Timeline of Hamburg

Prior to 16th century

831 – Bishopric established.

845 – Town sacked by Norsemen.

1189

Adolf III of Holstein gets charter from Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I that gives Hamburg a court, jurisdiction, and fishing rights.

St. Peter's Church built (approximate date).

1190 – Alster dam installed.

1201 – Hamburg occupied by forces of Valdemar II of Denmark.

1223 – Archbishopric relocated from Hamburg to Bremen.

1241 – Lübeck-Hamburg alliance established.

1248 – Fire.

1256 – St. Catherine's Church active (approximate date).

1284 – 5 August: Fire.

1286 - 24 April: acquires rights to maintain permanent fire on Neuwerk.

1299 - 1 November: allowed to build a fortified tower, the new work (Neuwerk).

1310 - completion of the Great Tower Neuwerk.

1329 – St. Mary's Cathedral consecrated.

1350 – Black Death.

1356 – Matthiae-Mahlzeit (feast) begins.

1375 – Grocers' Guild formed.

1390 - Public clock installed (approximate date).

1410 – Constitution of Hamburg established.

1412 - 1412 Unterelbe flood.

1418 – St. Peter's Church rebuilt (approximate date).

1479 – Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Hamburg (public library) established in the Town Hall.

1491 – Printing press in operation.

16th–18th centuries

1500 – City expands its borders.

1510 – Hamburg becomes an imperial city of the Holy Roman Empire.

1529

Protestant Reformation.

Council of citizens established.

Johanneum (college) founded.

1536 – Hamburg joins Schmalkaldic League.

1558 – Hamburg Stock Exchange established.

1567 – Trade with the Company of Merchant Adventurers of London established.

1590 – Berenberg Bank founded.

1615 – City walls extended around Hamburg-Neustadt.

1619 – Bank of Hamburg founded.

1630 – Bremen–Lübeck–Hamburg defensive alliance formed.

1654 - Synagoge Neuer Steinweg in use.

1663 - Erbauliche Monaths Unterredungen magazine begins publication.

1665 – Hamburg Chamber of Commerce founded.

1669

St. Michael's Church built.

Wapen von Hamburg (1669) (ship) launched.

1678 – Oper am Gänsemarkt (opera house) opens; premiere of Theile's opera Adam und Eva.

1679 - Coffee house in business.

1705 - Premiere of Handel's opera Almira.

1710 – Hamburg City Archives established.

1712 – Plague.

1735 – Commerzbibliothek (business library) founded.

1762

City occupied by Danish forces.

St. Michael's Church built.

1765

Hamburgische Gesellschaft zur Beförderung der Künste und nützlichen Gewerbe (arts society) and Patriotic Club founded.

Komödienhaus (theatre) built.

1767 – Hamburgische Entreprise (theatre) established.

1778 - Hamburger Ersparungskasse (bank) established.

1787 - City directory published.

1789 – Clubbs der Freundschaft founded.

1790 – United States consulate established.

1792 - Hamburger Jakobinerklub formed.

1799 – H. J. Merck & Co. in business.

1800s–1840s

1805 – Gesellschaft der Freunde des vaterländischen Schul- und Erziehungswesens (education society) founded.

1806 – 19 November: French occupation of city begins.

1810 – Hoffmann und Campe publisher in business.

1811 – City becomes capital of the French Bouches-de-l'Elbe department.

1813

Siege of Hamburg.

Hamburg Women's Association established.

1814 – Hamburg Citizen Militia and Hamburg Police formed.

1815 – 8 June: City becomes a member state of the German Confederation.

1821 – Lehmann's botanical garden established.

1823 – Hospital built in St. George.

1825 - February flood of 1825.

1827 – City Theatre opens.

1828 - Hamburg Philharmonic Society formed.

1833 – Rauhes Haus founded.

1834 – Johanneum building constructed.

1835 – Coat of arms of Hamburg redesigned.

1838 – English Church built.

1839 – Verein für Hamburgische Geschichte (local history society) founded.

1840

Gymnasium founded.

Population: 136,956.

1841 – Circus Gymnasticus opens.

1842

Exchange built.

5–8 May: Great Fire of Hamburg.

1843

Thalía Theatre built.

Naturhistorisches Museum Hamburg established.

1845 - Sillem’s Bazar shopping arcade built.

1846 – Berliner Railway Station established.

1847

Hamburg America Line in business.

Patriotic Club building constructed.

1848 – Otto Meissner (publisher) in business.

1849

Hamburger Nachtrichten newspaper begins publication.

St. Peter's Church rebuilt again.

1850s–1890s

1850 – Kunsthalle (art gallery) opens.

1855 – January: Flood.

1856 – North German Bank and Union Bank established.

1859

Synagoge Kohlhöfen built.

Hamburg Frauenchor (women's choir) founded.

