The World Heritage Convention was created in 1972. Germany signed and ratified the World Heritage Convention in 1976. By signing up to the World Heritage Convention, the Government of Germany promised to promote and protect its UNESCO World Heritage Sites and pass them on to future generations. A UNESCO World Heritage Site must be of outstanding universal value to humanity. Germany is among the countries with the highest number of World Heritage Sites in the world, including several World Heritage Cities.
Photos and descriptions of a large number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Germany:
- Aachen Cathedral
- Abbey of Lorsch
- Ancient and Primeval Beech Forests of Europe
- Augustusburg Castle at Brühl
- Bauhaus and its Sites in Dessau
- Bauhaus and its Sites in Weimar
- Berlin Modernism Housing Estates
- Cathedral and St Michael's Church at Hildesheim
- Classical Weimar
- Cologne Cathedral
- Falkenlust Castle in Brühl
- German part of the Wadden Sea
- Hanseatic City of Lübeck
- Historic Centre of Stralsund
- Historic Centre of Wismar
- Maulbronn Monastery Complex
- Messel Pit Fossil Site
- Monastic Island of Reichenau
- Museumsinsel Berlijn
- Muskauer Park / Park Mużakowski
- Old Town of Quedlinburg
- Old town of Regensburg with Stadtamhof
- Palaces and Parks of Potsdam and Berlin
- Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps
- Roman Monuments in Trier
- Sanssouci Palace in Potsdam
- Speicherstad and Kontorhaus District in Hamburg
- Speyer Cathedral
- Town Hall and Roland on the Marketplace, Bremen
- Town of Bamberg
- Trier, the Column of Igel
- Upper Middle Rhine Valley
- Völklingen Ironworks
- Wartburg Castle
- Würzburg Residence
- Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in Essen