often worn with a sock. Shoes are also used as an item of decoration and fashion. The design of shoes has varied enormously through time and from culture ...
wedge" due to its shape. It dates to the 6th century BC and is now in the collection of the Lüneburg Museum.
Since the
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...
, the Lüneburg hill known as the ''Zeltberg'' has concealed a whole range of prehistoric and early historic graves, which were laid out by people living in the area of the present-day town of Lüneburg. One of the oldest finds from this site is a so-called Unetice flanged axe (''Aunjetitzer Randleistenbeil'') which dates to 1900 BC.
The land within the town itself has also yielded a number of
ice age
An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gre ...
urns that were already being reported in the 18th century. These discoveries are, however, like those from the Lüneburger Kalkberg — they went into the private collections of several 18th century scholars and, with a few exceptions, were lost when the scholars died.
Also worth mentioning in this regard are the Lombard
Urnfield
The Urnfield culture ( 1300 BC – 750 BC) was a late Bronze Age culture of Central Europe, often divided into several local cultures within a broader Urnfield tradition. The name comes from the custom of cremating the dead and p ...
graves on the Lüneburg Zeltberg and Oedeme from the first few centuries AD. In the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
, there several discoveries were made on the site of the town, for example on the site of the old village of Modestorpe not far from St. John's Church (''Johanniskirche''), at the Lambertiplatz near the saltworks and in the old Waterside Quarter.
The ancient town may be that identified as Leufana or Leuphana ( el, Λευφάνα), a town listed in
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importance ...
(2.10) in the north of Germany on the west of the
Elbe
The Elbe (; cs, Labe ; nds, Ilv or ''Elv''; Upper and dsb, Łobjo) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Re ...
.
From village to commercial town
Lüneburg was first mentioned in
medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
records in a deed signed on 13 August, 956 AD, in which Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor granted "the tax from Lüneburg to the monastery built there in honour of Saint Michael" (German: ''den Zoll zu Lüneburg an das zu Ehren des heiligen Michaels errichtete Kloster'', Latin: ''teloneum ad Luniburc ad monasterium sancti Michahelis sub honore constructum''). An older reference to the place in the ''
Royal Frankish Annals
The ''Royal Frankish Annals'' (Latin: ''Annales regni Francorum''), also called the ''Annales Laurissenses maiores'' ('Greater Lorsch Annals'), are a series of annals composed in Latin in the Carolingian Francia, recording year-by-year the state ...
'' for 795 states:''ad fluvium Albim pervenit ad locum, qui dicitur Hliuni'', i.e. "on the river Elbe, at the location, which is called '' Hliuni''") and refers to one of the three core settlements of Lüneburg; probably the castle on the Kalkberg which was the seat of the Billunger nobles from 951. The Elbe-Germanic name ''Hliuni'' corresponds to the Lombard word for "refuge site".
From archaeological finds, it is clear that the area around Lüneburg had already been settled (in the museum of the Principality of Lüneburg, for example, there is a whole range of artefacts that were found here) and the saltworks had already started production.
According to tradition, the salt was first discovered by a hunter who observed a
wild boar
The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is ...
bathing in a pool of water, shot and killed it, and hung the coat up to dry. When it was dry, he discovered white crystals in the bristles — salt. Later he returned to the site of the kill and located the salt pool, the first production of salt on the site took place. In the town hall is a bone preserved in a glass case; legend has it that this is the preserved leg-bone of the boar. It was here that the Lüneburg Saltworks was subsequently established for many centuries.
In spite of its lucrative saltworks, Lüneburg was originally subordinated to the town of Bardowick only a few miles to the north. Bardowick was older and was an important trading post for the Slavs. Bardowick's prosperity – it had seven churches – was based purely on the fact that no other trading centres were tolerated. Only when Bardowick refused to pay allegiance to
Henry the Lion
Henry the Lion (german: Heinrich der Löwe; 1129/1131 – 6 August 1195) was a member of the Welf dynasty who ruled as the duke of Saxony and Bavaria from 1142 and 1156, respectively, until 1180.
Henry was one of the most powerful German p ...
it was destroyed by him in 1189, whereupon Lüneburg was given
town privileges
Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the traditio ...
(''Stadtrechte'') and developed into the central trading post in the region in place of Bardowick.
The Polabian name for Lüneburg is ''Glain'' (written as ''Chlein'' or ''Glein'' in older German sources), probably derived from ''glaino'' ( Slavonic: ''glina'') which means "clay". In the
Latin texts
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
Lüneburg surfaces not only as the Latinised ''Lunaburgum'', but also as ''Selenopolis''.
Hanseatic period
As a consequence of the monopoly that Lüneburg had for many years as a supplier of salt within the North German region, a monopoly not challenged until much later by French imports, it very quickly became a member of the Hanseatic League. The League was formed in 1158 in
Lübeck
Lübeck (; Low German also ), officially the Hanseatic City of Lübeck (german: Hansestadt Lübeck), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 217,000 inhabitants, Lübeck is the second-largest city on the German Baltic coast and in the state ...
, initially as a union of individual merchants, but in 1356 it met as a federation of trading towns at the first general meeting of the '' Hansetag''. Lüneburg's salt was needed in order to pickle the herring caught in the
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain.
The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and ...
and the waters around Norway so that it could be preserved for food inland during periods of
fasting
Fasting is the abstention from eating and sometimes drinking. From a purely physiological context, "fasting" may refer to the metabolic status of a person who has not eaten overnight (see " Breakfast"), or to the metabolic state achieved after ...
when fish (not meat) was permitted.
The
Scania Market
Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous with Skåne C ...
at
Scania
Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous with Skåne ...
in Sweden was a major fish market for herring and became one of the most important trade events in Northern Europe in the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
. Lüneburg's salt was in great demand and the town quickly became one of the wealthiest and most important towns in the Hanseatic League, together with
Bergen
Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula o ...
and
Visby
Visby () is an urban area in Sweden and the seat of Gotland Municipality in Gotland County on the island of Gotland with 24,330 inhabitants . Visby is also the episcopal see for the Diocese of Visby. The Hanseatic city of Visby is arguably th ...
(the fish suppliers) and Lübeck (the central trading post between the Baltic and the interior). In the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
salt was initially conveyed overland up the
Old Salt Road
The Old Salt Route was a medieval trade route in Northern Germany, one of the ancient network of salt roads which were used primarily for the transport of salt and other staples. In Germany it was referred to as ''Alte Salzstraße''.
Salt was v ...
to Lübeck. With the opening of the
Stecknitz Canal
The Stecknitz Canal (german: Stecknitzfahrt) was an artificial waterway in northern Germany which connected Lauenburg and Lübeck on the Old Salt Route by linking the tiny rivers Stecknitz (a tributary of the Trave) and Delvenau (a tributary o ...
in 1398 salt could be transported by cog from the Lübeck salt warehouses, the '' Salzspeicher''.
