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50 Superlatives |
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Did you know that ...
City of Music
1) ...Leipzig is home to the oldest string quartet in the world?
The history of the Gewandhaus Orchestra dates back to 1743 when an ensemble consisting of sixteen musicians was founded by sixteen local merchants and named ‘Grosses Concert’ (‘Grand Concert’). Nowadays the Gewandhaus Orchestra is also the orchestra at Leipzig Opera House, accompanies the cantatas performed by St Thomas’s Boys Choir, and has so far toured four continents. The orchestra has a number of chamber music ensembles, the most prominent being the Gewandhaus Quartet. Founded in 1809, it’s the oldest string quartet in the world.
2) ...Leipzig has Europe’s third-oldest opera company?
Leipzig’s opera heritage began when Leipzig Opera House was opened in 1693, making it the third-oldest opera house in Europe after Milan and Hamburg. In 1993, the Leipzig Opera company was bestowed with the title Opera of the Year.
3) ...the first German conservatory of music was founded in Leipzig?
Germany’s very first conservatory for the professional training of young musicians was founded in 1843 by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, the Gewandhaus conductor from 1835 until 1847, with the assistance of none other than Robert Schumann.
4) ...St Thomas’s Boys Choir is Germany’s most famous boys choir?
St Thomas’s Boys Choir was founded in 1212 when the Augustinian Canons’ Foundation was established in St Thomas’s Monastery. The structure of Germany’s most famous boys’ choir, whose most famous choirmaster was Johann Sebastian Bach, has remained unchanged for almost 800 years. Whenever the choir isn’t on tour, music lovers can see it perform at St. Thomas’s Church at 6pm on Fridays and 3pm on Saturdays.
City of commerce
5) ...Leipzig is the oldest centre of fairs?
Having been a place of commerce for centuries, in 1497 the annual markets in Leipzig were raised to the rank of imperial fairs by Emperor Maximilian I, this status being confirmed in 1507. Leipzig is consequently the oldest centre of market fairs in the world. The fairs drew traders and visitors from far and wide (indeed, they still do!), and the city centre is largely characterised by exhibition buildings and merchants’ houses erected in connection with the Leipzig Fair.
6) ...Leipzig has one of the most modern exhibition venues in Europe?
Built at a cost of DM1.3 billion, the new Leipzig Fair exhibition centre was opened in 1996 after taking just five years to plan and build. As a result, Leipzig boasts one of Europe’s most advanced exhibition venues enhanced by some stunning architecture.
7) ...Leipzig hosted the first samples fair?
The Leipzig Fair is rightly known as the ‘mother of trade fairs’ since it was there that the world’s first samples fair was held back in 1895, when for the first time traders placed orders on the basis of samples on display, the goods being delivered once the fair was over. By the way, Leipzig hosted its first engineering fair in 1920.
8) ...the world’s oldest samples fair venue is in Leipzig?
The Städtisches Kaufhaus complex supported by colonnades is regarded as the world’s first modern exhibition centre. It was built in 1893–1901 by Hugo Licht, Leipzig’s director of construction. It’s now been refurbished as a modern office and shopping complex.
9) ...until recently Leipzig had the world’s only underground exhibition hall?
Leipzig’s most unusual trade fair venue was the underground exhibition hall beneath the market square. Built in 1924, planners resorted to this curious solution owing to the lack of space in the city centre. The only underground trade show pavilion in the world, it recently had to make way for the new railway tunnel scheduled to open in 2009.
City of publishing
10) ...the German National Library was founded in Leipzig?
The German National Library (‘Deutsche Bücherei’) was founded in Leipzig in 1913 as the only comprehensive archive preserving specimen copies of all publications in German. In 1990 the German National Library was merged with the German Library (‘Deutsche Bibiliothek’) established in Frankfurt am Main in 1947, and archiving responsibilities are now shared by the two institutions.
11) ...Leipzig has Germany’s only school for writers?
The German Institute of Literature was founded in Leipzig in 1995 under the directorship of author Bernd Jentzsch as the successor to the Johannes R. Becher Institute of Literature. Awarding degrees in writing, it’s the only institution of its kind in Germany.
12) ...the world’s first daily newspaper was published in Leipzig over 350 years ago?
In July 1650 the world’s first daily newspaper was published in Leipzig by printer Timotheus Ritzsch. Entitled Die Einkommenden Zeitungen (‘Incoming Tidings’), it appeared six times a week. The paper had four pages in A5 format, was restricted to political news and had a circulation of 200.
