Hamburg (German: [ˈhambʊʁk] i, locally also [ˈhambʊɪ̯ç] i; Low Saxon: Hamborg [ˈhambɔːç] i),[citation needed] officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (German: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg; Low Saxon: Friee un Hansestadt Hamborg),[8] is the second-largest city in Germany after Berlin, as well as the overall 8th-largest city and largest non-capital city within the European Union with a population of over 1.9 million.[9] Hamburg's urban area has a population of around 2.5 million[1] and is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, which has a population of over 5.1 million people in total. At the southern tip of the Jutland Peninsula, Hamburg stands on the branching River Elbe at the head of a 110 km (68 mi) estuary down to the North Sea, on the mouth of the Alster and Bille. Hamburg is one of Germany's three city-states alongside Berlin and Bremen, and is surrounded by Schleswig-Holstein to the north and Lower Saxony to the south. The Port of Hamburg is Germany's largest and Europe's third-largest, after Rotterdam and Antwerp. The local dialect is a variant of Low Saxon.

The official name reflects Hamburg's history as a member of the medieval Hanseatic League and a free imperial city of the Holy Roman Empire. Before the 1871 unification of Germany, it was a fully sovereign city state, and before 1919 formed a civic republic headed constitutionally by a class of hereditary grand burghers or Hanseaten. Beset by disasters such as the Great Fire of Hamburg, North Sea flood of 1962 and military conflicts including World War II bombing raids, the city has managed to recover and emerge wealthier after each catastrophe.

Major regional broadcaster NDR, the printing and publishing firm Gruner + Jahr and the newspapers Der Spiegel and Die Zeit are based in the city. Hamburg is the seat of Germany's oldest stock exchange and the world's oldest merchant bank, Berenberg Bank. Media, commercial, logistical, and industrial firms with significant locations in the city include multinationals Airbus, Blohm + Voss, Aurubis, Beiersdorf, Lufthansa and Unilever. Hamburg is also a major European science, research, and education hub, with several universities and institutions. The city enjoys a very high quality of living, being ranked 19th in the 2019 Mercer Quality of Living Survey.[10]

Hamburg hosts specialists in world economics and international law, including consular and diplomatic missions as the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, the EU-LAC Foundation, and the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning, multipartite international political conferences and summits such as Europe and China and the G20. Former German chancellors Helmut Schmidt and Angela Merkel were both born in Hamburg. The former Mayor of Hamburg, Olaf Scholz, has been the current German chancellor since December 2021.

Hamburg is a major international and domestic tourist destination. The Speicherstadt and Kontorhausviertel were declared World Heritage Sites by UNESCO in 2015.[11] Hamburg's rivers and canals are crossed by around 2,500 bridges, making it the city with the highest number of bridges in Europe.[12] Aside from its rich architectural heritage, the city is also home to notable cultural venues such as the Elbphilharmonie and Laeiszhalle concert halls. It gave birth to movements like Hamburger Schule and paved the way for bands including the Beatles. Hamburg is also known for several theatres and a variety of musical shows. St. Pauli's Reeperbahn is among the best-known European entertainment districts.

History

Main article: History of Hamburg

For a chronological guide, see Timeline of Hamburg.

Origins

Claudius Ptolemy (2nd century AD) reported the first name for the vicinity as Treva.[13]

Etymology

The name Hamburg comes from the first permanent building on the site, a castle which the Emperor Charlemagne ordered constructed in AD 808. It rose on rocky terrain in a marsh between the River Alster and the River Elbe as a defence against Slavic incursion, and acquired the name Hammaburg, burg meaning castle or fort. The origin of the Hamma term remains uncertain,[14] but its location is estimated to be at the site of today's Domplatz.[15][16]

Medieval Hamburg

Hamburg in 1150

In 834, Hamburg was designated as the seat of a bishopric. The first bishop, Ansgar, became known as the Apostle of the North. Two years later, Hamburg was united with Bremen as the Bishopric of Hamburg-Bremen.[17]

Hamburg was destroyed and occupied several times. In 845, 600 Viking ships sailed up the River Elbe and destroyed Hamburg, at that time a town of around 500 inhabitants.[17] In 1030, King Mieszko II Lambert of Poland burned down the city. Valdemar II of Denmark raided and occupied Hamburg in 1201 and in 1214. The Black Death killed at least 60% of the population in 1350.[18] Hamburg experienced several great fires in the medieval period.[19]