Around the year 1235, the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg emerged, ruled by a family whose aristocratic lines repeatedly divided and re-united. The smaller states that kept re-appearing as a result, and which ranked as principalities, were usually named after the location of the ducal seat. Thus between 1267 and 1269 a ''
Principality of Lüneburg
The Principality of Lüneburg (later also referred to as Celle) was a territorial division of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg within the Holy Roman Empire, immediately subordinate to the emperor. It existed from 1269 until 1705 and its territory ...
'' was created for the first time, with Lüneburg as the seat of the royal ''
Residenz
Residenz () is a German word for "place of living", now obsolete except in the formal sense of an official residence. A related term, Residenzstadt, denotes a city where a sovereign ruler resided, therefore carrying a similar meaning as the modern ...
''. In 1371, in the wake of the
Lüneburg War of Succession
Lüneburg (officially the ''Hanseatic City of Lüneburg'', German: ''Hansestadt Lüneburg'', , Low German ''Lümborg'', Latin ''Luneburgum'' or ''Lunaburgum'', Old High German ''Luneburc'', Old Saxon ''Hliuni'', Polabian ''Glain''), also called ...
, rebel citizens threw the princes out of the town and destroyed their royal castle on the Kalkberg along with the nearby monastery. The state peace treaty in 1392 granted their demand to become a
free imperial town
In the Holy Roman Empire, the collective term free and imperial cities (german: Freie und Reichsstädte), briefly worded free imperial city (', la, urbs imperialis libera), was used from the fifteenth century to denote a self-ruling city that ...
, a status they were able to defend until 1637. The money now stayed in the town, enabling fine houses and churches to be built.
In 1392 Lüneburg was accorded the
staple right
The staple right, also translated stacking right or storage right, both from the Dutch ''stapelrecht'', was a medieval right accorded to certain ports, the staple ports. It required merchant barges or ships to unload their goods at the port and to ...
. This forced merchants who travelled through the area with their carts to stop in Lüneburg, unload their wares, and offer them for sale for a certain period. So that merchants could not go around Lüneburg, an impassable defensive barrier was built west of the town in 1397; a similar barrier was built east of the town in 1479.
The Lüneburg Prelates' War caused a crisis from 1446 to 1462. This was not a war in the proper sense, but rather a bitter dispute between the town council and those members of the clergy who were also part-owners of the town's saltworks. It was not resolved until the intervention of the Danish King
Christian I
Christian I (February 1426 – 21 May 1481) was a Scandinavian monarch under the Kalmar Union. He was king of Denmark (1448–1481), Norway (1450–1481) and Sweden (1457–1464). From 1460 to 1481, he was also duke of Schleswig (within ...
, the Bishop of
Schwerin
Schwerin (; Mecklenburgian Low German: ''Swerin''; Latin: ''Suerina'', ''Suerinum'') is the capital and second-largest city of the northeastern German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern as well as of the region of Mecklenburg, after Rostock. It ...
and the Lübeck Bishop, Arnold Westphal.
In 1454 the citizens demanded even more influence over public life.
Since 2007, Lüneburg has once again held the title of a
Hanseatic town
The Hanseatic League (; gml, Hanse, , ; german: label= Modern German, Deutsche Hanse) was a medieval commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Central and Northern Europe. Growing from a few North German tow ...
.
Modern period to the end of the Second World War
With the demise of the Hanseatic League – and the absence of herrings around 1560 around
Falsterbo
Falsterbo (, outdatedly ) is a town located at the south-western tip of Sweden in Vellinge Municipality in Skåne. Falsterbo is situated in the southern part of the Falsterbo peninsula. It is part of Skanör med Falsterbo, one of Sweden's histor ...
in
Scania
Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous with Skåne ...
– the biggest customers of Lüneburg's salt broke away and the town rapidly became impoverished. Hardly any new houses were built in central Lüneburg after this time, which is why the historical appearance of the town centre has remained almost unchanged until the present day.
The town became part of the Electorate of Hanover in 1708, the
Kingdom of Westphalia
The Kingdom of Westphalia was a kingdom in Germany, with a population of 2.6 million, that existed from 1807 to 1813. It included territory in Hesse and other parts of present-day Germany. While formally independent, it was a vassal state of the ...
in 1807, the
First French Empire
The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental E ...
in 1810, the
Kingdom of Hanover
The Kingdom of Hanover (german: Königreich Hannover) was established in October 1814 by the Congress of Vienna, with the restoration of George III to his Hanoverian territories after the Napoleonic era. It succeeded the former Electorate of Ha ...
in 1814, and the
Prussia
Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...
n
Province of Hanover
The Province of Hanover (german: Provinz Hannover) was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia from 1868 to 1946.
During the Austro-Prussian War, the Kingdom of Hanover had attempted to maintain a neutral position ...
in 1866.
In the centuries after the collapse of the League, it was as if Lüneburg had fallen into a
Sleeping Beauty
''Sleeping Beauty'' (french: La belle au bois dormant, or ''The Beauty in the Sleeping Forest''; german: Dornröschen, or ''Little Briar Rose''), also titled in English as ''The Sleeping Beauty in the Woods'', is a fairy tale about a princess cu ...
slumber. Heinrich Heine, whose parents lived in Lüneburg from 1822 to 1826, called it his "residence of boredom" (''Residenz der Langeweile''). Near the end of the 19th century Lüneburg evolved into a garrison town, and it remained so until the 1990s.
The horticulturist
Curt Backeberg Curt Backeberg (2 August 1894 in Lüneburg, Germany – 14 January 1966) was a German horticulturist especially known for the collection and classification of cacti.
Biography
He travelled extensively through Central and South America, and publis ...
was born in Lüneburg in 1894
In the Lüneburg Special Children's Ward, part of the Lüneburg State Mental Hospital, it is suspected that over 300 children were killed during the Second World War as part of the official Nazi child euthanasia programme.
In 1945 Lüneburg surfaced once again in the history books when, south of the town on the hill known as the '' Timeloberg'' (near the village of
Wendisch Evern
Wendisch Evern is a municipality in the district of Lüneburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany.
Recent history (Second World War)
On 4 May 1945 on the ''Timeloberg'' hill at the edge of Deutsch Evern a German delegation under the command of Hans-Geo ...
) the
German Instrument of Surrender
The German Instrument of Surrender (german: Bedingungslose Kapitulation der Wehrmacht, lit=Unconditional Capitulation of the " Wehrmacht"; russian: Акт о капитуляции Германии, Akt o kapitulyatsii Germanii, lit=Act of capi ...
was signed that brought the Second World War in Europe to an end. The location is presently inaccessible to the general public as it lies within a military out-of-bounds area. Only a small monument on a nearby track alludes to the event. On 23 May 1945 Reichsführer SS
Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was of the (Protection Squadron; SS), and a leading member of the Nazi Party of Germany. Himmler was one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany and a main architect of th ...
took his own life in Lüneburg whilst in
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
custody by biting into a potassium cyanide capsule embedded in his teeth before he could be properly interrogated. He was subsequently buried in an unmarked location in a nearby forest.