13) ...the world’s first textbook was also printed in Leipzig?
The world’s first textbook – a meteorology primer in Latin entitled Wellendarffers Decalogium – was published in Leipzig in 1507.
14) ...the first weather maps were made in Leipzig?
Meteorology does indeed go back a long way in Leipzig. For example, the first weather maps were drawn there in 1826 by local physics professor Heinrich Wilhelm Brandes. Moreover, the first commercial business producing weather forecasts was set up in 1878 by astronomer Carl Christian Bruhns.
15) ...the first city map was produced in Leipzig?
In 1749 the first accurate scale street map in Germany was printed in Leipzig – the year in which Goethe, the father of German literature, was born.
16) ...a unique technique of book restoration is practised in Leipzig?
The ZFB Centre for Book Restoration was spun out of the German National Library in 1998. With decades of experience in book restoration, it has developed a totally unique industrial process which allows the decay of antique books to be prevented. The main technical innovation is the automatic splitting of individual pages.
City of historic change
17) ...Leipzig has the biggest monument in Europe?
The Monument to the Battle of Nations was inaugurated in 1913 to mark the centenary of the Battle of Nations, also known as the Battle of Leipzig. The heavy stone colossus weighing 300,000 tonnes – the biggest commemorative structure in Europe – is supported on 61 pillars. Climbing the 364 steps from the crypt all the way up to the viewing platform at a height of 91 metres (nearly 300 feet) is an unforgettable experience!
18) ...the first peaceful revolution took place in Leipzig in 1989?
Courageous citizens took to the streets after the weekly Monday Prayers for Peace at St Nicholas’s Church in autumn 1989 to protest against the East German dictatorship. Thankfully, plans to crush the demonstration on 9 October 1989 attended by more than 70,000 people were thwarted, paving the way for the Peaceful Revolution and subsequently the unification of not only Germany but also Europe.
City of business and learning
19) ...the German mail-order industry began in Leipzig?
In 1886 Ernst Mey from the Leipzig borough of Plagwitz published Germany’s first illustrated mail-order catalogue, and his company Mey & Edlich became the first to sell goods by post. By 1903 this marketing pioneer headed the world’s biggest mail-order operation.
20) ...the world’s biggest mail-order centre is in Leipzig?
Quelle AG built a new mail-order distribution centre in Leipzig for about DM1 billion. It was opened in 1994 and is still the world’s biggest and most advanced mail-order centre.
21) ...Europe’s biggest telephone exchange was set up in Leipzig?
The largest telephone exchange anywhere in Europe was opened in Leipzig in 1923.
22) ...Germany’s first long-distance railway route started operation in Leipzig?
A number of Leipzig industrialists jointly set up the Leipzig–Dresden Railway Company to operate Germany’s first long-distance rail link. Officially launched on 7 April 1839, the route connected Leipzig to Dresden and was about 100 kilometres (62 miles) long.
23) ...Leipzig Central Station is Europe’s biggest railway terminus?
Few people realise that Leipzig was the cradle of today’s long-distance rail network. When Leipzig Central Station was completed in 1915, it was Europe’s biggest railway terminus. Following thorough refurbishment, the station with its gigantic concourse (267 metres/876 feet long, 32 metres/105 feet wide and 18 metres/59 feet high) and a shopping centre measuring some 30,000 square metres (323,000 square feet) highlights the way forward for large railway stations.
24) ...Bavarian Railway Station is the world’s oldest railway terminus?
Bavarian Railway Station was opened on 19 September 1842, making it the world’s oldest railway terminus. One of the few remaining architectural examples from the early days of railway history, it is a transport monument of European importance.
25) ...Auerbachs Keller is one of Germany’s most famous restaurants?
Auerbachs Keller has been one of Germany’s best-known restaurants ever since it was immortalised in Goethe’s classic Faust. Located in the Mädler Passage arcade, it celebrated its 475th anniversary in 2000.
26) ...Leipzig has one of Europe’s oldest café-cum-restaurants?
Leipzig’s first café-cum-restaurant was opened in 1694 by Johann Lehmann and has been known as ‘Zum Arabischen Coffe Baum’ (‘The Arabian Coffee Tree’) since 1719. The oldest café-cum-restaurant to have been continuously operated as such, it now also contains a museum documenting the Saxons’ proverbial love of coffee. Regulars over the years have included the likes of King Augustus the Strong (who sipped his first mocha there), Robert Schumann and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.
