New Hanover Town Hall and the arched elevator

For me, one of the most impressive buildings and one of the most important sights in the city of Hanover is the New Hanover Town Hall. The arched elevator to the viewing platform is something very special.

New Hanover Town Hall

Hermann Eggert was commissioned to design the New Town Hall for Hanover. He designed a castle-like building in the style of late historicism, which was built between 1901 and 1913. The result was a truly imposing building that is 129 m long, 67 m wide and 98 m high.

The construction was not easy. The building ground near the river Leine proved to be unstable. The figures in the literature vary somewhat, but it was decided to drive around 6026 beech trunks into the ground. These formed the foundation on which the town hall could be built and it still stands on the trunks today.

The interior work does not seem to have gone quite as well as the Hanoverians would have wished. Eggert was dismissed due to disagreements and Gustav Halmhuber took over the task. Under his leadership, a rather moderate extension in Art Nouveau style was created, which the clients liked better.

The building was completed in 1913 and was inaugurated in the presence of Kaiser Wilhelm II and the then city director Heinrich Tramm. The construction costs of 10 million marks were financed by the city from its own funds. No additional tax money or state funds flowed into the construction. This prompted the Emperor to say at the inauguration: “This is a proud building that the city has given itself.”

The entrance hall

You can enter Hanover’s New Town Hall free of charge and take a look around the large entrance hall. What a hall! I’m standing in a room that is 30 meters long, 21 meters wide and over 30 meters high and is incredibly impressive. My gaze is focused almost exclusively on the spiral staircases at the corners of the entrance hall. A large, wide, grand staircase leads from the hall to the upper floors. This immediately made me think of a castle again.

In the middle of the hall are four large models of Hanover, which illustrate the city’s development very well. The first model shows Hanover around 1689 and clearly shows the old town center, which at that time could only be inhabited by Protestants. People of other denominations had to live outside the old town. The second model shows Hanover on the same scale in 1939, when around 470,000 people lived in the city.

The third model shows Hanover in 1945. I have never seen such an impressive model of a city. It shows the city after over 1.5 million bombs had hit it during the Second World War. They destroyed over 90% of the city. The city model shows this destruction and the little that was left very impressively. The last model shows Hanover as it exists today.

After you have had a look around and learned something about the urban development of Hanover, don’t miss the chance to take the arched elevator to the viewing platform.

Taking the arched elevator up to the town hall

Finally, on my third attempt, I make it. I stand at the ticket desk to take the unique arched elevator up to the town hall. A sign says there is a 20-minute wait, but that doesn’t put me off. I want to finally see this elevator that I’ve heard so much about.

With my ticket in hand, I make my way to the third floor of the town hall. I choose the stairs, but there is also an elevator. Through a door I reach a kind of roof terrace and there is also the queue for the arched elevator.

Six people at a time can start their journey to the top. To ensure that no one gets lost, there are 6 pairs of shoeprints in one field, much to the delight of the children. The little mouse standing in front of me in the row keeps a close eye on whether all the “waiting places” are occupied and not too many passengers try to cheat their way into the elevator.

The curved elevator does not simply travel straight up. The engineers have adapted the route to the shape of the dome. I think it’s a great idea to install an elevator inside a dome. That way it doesn’t “disfigure” the outside of the building and takes visitors up to the town hall almost invisibly. The implementation was certainly an enormous technical achievement for the year 1913.

The elevator travels along the inner curve of the dome some 43 meters upwards. At the beginning it travels vertically, then the route tilts by about 17 degrees and at the end it continues vertically again. Admittedly, it was a strange feeling at first, as the elevator floor was a little crooked. Of course, this adjusted when the elevator also sloped. I found it very exciting to watch the ride through the window above me. You can follow the “kink” really closely.

Once at the top

The elevator doesn’t move quickly, so you really have time to enjoy the unique ride. When the door opened, I was once again faced with a few steps. These led to a level that also serves as a “waiting area” for visitors waiting to go down. There are no windows here, so if you want to enjoy the view, you have to climb further up a narrow steel spiral staircase.

There are three different levels that allow visitors to enjoy a panoramic view of Hanover. The lower levels are open and you can walk around the dome on narrow steps. Once you reach the top level, you stand directly on the dome, which is over 97 meters high, under a small roof. However, there are safety nets here, which are rather unsuitable for taking photos. But the view does not change significantly from the lower walkways.

From the dome of the New Town Hall you have a wonderful view over Hanover. I enjoy the view over the Maschsee. I even discover the Deister, where you can go on such beautiful hikes. I find the view of the squares in front of the New Town Hall particularly exciting. From up there you can clearly see the stone pattern.

The view of the city is also very interesting. Some of the buildings I can see from up there I have already discovered from a completely different perspective on my tour along the Red Thread through Hanover.

I stood on the dome of the New Town Hall for quite a while and enjoyed the view before climbing down the narrow spiral staircase to the elevator.

The ride down was no less impressive than the ride up. A truly unique experience!

Visitor information

Address

Trammplatz 2
30159 Hannover