1861

Museum Godeffroy opens.

Population: 178,841.

1863

Hamburger Fremdenblatt newspaper in publication.

Zoological Garden of Hamburg opens.

Rebuilt St. Nicholas' Church dedicated.

1865

Lübeck–Hamburg railway begins operating; Lübecker Railway Station established.

Lombardsbrücke (bridge) built.

1866

Horsecar tram begins operating.

Bahnhof Hamburg Klosterthor (railway station) established.

21 August: City becomes part of the North German Confederation.

1867 – Trabrennbahn Bahrenfeld (horse racetrack) built.

1868 – St. Georg becomes part of city.

1869 – Horner Rennbahn (horse racetrack) and Kunsthalle built.

1871

City becomes part of the German Empire.

Population: 240,251.

Gesellschaft für Verbreitung von Volksbildung (education society) branch established.

1872 – Venloer Railway Station established.

1873

Photographic Society founded.

Frei Hafen bridge constructed.

1874 – Hagenbeck's zoo opens.

1877

Ohlsdorf Cemetery established near city.

Blohm + Voss shipbuilders in business near city.

1878 – Museum for Art and Industry founded.

1879

Hanseatic High Court of Appeal headquartered in Hamburg.

Holsten Brewery in business.

1880 – Steinway & Sons piano factory in operation.

1883 – Speicherstadt (warehouse district) construction begins in the Port of Hamburg.

1887

Hamburger Echo newspaper begins publication.

Sport-Club Germania Hamburg founded.

Central post office built.

1888

Hamburg joins German Customs Union.

Harbourworks and iron bridge constructed.

Free Port opens.

1889 – 15 May: Exhibition of Trade and Industry opens.

1890

German East Africa Line (shipping company) in business.

May: Gas-worker strike.

Population: 323,923.

1891 – Natural History Museum built.

1892

1892 Germany cholera outbreak.

German Open Tennis Championships begin.

Hamburger Dom (funfair) relocated to Heiligengeistfeld fair ground.

1894 – St. Pauli becomes part of city.

1896

November: Dockworker strike.

Fischauktionshalle (Hamburg-Altona) (fish market) rebuilt.

1897 – Hamburg Rathaus (city hall) built.

1898 – Hamburg-Altona railway station opens.

1899 - Hamburger Öffentliche Bücherhallen (library) founded.

1900–1945

1900

Institute for Maritime and Tropical Diseases opens.

Shipbuilding school founded.

1901 - Civil law courts built.

1904 – American Businessmen's Club of Hamburg founded.

1905 – Population: 802,793.

1906

Hamburg Hauptbahnhof (railway station) opens.

Altona-Hamburg railway begins operating.

1907

Tierpark Hagenbeck (zoo) established.

Stadion Hoheluft (stadium) opens.

1908

Music Hall inaugurated.

Simplo Fullfeder pen company relocates to Hamburg.

1909 – Hotel Atlantic in business.

1910 – Sportplatz at Rothenbaum opens.

1911 – Hamburg Airport and Elbe Tunnel open.

1912

Hamburg U-Bahn begins operating.

Hamburg-Bergedorf Observatory dedicated.

Hamburg-Mannheimer Insurance Corporation in business.

1913

3 April: Vaterland passenger ship launched.

Gewerkschaftlich-Genossenschaftliche Versicherungsaktiengesellschaft (insurance firm) in business.

1914 – Hamburg Stadtpark (park) opens.

1918

Hamburg Kammerspiele (theatre) founded.

Hamburger Volkszeitung newspaper begins publication.

1919 – University of Hamburg and Hamburger Sport-Verein established.

1922 – Museum of Hamburg History opens.

1923 - Labour and Socialist International founded in Hamburg.

1924

Nordische Rundfunk radio begins broadcasting.

Chilehaus built.

1925

Helms-Museum and Hamburg School of Astrology established.

Population: 1,079,126.

1926 – Botanischer Sondergarten Wandsbek (garden) established.

1930

Planten un Blomen (park) created.

Population: 1,145,124.

1933

Carl Vincent Krogmann becomes mayor.

Hamburger Flugzeugbau (aircraft company) in business.

1934

Gau Hamburg established.

Transmitter Hamburg-Billstedt begins operating.

1938

Neuengamme concentration camp established by SS.

major expansion of the land of Hamburg per the Greater Hamburg Act:

the cities Altona, Wandsbek, and Harburg-Wilhelmsburg join

and the cities Geesthacht and Cuxhaven (including Neuwerk) leave the territory of the Land Hamburg.

1939 – Bombing of Hamburg in World War II begins.

1945

Bombing of Hamburg in World War II ends.

Eppendorf (company) founded.

Population: 1,350,278.

1946–1990s

1946

5 December: Hamburg Ravensbrück trials for war crimes begin at the Curiohaus.

Max Brauer becomes mayor.