In 1189, by imperial charter, Frederick I "Barbarossa" granted Hamburg the status of a Free Imperial City and tax-free access (or free-trade zone) up the Lower Elbe into the North Sea. In 1265, an allegedly forged letter was presented to or by the Rath of Hamburg.[20] This charter, along with Hamburg's proximity to the main trade routes of the North Sea and Baltic Sea, quickly made it a major port in Northern Europe. Its trade alliance with Lübeck in 1241 marks the origin and core of the powerful Hanseatic League of trading cities. On 8 November 1266, a contract between Henry III and Hamburg's traders allowed them to establish a hanse in London. This was the first time in history that the word hanse was used for the trading guild of the Hanseatic League.[21] In 1270, the solicitor of the senate of Hamburg, Jordan von Boitzenburg, wrote the first description of civil, criminal and procedural law for a city in Germany in the German language, the Ordeelbook (Ordeel: sentence).[22] On 10 August 1410, civil unrest forced a compromise (German: Rezeß, literally meaning: withdrawal). This is considered the first constitution of Hamburg.[23]

In 1356, the Matthiae-Mahl feast dinner for Hanseatic League cities was celebrated for the first time on 25 February, the first day of spring in medieval times. It continues today as the world's oldest ceremonial meal.[24]

Early modern period

Hamburg, c. 1600

In 1529, the city embraced Lutheranism, and it received Reformed refugees from the Netherlands and France.

When Jan van Valckenborgh introduced a second layer to the fortifications to protect against the Thirty Years' War in the seventeenth century, he extended Hamburg and created a "New Town" (Neustadt) whose street names still date from the grid system of roads he introduced.[25]

Upon the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, the Free Imperial City of Hamburg was not incorporated into a larger administrative area while retaining special privileges (mediatised), but became a sovereign state with the official title of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg. Hamburg was briefly annexed by Napoleon I to the First French Empire (1804–1814/1815). Russian forces under General Bennigsen finally freed the city in 1814. Hamburg re-assumed its pre-1811 status as a city-state in 1814. The Vienna Congress of 1815 confirmed Hamburg's independence and it became one of 39 sovereign states of the German Confederation (1815–1866).

In 1842, about a quarter of the inner city was destroyed in the "Great Fire". The fire started on the night of 4 May and was not extinguished until 8 May. It destroyed three churches, the town hall, and many other buildings, killing 51 people and leaving an estimated 20,000 homeless. Reconstruction took more than 40 years.

Hamburg in 1811

After periodic political unrest, particularly in 1848, Hamburg adopted in 1860 a semidemocratic constitution that provided for the election of the Senate, the governing body of the city-state, by adult taxpaying males. Other innovations included the separation of powers, the separation of Church and State, freedom of the press, of assembly and association. Hamburg became a member of the North German Confederation (1866–1871) and of the German Empire (1871–1918), and maintained its self-ruling status during the Weimar Republic (1919–1933). Hamburg acceded to the German Customs Union or Zollverein in 1888, the last (along with Bremen) of the German states to join. The city experienced its fastest growth during the second half of the 19th century when its population more than quadrupled to 800,000 as the growth of the city's Atlantic trade helped make it Europe's second-largest port.[26] The Hamburg-America Line, with Albert Ballin as its director, became the world's largest transatlantic shipping company around the start of the 20th century. Shipping companies sailing to South America, Africa, India and East Asia were based in the city. Hamburg was the departure port for many Germans and Eastern Europeans to emigrate to the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Trading communities from all over the world established themselves there.

A major outbreak of cholera in 1892 was badly handled by the city government, which retained an unusual degree of independence for a German city. About 8,600 died in the largest German epidemic of the late 19th century, and the last major cholera epidemic in a major city of the Western world.

Second World War

Hamburg Eilbek after the 1943 bombing

Hamburg was a Gau within the administrative division of Nazi Germany from 1934 until 1945. During the Second World War, the Allied bombing of Hamburg devastated much of the city and the harbour. On 23 July 1943, the Royal Air Force and United States Army Air Force firebombing created a firestorm which spread from the Hauptbahnhof (main railway station) and quickly moved south-east, completely destroying entire boroughs such as Hammerbrook, Billbrook and Hamm South. Thousands of people perished in these densely populated working class boroughs. The raids, codenamed Operation Gomorrah by the RAF, killed at least 42,600 civilians; the precise number is not known. About one million civilians were evacuated in the aftermath of the raids. While some of the boroughs destroyed were rebuilt as residential districts after the war, others such as Hammerbrook were entirely developed into office, retail and limited residential or industrial districts.

The Hamburg Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery is in the greater Ohlsdorf Cemetery in the north of Hamburg.

At least 42,900 people are thought to have perished[27] in the Neuengamme concentration camp (about 25 km (16 mi) outside the city in the marshlands), mostly from epidemics and in the destruction of Kriegsmarine vessels housing evacuees at the end of the war.

