Hannover City
Sights of intrest
- The old town
- City center
- The church at the marketplace
- The Herrenhausen Gardens
- Rain forest house
- The Maschsee
- The operahouse
- Hannover zoo
- Sprengel museum
- Hannover university
- Restaurants
City Hannover link
The old town
In the days before the Second World War there was a large old town in
the centre of Hannover with narrow lanes and many half-timbered buildings
from the Middle Ages. A lot of poor people lived there under bad conditions.
Ordinary Hannoverians stayed away from the old town because they also
considered it a place of crime and demimonde.
The historic value of the picturesque old buildings interested but a few.
The old town of Hannover extended from Steintor to Aegidientorplatz and is today
only recognizable by its elliptical shape. The old main streets like Osterstraße,
Schmiedestraße, Knochenhauerstraße, Burgstraße, Leinestraße and others are linked
by numerous lanes and join again at the old gates as was common in German merchants'
settlements in the Middle Ages.
After the bombing raids of the Second World War there was almost nothing left of
Hannover's old town. Forty old half-timbered buildings remained, twelve thereof
in Knochenhauer-, Kramer- and Burgstraße. During the rebuilding of Hannover, parts
of the old buildings, mainly the facades, were transferred and concentrated in this
area. So today they form a "new old town" in Hannover's oldest part.
Hannover's oldest and most picturesque half-timbered building can be found amidst new
buildings in upper Burgstraße. The Renaissance facade dates from 1566, the house at the
back is even older. Close by, also amidst new buildings, there is Hannover's oldest church,
the Kreuzkirche, built in 1333. The interieur was destroyed in the Second World War. The
Altar, designed by Lucas Cranach the Elder, comes from a church in Einbeck. The Duvekapelle,
adjacent to the Kreuzkirche, was built in 1655 and contains the family vault of the Duve family,
a prosperous merchant family. The best-known member was Johann Duve, who was renowned for his charity.
top City center
When you walk out of Hannover Central Station towards Ernst August Platz you are almost in the middle
of Hannover's city centre. The centre is rather large for a city of half a million. It has grown
over the centuries between the old town down by the river, the Aegidientor in the west, the Steintor
in the east and the Central Station.
The bomb raids of the Second World War turned most of the city centre into a large heap of rubble. Hardly
an old building was spared. So most of the centre was rebuilt in the fashion of the fifties. The Bahnhofstraße,
leading from the Central Station into the heart of the city is a "pedestrians only" shopping street on
two levels: one can also walk along the "Passerelle" in the basement, built in the seventies. At the end
of the Bahnhofstraße you reach "Kröpcke", the most central square in Hannover. It was named after a waiter
who worked in (and later owned) the Café, which is now "Mövenpick". Here, next to the "Kröpcke Uhr", the big
green clock, is the place where Hannoverians meet, if they dont' meet in front of the station under the horse's
tail (of the monument of King Ernst August of Hannover).
At Kröpcke the Bahnhofstraße meets the Georgstraße, a boulevard named after one of the Hanovrian Kings of England.
The Georgstraße opposite the opera house has exclusive shops only on one side and a lot of room for promenades.
It is here like to meet on Sunday mornings in summer for their traditional "Schorsenbummel". The Georgstraße on
the other side of Kröpcke is a pure shopping area with big stores.
The church at the marketplace
The marketplace was at the very centre of urban expansion in Hannover. Merchants and craftsmen used to live
around here. In the 14th century, the Marktkirche ("The Church at the Marketplace") was built here. Together
with the Old Town Hall to the right they are considered to be the southernmost specimens of the "North German
neo-Gothic" style. Just as the tower reached half of its planned height, the construction had to be stopped due
to shortages in the town's coffers. "The builders be faint and taken of the sickness", reports contemporary
chronicle. For financial reasons, a shortened spire was mounted without further ado (which became very popular
and was imitated widely). Unchanged in style, the Marktkirche was rebuilt in 1952. The portal with scenes from
the saddest chapter of German history was designed by Gerhard Marcks.
Even many of the well-informed citizens of Hannover are oblivious to the fact that the "Deutsche Michel"
(a nickname the Germans often give to themselves) is actually buried here. He was by no means just a legendary
figure. His name was General Johann Michael von Obentraut, and he was leading the Danish and German army against
Tilly when he was mortally wounded on 25 October 1625. This hero of the Thirty Years War was known as "der
deutsche Michel" to his contemporaries.
