For three centuries the Hanseatic League dominated trade and exerted a marked influence on all aspects of life throughout the entire Baltic region, the hub of the European economy in the Middle Ages. Testimonies to the wealth and power of this era have remained preserved: monasteries and town halls, city gates, rampart complexes, and impressive churches and cathedrals. They are the historical symbols of the spiritual and worldly might of the Middle Ages. The building material preferred in the Baltic in this period, the clinker brick, is still the dominating feature of the architecture and the cities along the coast. The clinker-brick gables, frequently richly arranged, give the Hanseatic cities their distinctive character. The mighty towers form conspicuous landmarks in the flat landscape and, at the time of their construction, also served as orientation markers for seafarers.

Due to the relatively short distances between them, the coastal cities are an ideal tourist destination, particularly for individual travellers. Important architectural works, such as well-preserved Gothic city walls or the old town centres with the gable burgher houses are evident in all the larger Hanseatic cities along the Baltic coast. But smaller towns and villages in the interior also have a multitude of attractive and interesting churches waiting to be discovered.

Together with the German Association for Housing, Urban and Spatial Development  and the Federal Ministry for Transport, Construction and Housing, the German Foundation for Monument Protection has contributed decisively to networking the European "pearls" of the clinker-brick Gothic style. The project "European Route of Brick Gothic" is a pilot project in European regional development and plays an important cultural role in the context of European Union enlargement.

The route extends from Sweden, passing through Denmark, Germany and Poland, onto the Baltic States, with partner cities in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. Over 20 partner cities and districts are looking forward to welcoming guests who set out to trace the heritage of European clinker-brick Gothic. The route provides travellers with the opportunity to experience their own cultural heritage in a new European dimension. Information on the individual "anchor sites" along the route is provided by a multi-lingual internet site, whereby an integrated information and guide system accompanies the visitor throughout the entire route. Even if for many the discovery of the Baltic coast beyond Germany is still a journey into unknown territory, we can doubtlessly look forward with interest to the emergence of a dynamic region that, besides its famous beaches, has a lot to offer.