Systematic deportations of Jewish Germans and Gentile Germans of Jewish descent started on 18 October 1941. These were all directed to ghettos in Nazi-occupied Europe or to concentration camps. Most deported persons perished in the Holocaust. By the end of 1942, the Jüdischer Religionsverband in Hamburg was dissolved as an independent legal entity and its remaining assets and staff were assumed by the Reich Association of Jews in Germany (District Northwest). On 10 June 1943, the Reich Security Main Office dissolved the association by a decree.[28] The few remaining employees not somewhat protected by a mixed marriage were deported from Hamburg on 23 June to Theresienstadt, where most of them perished.

Post-war history

Container Terminal at the Port of Hamburg

The city was surrendered to British Forces on 3 May 1945, in the Battle of Hamburg,[29] three days after Adolf Hitler's death. After the Second World War, Hamburg formed part of the British Zone of Occupation; it became a state of what was then West Germany in 1949.

On 16 February 1962, a North Sea flood caused the Elbe to rise to an all-time high, inundating one-fifth of Hamburg and killing more than 300 people.

The inner German border – only 50 kilometres (30 mi) east of Hamburg – separated the city from most of its hinterland and reduced Hamburg's global trade. Since German reunification in 1990, and the accession of several Central European and Baltic countries into the European Union in 2004, the Port of Hamburg has restarted ambitions for regaining its position as the region's largest deep-sea port for container shipping and its major commercial and trading centre.

Geography

Hamburg is at a sheltered natural harbour on the southern fanning-out of the Jutland Peninsula, between Continental Europe to the south and Scandinavia to the north, with the North Sea to the west and the Baltic Sea to the northeast. It is on the River Elbe at its confluence with the Alster and Bille. The city centre is around the Binnenalster ("Inner Alster") and Außenalster ("Outer Alster"), both formed by damming the River Alster to create lakes. The islands of Neuwerk, Scharhörn, and Nigehörn, 100 kilometres (60 mi) away in the Hamburg Wadden Sea National Park, are also part of the city of Hamburg.[30]

The neighbourhoods of Neuenfelde, Cranz, Francop and Finkenwerder are part of the Altes Land (old land) region, the largest contiguous fruit-producing region in Central Europe. Neugraben-Fischbek has Hamburg's highest elevation, the Hasselbrack at 116.2 metres (381 ft) AMSL.[31] Hamburg borders the states of Schleswig-Holstein and Lower Saxony.

Climate

Hamburg has an oceanic climate (Köppen: Cfb), influenced by its proximity to the coast and maritime influences that originate over the Atlantic Ocean. The location in the north of Germany provides extremes greater than typical marine climates, but definitely in the category due to the prevailing westerlies.[32] Nearby wetlands enjoy a maritime temperate climate. The amount of snowfall has varied greatly in recent decades. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, heavy snowfall sometimes occurred,[33] the winters of recent years have been less cold, with snowfall just a few days per year.[34][35]

The warmest months are June, July, and August, with high temperatures of 20.1 to 22.5 °C (68.2 to 72.5 °F). The coldest are December, January, and February, with low temperatures of −0.3 to 1.0 °C (31.5 to 33.8 °F).[36]

Climate data for Hamburg-Fuhlsbuttel (Hamburg Airport), elevation: 15 m, 1981-2010 normals

Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year

Record high °C (°F) 14.4

(57.9) 17.2

(63.0) 23.0

(73.4) 29.7

(85.5) 33.5

(92.3) 34.6

(94.3) 40.1

(104.2) 37.3

(99.1) 32.3

(90.1) 26.1

(79.0) 20.2

(68.4) 15.7

(60.3) 40.1

(104.2)

Average high °C (°F) 3.5

(38.3) 4.4

(39.9) 8.0

(46.4) 12.3

(54.1) 17.5

(63.5) 19.9

(67.8) 22.1

(71.8) 22.2

(72.0) 17.9

(64.2) 13.0

(55.4) 7.5

(45.5) 4.6

(40.3) 13.2

(55.8)

Daily mean °C (°F) 1.0

(33.8) 1.6

(34.9) 4.6

(40.3) 7.8

(46.0) 12.5

(54.5) 15.2

(59.4) 17.4

(63.3) 17.4

(63.3) 13.7

(56.7) 9.5

(49.1) 4.9

(40.8) 2.3

(36.1) 9.0

(48.2)

Average low °C (°F) −1.4

(29.5) −1.2

(29.8) 1.1

(34.0) 3.3

(37.9) 7.4

(45.3) 10.5

(50.9) 12.7

(54.9) 12.5

(54.5) 9.6

(49.3) 6.0

(42.8) 2.4

(36.3) 0.0

(32.0) 6.2

(43.2)

