Willy-Brandt-Straße 60

Unlike a modern shopping center, the majestic St. Nicholas' Cathedral offers a deeply moving glimpse into the past. Widely destroyed during the 1943 air raids on Hamburg, its pockmarked shell now underscores the horrors of war while commemorating the victims of World War II. For a short time it was the tallest building in the world, and the giant Gothic cathedral of the Renaissance era was severely damaged during the brutal bombing of the city in World War II. St. Nicholas' Church was built by architect Yan Friedrich Ziebland in 1886 in memory of the 1,200 victims who died when a British steamship collided with another vessel, causing an explosion in the St. Pauli docks. It marks the place where they were buried after their deaths. The memorial is made of white and grey limestone and stands 22 meters (72 feet) tall.