Luxembourg Lëtzebuerg (Luxembourgish) Luxembourg (French) Luxemburg (German)
Capital city and commune
Stad Lëtzebuerg
View of the Ville Haute, including the Fortress of Luxembourg, the Gëlle Fra and the Notre-Dame Cathedral Grand Ducal Palace Luxembourg tram Place d'Armes Schueberfouer Kirchberg
Flag Coat of arms Brandmark
Luxembourg Location within Luxembourg Show map of Luxembourg Luxembourg Location within Europe Show map of Europe
Coordinates: 49°36′42″N 6°7′55″E / 49.61167°N 6.13194°E / 49.61167; 6.13194
Country	Luxembourg
Canton	Luxembourg
Government
• Mayor	Lydie Polfer (DP)
Area
• Total	51.46 km2 (19.87 sq mi)
• Rank	7th of 100
Highest elevation	402 m (1,319 ft)
• Rank	48th of 100
Lowest elevation	230 m (750 ft)
• Rank	42nd of 100
Population  (2024)
• Total	134,697
• Rank	1st of 100
• Density	2,600/km2 (6,800/sq mi)
• Rank	2nd of 100
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
LAU 2	LU0000304
Website	vdl.lu
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Luxembourg (Luxembourgish: Lëtzebuerg; French: Luxembourg; German: Luxemburg),^{[pron 1]} also known as Luxembourg City (Luxembourgish: Stad Lëtzebuerg or d'Stad; French: Ville de Luxembourg; German: Stadt Luxemburg or Luxemburg-Stadt),^{[pron 2]} is the capital city of Luxembourg and the country's most populous commune. Standing at the confluence of the Alzette and Pétrusse rivers in southern Luxembourg, the city lies at the heart of Western Europe, situated 213 km (132 mi) by road from Brussels, 372 km (231 mi) from Paris, and 209 km (130 mi) from Cologne.^[1] The city contains Luxembourg Castle, established by the Franks in the Early Middle Ages, around which a settlement developed.

As of 31 December 2023^[update], Luxembourg City has a population of 134,714 inhabitants,^[2] which is more than three times the population of the country's second most populous commune (Esch-sur-Alzette). The population consists of 160 nationalities. Foreigners represent 70.4% of the city's population, whilst Luxembourgers represent 29.6% of the population; the number of foreign-born residents in the city rises steadily each year.^[3]

In 2024, Luxembourg was ranked by the IMF as having the highest GDP per capita in the world at $140,310 (PPP),^[4] with the city having developed into a banking and administrative centre. In the 2019 Mercer worldwide survey of 231 cities, Luxembourg was placed first for personal safety, while it was ranked 18th for quality of living.^[5]

Luxembourg is one of the de facto capitals of the European Union (alongside Brussels, Frankfurt and Strasbourg), as it is the seat of several institutions, agencies and bodies, including the Court of Justice of the European Union, the European Court of Auditors, the Secretariat of the European Parliament, the European Public Prosecutor's Office, the European Investment Bank, the European Investment Fund, the European Stability Mechanism, Eurostat, as well as other European Commission departments and services.^[6] The Council of the European Union meets in the city for three months annually.^[6]

History

In the Roman era, a fortified tower guarded the crossing of two Roman roads that met at the site of Luxembourg city. Through an exchange treaty with the abbey of Saint Maximin in Trier in 963, Siegfried I of the Ardennes, a close relative of King Louis II of France and Emperor Otto the Great, acquired the feudal lands of Luxembourg. Siegfried built his castle, named Lucilinburhuc ("small castle"), on the Bock Fiels ("rock"), mentioned for the first time in the aforementioned exchange treaty.

In 987, Archbishop Egbert of Trier consecrated five altars in the Church of the Redemption (today St. Michael's Church). At a Roman road intersection near the church, a marketplace appeared around which the city developed.