Record low °C (°F) −22.8

(−9.0) −29.1

(−20.4) −15.3

(4.5) −7.1

(19.2) −5.0

(23.0) 0.6

(33.1) 3.4

(38.1) 1.8

(35.2) −1.2

(29.8) −7.1

(19.2) −15.4

(4.3) −18.5

(−1.3) −29.1

(−20.4)

Average rainfall mm (inches) 67.8

(2.67) 49.9

(1.96) 67.7

(2.67) 43.0

(1.69) 57.4

(2.26) 78.6

(3.09) 76.7

(3.02) 78.9

(3.11) 67.4

(2.65) 67.0

(2.64) 69.2

(2.72) 68.9

(2.71) 792.6

(31.20)

Average rainy days (≥ 1.0 mm) 12.1 9.2 11.3 8.9 9.6 11.3 11.4 10.2 10.8 10.5 11.7 12.4 129.4

Mean monthly sunshine hours 46.9 69.0 108.8 171.6 223.4 198.7 217.5 203.1 144.6 107.9 53.0 37.4 1,581.9

Average ultraviolet index 0 1 2 4 5 6 6 5 4 2 1 0 3

Source: WMO (UN),[36] DWD[37] and Weather Atlas[38]

View climate chart 1986-2016 or 1960-1990

Climate data for Hamburg-Fuhlsbuttel (Hamburg Airport), elevation: 15 m, 1961-1990 normals and extremes

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Hamburg

Hamburg population pyramid in 2022

Historical population

Year Pop. ±%

950 500 —    

1430 16,000 +3100.0%

1840 136,956 +756.0%

1900 705,738 +415.3%

1910 931,035 +31.9%

1920 1,026,989 +10.3%

1930 1,145,124 +11.5%

1940 1,725,500 +50.7%

1945 1,350,278 −21.7%

1950 1,605,606 +18.9%

1961 1,840,543 +14.6%

1970 1,793,640 −2.5%

1975 1,717,383 −4.3%

1980 1,645,095 −4.2%

1985 1,579,884 −4.0%

1990 1,652,363 +4.6%

2000 1,715,392 +3.8%

2010 1,786,448 +4.1%

2012 1,734,272 −2.9%

2013 1,746,342 +0.7%

2014 1,762,791 +0.9%

2015 1,787,408 +1.4%

2016 1,810,438 +1.3%

2018 1,841,179 +1.7%

2020 1,852,478 +0.6%

Population size may be affected by changes in administrative divisions.

Largest groups of foreign residents[40]

Nationality Population (31 December 2022)

 Turkey 44,280

 Ukraine 33,570

 Afghanistan 24,635

 Poland 23,310

 Syria 17,725

 Portugal 11,465

 Romania 10,510

 Iran 9,725

 Russia 9,375

 Bulgaria 8,830

 North Macedonia 7,770

 Italy 7,570

 Ghana 7,550

 Serbia 7,405

 Croatia 6,685

 India 6,420

 China 6,235

 Greece 6,095

 Spain 6,040

 Iraq 5,400

On 31 December 2016, there were 1,860,759 people registered as living in Hamburg in an area of 755.3 km2 (291.6 sq mi). The population density was 2,464/km2 (6,380/sq mi).[41] The metropolitan area of the Hamburg region (Hamburg Metropolitan Region) is home to 5,107,429 living on 196/km2 (510/sq mi).[42]

There were 915,319 women and 945,440 men in Hamburg. For every 1,000 females, there were 1,033 males. In 2015, there were 19,768 births in Hamburg (of which 38.3% were to unmarried women); 6422 marriages and 3190 divorces, and 17,565 deaths. In the city, the population was spread out, with 16.1% under the age of 18, and 18.3% were 65 years of age or older. 356 people in Hamburg were over the age of 100.[43]

According to the Statistical Office for Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein, the number of people with a migrant background is at 34% (631,246).[44] Immigrants come from 200 countries. 5,891 people have acquired German cititzenship in 2016.[45]

In 2016, there were 1,021,666 households, of which 17.8% had children under the age of 18; 54.4% of all households were made up of singles. 25.6% of all households were single parent households. The average household size was 1.8.[46]

Portuguese community

Hamburg has the largest Portuguese community in Germany with about 30,000 people with Portuguese diaspora. Many Portuguese sailor and dealor came to Hamburg since the 15th century due to its port. Since 1970s, there is a district in Hamburg called Portugiesenviertel [de] (Portuguese quarter) where many Portuguese people settled there and has many Portuguese restaurants, cafes and shops today which attracts many tourists. There are many statues, squares and streets in Hamburg that are named after Portuguese historical figures including the Vasco da Gama statue on the Kornhaus bridge, which was suggested by Portuguese community to make the Portuguese community in Hamburg visible.[47]

