Landau

Landau lies above the Isar in Lower Bavaria, where an elevated town site overlooks fertile lowlands and routes through the surrounding countryside. Agriculture supplies grain, animals and other products, while markets and crafts connect the settlement with nearby villages. The river and roads give access to a wider Bavarian economy, though flooding and seasonal conditions can affect movement. Its position combines a useful defensive outlook with proximity to productive land.

The upper town was founded in 1224 by the Wittelsbach duke Louis of Kelheim above an older riverside settlement. Landau was burned in 1504 during the Landshut War of Succession and suffered extensive destruction again in 1743, when French and Austrian troops fought in Bavaria. These episodes repeatedly interrupted life in a town serving the agricultural Isar valley.