Speicherstadt

The Speicherstadt (, literally: 'City of Warehouses', meaning warehouse district) in Hamburg, Germany, is the largest warehouse district in the world where the buildings stand on timber-pile foundations—oak logs, in this particular case. It is located in the port of Hamburg, in the HafenCity quarter, and was built from 1883 to 1927.

The district was built as a free zone to transfer goods without paying customs. The district and the surrounding area have been under redevelopment for many years as the port industry has evolved. As an exceptional example of Neo-Gothic and modernist architecture, and for its testimony to the development of international maritime trade, the Speicherstadt was awarded the status of UNESCO World Heritage Site on 5 July 2015, along with the Kontorhaus District.

Geography

The ''Speicherstadt'' is located in the port of Hamburg. It is long and interlaced by loading canals (Low German: '' Fleets'').

History

From 1815, the independent and sovereign city of Hamburg was a member of the German Confederation – the association of Central European states created by the Congress of Vienna – but not a member of the German Customs Union.

Following the Austro-Prussian War which established Prussian hegemony in North Germany, Hamburg was obliged to join the North German Federation.Planung und Finanzierung der Speicherstadt in Hamburg, by Frank M. Hinz; publ. LIT Verlag Münster, 2000; page 45 However it obtained an opt-out in the form of Article 34 of the North German constitution,Constitution of the North German Federation //de.wikisource.org/wiki/Verfassung_des_Norddeutschen_Bundes Retrieved Dec 2017 which stated that Hamburg and the other Hanseatic cities would remain as free ports outside the Community customs border until they apply for inclusion. Article 34 was carried over into the imperial constitution of 1871, when the south German states joined the federation. However, Hamburg came under great pressure from Berlin to join the Customs Union after 1879, when the latter's external tariff was greatly increased. In 1881 an agreement was signed between the Prussian Finance Minister Karl Hermann Bitter and the State Secretary of the imperial Treasury, on the one hand, Hamburg's Plenipotentiary Senators Versmann and O'Swald, and the envoy of the Hanseatic states in Berlin, Dr Krüger, on the other. Hamburg would join the Customs Union with all its territory, except a permanent free port district which the agreement specified. For this district, Article 34 would still apply, thus the freedoms of that district could not be abolished or restricted without Hamburg's approval.Hamburg and the Freeport - Economy and Society 1888–1914, by Peter Borowsky, publ Hamburg University Press, Hamburg, 2005; p. 114

In 1883, to clear space for the new port area, the demolition of the ''Kehrwieder'' and ''Wandrahm'' area began and more than 20,000 people needed to be relocated. The construction was completed before the start of World War I, managed by the ''Freihafen-Lagerhaus-Gesellschaft'' (the predecessor of the Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG), which was also responsible for the subsequent operation.

After the destruction of about half of the buildings in Operation Gomorrah by bombing during World War II, the conservative rebuilding was finished in 1967, while the Hanseatic Trade Center now occupies the sites of the completely destroyed structures. In 1991 it was listed as a protected Hamburg heritage site. Since 2008, it has been part of the ''HafenCity'' quarter. In an attempt to revitalize the inner city area, the Hamburg government initiated the development of the ''HafenCity'' area, for example with the construction of the Elbe Philharmonic Hall.

Architecture

The warehouses were built with different support structures, but Franz Andreas Meyer created a Neo-Gothic red-brick outer layer with little towers, alcoves, and glazed terra cotta ornaments. The warehouses are multi-storey buildings with entrances from water and land. One of the oldest warehouses is the ''Kaispeicher B'' of the International Maritime Museum.

Use

The ''Speicherstadt'' is a major tourist attraction in Hamburg and is the focus of most of the harbor tours. There are several museums, like the ' (German Customs Museum), '' Miniatur Wunderland'' (a model railway), and the Hamburg Dungeon. The Afghan Museum was also located here, but closed in 2012.

The buildings are also used as warehouses. As of 2005, the companies in the ''Speicherstadt'' handled one third of the world's oriental rug production, and other goods including cocoa, coffee, tea, spices, maritime equipment, and electronics.

See also

* Mortzenhaus

References

Bibliography

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* A historical detective story.
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External links

Speicherstadt and Kontorhaus District with Chilehaus : UNESCO Official Website

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World Heritage Sites in Germany
Zones of Hamburg
Buildings and structures in Hamburg-Mitte
Geography of Hamburg
Heritage sites in Hamburg
Redeveloped ports and waterfronts in Germany
Warehouse districts
Tourist attractions in Hamburg
1888 establishments in Germany
Office buildings in Germany
Free ports