The Herrenhausen Gardens
The baroque garden ensemble, one of the biggest and most beautiful in Germany, was founded in 1666 by Duke
Johann Friedrich of Calenberg. Its preservation and further development are mainly owed to a remarkable
woman: Sophie, princess-elect of Hanover and mother of the first Hanoveranian on the English throne, was
of English descent and needed a garden. And so the baroque ensemble was created, with trees, hedges,
numerous special and model gardens, a great fountain with surrounding waterworks, mace garden, open air
theatre, many statues and sculptures, cascades, a grotto and a palace (destroyed in 1943), gallery and
orangery buildings. In 1936 the great garden was restored after being placed under Hanover's municipal administration.
Today, even without the palace, it is one of the city's most popular attractions, with its garden festivals,
the baroque fireworks and theatre performances during the summer months.
Rain forest house
One of the last mysterious regions on our planet - the Brazilian rain forest. Discover what it is all about! Perhaps one of the last unexplored regions on earth - the Brazilian rain forest. The rain forest conjures up images of endless, unspoilt forests, exotic plants and wild animals for most people. To call the rain forest house a mere plant exhibition would be missing the mark somewhat! Experience the history of rain forest exploration, unearth the secrets of the rain forest in the Green Lab and enjoy the South American rain forest in all its splendour.
The Maschsee
An artificial lake built close to the city centre in 1936, Lake Maschsee is one of Hanover's most popular recreation areas. 78,000 square metres in size but no deeper than 2m, the lake is perfect for sailing, windsurfing, rowing, swimming and - when frozen during the winter - ice-skating. The bathing area includes a 300m-long beach and is admission-free. The summertime festival Maschseefest offers a host of entertainment for the whole family.
The operahouse
The opera house was built in 1845-52 based on a plan drawn by Laves. Originally it served as the royal theatre, as the king considered the theatre in the Leineschloß too small. The new opera house is a classical style building with two large wings and a balcony with statues of famous poets and composers. The balcony used to be open so that visitors could drive straight to the entrance in their carriages. Nowadays they can use the stairs to the underground car park. Hannover's opera house was badly damaged in the Second World War and rebuilt in 1948. In 1985 the acoustics were improved and between 1996 and 1998 the stage equipment was restored.
Hannover zoo
This is one of the best zoo's in Germany with a new concept of the visitor's experience, the zoo is a great place to take the children. The zoo has many attractions, including Zambezi river; Gorilla Mountain; Jungle Palace; and Meyer's Farm in rural Lower Saxony. All the animals live in these enclosures, that were designed to be close to their natural habitats. The zoo has a whole lot to offer including guided tours of the whole zoo; restaurants; and a zoo shop. The zoo is open from March to October 09h00 - 18h00, and November to February 10h00 - 16h00.
Sprengel museum
Designed by architects Peter und Ursula Trint, Cologne and Dieter Quast, Heidelberg the museum was opened in 1979 and extented in 1992. The idea of the museum is the dialog between opening and closing, between the public and the atmosphere of art. With its characteristic openness the museum has in the meantime become a place of meeting and communication. A generous donation made this museum possible. In 1968 Dr. Bernhard Sprengel gave his extensive collection of modern art to the city of Hannover and donated a considerable sum of money for the construction of the museum. The city of Hannover and the federal state of Lower Saxony agreed to finance the construction and run the museum together. In the Sprengel Museum Hannover you find besides the Bernhard Sprengel collection objects of art owned by the city and the federal state of Lower Saxony. This makes the museum one of the most important centres of modern art. The exhibition is not structured in an encyclopedical way but puts the focus on certain styles such as German expressionism, French cubism, abstract art after the Second World War, and movements like Minimal Art, Informel, Nouveau Realisme, Concept Art and Postminimal Art.
Hannover university
The heart of the University of Hannover beats in the idyllic Welfenschloss, the Guelph Palace. The year 1879 saw the Higher Vocational School, originally founded in 1831, move into the palace. Later, the Higher Vocational School became the Königlich Technische Hochschule, the Royal College of Technology. While 64 pupils first attended the Vocational School, the university now has around 25.000 students. 2.000 academics and scientists work at the university in 17 faculties with around 160 departments and institutes.
Restaurants
MARKTHALLE HANNOVER - Karmarschstrasse 49 (Altstadt)
SPAGETTHI PALAST - Karmarschstrasse 43 (Altstadt)
WEINLOCH - Burgstrasse 3 (Altstadt)
RESTAURANT IM LEINESCHLOSS - Hinrich-Wilhelm-Kopf-Platz 1 (Altstadt)
FISCHRESTAURANT SEESTERN - Andreastrasse 2 (Kröpcke)
BAVARIUM - Windmühlenstrasse 3 (City)
BOLERO - Nikolaistrasse 3 (Steintor)
