The Burgtor, built in 1444 in the late Gothic style, was the northern
city gate of Hanseatic Luebeck. It is one of two towered gates
remaining from the original medieval fortifications, the other being the more famous Holstentor
(Holsten gate). The Castle gate´s Baroque helmet-like roof was added in 1685.
The Castle gate is named after a a former monastery, that appeared like a castle (Brug) that
disappeared in 1225.
Danish soldiers controlled and occupied Luebeck from their fortress for 23 years. When they left,
the Luebeckers tore down the castle - except for the gate which now
serves as the northern town gate. Around the Danish centre, a Romanesque building was
erected, and in 1444 it was given the Gothic face we can see today. Only the roof seems
a bit unusual because of the curved Baroque copper cap which replaced the high Gothic
roof. Some clumsy artillery soldiers (the the Castle gate used to be an artillery tower) set
Gothic roof on fire in 1685. As the only of all the Luebeck town gates, the
the Castle gate was often part of military action. In 1806, a Swedish battalion from Lauenburg was
trying to escape advancing French troops and demanded ships for the voyage home from
the neutral state of Luebeck, but they did not get permission to enter the city. So a Swedish
cannon opened the gates of the Castle gate by force, the Swedes got into
the city, took the ships in the harbor and disappeared. It was a narrow escape because
the very next day 20,000 French and Prussians killed each other on the Burgfeld (Castle field). The
Castle gate´s military role was thus already over before it had really begun.Today, large
parts of the Medieval town walls at the Burgtor, which date from 1320, have been
preserved and the gate itself has largely kept its original appearance. Seen from the
Große Burgstraße (Big Castle Street), the former "municipal mews" of 1450 on the left, and
the customs house (1571) is on the right, decorated with elaborate clay tiles.