Lübeck – Queen of the Hanseatic League
June 13, 2015
Lübeck’s old town, comprising around 1,800 listed buildings and historic alleyways, was awarded UNESCO World Cultural Heritage status in 1987. The main landmark, the Holstentor, is a fortified gate. In medieval times the city built a system of barriers to protect the Hanseatic League capital and the rich merchants who lived there. The history of this major trading power is celebrated in a museum, as is the city’s most famous son: Nobel Prize-winning writer Thomas Mann. The latter museum, located in the former home of the Mann family, allows visitors to revisit the story behind his semi-autobiographical novel “Buddenbrooks". And if all that culture-vulturing makes you hungry, you can also pop by Niederegger – world-famous producer of marzipan.