27) ...the University of Leipzig is the second-oldest in Germany?
The University of Leipzig was established in 1409, making it the oldest university in Germany to have been operating continuously after Heidelberg and a key part of the city’s intellectual life. Celebrities such as Müntzer, Telemann, Leibniz, Wagner, Schumann, Lessing and Goethe all studied there.
28) ...the world’s biggest ape enclosure can be seen at Leipzig Zoo?
Leipzig Zoo’s Pongoland was opened in 2001 and is the largest great ape enclosure in the world with an area of 30,000 square metres (323,000 square feet). As well as being one of the zoo’s biggest attractions it is used by scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Evolutionary Anthropology to conduct research into the behaviour of primates.
29) ...Leipzig was the seat of the first national bank of Germany?
The first national bank of Germany was established in Leipzig back in 1698. These days, containing branches of over 100 banks, Leipzig is still an important banking and financial centre with a bright future.
30) ...Germany’s first business school was founded in Leipzig?
Founded in 1898 the Leipzig School of Commerce paved the way for business management as an academic discipline. Since 1996 the privately-financed Leipzig College of Business Management has continued this tradition.
City of the arts
31) ...the world’s oldest intact grand piano is on display in Leipzig?
The University of Leipzig’s Museum of Musical Instruments is one of the foremost of its kind in the world. It contains 5,000 exhibits from five centuries, including numerous gems and curiosities from European instrument workshops such as the world’s oldest intact piano.
32) ...the world’s only Mendelssohn House is in Leipzig?
Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy lived in Leipzig from 1835 until his death in 1847. The house where he lived and died has now been refurbished. Mendelssohn’s study and the drawing room, where he welcomed guests like Wagner, Schumann and Berlioz, have been restored to their original condition. Mendelssohn House is the only building in the world dedicated to the great composer and conductor.
33) ...Leipzig has the second-oldest civic art museum in Germany?
In 1848 the Leipzig Art Association presented 100 pieces of art to the city authorities to form the basis of the Museum of Fine Arts – Germany’s second-oldest civic art museum.
34) ...the oldest children’s theatre is in Leipzig?
Children’s stage ‘Theater der Jungen Welt’ has a repertoire mainly comprising puppet shows and stage productions for young audiences, and is the oldest German-language theatre devoted to children.
35) ...Leipzig artist Werner Tübke painted the biggest oil painting in the world?
According to the Guinness Book of Records, the biggest oil painting in the world is to be seen in the rotunda of the Peasants’ War Memorial in Bad Frankenhausen. This panorama showing the war and depicting more than 3,000 humans and other living things was created by Leipzig artist Werner Tübke (1929–2004). It measures 1,722 square metres (18,535 square feet).
Buildings, parks and attractions
36) ...the Old City Hall bears the longest inscription of any building in Europe?
The longest inscription to be found on a building anywhere in Europe can be seen on the Old City Hall, which was built in 1556/57.
37) ...the Waldstrasse district is one of the largest areas of fin-de-siècle architecture in the world?
The Waldstrasse district, named after the central road traversing it, contains a density and variety of fin-de-siècle architecture almost unparalleled in the world. After 1989 investors flocked to restore these magnificent listed buildings. This smart residential district is surrounded by parks, gardens and sports facilities.
38) ...Leipzig has a unique system of arcades?
The unique feel of central Leipzig is partly accounted for by its unique system of arcades and courtyard passageways. The best way to explore them from every angle is of course on foot. The most famous of all the arcades in Leipzig is the elegant Mädler Passage, home of Auerbachs Keller.
39) ... Augustusplatz is Germany’s biggest town square?
Measuring 40,000 square metres or nearly 10 acres, Leipzig’s Augustusplatz is the largest square in any German town or city. When the square was originally laid out in 1834, the area still contained gardens. The square rose to fame during the Peaceful Revolution in 1989 when 300,000 demonstrators assembled there to protest against the East German regime.
40) ...one of the finest Renaissance buildings can be admired in Leipzig?
The Old City Hall is regarded as one of Germany’s most delightful Renaissance buildings. Designed by Hieronymus Lotter, it was built in 1556 within the space of just nine months. Measuring 90 metres (295 feet) long, it dominates the eastern side of the market square. The asymmetric design of the façade is part of the building’s unique charm.
41) ...Leipzig is the third-greenest city in Germany?