Post-war period
Even before the
Nuremberg Trials
The Nuremberg trials were held by the Allies against representatives of the defeated Nazi Germany, for plotting and carrying out invasions of other countries, and other crimes, in World War II.
Between 1939 and 1945, Nazi Germany invaded m ...
took place, the first war crimes trial, the so-called Belsen Trial (''Bergen-Belsen-Prozess''), began in Lüneburg on 17 September 1945 conducted against 45 former SS men, women and '' kapos'' (
prisoner functionaries
A kapo or prisoner functionary (german: Funktionshäftling) was a prisoner in a Nazi camp who was assigned by the ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) guards to supervise forced labor or carry out administrative tasks.
Also called "prisoner self-administrat ...
) from the
Bergen-Belsen
Bergen-Belsen , or Belsen, was a Nazi concentration camp in what is today Lower Saxony in northern Germany, southwest of the town of Bergen near Celle. Originally established as a prisoner of war camp, in 1943, parts of it became a concentrati ...
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...
. But the dilapidated state of its buildings led to various plans to try to improve living conditions. One proposition that was seriously discussed was to tear down the entire ''Altstadt'' and replace it with modern buildings. The ensuing public protest resulted in Lüneburg becoming the focal point for a new concept: cultural heritage conservation. Since the early 1970s the town has been systematically restored. A leading figure in this initiative since the late 1960s has been Curt Pomp: against much opposition from politicians and councillors he founded and championed the Lüneburg ''Altstadt'' Working Group (''Arbeitskreis Lüneburger Altstadt'') for the preservation of historic buildings. His engagement was rewarded with the German Prize for Cultural Heritage Conservation and the German Order of Merit. Today Lüneburg is a tourist attraction as a result of the restoration and important sectors of the town's economy also depend on tourism.
Between Lüneburg and Soltau to the southwest, a large
military training area
A military training area, training area (Australia, Ireland, UK) or training centre (Canada) is land set aside specifically to enable military forces to train and exercise for combat. Training areas are usually out of bounds to the general public, ...
, the Soltau-Lüneburg Training Area (SLTA), was established by the British and Canadian military, which was used from 1963 to 1994. It was governed by the Soltau-Lüneburg Agreement between the Federal Republic of Germany, the United Kingdom and Canada. The area was located on the Lüneburg Heath and was heavily used particularly by tanks and other armoured vehicles.
The salt mine was closed in 1980, ending the thousand-year tradition of salt mining, although small amounts are still mined for ceremonial purposes. Small bags of salt may be purchased in the town hall, and bags are given as a gift from the town to all couples married in the town. After the closing of the salt mines, the town gained new relevance from its university, which was founded in 1989.
As part of the restructuring of Defence in 1990 two of the three ''
Bundeswehr
The ''Bundeswehr'' (, meaning literally: ''Federal Defence'') is the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. The ''Bundeswehr'' is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part con ...
'' barracks in the town were closed and the remaining one reduced in size. The '' Bundesgrenzschutz'' barracks was also closed.
Lüneburg University
Lüneburg (officially the ''Hanseatic City of Lüneburg'', German: ''Hansestadt Lüneburg'', , Low German ''Lümborg'', Latin ''Luneburgum'' or ''Lunaburgum'', Old High German ''Luneburc'', Old Saxon ''Hliuni'', Polabian ''Glain''), also called ...
moved to the site of the old Scharnhorst barracks. The university grew out of the new economics and cultural studies departments set up in the 1980s and their amalgamation with the College of Education (''Pädagogischen Hochschule'' or ''PH'') that took place in 1989. Since its move to the former barracks site the university has enrolled increasing numbers of students. The expansion of the university is an important contribution to the restructuring of the town into a service centre.
Today an industrial estate, the ''Lünepark'', has been built on the terrain of the old ''Bundesgrenzschutz'' barracks with its new industrial premises for entrepreneurs. The promotion of trade and industry has resulted in many firms from the ICT area locating themselves there. In May 2006 the nearby Johannes Westphal Bridge was opened to traffic. This links the newly created ''Lünepark'' with the suburb of Goseburg on the far side of the Ilmenau. Since 5 October 2007 Lüneburg has been able to call itself a Hanseatic Town; together with Stade it is one of only two towns in Lower Saxony to bear the title.
Amalgamated villages/communities
* 1943: Hagen and Lüne
* 1974: Häcklingen, Ochtmissen, Oedeme and Rettmer as well as the ''Ortsteile'' of Alt-Hagen, Ebensberg and Pflegerdorf/Gut Wienebüttel.
Geography
Location
Lüneburg lies on the river Ilmenau, about from its confluence with the
Elbe
The Elbe (; cs, Labe ; nds, Ilv or ''Elv''; Upper and dsb, Łobjo) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Re ...
. The river flows through the town and is featured in its
song
A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetit ...
; it was formerly traversed by cogs taking salt from the town to the other, larger, ports of the Hanseatic League nearby.
To the south of the town stretches the Lüneburg Heath which emerged as a result of widespread tree-felling, forest fires and grazing. The tradition that the heath arose from centuries of logging undertaken to meet the constant need of the Lüneburg salt works for wood is not historically confirmed. More likely, the heath was originally formed by clearances during the
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...
. The old town (''Altstadt'') of Lüneburg lies above a
salt dome
A salt dome is a type of structural dome formed when salt (or other evaporite minerals) intrudes into overlying rocks in a process known as diapirism. Salt domes can have unique surface and subsurface structures, and they can be discovered usin ...
which is the town's original source of prosperity. However, the constant mining of the salt deposits over which the town stands has also resulted in the sometimes gradual, sometimes dramatically pronounced, sinking of various areas of the town. On the western edge of the town is the Kalkberg, a small hill and former
gypsum
Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula . It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of plaster, blackboard or sidewalk chalk, and drywal ...
quarry.
Neighbouring towns and cities
There are several towns, cities, and urban areas around Lüneburg in all directions:
Town layout
Historical quarters
The motto ''Mons, Pons, Fons'' ("Hill, bridge, spring") characterised the development of the town from the 8th century as it coalesced from initially three, and later four, areas of settlement. These areas were the
refuge castle
A refuge castleCreighton, Oliver (2015). ''Early European Castles''. Bloomsbury. or refuge fort (german: Fliehburg, also ''Fluchtburg'', ''Volksburg'', ''Bauernburg'' or ''Vryburg'') is a castle-like defensive location, usually surrounded by ramp ...
on the — at that time considerably higher — Kalkberg, together with its adjoining settlement (the ''Marktviertel'' or "Market Quarter"), the village of Modestorpe between the bridge over the river Ilmenau and the large square, ''Am Sande'' (the ''Sandviertel'' or "Sand Quarter"), and the saline with its walled settlement for the work force (the ''Sülzviertel'' or "Salt Quarter"). Not until the 13th century was the river port settlement (the ''Wasserviertel'' or "Waterside Quarter") built between the market place and the Ilmenau. The resulting shape of the town thus formed did not change until its expansion in the late 19th century and it is still clearly visible today.
