Landshut (; ) is a town in

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, on the banks of the River Isar. Landshut is the capital of Lower Bavaria, one of the seven administrative regions of the Free State of Bavaria, and the seat of the surrounding district. With a population of more than 75,000, Landshut is the largest city in Lower Bavaria, followed by

Passau Passau (; ) is a city in Lower Bavaria, Germany. It is also known as the ("City of Three Rivers"), as the river Danube is joined by the Inn (river), Inn from the south and the Ilz from the north. Passau's population is about 50,000, of whom ...

and

Straubing Straubing (; Central Bavarian: ''Strauwing'') is an independent city in Lower Bavaria, southern Germany. It is seat of the Districts of Germany, district of Straubing-Bogen. Annually in August the Gäubodenvolksfest, the second largest fair in Ba ...

. The town, called City of the Three Helmets (), is known for its picturesque Gothic

old town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins. In some cases, newer developments on t ...

and the

Landshut Wedding The Landshut Wedding (), held every four years in Landshut, Bavaria, is one of the largest historical pageants in Europe. It commemorates the wedding between Hedwig Jagiellon, daughter of the King of Poland, and George, the son of the Duke of ...

, a full-tilt medieval festival. The cityscape is dominated by the St. Martin's Basilica and Trausnitz Castle high above the old town. Close to

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

and Franz Josef Strauss International Airport, Landshut is industrialized (

BMW Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, trading as BMW Group (commonly abbreviated to BMW (), sometimes anglicised as Bavarian Motor Works), is a German multinational manufacturer of vehicles and motorcycles headquartered in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Th ...

, ebm-papst, Schott), has a low unemployment rate and is among the richest towns in Bavaria.

Geography

Landshut lies in the

Alpine foothills The Alpine foothills, or Prealps (; ; ; ), may refer generally to any foothills at the base of the Alps in Europe. They are the transition zone between the High Alps and the Swiss Plateau and the Bavarian Alpine Foreland in the north, as well as ...

. The River Isar runs through the city and splits in two in the city centre. Most of the built-up area lies on the flat terraced deposits of the river. The Isar divides the town into three areas: the northern part above the river belongs to the Isar-Danube hill country, the Mühleninsel in the city centre lies between both arms of the Isar, and the southern part below the river belongs to the Isar-Inn hill country. The southern part of the town is delimited by a chain of hills, some of which rise steeply, of which the Hofberg, where the Trausnitz Castle is located, forms the highest point in the city area at a height of 505 meters above sea level. Landshut is situated between

(70 kilometers southwest) and

Regensburg Regensburg (historically known in English as Ratisbon) is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Naab and Regen (river), Regen, Danube's northernmost point. It is the capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the ...

(70 kilometers to the north). Other nearby towns are

(75 km northeast), Deggendorf (75 km to the east), and

at the German-Austrian border (120 km to the east). The town's spread is limited to the north by Ergolding, to the northwest by Altdorf, and to the south by Kumhausen. The three smaller towns join Landshut to form a built-up area of around 100,000 people but are not incorporated into Landshut proper.

History

The town and Trausnitz Castle were founded in 1204 by Duke Louis I, when a settlement developed around the castle. Landshut was a

Wittelsbach The House of Wittelsbach () is a former Bavarian dynasty, with branches that have ruled over territories including the Electorate of Bavaria, the Electoral Palatinate, the Electorate of Cologne, County of Holland, Holland, County of Zeeland, ...

residence by 1231, and in 1255, when the duchy of Bavaria was split in two, Landshut also became the capital of Lower Bavaria. Duke Henry XVI was the first of the three 'rich dukes' who ruled Bayern-Landshut in the 15th century. The wedding of Duke George with the Polish Princess Royal Jadwiga Jagiellon in 1475 was celebrated in Landshut with one of the most splendid festivals of the Middle Ages (

). After his death and the Landshut War of Succession, Bavaria-Landshut was reunited with Bavaria-Munich. Between 1537 and 1543, after his visit to Italy, Louis X, Duke of Bavaria built the Landshut Residence, the first

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

palace constructed north of the Alps. It was modeled after Palazzo Te in

Mantua Mantua ( ; ; Lombard language, Lombard and ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Italian region of Lombardy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, eponymous province. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the "Italian Capital of Culture". In 2 ...

