© RTL
Luxembourg's Old Town was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site on December 17, 1994. Thirty years later, it has made a name for itself on the cultural map of the world.
Like the Taj Mahal in India, the Acropolis in Athens, Mont-Saint-Michel - or closer to home, Place Stanislas in Nancy and the Porta Nigra in Trier - Luxembourg City is on the list of 1,223 World Heritage Sites and Monuments of UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. And has been for 30 years!
During a World Heritage Committee meeting in Phuket on 17 December 1994, Luxembourg left an impression with its "striking natural environment" around the ancient fortress city. "Luxembourg, whose foundation dates back to 963, has played an important role in European history for centuries," the committee noted.
The fact that the "Gibraltar of the North" was finally considered to be of outstanding value to humanity "was the culmination of our view of the City," says Mayor Lydie Polfer, who was already in office at the time.
"We always knew that we had an extraordinary city and that this site really deserved to be promoted, not only nationally, but also internationally. 1994 was the culmination of a great deal of effort that we had already put in, and it proved us right." A few months later, in July 1995, Mayor Polfer received the UNESCO ‘promotion’ from Frederico Mayor Zaragoza, Director-General of UNESCO, who had come specially to Luxembourg for the occasion.
A special characteristic of Luxembourg City is that its architecture, history, military ingenuity, and history are all blended into the urban landscape. / © Domingos Oliveira / RTL
"This classification was a decisive and important decision, not only for the management of our heritage, but also for the promotion of our heritage in the city centre. And it has also helped us to improve, strengthen and enhance our cultural offering in Luxembourg, and to showcase our heritage in order to raise its profile abroad. And I think we've done well," says Eric Thill, Minister for Culture and Minister Delegate for Tourism.
More than just monuments
"Only the ‘old quarters’ and the fortifications are considered part of the UNESCO Site. The old quarters are where civil society used to live, while the fortifications are located around them on the outskirts. One is minor and major civil architecture, the other is military engineering. These are two totally different aspects. And when you add in the history and the topography, you're really dealing with an exceptional site that incorporates all these elements, including the microclimate," explains UNESCO Site manager and historian Robert Philippart.
In other words, we are dealing with an entire historic urban landscape, not just a single monument or square that has been universally recognised. It's a unique landscape with many layers that reflect the geography and history of a thousand-year-old city that has retained its authenticity despite the tumult of centuries of war.
The internationally protected area covers 138 hectares, or just 2.7 percent of the capital's territory. As visitors can see on the huge map-relief at the UNESCO Visitor Centre in the Lëtzebuerg City Museum, UNESCO has delineated a central zone that enjoys a high level of protection. And a ‘buffer’ zone where development is subject to legal restrictions.
The protected zone contains a whole host of remarkable buildings, including the Grand Ducal Palace, the former Post Office, the Mansfeld building housing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Notre-Dame Cathedral, the Spuerkeess building at the entrance to the Avenue de la Liberté and Neumünster Abbey. There are also squares such as Place de la Constitution, Place Clairefontaine and Knuedler.
Ënnert de Steiler at the Fishmarket, the historic center of the 'Old City' of Luxembourg (Photo: Maurice Fick) / © Maurice Fick / RTL
And historic sites such as Saint-Michel church, built in the seventh century, the ruins of the Bock, the ramparts and the Corniche. This is Lydie Polfer's favourite vantage point, where "you get a sense of what Luxembourg City represents, its past as a fortress." Not forgetting the surrounding countryside, the rocks and the valleys of the Pétrusse and Alzette, which are an integral part of the perimeter.
A permanent mission
Belonging to the large family of UNESCO listed sites (which includes 168 member countries) has many advantages. Like benefiting from the expertise of other members and being able to share that of Luxembourg City. But also "feeling a sense of solidarity with sites that are in danger, threatened by war, natural disasters, or other catastrophes," explains Robert Philippart.
Above all, this worldwide recognition has the effect of a magnet for tourists. "The most important thing is this visibility as a small country at the centre of the European Union. It's an enormous visibility. It's publicity for our country, and that's the most important thing," explains Eric Thill, Minister for Culture. In 2023, tourist accommodation attracted 1.44 million visitors to Luxembourg. Of all the regions, the centre is the one that attracts the most: 6 out of 10 arrivals.
Demand has been growing over the years. As a result, the Luxembourg City Tourist Office has already organised more than 4,300 guided tours in 2024, more than ever before.
© RTL
But it also brings along constraints. The State and the City of Luxembourg, which are responsible for managing, maintaining, and developing the various sites, do not do as they please when it comes, for example, to renaturating the Pétrusse or running the tram through the Avenue de la Liberté. Through the experts at Icomos, UNESCO is involved in the development and supervision of projects.
"In concrete terms, for the tram line in Luxembourg City, UNESCO has a say and was at the table to discuss the tram route between Place de Bruxelles and Place de Paris," reports Robert Philippart.
The Minister of Culture readily admits, "It's not profitable, that's clear, but it's important to continue to invest in heritage, to reinforce the work we've done in recent years, it's an obligation, it's a job, a permanent mission." The Ministry of Culture also has other projects in the pipeline to enhance the UNESCO heritage in the centre of the ramparts.
Luxembourg's commitment pays off
In November, UNESCO listed Luxembourg as one of the world's twenty "champions and leaders" of historic cities. This is recognition of the exemplary nature of Luxembourg's socio-economic development strategy, which respects heritage of outstanding universal value.
At the end of July, the World Heritage Committee had already unreservedly approved the periodic report on the management of 'Luxembourg: old quarters and fortifications’ for the period 2018 to 2023.
This is a good point for Luxembourg, which has been able to put in place modern legislation to protect its cultural heritage and its environment, the necessary resources, a World Heritage management system that includes civil society, and which underlines the good collaboration between the many players from the State and the City of Luxembourg, of which there is a long list.
Watch the UNESCO report in French:
