Lüdenscheid

Ludenscheid is a city in the Markischer Kreis district of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, in the mountainous Sauerland region, nicknamed Bergstadt for its hilly terrain, with a population of about 70,810 as of December 2025. First settled by the 9th century and recorded as a village in 1067 and a city in 1268, it was a member of the Hanseatic League in the 15th and 16th centuries. Its industrial economy grew from metal ore mining into button and buckle manufacturing and today includes aluminum casting, auto parts and lighting production; the aluminum framework of the first Zeppelin airship was built in a Ludenscheid factory in 1898.