Landshut Old Town

The Altstadt is one long, unusually broad street lined with tall gabled houses in the late Gothic brick manner, running below Trausnitz castle on its ridge. St Martin's church has a brick tower of about a hundred and thirty metres, the tallest brick tower in the world and the tallest church tower built of brick anywhere; construction took from 1385 to 1500. In 1475 the wedding of a Bavarian duke to a Polish king's daughter was held here on a scale that entered local memory, and since 1903 the Landshuter Hochzeit has re-enacted it every four years with thousands of participants in costume.

History

Duke Louis I founded the town together with Trausnitz Castle in 1204, and a settlement grew up below the castle; by 1231 it was a residence of the Wittelsbachs, and when Bavaria was split in 1255 it became the capital of Lower Bavaria. In the 15th century it was the seat of the three "rich dukes" of Bavaria-Landshut. Between 1537 and 1543 Duke Louis X, back from Italy, built the Landshut Residence on the model of the Palazzo Te in Mantua - the first Renaissance palace north of the Alps. The town lost most of its importance after the 16th century, though the university of Ingolstadt was moved here in 1800, before going on to Munich in 1826 (Wikipedia, Landshut).

What's there

• The brick tower - St Martin's at about 130 metres, the tallest of its kind.
• The broad Gothic street - stepped gables along an unusually wide Altstadt.
• Trausnitz castle - a ridge fortress with a painted stair of comic figures.
• The Hochzeit - a costumed re-enactment held every four years.

When to go

April to October; the Hochzeit falls in June and July of every fourth year and fills the town. The tower climb is open in season with limited winter hours.

Good to know

The re-enactment happens only every four years. The tower climb is a long narrow stair with no lift. The town is quiet outside events.

Nearby

Munich lies southwest; the Isar runs through the town.