Lüneburg's six historic town gates were the ''Altenbrücker Tor'', the ''Bardowicker Tor'', the ''Rote Tor'', the ''Sülztor'', the ''Lüner Tor'' and the ''Neue Tor''.
''Stadtteile''
Lüneburg has the following '' Stadtteile'': Altstadt, Bockelsberg, Ebensberg, Goseburg-Zeltberg, Häcklingen, Kaltenmoor (the largest ''Stadtteil'', with around 8,000 inhabitants), Kreideberg, Lüne, Moorfeld, Mittelfeld, Neu Hagen, Ochtmissen, Oedeme, Rettmer, Rotes Feld, Schützenplatz, Weststadt and Wilschenbruch.
Jüttkenmoor, Klosterkamp, Bülows Kamp, In den Kämpen, Krähornsberg, Schäferfeld, Volgershall and Zeltberg are the names of individual blocks within a single ''Stadtteil''.
salt dome
A salt dome is a type of structural dome formed when salt (or other evaporite minerals) intrudes into overlying rocks in a process known as diapirism. Salt domes can have unique surface and subsurface structures, and they can be discovered usin ...
that was excavated by the saltworks and which extended to just below the surface of the ground. As a result of the increasing quantities of salt mined with improved technical equipment after 1830, the ground began to sink by several metres. This resulted in the so-called ''Senkungsgebiet'' or " subsidence area". The houses there and the local church (St. Lambert's) lost their stability and had to be demolished. Because of this subsidence, and because salt mining was increasingly unprofitable, the saltworks were finally closed in 1980. Today, only small amounts of brine are extracted for the health spa in the Lüneburg Thermal Salt Baths (the ''Salztherme Lüneburg'' or ''SaLü''). One side of the saltworks now houses a supermarket, while the other is the German Salt Museum.
The subsidence has been monitored at about 240 stations since 1946 every two years. The land has not quite stopped subsiding yet, but it is stable enough that new construction has taken place on it, and several historic buildings which had previously been damaged or demolished have been restored. The subsidence can still be clearly seen even today. Those who walk from ''Am Sande'' to the end of the ''Grapengießerstraße'' can clearly sense the degree of subsidence for themselves: the hollow in front of them was formerly at the same level as the ''Grapengießerstraße''. This depression extends as far as the ''Lambertiplatz'' square.
In the ''Frommestraße'', another sign of earth movements caused by salt mining may be seen: the ''Tor zur Unterwelt'' ("Door to the Underworld"), where two cast iron doors have been pushed on top of one another.
Near the church St. Michaelis, other consequences of the subsidence can be seen in its sloping columns and the west wing of the nave. Current subsidence movements can be seen in the road known as ''Ochtmisser Kirchsteig''.
Demographics
Lüneburg already had about 14,000 inhabitants in the
Late Middle Ages
The Late Middle Ages or Late Medieval Period was the period of European history lasting from AD 1300 to 1500. The Late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period (and in much of Europe, the Renai ...
and beginning of the
Modern Period
The term modern period or modern era (sometimes also called modern history or modern times) is the period of history that succeeds the Middle Ages (which ended approximately 1500 AD). This terminology is a historical periodization that is applie ...
and was one of the largest 'cities' of its time, but its population shrank with the economic downturn to just 9,400 in 1757; then rose again to 10,400 in 1813. With the onset of industrialisation in the 19th century, population growth accelerated. If 13,000 were living in the town in 1855, by 1939 there were as many as 35,000. Shortly after the Second World War, refugees and displaced persons from Germany's eastern territories brought an increase in population within just a few months of around 18,000 people so that the total number in December 1945 was 53,000. In 2003 the 70,000 level was exceeded for the first time.
The town of Lüneburg, its eponymous district and the neighbouring district of Harburg belong to the few regions in Germany that have experienced such a massive growth. The reasons for this include the growth of areas around the Hamburg Metropolitan Region and the consequent shift of people to those areas. The Lower Saxon State Office for Statistics has forecast that the town of Lüneburg will have a population of 89,484 by the year 2021. More realistic estimates, however, put the future size Lüneburg at between 75,000 and 79,000 in that time frame.
On 31 December 2008, according to the Statistics Office, the official census for Lüneburg recorded 72,492 people (those who had their main residence in the town and after adjustments with other states offices) – the highest number in its history. Currently Lüneburg is the eleventh largest centre of population in Lower Saxony. In addition Lüneburg has particularly close relations with its adjacent municipalities which are also growing and with which it is forming an agglomeration. The town, together with the nearby villages of Adendorf, Bardowick,
Deutsch Evern
Deutsch Evern is a municipality in the district of Lüneburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Rus ...
Wendisch Evern
Wendisch Evern is a municipality in the district of Lüneburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany.
Recent history (Second World War)
On 4 May 1945 on the ''Timeloberg'' hill at the edge of Deutsch Evern a German delegation under the command of Hans-Geo ...
, has a total population of about 103,000 and, on that basis, would qualify as a city (in Germany cities or ''Großstädte'' are defined as settlements with a population of over 100,000). The town council has the plan to extend the population by adding these villages to the town area.
The following overview shows the population figures based on the situation at the time. Up to 1813 they were mostly estimates; thereafter based on
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...
es (*) or official projections by the State Office of Statistics. From 1871 the figures were based on those 'present in the town', from 1925 on those 'living in the town' and since 1987 on the 'population who have their main residence in the town'. Before 1871 the numbers were based on inconsistent survey methods.
Economy
At one time Lüneburg had over 80 breweries. The ''Lüneburger Kronen Brewery of 1485'' in ''Heiligengeiststraße'' brewed beers such as ''Lüneburger Kronen-Pilsener'' and ''Moravia Pilsener'' that were very well known in North Germany. These beers are brewed today by the
Holsten Brewery
Holsten Brewery (Holsten-Brauerei AG) is a brewing company founded in 1879 in what is now Hamburg's Altona-Nord quarter. The group now has seven breweries in Germany. Its nationally distributed premium brand is the pale lager ''Holsten Pilsen ...
in Hamburg, although the original yeast stock (''Hefestämme'') was destroyed when the Kronen Brewery was taken over. Only the original ''Lüneburger Pilsener'' is still produced as before, although it is now made by the Holsten Brewery and only sold on tap. Today there are just two small inn breweries left in Lüneburg. In the Nolte Inn Brewery (''Gasthausbrauerei Nolte'') some distance from the centre on the ''Dahlenburger Landstraße'' and in the ''Brau- und Tafelhaus Mälzer'' in ''Heiligengeiststraße'' the tradition of Lüneburger breweries lives on.
