Fuggerei

Fuggerei stands in Augsburg as the world’s oldest social housing complex still in use, enclosed within walls and five gates. Streets, small squares, and St. Mark’s Church create the atmosphere of a compact medieval town inside the city. The complex began in 1516 through Jakob Fugger’s foundation, which provided housing for Augsburg residents facing poverty.

Sixty-seven houses contain apartments with separate street entrances, kitchens, parlours, bedrooms, and small spare rooms. Ground-floor homes include gardens and sheds, while upper-floor homes have attics, running water, and television. A museum apartment and historical exhibits show earlier domestic life, while the surrounding community remains inhabited. Heavy wartime damage left the buildings destroyed, but reconstruction restored their original style.

The residents’ rent remains one Rhenish gulden per year, alongside three daily prayers for the Fugger family. Community work includes roles such as gardening, serving as a sexton, or watching over the gates. Franz Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s great-grandfather, once lived among these houses. Their doorbells still carry distinct shapes, allowing residents to recognise their homes by touch.