Schnoor

Last updated
Schnoorviertel Bremen Schnoor Bremen.jpg
Schnoorviertel Bremen

Schnoor is a neighbourhood in the medieval centre of the German city of Bremen, and the only part of it that has preserved a medieval character. The neighbourhood owes its name to old handicrafts associated with shipping. The alleys between the houses were often associated with occupations or objects: There was an area in which ropes and cables were produced (string = Schnoor) and a neighboring area, where wire cables and anchor chains were manufactured (wire = Wieren).

Contents

Schnoor is also the name of the main street in this neighbourhood. Another street there is Marterburg.

History

In the Hanseatic city of Bremen, the Schnoor was one of the poorer corners. While the rich merchants settled in the Obernstraße (Upper Street), which was meant as well geographically (ridge of the dune) as socially, or in the Langenstraße (Long street, along the Balge, Bremen's first harbour), the Schnoor developed in the 10th century as a district of fishermen. The inhabitants built thatched cottages on the little island between the rivers Weser and Balge. Therefore, during its first centuries it was liable to high floods.

The first ferry service was established here, and the first bridge crossing the Weser was built around the year 1240. You can find an old wall and parts of a round tower which was erected around 1200, near the so-called Marterburg.

In the 13th century Franciscan friars had settled and their St. John's church was constructed in the following decades.

The street Schnoor today Schnoor.JPG
The street Schnoor today

Development

Today the oldest houses date back to the 15th century. Most of them are from the 17th and 18th centuries. While other parts of Bremen developed with plots of about one square kilometre and merchant's villas, the plots in the Schnoor have areas which are just enough for a single houses on 55 square metres. The narrow streets were not suitable for the increase in traffic from the 19th century. The quarter became one of the poorest parts of Bremen, a situation that meant renovations were unaffordable. During the Second World War the Schnoor suffered only slight damage, so that owners of the houses had to pay a Lastenausgleich after 1945. But by the mid-1950s the houses were in a pitiable state.

The Senate of the Free Hanseatic Town of Bremen decided in 1959 to rebuild the historic area of the Schnoor. House owners were invited to restore rundown buildings with financial support from the State of Bremen. This development was in contrast to the common practice in many towns and cities in Germany and Europe until the late 1970s.

The situation changed with the Venice Charter for the Conservation and Restoration of Monuments and Sites (1964) so that in 1973 the Schnoor became a historic district under official heritage conservation through the State Monument Authority. [1]

One of the most famous houses which has been preserved in its original state is the Schifferhaus in the street of Stavendamm. Another historic building is the Landherrnamt (1856) which initially housed the authorities administering the State of Bremen. [2]

The Birgittenkloster (Convent of Saint Birgitta), a small Bridgettine convent founded in October 2002 is located in the Schnoor, [3] as is St. John's Church, a listed building with a history going back to the 14th century. [4]

Literature

Related Research Articles

Wesermarsch is a Kreis (district) in the northwestern part of Lower Saxony, Germany. Neighboring are the districts of Cuxhaven and Osterholz, the city of Bremen in the state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, the urban district of Delmenhorst, the district of Oldenburg and the urban district of Oldenburg, and the districts of Ammerland and Friesland.

Bremen Capital of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, Germany

The City Municipality of Bremen is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, a two-city-state consisting of the cities of Bremen and Bremerhaven. With around 570,000 inhabitants, the Hanseatic city is the 11th largest city of Germany as well as the second largest city in Northern Germany after Hamburg.

Balge Place in Lower Saxony, Germany

Balge is a municipality in the district of Nienburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany, located on the Weser river. The community belongs to the Marklohe which consists of seven municipalities including Balge.

Bremen City Hall Historical building, instance of Brick Gothic and Weser Renaissance architecture

The Bremen City Hall is the seat of the President of the Senate and Mayor of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen. It is one of the most important examples of Brick Gothic and Weser Renaissance architecture in Europe. Since 1973, it has been a protected historical building. In July 2004, along with the Bremen Roland statue, the building was added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

The Shipper's House in Bremen, Germany is a building in the oldest district of the Free Hanseatic city of Bremen. The house was registered as an historical monument in 1973 and is in Schnoor. During the last 25 years of the 20th century the house was a private museum. It was an attraction for many visitors including the former German Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher.

Balge (river) River in Germany

The Balge was a short branch of the Weser on its eastern side, running through what is now the centre of Bremen. As it served as a harbour in the early Middle Ages, it significantly contributed to Bremen's development as a port. The river gradually narrowed until in 1608, it was canalised. In 1838, it was completely filled with earth.

Bremer Marktplatz

The Bremer Marktplatz is a square situated in the centre of the Hanseatic City of Bremen. One of the oldest public squares in the city, it covers an area of 3,484 m2 (37,500 sq ft). It is no longer used as a market place except for the Christmas market and the annual Freimarkt Fair at the end of October.

Schütting (Bremen)

The Schütting, situated on the Marktplatz in Bremen, initially served the city's merchants and tradesmen as a guild house. In 1849, it became Bremen's chamber of commerce. Since 1973, it has been under monument protection. It lies on the south site of the Bremen marketplaces directly across from the town hall.