William V, Duke of Bavaria William V (29 September 1548 – 7 February 1626), called ''the Pious'', (German: ''Wilhelm V., der Fromme, Herzog von Bayern'') was the duke of Bavaria from 1579 to 1597. Education and early life William V was born in Landshut, the son of ...

ordered to upgrade Trausnitz Castle from a gothic fortification into a Renaissance complex when he lived in Landshut as crown prince for ten years until 1579. Afterwards, Landshut lost most of its importance until the University of Ingolstadt was moved to Landshut in 1800. However, in 1826 the university was transferred to Munich. During the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

, the city was thrice (1632, 1634 and 1648) taken and plundered by Swedish forces.

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

fought and won the Battle of Landshut in 1809 against an Austrian army as part of the

War of the Fifth Coalition The War of the Fifth Coalition was a European conflict in 1809 that was part of the Napoleonic Wars and the Coalition Wars. The main conflict took place in Central Europe between the Austrian Empire of Francis I and Napoleon's French Emp ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, a subcamp of

Dachau concentration camp Dachau (, ; , ; ) was one of the first concentration camps built by Nazi Germany and the longest-running one, opening on 22 March 1933. The camp was initially intended to intern Hitler's political opponents, which consisted of communists, s ...

was located in the city to provide slave labour for local industry. The city was taken by US troops on 29 April 1945. The U.S. Army maintained facilities in Landshut, including Pinder Kaserne and a dependent housing area, until 1968. Since the opening of Munich Airport close to Landshut in 1992, the town has become an attractive business location.

Main sights and culture

The town is of architectural importance because of its predominantly

Gothic architecture Gothic architecture is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High Middle Ages, High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It evolved f ...

within the historic town centre, especially '' Trausnitz Castle'' and the '' Church of Saint Martin'' featuring the world's tallest church brick tower. Among other Gothic architecture are the churches of St. Jodok and Holy Spirit, but also the Town Hall and the ''Ländtor'', the only still existing gate of the medieval fortification. Landshut is known for a festival celebrated every four years called the Landshuter Hochzeit, commemorating the 1475 marriage of George of Bavaria and Jadwiga Jagiellon. The

era produced in particular the decorated inner courtyard of the ''Trausnitz Castle'' and the ducal '' Landshut Residence'' in the inner town. Baroque churches are represented by the Jesuit church ''St. Ignatius'', the Dominican church ''St. Blasius'' and the church ''St. Joseph''. Also, the medieval churches of the Seligenthal convent and of the Cistercians were redesigned in baroque style. Many old middle-class houses of the past in the Old Town still represent the history of the town from the Gothic times to the Neo-Classicism.

Transportation

There are regular regional train connections to Munich,

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

, Munich Airport,

Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...

, Rosenheim,

Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...

and Hof.

Sport

The most successful professional team in the city is

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

team

EV Landshut EV Landshut, also known as EVL Landshut Eishockey and formerly known as the Landshut Cannibals, are a professional ice hockey team based in Landshut, Bavaria, Germany. They currently play in Deutsche Eishockey Liga 2, the second level of ice hock ...

, playing currently in the Second Division. The other professional team in the city is

motorcycle speedway Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to simply as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four clockwise, anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. The motorcycles are specialist machines that ...

team Landshut Devils, who are based at the Ellermühle Speedway Stadium. The local

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

team is SpVgg Landshut with both men's and women's teams previously having reached the top state division.