Recently Lüneburg has increasingly developed into a venue for tourists. Nevertheless, medium-sized and small businesses still play a major role in Lüneburg's economy. The ''
University of Lüneburg
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...
'' has also generated changes which, together with its student population, have stimulated the economy of the region.
Important local firms
Industry and trade
Many small and medium-sized businesses are based in Lüneburg. They include the fashion company ''Roy Robson'', ''DeVauGe Gesundkostwerk'' one of the largest German manufacturers of
vegetarian
Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter.
Vegetariani ...
food and the dairy, which today is part of ''Hochwald Nahrungsmittel-Werke'' and makes products, ''e.g.'', yoghurt, under the ''Lünebest'' label. (The knitware firm ''Lucia'', once the biggest employer in the town, went bankrupt in 2008.) In the industrial field there are large local firms like the car interior manufacturers, ''
Johnson Controls
Johnson Controls International is an American
Irish-domiciled multinational conglomerate headquartered in Cork, Ireland, that produces fire, HVAC, and security equipment for buildings. As of mid-2019, it employed 105,000 people in around 2,00 ...
'', ''H. B. Fuller'', ''Impreglon'' and the electronics company of ''Sieb & Meyer''. Also based in Lüneburg is the ''von Stern'schen Druckerei'', founded in 1614, the oldest printing firm still in family ownership in the world. '' Werum IT Solutions'' is the largest
information technology
Information technology (IT) is the use of computers to create, process, store, retrieve, and exchange all kinds of Data (computing), data . and information. IT forms part of information and communications technology (ICT). An information te ...
firm based in the town.
Tourism, new technologies and the service sector
The town nursery has created a spa park for tourists and visitors with a 'graduation works', ponds, numerous herbaceous borders and herb gardens which is immediately next to the health spa centre (''Kurzentrum''). The spa centre has wave pools, salt baths, wellness and sauna facilities, etc. (''Salztherme Lüneburg''); in addition there is a brine therapy centre which is used for those with skin and respiratory problems. Lüneburg is not an official health spa like e. g. the neighbouring town of Bad Bevensen, but does have special medicinal resources like, for example, Lüneburg brine (containing about 26% salt), which is used especially to relieve those suffering from
psoriasis
Psoriasis is a long-lasting, noncontagious autoimmune disease characterized by raised areas of abnormal skin. These areas are red, pink, or purple, dry, itchy, and scaly. Psoriasis varies in severity from small, localized patches to complete ...
. In addition, since 1978, the headquarters of the conference hotel group ''Seminaris'' has been based here. Among firms in the technology and service sectors is ''Gründungszentrum e-novum'', which supports new venture firms.
Governance
The town of Lüneburg is part of 'State Constituency 49 Lüneburg' and 'Federal Constituency No. 38 Lüchow-Dannenberg – Lüneburg'.''Landtagswahlkreise ab 16. Wahlperiode. Wahlkreiseinteilung für die Wahl zum Niedersächsischen Landtag.'' Anlage zu § 10 Abs. 1 NLWG, p. 4. PDF ; 87 KB)''Beschreibung der Wahlkreise.'' Anlage zu § 2 Abs. 2 Bundeswahlgesetz. In: ''Achtzehntes Gesetz zur Änderung des Bundeswahlgesetzes.'' Anlage zu Artikel 1. Bonn 18. März 2008, S. 325. PDF ; 200 KB)
Council
Local election results in 2016 for the town council of Lüneburg:
Mayor
Before the Second World War the lord mayor (''Oberbürgermeister'') was the full-time head of the town's administration. On the introduction of the North German council constitution by the British occupation forces power was separated: the voluntary lord mayor and chairman of the town body was the political representative of the town who, like all the members of the town council was elected by the people, whilst the administration was headed up by a full-time chief municipal director, who was elected by the town council. Since 1996, as a result of the reform of the local constitution, both functions (again) have been combined in the post of a full-time lord mayor, who is now directly elected by the townsfolk. In addition to the lord mayor there are other mayors (elected by the council) who support and represent the lord mayor in his civic duties.
* 1945–1946: Werner Bockelmann, SPD
* 1946–1949: Ernst Braune, SPD
* 1949–1951: Paul Müller, DP
* 1951–1952: Erich Dieckmann, DP
* 1952–1954: Peter Gravenhorst, DP
* 1954–1955: Reinhold Kreitmeyer, FDP
* 1955–1958: Peter Gravenhorst, DP
* 1958–1961: Wilhelm Hilmer, SPD
* 1961–1964: Erich Drenckhahn, CDU
* 1964–1978: Alfred Trebchen, SPD
* 1978–1981: Heinz Schlawatzky, SPD
* 1981–1987: Horst Nickel, CDU
* 1987–1991: Jens Schreiber, CDU
* 1991-2021: Ulrich Mädge, SPD
* since 2021: Claudia Kalisch, Bündnis 90/Die Grünen
The current mayors are: ''Eduard Kolle'' (
SPD
The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany.
Saskia Esken has been t ...
), ''Ulrich Löb'' (
Bündnis 90/Die Grünen
Alliance 90/The Greens (german: Bündnis 90/Die Grünen, ), often simply referred to as the Greens ( ), is a green political party in Germany. It was formed in 1993 as the merger of The Greens (formed in West Germany in 1980) and Alliance 90 (for ...
Scunthorpe
Scunthorpe () is an industrial town and unparished area in the unitary authority of North Lincolnshire in Lincolnshire, England of which it is the main administrative centre. Scunthorpe had an estimated total population of 82,334 in 2016. A ...
, England, UK (1960)
*
Naruto
''Naruto'' is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto. It tells the story of Naruto Uzumaki, a young ninja who seeks recognition from his peers and dreams of becoming the Hokage, the leader of his village. T ...
, Japan (1974)
*
Clamart
Clamart () is a commune in the southwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris.
The town is divided into two parts, separated by a forest: ''bas Clamart'', the historical centre, and ''petit Clamart'' with urbaniz ...
, France (1975)
*
Ivrea
Ivrea (; pms, Ivrèja ; ; lat, Eporedia) is a town and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Piedmont region of northwestern Italy. Situated on the road leading to the Aosta Valley (part of the medieval Via Francigena), it strad ...
, Italy (1988)
* Viborg, Denmark (1992)
* Tartu, Estonia (1993)
In addition Lüneburg has friendly relations with German towns Kulmbach and Köthen.
Arts and culture
Theatre
The Lüneburg Theatre (''Theater Lüneburg'') is one of the smallest, three-stage theatres in Germany. Not only are plays of all styles put on, but also operas, operettas, musicals and ballets. Although the financial means of the Lüneburg Theatre are comparatively limited, it is no 'provincial stage' and can hold its ground successfully against the many theatres in nearby Hamburg. In addition Lüneburg has a large number of amateur theatres, that also produce regular performances. Such a variety in amateur drama is otherwise only found in large cities like Hamburg or Hanover.
