Journal of Samuel Kiechel
9 – 12 July 1585
From Lüneburg to Hamburg
“Hamburg has seventy bridges because the Elbe is diverted into many canals. At low tide in the summer, an awful stench hangs over the city because the citizens throw their garbage and even human waste into the water.“
Die Reisen des Samuel Kiechel aus drei Handschriften, K. D. Haszler (ed.), Stuttgart 1866, pp. 10-11; Bayerische Staatsbibliothek.
Along the Elbe
Lüneburg, Altenbrücker Gate
After two days in Lüneburg, Samuel Kiechel left the city. To find transport and a guide, he went to the city gate in the morning, where carters had gathered, waiting for passengers. There, Kiechel met a group of merchants, and together they hired a cart to take them to Winsen.
Winsen is on the Elbe, about twenty kilometres northwest of Lüneburg. The town was part of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg and served as a transit hub for travellers needing to change modes of transport. From Winsen, boats regularly sailed down the Elbe River to Hamburg. Kiechel boarded a boat and arrived in the city that afternoon.
In Hamburg
Arriving along the Elbe from the south, Samuel Kiechel would have been met with a similar view of Hamburg. The Elbe dominates the foreground, with three impressive churches shaping the city’s skyline. These are St. Nicolas, St. Mary’s Cathedral, and St. Peter. Only the Church of St. Peter remains intact today. St. Nicolas was destroyed during World War II, with only its tower still standing. St. Mary’s was demolished at the start of the nineteenth century.
Many large merchant ships line the left side of the picture — the direction of the North Sea — while smaller boats occupy the right. Hamburg was not only a vital centre for international trade but also a transit point for goods and passengers heading further up the Elbe. A boat in the lower right corner carries passengers. Samuel Kiechel might have arrived in a similar vessel.
Two boats carrying passengers arrive in Hamburg
Kiechel’s impression of Hamburg was of a large and powerful city with a substantial population. He wrote that the Elbe flowed into the North Sea about eighteen miles downstream, and ships could reach the city’s harbour during high tide. He also noted the presence of many Dutch and English merchants settled in Hamburg.
The Elbe River between Hamburg and the North Sea
In the late sixteenth century, Hamburg was one of the largest cities in the Holy Roman Empire. It was a bustling trade port and likely a completely new experience for our traveller. The city had been a central trading hub in northern Europe since the Middle Ages due to its strategic position at the mouth of the Elbe River into the North Sea. A free and imperial city since the twelfth century, Hamburg was a founding member of the Hanseatic League.
The Hanseatic League was a confederation of independent cities united by a common aim: protecting their trade and economic interests both within the Empire and abroad. Hamburg and Lübeck were two of the founding cities. Situated on the Baltic and North Seas, respectively, these cities dominated the trade in northern Europe. As more cities joined, their combined economic and political strength enabled the League to establish a regional monopoly with trading posts, privileges and concessions. Ultimately, the League’s influence extended from London in the west to Novgorod in Russia, commanding all sea trade in Northern Europe. At its height, the League was not just a trading alliance but also a political and military power.
However, by the time of Samuel Kiechel’s visit, the Hanseatic League’s power had waned. Although not officially dissolved, it was in a terminal decline. Its large scale led to divergent political and economic interests, causing frequent disagreements among its cities. In the fifteenth century, territorial princes began reasserting their authority, and many League member cities lost their autonomy.
Hamburg harbour, 1588
In addition, the discovery of sea routes to Asia and America forced a reconfiguration of Europe’s trade network as new competitors and commodities entered the market. Samuel Kiechel noticed Dutch and English merchants in Hamburg. Many Dutch had fled religious persecution and the war between the Dutch Republic and the Kingdom of Spain, settling in cities of neighbouring countries. The Dutch benefited most from the decline of the Hanseatic League, which had long protected its trade routes. With their modern merchant ships, they began to dominate trade in Northern Europe. Hanseatic cities along the coast partly welcomed the Dutch push into the Baltic Sea, as their vessels offered cheaper transport rates. Besides the Dutch, the English Company of Merchant Adventurers also sought to extend their trade network eastwards and participate in the lucrative trade with Russia.
With the decline of the Hanseatic League, its former member cities pursued their own goals. Hamburg’s location allowed it to retain its status as an economic hub. It remained an important trading port on the lower Elbe and the North Sea.
Kiechel further wrote that Hamburg has around seventy bridges, and the Elbe flows into the city through various canals. The river Alster, a tributary of the Elbe, also passes through Hamburg.
