Walking tour "In the footsteps of the Peace of Westphalia

Use the day to explore the city of Münster, which is well worth seeing. Enjoy the peaceful atmosphere of the university town around the Prinzipalmarkt and the beautiful Aasee. A visit to Münster's town hall with its Peace Hall, in which the original wall panelling from around 1577 is still preserved, is worthwhile not only for walkers on the X 1648. Since 1998, the 350th anniversary of the Peace of Westphalia, the Peace of Westphalia Prize has been awarded here every two years to people who have rendered outstanding services to peace in the world.

Before your hike, you will get to know Münster even better on a guided tour . The walk starts at the historic town hall and its famous Friedenssaal. The Peace Trail leaves the centre of the cathedral city of Münster via Prinzipalmarkt and Bohlweg. Via Schleusenweg it reaches the recently enlarged lock where the Dortmund-Ems Canal is crossed. In the middle of the Boniburg Forest is Haus Dyckburg, designed by the Baroque architect Johann Conrad Schlaun. The cathedral provost of Münster, Friedrich Christian Graf von Plettenberg-Marhülsen, wanted to create a representative country residence on the site of the older moated castle. However, only the chapel and two farm buildings were built. At the Sudmühle, you cross the little river Werse, which was dammed for the mill. At the end of the day, you hike past the Havichhorster Mühle mill to Münster Handorf.

(Hiking time approx. 3 hours | Altitude difference approx. 22 m)

The new day leads you always close to the watercourse to the Haskenau fortress, which lies exactly in the middle of the old confluence of the Werse and the Ems. This impressive fortification still has a mighty artificially raised hill in its centre, on which a well-protected residential tower stood in the 12th/13th century.
The X 1648 crosses the Ems and, just north of Gelmer, which - you would hardly believe how idyllic and rural it is here - is still part of Münster's urban area, also the Dortmund-Ems Canal. Since the historic path here is no longer passable due to the construction of the canal and subsequent roads, the hiking trail now winds through beautiful landscapes from one side of the canal to the other. On the Postdamm, a straightened and filled-in section of the old path, the X 1648 then reaches Schmedehausen. The village, which belongs to Greven, probably dates back to an old smithy on the historic trunk road, a practical facility for both long-distance travellers and mounted messengers. Now the trail decides to take the eastern side of the canal and reaches the village of Ladbergen.

(Hiking time: approx. 6 hours | metres in altitude: approx. 81)

Ladbergen with its two mills was an important resting place for the peace riders. Messages were exchanged and preliminary negotiations were held here. Regularly, the old post house in the centre of Ladbergen became a scene of world history. The hike first leads along the Mühlenbach stream and finally ends in a sandy, wooded dune area. Shortly before Lengerich, already within sight of the Teutoburg Forest, lies Haus Vortlage, which was built in the 18th century but goes back to a predecessor probably from the 13th century. The half-timbered mill built here in 1782 is also worth seeing. Lengerich's church square with the Römer, the remains of an old gatehouse that probably connected the market square with the church square, invites you to linger.

(Walking time: approx. 4 hours | metres in altitude: approx. 49)

Today it is time to climb the ridge of the Teutoburg Forest, where the X 1648 crosses the well-known Hermannsweg. From Lengerich, the trail first leads through the Tecklenburger Land to Leeden. The village of Leeden, first mentioned in a document in 1058, is the first village in Tecklenburg Land. Here you will find the former Cistercian convent church and the old abbess's house from the 15th century. From here, the route crosses a range of hills in the Teutoburg Forest in the direction of Natrup-Hagen. The landscape is slightly hilly with views of the higher mountains of the Osnabrück Hills and Tecklenburg Land. Fields, meadows and forests characterise the landscape, and you pass typical half-timbered farms again and again until you reach Hasbergen. Hasbergen is home to the Christuskirche church, whose steeple is clearly visible. You walk through idyllic countryside Hellern. On the last few metres before you reach the peace city of Osnabrück, you will once again enjoy a local recreation area with idyllic forest scenery.

(Hiking time approx. 6 hours | Altitude difference approx. 99 m)

Discover the city of Osnabrück on the last day of your trip. An ideal starting point to explore the city is the beautiful market square. The town hall, St. Mary's Church, the typical gabled houses and the cathedral surround the square. Right next to it begins the old town with owner-run shops and varied gastronomy. The historic town hall in late Gothic style was built in 1512. It took more than a quarter of a century to build. The "New Town Hall on the Old Town" was quite a modern institution at the time. But with this magnificent building, the people of Osnabrück were not only following the spirit of the times, they were also demonstrating that they had reached the pinnacle of their political power... The grand staircase leads from two sides to the entrance door. The door handle shows a dove and the year 1648. Next to a model of the city of Osnabrück from 1633, visitors can view the Peace Hall. There is also a Golden Book here in which one can immortalise oneself.