Museums
The historic town is itself a kind of open-air museum (a "Rothenburg of the North"), but there are numerous museums and historic churches ( St. Michaelis, St. Johannis, St. Nicolai. The most important museums are the German Salt Museum in the premises of the old Lüneburg Saltworks, in which the significance of salt in the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
and the extraction of salt is portrayed, and the Museum of the Principality of Lüneburg, in which the town's history and the history of the surrounding area is captured. Also worthy of mention are the
East Prussian Regional Museum
The East Prussian Regional Museum () in Lüneburg, Lower Saxony in Germany, was established 1987 on the basis of the East Prussian Hunting Museum () created by forester Hans Loeffke. It documents and commemorates the history, art and culture, but ...
, the nearby North German Brewery Museum with a gallery of valuable drinking vessels (over 1200 years), the 1485 Kronen Brewery of Lüneburg and the Lüneburg Nature Museum on the edge of the subsidence zone.
Town architecture
Lüneburg is one of the few towns in North Germany whose historic centre was not destroyed during the Second World War. Nevertheless, the general neglect of its buildings until the 1960s and the damage in the area of subsidence has led to gaps in the historic architecture of the town. In addition the demolition of ramshackle buildings in the 1950s and 1960s and the construction of shops with a contemporary design broke up the historic appearance of many rows of houses. Since the beginning of the 1970s, however, Lüneburg has been carefully restored. The restoration process revealed hitherto hidden ceiling frescos,
medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
pottery workshops and many historic soakaways (''Sickergruben'') from which a considerably better picture of life in the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
resulted.
In the Lüneburg ''Stadtteil'' of Kaltenmoor is St. Stephen's (''St. Stephanus''), the oldest ecumenical building in the town, with Protestant and Catholic churches under one roof. Other buildings worthy of mention are the three remaining town churches: St. Johannis am Sande (completed 1370), St. Michaelis where
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...
was a
choirboy
A choirboy is a boy member of a choir, also known as a treble.
As a derisive slang term, it refers to a do-gooder or someone who is morally upright, in the same sense that "Boy Scout" (also derisively) refers to someone who is considered honora ...
from 1700 to 1702, and the relatively 'modern' St. Nicolai which was built in 1407. The Church of St. Lambertus (''St. Lamberti'') was demolished in 1850 due to its dilapidated state; it stood in the subsidence area.
In addition there are the ''Glockenhaus'' ("Bell House", an old
armoury
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are most ...
) on the ''Glockenhof'', the ''Rathsapotheke'' (town chemist's), dating to 1598, in ''Große Bäckerstraße'' and the historic town hall or ''Rathaus'' with its famous town council meeting room, the ''Gerichtslaube''. The Luna Fountain (''Lunabrunnen'') in front of the town hall is graced by a bronze statue of the moon goddess with bow and arrow; the original dating to 1532 was stolen in 1970 and melted down; the present statue is a replica dating to 1972. In the area of the old port can still be seen the Baroque façade of the "Old Store" (''Altes Kaufhaus''), most of the rest of which was burned down and had to be replaced by one that was more suitable for a fire station. The port is also home to the "Old Crane" (''Alter Kran''), a wooden, medieval riverside crane that is still in working order today and which has two large wheels inside that enable the crane cable to be raised and lowered. The fire station moved in autumn 2007 to a new building on the edge of the town centre; the ''Altes Kaufhaus'' has since (2009) been converted into a hotel.
On the southern edge of the town centre is the
Lüneburg Water Tower
Lüneburg Water Tower (german: Wasserturm Lüneburg) is a water tower in the southeastern part of the Lüneburg old town in Lower Saxony, Germany, built by the architect Franz Krüger (architect), Franz Krüger (1873–1936), from designs by Richa ...
which now acts as an observation tower.
In front of the gates of the old town is
Lüne Abbey
Lüne Abbey (german: link=yes, Kloster Lüne) is a former Benedictine nunnery in the Lower Saxon town of Lüneburg. Today it is a Protestant Lutheran convent and is managed by the Klosterkammer Hannover (Hanover Monastic Chamber). The current a ...
, a former Benedictine nunnery. It was built in 1172 and has been restored.
About west of Lüneburg, in the villages of Reppenstedt and Vögelsen, is a well-preserved section of the historic
Lüneburg Landwehr
Lüneburg (officially the ''Hanseatic City of Lüneburg'', German: ''Hansestadt Lüneburg'', , Low German ''Lümborg'', Latin ''Luneburgum'' or ''Lunaburgum'', Old High German ''Luneburc'', Old Saxon ''Hliuni'', Polabian language, Polabian ''Gla ...
, a boundary embankment and ditch, that can be walked.
Regular events
* April: "Lüneburg Blossoms" (''Lüneburg blüht auf'') and spring market on the Sülzwiesen ("salt meadows")
* June: Town festival
* June: "Lunatic Festival": charity music festival on the university campus
* July: ''Frommestraße'' Festival
* August: Heath Flower Festival (''Heideblütenfest'') (in Amelinghausen)
* September:
Oktoberfest
The Oktoberfest (; bar, Wiesn, Oktobafest) is the world's largest Volksfest, featuring a beer festival and a travelling carnival. It is held annually in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. It is a 16- to 18-day folk festival running from mid- or ...
on the Sülzwiesen.
* Early October: Master Salter Days (''Sülfmeistertage'')
* Advent: Historic Christmas Market around St. Michael's church and Christmas Market with Fairy Tale Mile (''Märchenmeile'') and gable lights on the market place in front of the town hall, ''Grapengießerstraße'' and the square of ''Am Sande''.
In 2012, the festival ''Hansetage'' took place in Lüneburg. The ''Hansetage'' is an event which takes place in a different town every year. Nearly 300,000 visitors were attracted by this event.
Sports
Association football
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
is the most popular sport in Lüneburg, as in Germany in general; ice-hockey and basketball are also popular. Most teams compete in the ''Regionalliga'', which is highly ranked within Germany.
* Football: Lüneburger SK Hansa (formed by merging
Lüneburger SK
Lüneburger Sport-Klub von 1901 e. V. was one of the oldest and most successful football clubs from the Lüneburg area until it merged with Lüneburger SV in 2008 to become Lüneburger SK Hansa.
History
The club was established on 1 April 1901 ...
Bundesliga
The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footba ...
Hamburger Verkehrsverbund
The Hamburger Verkehrsverbund (HVV) ( en, "Hamburg Transport Association") is a transport association coordinating public transport in and around Hamburg, Germany. Its main objectives are to provide a unified fare system, requiring only a single ...
