The Ruhr area in North Rhine-Westphalia is Germany’s largest urban region, home to more than five million people. Its transformation into a densely populated industrial landscape began in the late 18th century, driven by coal mining and steel production. By 1850, almost 300 coal mines were operating across the region. The Ruhrpott later became one of the engines of Germany’s Wirtschaftswunder in the 1950s and 60s, before the decline of coal and steel brought decades of structural change. Today, former industrial sites have found a new life as museums, cultural spaces, and landmarks. The Industrial Heritage Trail connects places such as the Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in Essen and Landschaftspark Duisburg-Nord, where the region’s industrial past remains visible in the landscape.
