Fuggerei

This small town surrounded by a wall was built by the prosperous Fuggers, a dynasty of merchants, in German Renaissance style for their own workers. From many aspects, it is a follow-up to the composition seen in Bispukin. Surrounded by a wall, the estate completely takes up the area at its disposal. The lines of buildings contained within are separated from each other by well-defined directional streets. The lanes not only grow physically to reach a width of almost 7 metres, but are also enriched in contents by expanding into vegetable gardens. Conceived in the spirit of presence, the large-scale construction of numerous (originally 106), cheap “social apartments” realised economical utilisation of land and a cost-efficient type of building. Functionally complex, the ensemble features a school, baths, hospital and a church, too. Much in the same way as in Bispukin, the garden adheres to the southern side of the buildings’ lane. However, it was more than the extension of living space. It doubled as a small vegetable garden, as well as a venue for animal husbandry.