. There are 11 bus lines in the urban area of Lüneburg. As well as Lüneburg station, there is a smaller one located in Bardowick. The nearest cities within easy reach by rail are
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
, utc_offset1 = +1
, timezone1_DST = Central (CEST)
, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
,
Hanover
Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...
,
Lübeck
Lübeck (; Low German also ), officially the Hanseatic City of Lübeck (german: Hansestadt Lübeck), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 217,000 inhabitants, Lübeck is the second-largest city on the German Baltic coast and in the state ...
,
Lauenburg
Lauenburg (), or Lauenburg an der Elbe ( en, Lauenberg on the Elbe), is a town in the state of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is situated on the northern bank of the river Elbe, east of Hamburg. It is the southernmost town of Schleswig-Holstein ...
,
Uelzen
Uelzen (; officially the ''Hanseatic Town of Uelzen'', German: ''Hansestadt Uelzen'', , Low German ''Ülz’n'') is a town in northeast Lower Saxony, Germany, and capital of the county of Uelzen. It is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, a ...
Leuphana Universität Lüneburg
Leuphana (Λευφάνα) is a city name, first mentioned by Ptolemy in the year 150 in the Atlas Geographia.
Ptolemy mentioned in Geographica 2, that ten cities unified by their not being under Roman occupation, created a settlement named Leupha ...
(previously known only as the ''Universität Lüneburg''). The university has more than 7,000 students.
There are 14 high schools in the town: 5 Gymnasien, 4
Realschule
''Realschule'' () is a type of secondary school in Germany, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It has also existed in Croatia (''realna gimnazija''), the Austrian Empire, the German Empire, Denmark and Norway (''realskole''), Sweden (''realskola''), ...
n, and 5
Hauptschule
A ''Hauptschule'' (, "general school") is a secondary school in Germany, starting after four years of elementary schooling (''Grundschule''), which offers Lower Secondary Education (Level 2) according to the International Standard Classification ...
n; there is currently 1
Gesamtschule
A comprehensive school typically describes a secondary school for pupils aged approximately 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is res ...
, the "IGS Lüneburg" founded in 2009. In addition, there are 6 vocational schools, 3 special schools, 3 private schools, and 12 elementary schools.
Notable people
Until 1700
* Lucas Bacmeister (1530–1608), Lutheran Theologian and church music composer
* Jacob Kroger (c. 1550–1594), court goldsmith to
Anne of Denmark
Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland from their marriage on 20 August 1589 and Queen of England and Ireland from the union of the Scottish and Eng ...
* Joannes Burmeister (1576–1638), Neo-Latin poet laureate of the German Baroque period
*
Johann von Götzen
Johann von Götzen (1599 – 5 March 1645) was a Lüneburg nobleman and Generalfeldmarschall who fought during the Thirty Years' War. He was married to Elisabeth (d. 1631) of the Falke family, with whom he had two sons: Johann Sigismund, Count o ...
(1599–1645), nobleman and Generalfeldmarschall
* Johann Georg Ebeling (1637–1676), editor and composer of hymns by
Paul Gerhardt
Paul Gerhardt (12 March 1607 – 27 May 1676) was a German theologian, Lutheran minister and hymnodist.
Biography
Gerhardt was born into a middle-class family at Gräfenhainichen, a small town between Halle and Wittenberg. His father died in ...
*
Georg Böhm
Georg Böhm (2 September 1661 – 18 May 1733) was a German Baroque organist and composer. He is notable for his development of the chorale partita and for his influence on the young J. S. Bach.
Life
Böhm was born in 1661 in Hohenkirchen. H ...
(1661–1733), organist of the
St. John's Church, Lüneburg
The Church of John the Baptist (Germ. ''St. Johannis'' or ''Johanniskirche'') is the oldest Lutheran church in Lüneburg, Germany. It is located in the city centre. Lüneburg is on the European Route of Brick Gothic and the church is an example o ...
in 1698–1733
*
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...
Jean Armand de Lestocq
Count Jean Armand de L'Estocq (German: ''Johann Hermann Lestocq'', Russian: ''Иван Иванович Лесток''; 29 April 1692, in Lüneburg – 12 June 1767, in Saint Petersburg) was a French adventurer who wielded immense influence on the ...
(1692–1767), French adventurer, influenced the foreign policy of Russia during the early reign of
Elizabeth of Russia
Elizabeth Petrovna (russian: Елизаве́та (Елисаве́та) Петро́вна) (), also known as Yelisaveta or Elizaveta, reigned as Empress of Russia from 1741 until her death in 1762. She remains one of the most popular List of ...
1701–1800
*
Johann Abraham Peter Schulz
Johann Abraham Peter Schulz (31 March 1747, Lüneburg – 10 June 1800, Schwedt) was a German musician. He is best known as the composer of the melody for Matthias Claudius's poems "Der Mond ist aufgegangen" and " Wir pflügen und wir streuen", ...
(1747–1800), composer and conductor
*
Georg Freytag
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Freytag (19 September 1788 – 16 November 1861) was a German philologist.
Background
Freytag was born in Lüneburg. He studied philology and theology at the University of Göttingen, where from 1811 to 1813 he worke ...
(1788–1861), philologist
*
Johanna Stegen
Johanna Stegen, (11 January 1793, Lüneburg - 12 January 1842, Berlin) was a German heroine of the Napoleonic Wars.
On 2 April 1813, German troops (made up of the fusiliers and volunteer Jägers of the 1st Pommerschen infantry regiment) clas ...
(1793–1842), heroine of the
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
, she rushed ammunition to Prussian troop in her apron, thus becoming "The Heroine of Lüneburg"
* Heinrich Heine (1797–1856), poet, journalist and essayist, visited his parents in the town several times and is believed to have composed his poem ''
Lorelei
The Lorelei ( ; ), spelled Loreley in German, is a , steep slate rock on the right bank of the River Rhine in the Rhine Gorge (or Middle Rhine) at Sankt Goarshausen in Germany, part of the Upper Middle Rhine Valley UNESCO World Heritage Site. Th ...
'' here
1801–1900
*
Otto Volger
Georg Heinrich Otto Volger (30 January 1822 – 18 October 1897) was a German geologist from Lüneburg. He was the founder and first chairman of the Freies Deutsches Hochstift, which he led from 1859 to 1882.
Life
Volger was born to , a teac ...
(1822–1897), geologist
* Rudolf von Bennigsen (1824–1902), politician,
* August Ritter (1826–1908), civil engineer, author of method to calculate for arches, bridges and roofs
* Bernhard Riemann (1826–1866), mathematician, contributed to analysis, number theory and differential geometry; studied for his Abitur at the Johanneum Lüneburg
*
Gustav Wallis
Gustav Wallis (1 May 1830 – 20 June 1878) was a German plant collector who introduced over 1,000 plant species to Europe, many of which were named after him. He was particularly focused on orchid hunting during the Victorian orchid craze, but ...