Culture

Theatres

* Stadttheater (city theatre) * ''Kleines Theater'' * Theater Nikola

Cinemas

* Kinoptikum – repertory cinemabr>
* Kinopolis Landshut – Multiplex cinemabr>
* Burgtheater/Kühlhauskino

Museums

* Skulpturenmuseum im Hofberg (Sculptural Museum in Hofberg) * LANDSHUTmuseum in the cloister of the old Franciscan monastery

Venues

* Eisstadion am Gutenbergweg – Indoor

Ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

arena, mainly used by the

* Sparkassen-Arena – Mainly used for concerts and fairs * Grieserwiese – Giant parking area located between Wittstraße and the bank of the river Isar used for the annual Frühjahrs- und Bartlmädult

Businesses

* Dräxlmaier Group * ebmpapst * LFoundry, a semiconductor fab formerly owned by Renesas and before by

Hitachi () is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1910 and headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo. The company is active in various industries, including digital systems, power and renewable ener ...

) * Schott Glass * Vishay * :de:Pöschl Tabak There are also two nuclear power plants located 14 km away from Landshut, Isar I (Inactive) and Isar II (active until 2022).

Twin towns – sister cities

Landshut is twinned with: * Elgin, Scotland, United Kingdom (1956), the Landshut Bridge in Elgin is named after Landshut *

Compiègne Compiègne (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Oise Departments of France, department of northern France. It is located on the river Oise (river), Oise, and its inhabitants are called ''Compiégnois'' (). Administration Compiègne is t ...

, France (1962) * Ried im Innkreis, Austria (1974) *

Schio Schio () is a town and comune in the province of Vicenza (region of Veneto, northern Italy) situated north of Vicenza and east of the Lake Garda. It is surrounded by the Little Dolomites (Italian Prealps) and Mount Pasubio. History Its name c ...

, Italy (1981) *

Sibiu Sibiu ( , , , Hungarian: ''Nagyszeben'', , Transylvanian Saxon: ''Härmeschtat'' or ''Hermestatt'') is a city in central Romania, situated in the historical region of Transylvania. Located some north-west of Bucharest, the city straddles th ...

, Romania (2002)

Notable people

Before 1920

* Ulrich Füetrer (born before 1450; died around 1493 and 1502), poet and painter *

Ludwig Feuerbach Ludwig Andreas von Feuerbach (; ; 28 July 1804 – 13 September 1872) was a German anthropologist and philosopher, best known for his book '' The Essence of Christianity'', which provided a critique of Christianity that strongly influenced ge ...

(1804–1872), philosopher * Friedrich Feuerbach (1806–1880), philologist and philosopher * Gustav Tiedemann (1808–1849), officer * Carl du Prel (1839–1899), philosopher, writer and occultist * Karl Tanera (1849–1904), officer of the Bavarian Army and author *

Max Slevogt Max Slevogt (8 October 1868 – 20 September 1932) was a German Impressionist painter and illustrator, best known for his landscapes. He was, together with Lovis Corinth and Max Liebermann, one of the foremost representatives in Germany of t ...

(1868–1932), painter, graphician * Otto Kissenberth (1893–1919), fighter pilot in World War I * Hermann Erhardt (1903–1958), actor * Max Schäfer (1907–1990), football player and manager * Marlene Neubauer-Woerner (1918–2010), sculptor

1920–present

* Marlene Reidel (1923–2014), illustrator * Josef Deimer (born 1936), politician and Lord mayor of Landshut from 1970–2014 * Roman Herzog (1934–2017), politician (CDU), President of Germany from 1994 to 1999, then Honorary Citizen as well * Klaus Auhuber (born 1951), ice hockey player * Gerhard Tausche (born 1958), archivist and author * Gerd Truntschka (born 1958), ice hockey player * Martin Bayerstorfer (born 1966), politician * Alex Holzwarth (born 1968), drummer * Wolfgang Stark (born 1969), football referee *

Markus Brunnermeier Markus Konrad Brunnermeier (born March 22, 1969) is an economist, who is the Princeton University Department of Economics, Edwards S. Sanford Professor of Economics at Princeton University. Brunnermeier is a faculty member of Princeton's Princet ...

(born 1969), financial economist * Annette Dytrt (born 1983), figure skater

Honorary citizens

* Hans Leinberger (1475/1480 – after 1531), sculptor *

Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach Ludwig may refer to: People and fictional characters * Ludwig (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Ludwig (surname), including a list of people * Ludwig von Koopa, a character in Mario (the game) Arts and entertai ...

