Building of the Patriotic Society

In 1765 Hamburg's middle-class intellectuals founded a society for the improvement of the public good, which became known as the Patriotic Society. A surprising number of establishments, which are maintained by the state today have come into existence as a result of this society. Between the years of 1767 and 1898 they founded the first trade school, the first German poorhouse, Europe's first savings bank, Cuxhaven spa and public libraries and organized exhibitions of new inventions in Hamburg. Today, they also support scientific and technical newcomers, as well as young artists. The society's neo-gothic building, which you can see in its simplified and renovated post-war version today, was built between 1845-1847. It is located where the former town hall used to be. The bombs left their marks on several parts of the building in 1943 and completely destroyed the large library with its 120,000 books. There are several halls for charitable events.