(1830–1878),
plant collector
Plant collecting is the acquisition of plant specimens for the purposes of research, cultivation, or as a hobby. Plant specimens may be kept alive, but are more commonly dried and pressed to preserve the quality of the specimen. Plant collecting i ...
, who introduced over 1,000 plant species to Europe
*
Wilhelm Junghans
Wilhelm Junghans (3 May 1834 – 27 January 1865) was a German historian who was a native of Lüneburg.
He studied under Friedrich Wilhelm Ritschl (1806-1876) at the University of Bonn, and with Georg Waitz (1813-1886) at the University of Gött ...
(1834–1865), historian
* Ernst Ehlers (1835–1925), zoologist
* Charles Schroeter (1837–1921), United States Army soldier who received the
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valo ...
for his actions during the
American Indian Wars
The American Indian Wars, also known as the American Frontier Wars, and the Indian Wars, were fought by European governments and colonists in North America, and later by the United States and Canadian governments and American and Canadian settle ...
*
Louis Boehmer
Louis Boehmer (30 May 1843 - 29 July 1896) was an ethnic Germans, German-American agronomist and government advisor in Meiji period Japan who later worked as a success entrepreneur in Yokohama.
Biography
Louis Boehmer was born in Lüneburg in Low ...
(1843–1896), German-American
agronomist
An agriculturist, agriculturalist, agrologist, or agronomist (abbreviated as agr.), is a professional in the science, practice, and management of agriculture and agribusiness. It is a regulated profession in Canada, India, the Philippines, the ...
and government advisor in
Meiji period
The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912.
The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...
Japan
*
Paul von Hindenburg
Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg (; abbreviated ; 2 October 1847 – 2 August 1934) was a German field marshal and statesman who led the Imperial German Army during World War I and later became President of Germany fr ...
(1847–1934), general and statesman, honorary citizen of Lüneburg in 1918 for his service in the World War ILÜNEBURG.DE retrieved 5 October 2017
* Hans Winderstein (1856–1925), conductor and composer
* Margarete Boie (1880–1946), author, lived and died there
* Paul von Osterroht (1887–1917), World War I fighter pilot
* Fritz Heinemann (1889–1970), philosopher
Since 1901
*
Hermann Alexander Moeck Hermann Alexander Moeck (16 September 1922 – 9 July 2010) was a German musicologist and publisher.
Life
Born in Lüneburg, after attending Gymnasium in Celle, Moeck obtained his university entrance qualification in 1942, served in the Kriegsma ...
(1922–2010), musicologist and publisher
*
Niklas Luhmann
Niklas Luhmann (; ; December 8, 1927 – November 6, 1998) was a German sociologist, philosopher of social science, and a prominent thinker in systems theory.
Biography
Luhmann was born in Lüneburg, Free State of Prussia, where his father's fa ...
(1927–1998), sociologist and philosopher of social science
*
Detlev Ganten
Detlev Ganten (born 1941) is a specialist in pharmacology and molecular medicine and is one of the leading scientists in the field of hypertension. He founded the World Health Summit in 2009. He was Chairman of the Foundation Board of the Chari ...
(born 1941), scientist
* Susanne Linke (born 1944), dancer and choreographer, innovator of German
Tanztheater
The German Tanztheater ("dance theatre") grew out of German Expressionist dance in Weimar Germany and 1920s Vienna. The term first appears around 1927 to identify a particular style of dance emerging from within the new forms of 'expressionist d ...
*
Annegret Soltau
Annegret Soltau (born 16 January 1946) is a German visual artist, born in Lüneburg, Germany.
Her work marks a fundamental reference point in the art of the 1970s and 1980s.
Photomontages of her own body and face sewn over or collaged with black ...
(born 1946), visual artist
* Mike Mareen (born 1949), musician and disco artist, grew up in Lüneburg
*
Detlef Franke
Detlef Franke (November 24, 1952 in Lüneburg – September 2, 2007) was a German Egyptologist specialist of the Middle Kingdom of Egypt.
Biography
Detlef Franke received his doctorate at the University of Hamburg in 1983 with his thesis "''Al ...
(1952–2007),
Egyptologist
Egyptology (from ''Egypt'' and Greek , '' -logia''; ar, علم المصريات) is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, architecture and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religiou ...
DAIM
DAIM (, like the coin ''dime''; born 1971 as Mirko Reisser) is a German graffiti artist who lives and works in Hamburg. He is particularly known for his large-size, 3D-style graffiti works. This has become known as his trademark. For his technica ...
Ralf Sievers
Ralf Sievers (born 30 October 1961) is a German former professional association football, footballer who played as a midfielder, most notably with Eintracht Frankfurt.
Career
Like his brother Jörg Sievers, Jörg he began his career at Lower Sax ...
(born 1961), footballer
*
Hannelore Brenner
Hannelore Brenner (born 21 June 1963) is a German Paralympian dressage equestrian athlete.
Life
Brenner was born in Lüneburg
Lüneburg (officially the ''Hanseatic City of Lüneburg'', German: ''Hansestadt Lüneburg'', , Low German ''Lümbo ...
(born 1963), paralympian dressage equestrian athlete
*
Bahne Rabe
Bahne Rabe (7 August 1963 – 5 August 2001) was a competition rower from West Germany. He won two Olympic medals in the coxed eight event: a gold in 1988 and a bronze in 1992, and in 1991 he won a world title in the coxed fours.
After retirin ...
Katarina Waters
Katarina Leigh Waters (born 10 November 1980) is a German-born English American professional wrestler and actress. She is best known for her time with Impact Wrestling under the ring names Katarina or Winter and for her time in WWE under the rin ...
(born 1980), English professional wrestler
* Anja Noske (born 1986), rower, twice world champion
*
Sören Ludolph
Sören Ludolph (born 25 February 1988, in Lüneburg) is a German middle-distance runner. At the 2012 Summer Olympics, he competed in the 800 metres
The 800 metres, or meters ( US spelling), is a common track running event. It is the shortest ...
John Franklin III
John Franklin III (born September 21, 1994) is a German-born American football wide receiver for the Memphis Showboats of the United States Football League (USFL). He played college football for Florida State, Auburn and Florida Atlantic. He ...
(born 1994), American football player
Gallery
File:AmSande.jpg, Am Sande
File:Lüneburg-amsande06.jpg, Am Sande
File:Lüneburger Heide 109.jpg, The nearby Lüneburg Heath is an anthropogenic heath
Principality of Lüneburg
The Principality of Lüneburg (later also referred to as Celle) was a territorial division of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg within the Holy Roman Empire, immediately subordinate to the emperor. It existed from 1269 until 1705 and its territory ...
List of the rulers of Lüneburg
The Principality of Lüneburg (german: Fürstentum Lüneburg), later also called ''Celle'', was a territory within the Holy Roman Empire that existed from 1269 to 1705, whose land covered part of the modern-day German state of Lower Saxony. The ...