1948

Hamburger Abendblatt newspaper and Stern news magazine begin publication.

Population: 1,518,900.

1949 – Hamburger Morgenpost newspaper begins publication.

1950 – Public University of Music established.

1951 – Institut français Hamburg founded.

1952

Der Spiegel news magazine headquartered in city.

Bild newspaper begins publication.

Constitution of Hamburg ratified.

UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning headquartered in city.

1953

Volksparkstadion (stadium) opens.

International garden show held.

1955 – Hamburg State Opera building opens.

1957

Fazle Omar Mosque built.

Streit's Haus Filmtheater opens.

British Army School and Hamburg Symphony Orchestra established.

1958 – Hamburg Atlantic Line in business.

1959 – Kaiserkeller night club opens.

1960 – August: English rock band The Beatles begin performing in Hamburg.

1961 - Population: 1,840,543.

1962

Spiegel scandal.

North Sea flood of 1962.

1963

Millerntor-Stadion (stadium) opens.

St. James' Church restored.

Alter Botanischer Garten Hamburg greenhouses built.

1965

Gruner + Jahr publisher in business.

Hamburg Transport Association established.

Imam Ali Mosque built.

NDR Fernsehen (television) headquartered in city.

1967 – Eros Center brothel in business on the Reeperbahn.

1968

Cherry Blossom Festival begins.

Alsterdorfer Sporthalle and Gruenspan music club open.

1969 - waived older rights on harbour estate in Cuxhaven in favour of Neuwerk and Scharhörn to build an offshore harbour.

1970

Hamburg University of Applied Sciences founded.

Population: 1,793,640.

1971 – Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy and Fabrik cultural centre founded.

1973

Congress Center Hamburg opens.

University of the German Federal Armed Forces and Neumeier's Hamburg Ballet established.

Kattwykbrücke (bridge) built.

1974

Köhlbrand Bridge built.

Hans-Ulrich Klose becomes mayor.

1975 – New Elbe Tunnel opens.

1976 – Die Motte youth centre founded in Ottensen.

1978 – Technical University of Hamburg founded.

1979

Botanischer Garten Hamburg (garden) opens.

Werkstatt 3 co-operative founded in Ottensen.

1980 – Stadtteilarchiv Ottensen (archive) founded.

1981

Protest against proposed Brokdorf Nuclear Power Plant.

Klaus von Dohnányi becomes mayor.

Squat on Hafenstraße begins.

1982 – Kampnagel (cultural space) established.

1984

Chaos Communication Congress begins.

Hamburg Institute for Social Research founded.

1985

Birdland jazz club opens.

Museum der Arbeit established.

1986

Chaos Computer Club headquartered in city.

Radio Hamburg begins broadcasting.

Hamburg Marathon begins.

Brokdorf Nuclear Power Plant commissioned near city.

1988

Center for Science and International Security at the University of Hamburg founded.

Henning Voscherau becomes mayor.

Population: 1,603,070.

1989

Deichtorhallen art centre opens.

Hamburg Center for Film Research founded.

1990 - GoodMills Deutschland headquartered in city.

1992 – Filmfest Hamburg begins.

1994 – Film and Television Museum Hamburg and Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Hamburg established.

1996 - City website online (approximate date).

1997 – Ortwin Runde becomes mayor.

1998

Afghan Museum established.

Am Rothenbaum (sport venue) built.

21st century

2000

Bucerius Law School established.

International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea headquartered in city.

2001

Long Night of Museums begins.

Container Terminal Altenwerder opens.

Ole von Beust becomes mayor.

2002

4 November: Bambule eviction.

O2 World arena opens.

Bucerius Kunst Forum (art gallery) founded.

2003 – Hamburg Pride founded.

2004

Hamburg Summit: China meets Europe begins.

Major Records in business.

2005 – eVendi Arena (for American Football) built.

2006 – German Institute of Global and Area Studies established.

2007

World Future Council and Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein Film Promotion headquartered in city.

29 May: Anti-globalization protest.

Dockville music festival.

Elbphilharmonie construction begin with an estimated cost of 241.3 millionen Euro and expected completion in 2010.

2008

HafenCity district and Foundation for Historic Museums of Hamburg established.

Lange Nacht der Industrie (industrial public relations event) begins.

Museum für Kunst und Kultur an der Elbe opens in Jenisch House.

2009

International Chamber Music Competition Hamburg begins.

Student protest for education reform.

2010 – Christoph Ahlhaus becomes mayor.

2011

Olaf Scholz becomes mayor.

European Union, Latin America and the Caribbean Foundation headquartered in city.

2012 – Population: 1,813,587.

2013 - December: 2013–14 Hamburg demonstrations begin.

2016 - 31 October: Elbphilharmonie construction officially ends with a total cost of 789 millionen Euro.