The city, because of its location and natural geography, has through history been a place of strategic military significance. The first fortifications were built as early as the 10th century. By the end of the 12th century, as the city expanded westward around the new St. Nicholas Church (today the Cathedral of Notre Dame), new walls were built that included an area of 5 hectares (12 acres). In about 1340, under the reign of John the Blind, new fortifications were built that stood until 1867.

In 1443, the Burgundians under Philip the Good conquered Luxembourg. Luxembourg became part of the Burgundian, and later Spanish and Austrian empires (See Spanish Netherlands and Spanish Road) and under those Habsburg administrations Luxembourg Castle was repeatedly strengthened so that by the 16th century, Luxembourg itself was one of the strongest fortifications in Europe. Subsequently, the Burgundians, the Spanish, the French, the Spanish again, the Austrians, the French again, and the Prussians conquered Luxembourg.^{[citation needed]}

In the 17th century, the first casemates were built; initially, Spain built 23 km (14 mi) of tunnels, starting in 1644.^[7] These were then enlarged under French rule by Marshal Vauban, and augmented again under Austrian rule in the 1730s and 1740s.

During the French Revolutionary Wars, the city was occupied by France twice: once, briefly, in 1792–93, and, later, after a seven-month siege.^[8] Luxembourg held out for so long under the French siege that French politician and military engineer Lazare Carnot called Luxembourg "the best fortress in the world, except Gibraltar", giving rise to the city's nickname: the 'Gibraltar of the North'.^[8]

Nonetheless, the Austrian garrison eventually surrendered, and as a consequence, Luxembourg was annexed by the French Republic, becoming part of the département of Forêts, with Luxembourg City as its préfecture. Under the 1815 Treaty of Paris, which ended the Napoleonic Wars, Luxembourg City was placed under Prussian military control as a part of the German Confederation, although sovereignty passed to the House of Orange-Nassau, in personal union with the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.

After the Luxembourg Crisis, the 1867 Treaty of London required Luxembourg to dismantle the fortifications in Luxembourg City. Their demolition took sixteen years, cost 1.5 million gold francs, and required the destruction of over 24 km (15 mi) of underground defences and 4 hectares (9.9 acres) of casemates, batteries, barracks, etc.^[9] Furthermore, the Prussian garrison was to be withdrawn.^[10]

When, in 1890, Grand Duke William III died without any male heirs, the Grand Duchy passed out of Dutch hands, and into an independent line under Grand Duke Adolphe. Thus, Luxembourg, which had hitherto been independent in theory only, became a truly independent country, and Luxembourg City regained some of the importance that it had lost in 1867 by becoming the capital of a fully independent state.

Despite Luxembourg's best efforts to remain neutral in the First World War, it was occupied by Germany on 2 August 1914. On 30 August, Helmuth von Moltke moved his headquarters to Luxembourg City, closer to his armies in France in preparation for a swift victory. However, the victory never came, and Luxembourg would play host to the German high command for another four years. At the end of the occupation, Luxembourg City was the scene of an attempted communist revolution; on 9 November 1918, communists declared a socialist republic, but it lasted only a few hours.^{[citation needed]}

In 1921, the city limits were greatly expanded. The communes of Eich, Hamm, Hollerich, and Rollingergrund were incorporated into Luxembourg City, making the city the largest commune in the country (a position that it would hold until 1978).

In 1940, Germany occupied Luxembourg again. The Nazis were not prepared to allow Luxembourgers self-government, and gradually integrated Luxembourg into the Third Reich by informally attaching the country administratively to a neighbouring German province. Under the occupation, the capital city's streets all received new, German names, which was announced on 4 October 1940.^[11] The Avenue de la Liberté for example, a major road leading to the railway station, was renamed "Adolf-Hitlerstraße".^[11] Luxembourg City was liberated on 10 September 1944.^[12] The city was under long-range bombardment by the German V-3 cannon in December 1944 and January 1945.

