Lüdenscheid, Industrial municipality in Märkischer Kreis, Germany
Lüdenscheid is a district capital in Märkischer Kreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, nestled between the river valleys of Lenne and Volme at around 420 meters elevation. The town stretches across wooded hills and flat plateaus where industrial zones and residential neighborhoods merge together.
The settlement began in the 9th century as a Frankish farmstead and received town rights in 1278 from the Count of Altena. During the Middle Ages it joined the Hanseatic League and developed into an early center of metal industry through iron working.
The Protestant Church of the Redeemer in the center preserves its Romanesque tower from the 11th century, now the oldest standing structure in town. Around the Alter Markt, half-timbered houses show the early building tradition of this Westphalian hill settlement.
The old town sits on a ridge above the valleys and can be reached via several winding approach roads that often pass through forests. Parking areas are located at the edge of the center, from where the pedestrian zone and the church can be reached on foot.
Water Castle Neuenhof from the late 17th century stands south of the center on an artificial island in the middle of a pond. The baroque manor house with its rectangular layout and preserved outbuildings shows the rural aristocratic architecture of the Sauerland region.
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