Stadtwaage (Bremen)

The Stadtwaage at No. 13 Langenstraße in Bremen (Germany) is the building in which the municipal weighing scales used to be housed. The facility was created in order to levy taxes and excise duties while protecting merchants and customers against fraud and dishonesty.

Schlachte (Bremen)

The Schlachte is a promenade along the east bank of the River Weser in the old town of Bremen in the north of Germany. Once one of the city's harbours, it is now popular for its restaurants, beer gardens and river boats.

Birgittenkloster Bremen

The Birgittenkloster is a Bridgettine convent in Bremen, Germany, founded in October 2002. The first convent to be founded in Bremen since the Reformation, it has adopted an ecumenical role in line with the teachings of Saint Bridget.

Domsheide

Domsheide is a major square in the city of Bremen, Germany. It is located east of the Marktplatz and south of Bremen Cathedral. Streets leading to it include Ostertorstraße, Dechanatstraße, Balgebrückstraße and Violenstraße. It contains a number of important buildings, including the main post office, the courthouse, the cathedral precinct with the bell, and the annex to the stock market building. It is one of three main hubs of the public transport network, with most tram routes and two important bus lines crossing the square. The design of the Domsheide is relatively uneven, characterized by materials such as sandstone, dark red brick, red and yellow clinkers, render, concrete and marble.

Marterburg

The Marterburg is a street in the Schnoor district of Bremen in the north of Germany. The name comes from Mattenburg as it was the place where the millers used to store flour in Matten (silos). The street runs from Ostertorstraße in a southwesterly direction curving slightly westwards before reaching the Tiefer near the river. Sidestreets include Kolpingstraße, Hinter der Balge and Schnoor. The street follows the old city wall which forms the rear of the houses on the eastern side, sometimes being used as part of their foundations. Many of the buildings to the south of Kolpingstraße are old listed buildings, several of which have been restored.

<i>Landgericht Bremen</i>

The Landgericht Bremen in the courthouse of the State of Bremen on the Domsheide in the old town of Bremen, Germany. It was built in the late 19th century in the French Renaissance style and completed in 1906. It has been a listed building since 1992. In addition to the judicial services of the regional court, the building houses sections of the Public Prosecutor's department (Staatsanwaltschaft) and of the district court (Amtsgericht).

Landherrnamt

The Landherrnamt is a building in the Schnoor district of Bremen, Germany, which was designed by Alexander Schröder in the Neo-Romanesque style and completed in 1856.

Langenstraße (Bremen)

The Langenstraße is a historical street in the old town of Bremen in the north of Germany. First mentioned in 1234, it is one of Bremen's oldest streets and one of the most important for the city's merchants. It no doubt originated at the time when the first settlements grew up on the north bank of the Balge. It runs west from the Marktplatz parallel to the River Weser over Bürgermeister-Smidt-Straße to Geeren. Many of the street's historic buildings were seriously damaged during aerial bombings in the Second World War but were carefully reconstructed in the postwar period.

Suding & Soeken building, Bremen

The Suding & Soeken building is a gabled house at No. 28 Langenstraße in Bremen, Germany. Referred to as a Kaufmannshaus or Kontorhaus, it is one of the city's few historic merchant houses to survive the war undamaged. It is noted for its projecting Renaissance bay window and its two-tiered Baroque stairway ascending from the hallway.

Robinson Crusoe House

Robinson Crusoe House is a stepped-gabled house on Böttcherstraße in the old town district of Bremen, Germany. It was built by the prosperous coffee merchant Ludwig Roselius who admired the pioneering spirit of Daniel Defoe's fictional hero Robinson Crusoe.

Ports of Bremen Ports and harbours in Bremen and Bremerhaven, Germany

The Ports of Bremen, Bremen Ports or Bremish Ports, in German "Bremische Häfen" consist of the commercial ports in Bremen and Bremerhaven. They are managed by bremenports GmbH & Co. KG, a company of private status in public property.

Focke Museum

The Focke Museum is the museum of history and the history of art for the city and state of Bremen. It was formed in 1924 by the merger of a museum of industry and commerce and the previous historical museum, and is named for the founder of the latter, Johann Focke (1848–1922), a Bremen privy councillor and father of Henrich Focke. It is located in 4.5 hectares of grounds in the Riensberg neighbourhood of the city. In addition to a main building which opened in 1964 and was extended in 2002, the museum complex includes buildings dating from the 16th to the 19th centuries.

References

  1. ↑ "Database of Landesamt für Denkmalpflege Bremen #1114".(in German)
  2. ↑ "Database Landesamt für Denkmalpflege Bremen". Landherrnamt & St.-Johannis-Schule (in German)
  3. ↑ "Birgittenkloster" (in German). Katholischer Gemeindeverband in Bremen. Archived from the original on 7 January 2014. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  4. ↑ "Database Landesamt für Denkmalpflege Bremen". St. John's Church (in German)

Coordinates: 53°04′22″N8°48′35″E / 53.07278°N 8.80972°E / 53.07278; 8.80972

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.