The Auenwald woods are a swathe of trees and parklands measuring about 1,800 hectares (4,450 acres). One of the biggest stretches of floodplain woodlands, they form a green belt passing right through Leipzig which is unique in Europe. The area is used for relaxation and subject to stringent conservation regulations. With its other large parks as well such as Rosental and Clara Zetkin Park, Leipzig is ranked third in the list of Germany’s greenest cities.
42) ...Leipzig contains Germany’s second-largest park cemetery?
South Leipzig Cemetery (known in Germany as ‘Südfriedhof’) has an area of 78 hectares (193 acres) and 150,000 graves, making it Germany’s second-largest park cemetery. It is the final resting place of many prominent citizens of Leipzig and contains some precious gravestones. In actual fact only a third of the grounds are used for graves; the majority of the site comprises a large park containing many rare trees and bushes.
43) ...Leipzig has the second-oldest botanical garden?
The origins of the Botanical Gardens date back to 1542, when they were founded as a hortus medicus (medical garden). Nowadays they belongs to the University of Leipzig. Being rather small (2.7 hectares/6.7 acres), they are mainly used for research.
44) ...allotments were devised Leipzig?
In 1864, Innocenz Hauschild set up the first playground based on the educational principles devised by the late orthopaedist Daniel Gottlieb Moritz Schreber. The playground in Johanna Park was soon surrounded by small allotments – quickly dubbed ‘Schreber gardens’ – where local people grew vegetables. To find out more about the origin of ‘Schreber gardens’, visit the German Allotment Museum in Leipzig.
45) ...the world’s biggest advent calendar can be seen in Leipzig?
Every year when the countdown to Christmas starts, the world’s biggest Advent calendar is put up on Böttchergässchen. Measuring 857 square metres (9,225 square feet), it was first erected by Leipzig Tourist Service in 1997.
46) ...Leipzig is the German capital of comedy?
Nowhere in Germany has as many comedy clubs per head. In addition, the Leipzig Lachmesse comedy festival – the biggest event of its kind in the country – annually attracts comedy teams and theatrical troupes from Germany and abroad.
47) ...Europe’s biggest pub music festival is held in Leipzig?
During what’s known as ‘Honky Tonk’, more than 100 bands perform in the city’s pubs, clubs and bars. Europe’s biggest annual pub music festival takes punters on a musical journey through Leipzig’s ‘night of the nights’. A shuttle bus service runs throughout the night to help people visit as many different pubs as possible without having to drive.
48) ...the German Football Association was founded over 100 years ago in Leipzig?
The DFB or German Football Association was founded in Leipzig on 28 January 1900, when 36 delegates from 86 teams met up at the Mariengarten tavern. The DFB celebrated its centenary in Leipzig in the year 2000. By the way, the first German soccer championship was held in 1903 – and won by local team VfB Leipzig.
...and moreover
49) ...the prettiest women come from Leipzig?
Diana Drubig, who was born in Leipzig, was crowned Miss Germany in 1999. The ubiquitous saying “In Saxony, where the fairest girls grow ...” is as true today as it ever was. One example is local beauty queen Jana Hachmeister, who came third in Playboy magazine’s Playmate of the Century poll.
50) ... What can you tell us?
What other superlatives do you know about Leipzig?
For more information on Leipzig, contact:
Leipzig Tourismus und Marketing GmbH
Tourist-Information
Richard-Wagner-Strasse 1
D-04109 Leipzig
Tel: +49 (0) 341 7104 260 or 265
Fax: +49 (0) 341 7104 276
E-Mail: info@ltm-leipzig.de
Internet: www.leipzig.de, www.ltm-leipzig.de
ticket sales:
Tel.: +49 (0)341 7104-285
Fax: +49 (0)341 7104-286
accommodation:
Tel.: +49 (0)341 7104-255
Fax: +49 (0)341 7104-253
“Leipzig in 50 superlatives” was compiled using various encyclopaedias, history books, travel literature, press releases and contributions from official Leipzig guides. No liability can be accepted for the accuracy of the information contained herein.
Edited by
Leipzig Tourismus und Marketing GmbH
Press and PR
Andreas Schmidt
Tel.: +49 (0)341 7104-310
Fax: +49 (0)341 7104-301
Email: presse@ltm-leipzig.de
(presse05/045/12.23)
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Contact |
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Leipzig Tourismus und Marketing GmbH
Ms. Steffi Gretschel
Head of International PR Tourism
Augustusplatz 9
D-04109 Leipzig
Phone +49 (0)341 7104-300
Fax +49 (0)341 7104-236
S.Gretschel@ltm-leipzig.de
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