Afghan community

Hamburg has a large Afghan community with about 40,000 people of Afghan diaspora, which makes Hamburg not only the largest Afghan community in Germany, it has also the largest Afghan community in Europe. They first came to Hamburg in the Afghan conflict in 1990s where many Afghan migrants choose to live in Hamburg. Since then the Afghan population grow and after 2015 the Afghan population almost doubled due to the refugee crisis. There is an area in Hamburg behind the central station where many Afghan restaurants and shops are located there. Many carpet shops in Speicherstadt is operated by Afghans.[48]

Foreign citizens in Hamburg

Hamburg residents with a foreign citizenship as of 31 December 2016 is as follows:[45]

Citizenship Number %

Total 288,338 100%

Europe 193,812 67.2%

European Union 109,496 38%

Asian 59,292 20.6%

African 18,996 6.6%

American 11,315 3.9%

Australian and Oceanian 1,234 0.4%

Language

See also: Hamburgisch dialect

As elsewhere in Germany, Standard German is spoken in Hamburg, but as typical for northern Germany, the original language of Hamburg is Low German, usually referred to as Hamborger Platt (German Hamburger Platt) or Hamborgsch. Since large-scale standardisation of the German language beginning in earnest in the 18th century, various Low German-coloured dialects have developed (contact-varieties of German on Low Saxon substrates). Originally, there was a range of such Missingsch varieties, the best-known being the low-prestige ones of the working classes and the somewhat more bourgeois Hanseatendeutsch (Hanseatic German), although the term is used in appreciation.[49] All of these are now moribund due to the influences of Standard German used by education and media. However, the former importance of Low German is indicated by several songs, such as the famous sea shanty Hamborger Veermaster, written in the 19th century when Low German was used more frequently. Many toponyms and street names reflect Low Saxon vocabulary, partially even in Low Saxon spelling, which is not standardised, and to some part in forms adapted to Standard German.[50]

Religion

Religion in Hamburg – 2018

religion percent

None or other

65.2%

EKD Protestants

24.9%

Roman Catholics

9.9%

65.2% of the population is not religious or adherent other religions than the Evangelical Church or Catholicism.[51]

In 2018, 24.9% of the population belonged to the North Elbian Evangelical Lutheran Church, the largest religious body, and 9.9% to the Roman Catholic Church. Hamburg is seat of one of the three bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Northern Germany and seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Hamburg.

According to the publication Muslimisches Leben in Deutschland ("Muslim life in Germany"), an estimated 141,900 Muslim migrants (from nearly 50 countries of origin) lived in Hamburg in 2008.[52] About three years later (May 2011) calculations based on census data for 21 countries of origin resulted in a figure of about 143,200 Muslim migrants in Hamburg, making up 8.4% percent of the population.[53] As of 2021, there were more than 50 mosques in the city,[54] including the Ahmadiyya run Fazle Omar Mosque, which is the oldest in the city,[55] and which hosts the Islamic Centre Hamburg.

A Jewish community also exists.[56]

Government

Further information: Government of Hamburg and List of mayors of Hamburg

Hamburg City Hall (front view)

The city of Hamburg is one of 16 German states, therefore the Mayor of Hamburg's office corresponds more to the role of a minister-president than to the one of a city mayor. As a German state government, it is responsible for public education, correctional institutions and public safety; as a municipality, it is additionally responsible for libraries, recreational facilities, sanitation, water supply and welfare services.

Since 1897, the seat of the government has been Hamburg City Hall (Hamburg Rathaus), with the office of the mayor, the meeting room for the Senate and the floor for the Hamburg Parliament.[57] From 2001 until 2010, the mayor of Hamburg was Ole von Beust,[58] who governed in Germany's first statewide "black-green" coalition, consisting of the conservative CDU Hamburg and the alternative GAL, which are Hamburg's regional wing of the Alliance 90/The Greens party.[59] Von Beust was briefly succeeded by Christoph Ahlhaus in 2010, but the coalition broke apart on 28 November 2010.[60] On 7 March 2011 Olaf Scholz (SPD) became mayor. After the 2015 election the SPD and the Alliance 90/The Greens formed a coalition.

