For over 200 years, Hamburg's ramparts stood for the defences of a city that had never been conquered. With the defortification and redesign of the ramparts, Hamburg received its first large public garden. The eastern section of the ramparts was used by the railway and by educational and cultural institutions. The western section was shaped in particular by exhibitions such as the Planten un Blomen Low German Garden Show of 1935 and the subsequent International Horticultural Exhibitions. The cityscape still impressively reflects over 400 years of history. And so the Wallring, with its remarkable architecture, works of art and high-quality garden architecture, still stands for the identity of the city and for "der Statt Macht, vnd der Bürger Reichthum". The book shows numerous facets of the centuries-long history of the ramparts from a horticultural, architectural, urban planning, art historical and botanical perspective - opulently illustrated with partly unpublished material and on a high professional level. A standard work on the subject of "How Hamburg became what it is".