LHC physics-what can be done in the first years

The current status of construction of the large hadron collider LHC and the two multi-purpose detectors ATLAS and CMS is reported. The steps necessary to be ready for taking and understanding the first data expected in the second half of 2007 are briefly explained. Examples for early measurements of standard model processes are given. The perspectives for discovery of new phenomena in the fields of Higgs bosons, supersymmetry, and extra space dimensions are summarized.