Boroughs

Main article: Boroughs and quarters of Hamburg

The 7 boroughs and 104 quarters of Hamburg

Hamburg is made up of seven boroughs (German: Bezirke) and subdivided into 104 quarters (German: Stadtteile). There are 181 localities (German: Ortsteile). The urban organisation is regulated by the Constitution of Hamburg and several laws.[8][61] Most of the quarters were former independent cities, towns or villages annexed into Hamburg proper. The last large annexation was done through the Greater Hamburg Act of 1937, when the cities Altona, Harburg, and Wandsbek were merged into the state of Hamburg.[62] The Act of the Constitution and Administration of Hanseatic city of Hamburg established Hamburg as a state and a municipality.[63] Some of the boroughs and quarters have been rearranged several times.

Each borough is governed by a Borough Council (German: Bezirksversammlung) and administered by a Municipal Administrator (German: Bezirksamtsleiter). The boroughs are not independent municipalities: their power is limited and subordinate to the Senate of Hamburg. The borough administrator is elected by the Borough Council and thereafter requires confirmation and appointment by Hamburg's Senate.[61] The quarters have no governing bodies of their own.

The part of the North Sea in this aerial picture is called the Hamburg Wadden Sea National Park and belongs administratively to the borough of Hamburg-Mitte. Some 50 people live here on the island Neuwerk (visible just above the centre).

Since the latest territorial reform of March 2008, the boroughs are Hamburg-Mitte, Altona, Eimsbüttel, Hamburg-Nord, Wandsbek, Bergedorf, and Harburg.[64][65]

Hamburg-Mitte ("Hamburg Centre") covers mostly the urban centre of the city and consists of the quarters Billbrook, Billstedt, Borgfelde, Finkenwerder, HafenCity, Hamm, Hammerbrook, Horn, Kleiner Grasbrook, Neuwerk, Rothenburgsort, St. Georg, St. Pauli, Steinwerder, Veddel, Waltershof, and Wilhelmsburg.[64] The quarters Hamburg-Altstadt ("old town") and Neustadt ("new town") are the historical origin of Hamburg.

Altona is the westernmost urban borough, on the right bank of the Elbe river. From 1640 to 1864, Altona was under the administration of the Danish monarchy. Altona was an independent city until 1937. Politically, the following quarters are part of Altona: Altona-Altstadt, Altona-Nord, Bahrenfeld, Ottensen, Othmarschen, Groß Flottbek, Osdorf, Lurup, Nienstedten, Blankenese, Iserbrook, Sülldorf, Rissen, and Sternschanze.[64]

Bergedorf consists of the quarters Allermöhe, Altengamme, Bergedorf—the centre of the former independent town, Billwerder, Curslack, Kirchwerder, Lohbrügge, Moorfleet, Neuengamme, Neuallermöhe, Ochsenwerder, Reitbrook, Spadenland, and Tatenberg.[64]

Eimsbüttel is split into nine-quarters: Eidelstedt, Eimsbüttel, Harvestehude, Hoheluft-West, Lokstedt, Niendorf, Rotherbaum, Schnelsen, and Stellingen.[64] Located within this borough is former Jewish neighbourhood Grindel.

Hamburg-Nord contains the quarters Alsterdorf, Barmbek-Nord, Barmbek-Süd, Dulsberg, Eppendorf, Fuhlsbüttel, Groß Borstel, Hoheluft-Ost, Hohenfelde, Langenhorn, Ohlsdorf with Ohlsdorf cemetery, Uhlenhorst, and Winterhude.[64]

Harburg is situated on the southern shores of the river Elbe and covers parts of the port of Hamburg, residential and rural areas, and some research institutes. The quarters are Altenwerder, Cranz, Eißendorf, Francop, Gut Moor, Harburg, Hausbruch, Heimfeld, Langenbek, Marmstorf, Moorburg, Neuenfelde, Neugraben-Fischbek, Neuland, Rönneburg, Sinstorf, and Wilstorf.[64]

Wandsbek is divided into the quarters Bergstedt, Bramfeld, Duvenstedt, Eilbek, Farmsen-Berne, Hummelsbüttel, Jenfeld, Lemsahl-Mellingstedt, Marienthal, Poppenbüttel, Rahlstedt, Sasel, Steilshoop, Tonndorf, Volksdorf, Wandsbek, Wellingsbüttel, and Wohldorf-Ohlstedt.[64]

Cityscape

Panoramic view of the Hamburg skyline of the Binnenalster taken from Lombardsbrücke

Architecture

Historicist Palmaille, Altona

The Marco-Polo-Centre (left) and Unilever HQ Germany

Hamburg has architecturally significant buildings in a wide range of styles and just one skyscraper under construction (see List of tallest buildings in Hamburg). Churches are important landmarks, such as St Nicholas', which for a short time in the 19th century was the world's tallest building. The skyline features the tall spires of the most important churches (Hauptkirchen) St Michael's (nicknamed "Michel"), St Peter's, St James's (St. Jacobi), and St. Catherine's covered with copper plates, and the Heinrich-Hertz-Turm, the radio and television tower (no longer publicly accessible).