Hamburg, 1588
This bird’s-eye view of Hamburg shows the canals, bridges and the Alster River. The four large market squares of the city are labelled. A table on the left side of the image lists twenty-four entries of various religious and secular buildings. The numerous ships on the river highlight Hamburg’s importance as a trading centre.
According to Kiechel, the rivers and canals carry a foul stench during low tide in the summer. Despite the large amounts of garbage and waste, including human waste, thrown into the water, the people of Hamburg produce excellent beer. Our traveller considered it among the best beers of the cities along the North Sea coast.
The use of rivers for waste disposal was commonplace in the past. At that time, protecting the environment was not a priority, and understanding how diseases spread was limited. Fast-flowing rivers carried waste away swiftly, often causing trouble for settlements downstream. If, as Kiechel claims, the people of Hamburg used canals for this purpose, the summer stench is not surprising.
But the people were aware of the dangers of drinking untreated water. Besides boiling water or mixing it with honey or vinegar, they brewed a low-alcohol beer as a safer alternative. Even children drank the low-alcohol variety as the brewing process killed the bacteria, making the water safe to drink. In cities like Hamburg, many citizens brewed their own beer, either for personal use or for sale. Kiechel undoubtedly enjoyed sampling the local beer wherever he went, as he often commented on its quality.
St. Nicolas Church and the “Hopfenmarkt“ (hops market), where the hops necessary for beer production were sold
Melchior Lorck’s Elbkarte (Map of the Elbe Estuary)
The artist Melchior Lorck drew an impressive map of the Elbe estuary in 1568. The map measures twelve metres in width and one metre in height, making it somewhat awkward to display here. Lorck’s map offers a panoramic view of the lower Elbe estuary, from the North Sea to Geesthacht (roughly thirty kilometres southeast of Hamburg).
Elbe River and Hamburg, 1568
The map depicts Hamburg as the largest city on the lower Elbe. Numerous large ships can be seen on the river between the city and the North Sea. Villages, along with a few towns and cities, are situated on both riverbanks.
The map is detailed and quite precise. However, Lorck’s depiction of the Elbe around Hamburg is inaccurate. He created this map amid a legal dispute between the city of Hamburg and the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg, along with several smaller towns along the Elbe estuary. The disagreement concerned the staple right along the Elbe.
The staple right, a key feature of the Middle Ages and early modern period, required all merchants, even those merely passing through, to unload their goods and offer them for sale for a limited duration (usually three days) before continuing their journey. Cities along major trade routes, especially those on rivers, held this right. It was particularly lucrative for locations that merchants could not easily bypass.
In the legal conflict, Hamburg claimed the staple right for all traffic on the Elbe, a stance challenged by the other towns and the Duchy. A central issue in the dispute was the river itself. The Elbe splits into a northern and southern arm a few kilometres upstream of Hamburg. Hamburg was situated on the north arm and claimed the staple right for the entire river. The other towns and the Duchy opposed this extension of Hamburg’s influence, arguing that the southern arm was the main shipping route, as it carried more water and accommodated more ships.
To bolster Hamburg’s case, Lorck depicted the southern arm of the Elbe as significantly smaller than it actually was, while emphasising the northern arm. The depiction of many large and small ships further underscores the importance of the North Arm.
For the purpose of illustrating Samuel Kiechel’s journey, Lorck’s map provides an impression of the countryside the traveller passed through on his way from Winsen to Hamburg and further on to Stade.
The Elbe between the mouth of the Ilmenau River (bottom right) and Hamburg
Illustrations & References
All images are in order of appearance with links to sources on external websites:
- Hamburg, in: Braun, Georg, Hogenberg, Frans, Civitates Orbis Terrarum (1), Cologne 1593, fol. 24v; Heidelberg University.
- Waterloo, Anthonie, Stadspoort Altenbrücker Tor en watermolen te Lüneburg bij Hamburg, 1619 – 1690; Rijksmuseum Amsterdam.
- Matham, Theodor, Gezelschap in een zeilbootje op een rivier, 1616 – 1660; Rijksmuseum Amsterdam.
- Ortelius, Abraham, Theater of the World, Antwerp 1587, fol. 49v; Library of Congress.
- Visscher, Claes Jansz., Marktscène, 1605-1610; Rijksmuseum Amsterdam.
- Hamburg, in: Braun, Georg, Hogenberg, Frans, Civitates Orbis Terrarum (4), Cologne 1594, fol. 36v; Heidelberg University.
- Lorck, Melchior, Hamburg Elbe river map, 1568, Hamburger Staatsarchiv, Wikimedia Commons.