In the city of Esch-sur-Alzette, in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg

 "Luxembourg was and still is today a crossroads, the place where Germany meets the rest of Europe. The country lost part of its territory to Belgium in the 1800s, and during World Wars I and II the German military overran it." — I.M. Pei

=================
(in Luxembourg, on the border with France in the valley of the Alzette River) Stretching just 82 km (~51 mi.) and 57 km at its longest and widest points respectively, diminutive Luxembourg is a charming slice of northern Europe that consistently ranks among the world's top three nations in wealth. The Grand Duchy's capital, Luxembourg City, has a fairy-tale quality to its UNESCO-listed historic core, perched on a dramatic clifftop. Beyond in the rolling forested hills, a string of beguiling villages clusters beneath stunning medieval castles. Then there is superb wine tasting in the Moselle Valley and invigorating hiking in the rugged, rocky gorges of the Müllerthal region. (Luxembourg has recovered impressively from widespread destruction during WWII, a sad history remembered in war museums across the country.)

+ Featured here, however, is Esch-sur-Alzette, a canton in the south of the country. Its capital is Esch-sur-Alzette, the second city of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. It lies on the border with France on the Alzette, which flows through the city; it is usually referred to as just Esch; however (the full name distinguishes it from the village of Esch-sur-Sûre, which lies 45 km [~28 mi.] further north.) Luxembourg City, is roughly 15 km (~9 mi.) to the northeast. (Esch was selected as the European Capital of Culture for 2022, alongside Kaunas [in Lithuania] and Novi Sad [in Serbia].)

+ A small village until 1870, Esch-sur-Alzette, it eventually became the second largest city in Luxembourg, largely because of the local phosphoric iron ore, and the center of the country’s iron and steel industry. Although this industry declined in the second half of the 20th century, steel and iron remain important products. (The area has also produced slag fertilizer and foodstuffs.)

+ A cosmopolitan city with a lively past, Esch-sur-Alzette is well-known for its architectural charms. Although Esch-sur-Alzette was first mentioned in 773, it was Henri IV, Count of Luxembourg, who granted the town its freedom in 1287. Esch-sur-Alzette was fortified in 1311, then dismantled in 1671; its growth is largely due to the discovery in 1838 of "minette" iron ore. Thereafter the rural village became a prosperous industrial center. 1906 was a key year, marked by the implementation of the Wirtz-Krasnick scheme, which laid down the alignment of the city's streets. This was followed in 1924 by the improvement scheme, with new districts designed by the German town planner Joseph Stübben.

+Throughout these years the initiators were German, Belgian, and French as well as Luxembourgish -- and the influences of Germanic and Latin architecture are evident. That makes Esch-sur-Alzette a real melting-pot of European architecture.