Built in the Middle Ages, Hambach Castle gained outstanding importance in the nineteenth century. Following a period of political repression, around 30,000 people from Germany, France and Poland came together at the castle on 27 May 1832 to celebrate the Hambach Festival (Hambacher Fest).

The attendants spoke out for fundamental rights and political freedoms and for equality, tolerance and democracy in Germany and Europe, making the castle a symbol of the struggle for civil liberties in Europe.

Find out more about the selection of the site from the panel's report.