, (1804–1872), philosopher and anthropologist * Roman Herzog (1934-2017), President of Germany 1994–1999 * Josef Deimer (born 1936), Lord Mayor of Landshut 1970–2004 * Erich Kühnhackl (born 1950), ice hockey player

Notable inhabitants

Louis I, Duke of Bavaria Louis I (; 23 December 1173 – 15 September 1231), called the Kelheimer or of Kelheim, since he was born and died at Kelheim, was the Duke of Bavaria from 1183 and Electoral Palatinate, Count Palatine of the Rhine from 1214. He was the only ...

(1173–1231), Duke of Bavaria and Count Palatine of the Rhine * Hans von Burghausen (born 1350–1360; died 1432), builder * Hans Stethaimer (1360–1432), architect, mason and painter * Hans Leinberger (1480–1531), sculptor of the late Gothic *

Götz von Berlichingen zu Hornberg (, ; 15 November 1480 – 23 July 1562), also known as Götz of the Iron Hand (German language, German: Eisenfaust), was a 16th-century Germany, German (Franconian) Imperial Knight (''Reichsritter''), mercenary and poet. He wa ...

(1480–1562), Frankish Empire Knights * Renata of Lorraine (1544–1602), Duchess of Bavaria * Johann Graf von Aldringen (1588–1634), commander *

Franz von Paula Schrank Franz von Paula Schrank (21 August 1747, in Neuhaus am Inn, Vornbach – 22 December 1835) was a German priest, botanist and entomologist. Biography He was ordained as a priest in Vienna in 1784, gaining his doctorate in theology two years lat ...

(1747–1835), botanist * Johann Michael Sailer (1751–1832), Catholic theologian and bishop of Regensburg * Franz Xaver Witt (1834–1888), church musician, composer, reformer, founder of the German general Cecilia Association * Max Freiherr von Oppenheim (1860–1946), diplomat, orientalist and archaeologist * Ludwig Thoma (1867–1921), writer * Hans Carossa (1878–1956), doctor, known as a poet and writer of short stories * Gregor Strasser (1892–1934), National Socialist politician *

Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician and military leader who was the 4th of the (Protection Squadron; SS), a leading member of the Nazi Party, and one of the most powerful p ...

(1900–1945), National Socialist politician, head of the SS * Marlene Neubauer-Woerner (1918–2010), sculptor * Fritz Koenig (1924–2017), sculptor * Heinz Winbeck (1946–2019), composer * Erich Kühnhackl (born 1950), ice hockey player * Tom Kühnhackl (born 1992), ice hockey player * David Elsner (born 1992), ice hockey player * Herbert Hainer (born 1954), manager * Steffen Kummerer (born 1985), musician, guitarist of Obscura

Gallery

Iglesia de San Martín, Landshut, Alemania, 2012-05-27, DD 18.JPG, The Cathedral of St. Martin with its bell tower Landshut st jodok.jpg, The Church of St. Jodok Iglesia de la Redención, Landshut, Alemania, 2012-05-27, DD 04.JPG, Redemption church Landshuter Hochzeit 09.jpg, The Landshut Wedding and the Church of the Holy Spirit Iglesia del Espíritu Santo, Landshut, Alemania, 2012-05-27, DD 02.JPG, Church of the Holy Ghost, Gothic porch Ländtor, Landshut, Alemania, 2012-05-27, DD 01.JPG, The Ländtor Castillo Trausnitz, Landshut, Alemania, 2012-05-27, DD 13.JPG, The Trausnitz Castle Landshut City View.jpg, Landshut city view Ayuntamiento, calle Altstadt, Landshut, Alemania, 2012-05-27, DD 04.JPG, Town hall Calle Altstadt, Landshut, Alemania, 2012-05-27, DD 09.JPG, Old town Calle Altstadt, Landshut, Alemania, 2012-05-27, DD 20.JPG, Alstadt St, the pedestrian area

References

External links

* * * http://www.landshut.de – Official website * http://www.fh-landshut.de/ {{Authority control 1204 establishments in Europe Urban districts of Bavaria Lower Bavaria 1200s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire Capitals of former nations