Hamburg and Harburg – the difference is only in a tiny letter. For a long time, however, there was a much deeper gap between the former competitors. Harburg was once – like Altona – an independent city on the outskirts of Hamburg. Even today, in addition to the Hamburg district of Harburg, there is still the Lower Saxon district of Harburg, which stretches far into the Lüneburg Heath.

The Greater Hamburg Act of 1937 separated the city of Harburg from the district of Harburg and annexed it to Hamburg. Among them were the districts of Heimfeld, Wilstorf and Eißendorf belonging to the city of Harburg, which belonged to the city of Harburg. The district was also joined by Altenwerder, Francop, Hausbruch, Gut Moor, Langenbek, Marmstorf, Neuenfelde, Neuland, Rönneburg and Sinstorf as well as Neugraben and Fischbek (today Neugraben-Fischbek) from the district of Harburg. In addition, Cranz came from the district of Stade. The Moorburg district already belonged to Hamburg before.
South of the Elbe, the district of Harburg offers a colorful potpourri of urban big city, rural settlements, orchards in the Old Country, wide heath areas and state-of-the-art container terminals in the Port of Hamburg.