Snow Covered Lüchow
üchow is located in the southern part county. The river Jeetzel flows through the town and the landscape is characterized by the Drawehn in the west. The area was formed in the Saale complex, which was largely formed by the Weichsel glacial period and is still part of the Elbe glacial valley. The Polabian name for Lüchow is Ljauchüw (written as Lgauchi or Lieuschü in older German sources). The town was first mentioned in a document in 1158, received its town charter in 1293, and in 1320, the county of Lüchow passed into the possession of the House of Brunswick-Lüneburg.
Of the late medieval town fortifications, only one tower – dating from the 13th century – remains today and is used as a bell tower for St. John’s Church. A town gate, built in 1555 and separated the town center from the Drawehn suburb to the west, was demolished in 1793. In 1537, Lüchow suffered from an outbreak of the plague. Barely half a century later, in 1589, the town was largely destroyed by a fire. Another fire – in 1608 – destroyed much of what had been rebuilt and a catastrophic fire, in 1811, destroyed even the city hall and the castle reducing most of the town of Lüchow to ashes. In 1855 the town was united with the two suburbs – Salzwedeler and Drawehner Vorstadt.