After the war, Luxembourg ended its neutrality, and became a founding member of several inter-governmental and supra-governmental institutions. In 1952, the city became the headquarters of the High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community. In 1967, the High Authority was merged with the commissions of the other European institutions; although Luxembourg City was no longer the seat of the ECSC, it hosted some part-sessions of the European Parliament until 1981.^[13] Luxembourg remains the seat of the European Parliament's secretariat, as well as the Court of Justice of the European Union, the European Court of Auditors, and the European Investment Bank. Several departments of the European Commission are also based in Luxembourg.^[6] The Council of the EU meets in the city for the months of April, June and October annually.^[6]

Geography

Topography

Luxembourg City lies on the southern part of the Luxembourg plateau, a large Early Jurassic sandstone formation that forms the heart of the Gutland, a low-lying and flat area that covers the southern two-thirds of the country.

The city centre occupies a picturesque site on a salient, perched high on precipitous cliffs that drop into the narrow valleys of the Alzette and Pétrusse rivers, whose confluence is in Luxembourg City. The 70 m (230 ft) deep gorges cut by the rivers are spanned by many bridges and viaducts, including the Adolphe Bridge, the Grand Duchess Charlotte Bridge, and the Passerelle. Although Luxembourg City is not particularly large, its layout is complex, as the city is set on several levels, straddling hills and dropping into the two gorges.

The commune of Luxembourg City covers an area of over 51 km² (20 sq mi), or 2% of the Grand Duchy's total area. This makes the city the fourth-largest commune in Luxembourg, and by far the largest urban area. Luxembourg City is not particularly densely populated, at about 1,700 people per km²; large areas of Luxembourg City are maintained as parks, forested areas, or sites of important heritage (particularly the UNESCO sites), while there are also large tracts of farmland within the city limits.

Quarters of Luxembourg City

Luxembourg City is subdivided into twenty-four quarters (French: quartiers), which cover the commune in its entirety. The quarters generally correspond to the major neighbourhoods and suburbs of Luxembourg City, although a few of the historic districts, such as Bonnevoie, are divided between two quarters.^{[citation needed]}

Climate

Luxembourg City has an oceanic climate (Cfb), with moderate precipitation, cold to cool winters and warm summers. It is cloudy about two-thirds of the year.^{[citation needed]}

Population

Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org.

^[18]

Government

Local government

Under the Luxembourgish constitution, local government is centred on the city's communal council. Consisting of twenty-seven members (fixed since 1964), each elected every six years on the second Sunday of October and taking office on 1 January of the next year,^[19] the council is the largest of all communal councils in Luxembourg. The city is nowadays considered a stronghold of the Democratic Party (DP),^[20] which is the second-largest party nationally. The Democratic Party is the largest party on the council, with ten councillors.^[21]

The city's administration is headed by the mayor, who is the leader of the largest party on the communal council. After Xavier Bettel became Luxembourg's new prime minister on 4 December 2013, Lydie Polfer (DP) was sworn in as new mayor of Luxembourg on 17 December of the same year. Since the last elections the mayor leads the cabinet, the collège échevinal, in which the DP forms a coalition with CSV. Unlike other cities in Luxembourg, which are limited to four échevins at most, Luxembourg is given special dispensation to have six échevins on its collège échevinal.^[22]

National government

Luxembourg City is the seat for the Luxembourg Government. The Grand Ducal Family of Luxembourg lives at Berg Castle in Colmar-Berg.

For national elections to the Chamber of Deputies, the city is located in the Centre constituency.^{[citation needed]}

European institutions

Luxembourg City is the seat of several institutions, agencies and bodies of the European Union, including the Court of Justice of the European Union, the European Commission, the secretariat of the European Parliament, the European Court of Auditors and the European Investment Bank. The majority of these institutions are located in the Kirchberg quarter, in the northeast of the city.^[23]

Culture

Despite the city's small size, it has several notable museums: the recently renovated National Museum of History and Art (MNHA), the Luxembourg City History Museum, the new Grand Duke Jean Museum of Modern Art (Mudam) and National Museum of Natural History (NMHN). Zdroj:https://en.wikipedia.org?pojem=Name_of_Luxembourg
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