The Chilehaus with a typical brick expressionist façade

The many streams, rivers, and canals are crossed by some 2,500 bridges, more than London, Amsterdam, and Venice put together.[66] Hamburg has more bridges inside its city limits than any other city in the world.[67] The Köhlbrandbrücke, Freihafen Elbbrücken, Lombardsbrücke, and Kennedybrücke dividing Binnenalster from Aussenalster are important roadways.

The town hall is a richly decorated Neo-Renaissance building finished in 1897. The tower is 112 metres (367 ft) high. Its façade, 111 m (364 ft) long, depicts the emperors of the Holy Roman Empire, since Hamburg was, as a Free Imperial City, only under the sovereignty of the emperor.[68] The Chilehaus, a brick expressionist office building built in 1922 and designed by architect Fritz Höger, is shaped like an ocean liner.

Europe's largest urban development since 2008, the HafenCity, will house about 15,000 inhabitants and 45,000 workers.[69] The plan includes designs by Rem Koolhaas and Renzo Piano. The Elbphilharmonie (Elbe Philharmonic Hall), opened in January 2017, houses concerts in a sail-shaped building on top of an old warehouse, designed by architects Herzog & de Meuron.[70][71]

The many parks are distributed over the whole city, which makes Hamburg a very verdant city. The biggest parks are the Stadtpark, the Ohlsdorf Cemetery, and Planten un Blomen. The Stadtpark, Hamburg's "Central Park", has a great lawn and a huge water tower, which houses one of Europe's biggest planetaria. The park and its buildings were designed by Fritz Schumacher in the 1910s.

Parks and gardens

See also: List of parks and gardens in Hamburg

A water-light concert at Planten un Blomen park

The lavish and spacious Planten un Blomen park (Low German dialect for "plants and flowers") located in the centre of Hamburg is the green heart of the city. Within the park are various thematic gardens, the biggest Japanese garden in Germany, and the Alter Botanischer Garten Hamburg, which is a historic botanical garden that now consists primarily of greenhouses.

The Botanischer Garten Hamburg is a modern botanical garden maintained by the University of Hamburg. Besides these, there are many more parks of various sizes. In 2014 Hamburg celebrated a birthday of park culture, where many parks were reconstructed and cleaned up. Moreover, every year there are the famous water-light-concerts in the Planten un Blomen park, from May to early October.

Culture

Abel Seyler, one of the great theatre principals of 18th century Europe, established Hamburg as a major centre of theatrical innovation in the 1760s.

From the 1760s the theatre director Abel Seyler—the leader of the Hamburg National Theatre and subsequently the Seyler Theatre Company—established Hamburg as one of the leading European centres of theatrical innovation, promoting experimental productions and pioneering a new more realist style of acting, introducing Shakespeare to a German language audience, and promoting the concept of a national theatre in the tradition of Ludvig Holberg, the Sturm und Drang playwrights, and serious German opera.[72]

Today Hamburg has more than 40 theatres, 60 museums, and 100 music venues and clubs. With 6.6 music venues per 100,000 inhabitants, Hamburg has the second-highest density of music venues of Germany's largest cities, after Munich and ahead of Cologne and Berlin.[73][74] In 2005, more than 18 million people visited concerts, exhibitions, theatres, cinemas, museums, and cultural events, and 8,552 taxable companies (average size 3.16 employees) were engaged in the culture sector, which includes music, performing arts, and literature.[75] The creative industries represent almost one fifth of all companies in Hamburg.[76] Hamburg has entered the European Green Capital Award scheme, and was awarded the title of European Green Capital for 2011.

Theatres

See also: List of theatres in Hamburg

The Deutsches Schauspielhaus in the St. Georg quarter

The state-owned Deutsches Schauspielhaus, the Thalia Theatre, Ohnsorg Theatre, "Schmidts Tivoli", and the Kampnagel are well-known theatres.[77]

The English Theatre of Hamburg, near the U3 station Mundsburg, was founded in 1976 and is the oldest professional English-language theatre in Germany, with exclusively English-speaking actors in its company.

Museums

See also: List of museums in Hamburg

Hamburg has several large museums and galleries showing classical and contemporary art, for example the Kunsthalle Hamburg with its contemporary art gallery (Galerie der Gegenwart), the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe (Museum of Art and Design), and the Deichtorhallen (with the House of Photography and Hall of Contemporary Art). The Internationales Maritimes Museum Hamburg opened in the HafenCity quarter in 2008. There are various specialised museums in Hamburg, such as the Archäologisches Museum Hamburg (Hamburg Archaeological Museum) in the Harburg borough, the Hamburg Museum of Work (Museum der Arbeit), and several museums of local history, such as the Kiekeberg Open Air Museum [de] (Freilichtmuseum am Kiekeberg) at Kiekeberg in the Harburg Hills, just outside of Hamburg, in Rosengarten. Two museum ships near St. Pauli Piers (Landungsbrücken) bear witness to the freight ship (Cap San Diego) and cargo sailing ship era (Rickmer Rickmers).[78] In 2017 the Hamburg-built iron-hulled sailing ship Peking returned to the city and was installed in the German Port Museum in 2020. The world's largest model railway museum, Miniatur Wunderland, with 15.4 km (9.57 mi) total railway length, is also situated near St. Pauli Piers in a former warehouse.

BallinStadt, a memorial park and former emigration station, is dedicated to the millions of Europeans who emigrated to North and South America between 1850 and 1939. Visitors descending from those overseas emigrants may search for their ancestors at computer terminals.

Music

The 110-metre-high (361-foot) Elbphilharmonie concert hall

Hamburg State Opera is a leading opera company. Its orchestra is the Philharmoniker Hamburg. The city's other well-known orchestra is the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra. The main concert venue is the new concert hall Elbphilharmonie. Before it was the Laeiszhalle, Musikhalle Hamburg. The Laeiszhalle also houses a third orchestra, the Hamburger Symphoniker. György Ligeti and Alfred Schnittke taught at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg.[79][80]

Hamburg is the birthplace of Johannes Brahms, who spent his formative early years in the city, and the birthplace and home of the famous waltz composer Oscar Fetrás, who wrote the well-known "Mondnacht auf der Alster" waltz.

Since the German premiere of Cats in 1986, there have always been musicals running, including The Phantom of the Opera, The Lion King, Dirty Dancing, and Dance of the Vampires (musical). This density, the highest in Germany, is partly due to the major musical production company Stage Entertainment being based in the city.

In addition to musicals, opera houses, concert halls, and theatres, the cityscape is characterised by a large music scene. This includes, among other things, over 100 music venues, several annual festivals and over 50 event organisers based in Hamburg.[81] Larger venues include the Barclaycard Arena, the Bahrenfeld harness racing track, and Hamburg City Park.

Hamburg was an important centre of rock music in the early 1960s. The Beatles lived and played in Hamburg from August 1960 to December 1962. They proved popular and gained local acclaim. Prior to the group's initial recording and widespread fame, Hamburg provided residency and performing venues for the band during the time they performed there. One of the venues they performed at was the Star Club on St. Pauli.

Hamburg has produced a number of successful (pop) musicians. Among the best known are Udo Lindenberg, Deichkind, and Jan Delay. The singer Annett Louisan lives in Hamburg.

An important meeting place for Hamburg musicians from the 1970s to the mid-80s was the jazz pub Onkel Pö, which was originally founded in the Pöseldorf neighbourhood and later moved to Eppendorf. Many musicians who were counted as part of the "Hamburg scene [de]" met here. In addition to Udo Lindenberg, these included Otto Waalkes, Hans Scheibner and groups such as Torfrock and Frumpy. One of the members of the band Frumpy was the Hamburg-born singer and composer Inga Rumpf.

Hamburg is famous for a special kind of German alternative music, the "Hamburger Schule", a term used for bands like Tocotronic, Blumfeld, Tomte or Kante. The meeting point of the Hamburg School was long considered to be the Golden Pudel Club [de] in Altona's old town, near the Fischmarkt. Alongside clubs such as the Pal, the Moondoo or the Waagenbau, today the Pudel is a central location of the Hamburg electro scene. Well-known artists of this scene include the DJ duo Moonbootica, Mladen Solomun, and Helena Hauff.[82]

Hamburg is also home to many music labels, music distributors and publishers. These include Warner Music, Kontor Records, PIAS, Edel SE & Co. KGaA, Believe Digital, and Indigo. The high proportion of independent labels in the city, which include Audiolith, Dial Records, Grand Hotel van Cleef, among others, is striking. Before its closure, the label L'Age D'Or also belonged to these.

In addition, Hamburg has a considerable alternative and punk scene, which gathers around the Rote Flora, a squatted former theatre located in the Sternschanze.

The city was a major centre for heavy metal music in the 1980s. Helloween, Gamma Ray, Running Wild, and Grave Digger started in Hamburg.[83] The industrial rock band KMFDM was also formed in Hamburg, initially as a performance art project. The influences of these and other bands from the area helped establish the subgenre of power metal.

In the late 90s, Hamburg was considered one of the strongholds of the German hip-hop scene. Bands like Beginner shaped Hamburg's hip-hop styl