There was a time when Europe's greatest houses dressed in velvet woven here. Krefeld, on the left bank of the Rhine, built its fortune on silk: from the 18th century, Mennonite families seeking religious freedom set up their looms here, and the "city of velvet and silk" supplied royal courts and haute couture workshops alike. Ties, ribbons and liturgical fabrics left from here for the whole world. River ships stop at Uerdingen, its old port town, whose promenade stretches right along the river. The port call weaves together two stories: that of the great Rhine trade and that of a precious thread from the East.

Uerdingen, a Balcony on the Rhine

The first moments belong to the riverbank. From the quay, the Uerdingen promenade lines up old houses, cafés and little squares facing the comings and goings of barge convoys, among the busiest in Europe. The old centre, just steps away, retains its medieval town layout around St. Peter's Church and the market. It's easy to slip into the local rhythm: a coffee on a patio, the newspaper, the bells, the gulls from the river. A streetcar then links Uerdingen to the heart of Krefeld, about twenty minutes away; the line passes through garden suburbs and old workers' housing estates, a little journey into everyday Rhineland life.

Burg Linn, the Moated Fortress

Between the river and the city lies one of the best-preserved castles of the Lower Rhine. Since the 12th century, Burg Linn has raised its water-ringed walls in the middle of a village that has remained intact, with its cobbled lanes and low houses. You can climb the keep and tour the rooms, and the neighbouring hunting lodge houses an archaeological museum displaying finds from a nearby Frankish cemetery, among the richest in Germany. The whole makes for a surprisingly complete medieval immersion, just a few kilometres from the quay.

Along the Rhineland Silk Road

The textile heritage can be discovered in two complementary places. The German Textile Museum, located near Burg Linn, holds more than 30,000 pieces, from Coptic fabrics to stage velvets, one of the richest collections on the continent. In town, the Haus der Seidenkultur occupies a former workshop for weaving church vestments: the original Jacquard looms are still in working order, and passionate volunteers send the shuttles flying to show how brocade was made. You leave seeing fabric in a new way, often with a square of cloth woven on site tucked in your bag.

A Quietly Avant-Garde City

The silk wealth left another legacy: a taste for beauty. In the 1920s, industrialist Hermann Lange commissioned Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, the future director of the Bauhaus, to design two brick villas, now exhibition spaces, Haus Lange and Haus Esters, major milestones of modern European architecture. Modern architecture enthusiasts make a reverent detour here. The centre, for its part, lines up its "four walls": the boulevards laid out in the 19th century around the old core, punctuated by Art Nouveau façades and shopping arcades.

Port Call Pointers

Before Heading Back on Board

On the way back, the Uerdingen promenade is perfect for one last stroll facing the river. The barges glide by, loaded to the waterline, and you reflect that this city's wealth has always travelled this way: by water, patiently, thread by thread. Krefeld doesn't raise its voice to charm; it unrolls its fabric and leaves visitors to appreciate the weave.