122-547: The Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Sieg ( Rhine-Sieg Transport Association ; VRS ) is the public transport association covering the area of the Cologne/Bonn Region , North Rhine-Westphalia , Germany . It was founded on 1 September 1987, and covers an area of some 5.111 km with some 3.3 million inhabitants. For the year 2009 nearly 494 million passengers were carried through the network of VRS, this number has since risen to 555 million passengers in 2019. Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Sieg
244-510: A temperate – oceanic climate ( Köppen: Cfb ) with cool winters and warm summers. It is also one of the cloudiest cities in Germany, with just 1,567.5 hours of sun a year. Its average annual temperature is 10.7 °C (51 °F): 15.4 °C (60 °F) during the day and 6.1 °C (43 °F) at night. In January, the mean temperature is 3.0 °C (37 °F), while the mean temperature in July
366-595: A Wendish offensive, towns from Prussia and the Netherlands, and eventually joined by Wendish towns, allied in the Confederation of Cologne in 1368, sacked Copenhagen and Helsingborg , and forced Valdemar IV, King of Denmark , and his son-in-law Haakon VI, King of Norway , to grant tax exemptions and influence over Øresund fortresses for 15 years in the peace treaty of Stralsund in 1370. It extended privileges in Scania to
488-577: A consortium of 7 Hanseatic cities, and enjoyed full Hanseatic trading privileges. It went to Margaret in 1398. The Victual Brothers controlled Gotland in 1398. It was conquered by the Teutonic Order with support from the Prussian towns and its privileges were restored. The grandmaster of the Teutonic Order was often seen as the head of the Hanse ( caput Hansae ), both abroad and by some League members. Over
610-450: A date of foundation. Historians traditionally traced its origins to the rebuilding of the north German town of Lübeck in 1159 by the powerful Henry the Lion , Duke of Saxony and Bavaria , after he had captured the area from Adolf II , Count of Schauenburg and Holstein . More recent scholarship has deemphasized Lübeck, viewing it as one of several regional trading centers, and presenting
732-422: A deeply felt anti-Prussian resentment, which was still significant after World War II, when the former mayor of Cologne, Konrad Adenauer , became the first West German chancellor. During the 19th and 20th centuries, Cologne absorbed numerous surrounding towns, and by World War I had already grown to 700,000 inhabitants. Industrialisation changed the city and spurred its growth. Vehicle and engine manufacturing
854-681: A few North German towns in the late 12th century, the League expanded between the 13th and 15th centuries and ultimately encompassed nearly 200 settlements across eight modern-day countries, ranging from Estonia in the north and east, to the Netherlands in the west, and extended inland as far as Cologne , the Prussian regions and Kraków , Poland . The League began as a collection of loosely associated groups of German traders and towns aiming to expand their commercial interests, including protection against robbery. Over time, these arrangements evolved into
976-589: A number of trade shows . The first urban settlement on the grounds of modern-day Cologne was Oppidum Ubiorum , founded in 38 BCE by the Ubii , a Cisrhenian Germanic tribe . In 50 CE, the Romans founded Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium (Cologne) on the river Rhine and the city became the provincial capital of Germania Inferior in 85 CE. It was also known as Augusta Ubiorum . Considerable Roman remains can be found in present-day Cologne, especially near
1098-505: A permanent Allied occupation of the entire Rhineland. As part of the demilitarisation of the Rhineland , the city's fortifications had to be dismantled. This was an opportunity to create two green belts ( Grüngürtel ) around the city by converting the fortifications and their fields of fire into large public parks. This was not completed until 1933. In 1919 the University of Cologne , closed by
1220-451: A representative merchant and warehouse. Often they were not permanently manned. In Scania , Denmark, around 30 Hanseatic seasonal factories produced salted herring, these were called vitten and were granted legal autonomy to the extent that Burkhardt argues that they resembled a fifth kontor and would be seen as such if not for their early decline. In England, factories in Boston (the outpost
1342-599: A treaty with the Visby Hansa, northern German merchants made regular stops at Gotland. In the first half of the 13th century, they established their own trading station or Kontor in Novgorod, known as the Peterhof , up the river Volkhov . Lübeck soon became a base for merchants from Saxony and Westphalia trading eastward and northward; for them, because of its shorter and easier access route and better legal protections, it
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#17328449450431464-691: A tremendous loss of cultural treasures. The rebuilding of those churches and other landmarks such as the Gürzenich event hall was not undisputed among leading architects and art historians at that time, but in most cases, civil intention prevailed. The reconstruction lasted until the 1990s, when the Romanesque church of St. Kunibert was finished. In 1959, the city's population reached pre-war numbers again. It then grew steadily, exceeding 1 million for about one year from 1975. It remained just below that until mid-2010, when it exceeded 1 million again. In
1586-520: A variety of vessel types for shipping across the seas and navigating rivers. The most emblematic type was the cog . Expressing diversity in construction, it was depicted on Hanseatic seals and coats of arms. By the end of the Middle Ages, the cog was replaced by types like the hulk , which later gave way to larger carvel ships. Hanse is the Old High German word for a band or troop. This word
1708-466: Is 19.0 °C (66 °F). The record high temperature of 40.3 °C (105 °F) happened on 25 July 2019 during the July 2019 European heat wave in which Cologne saw three consecutive days over 38.0 °C (100 °F). Especially the inner urban neighbourhoods experience a greater number of hot days, as well as significantly higher temperatures during nighttime compared to the surrounding area (including
1830-589: Is 37.5 m (123 ft) above sea level (the Worringer Bruch ). The city of Cologne lies within the larger area of the Cologne Lowland , a cone-shaped area of the central Rhineland that lies between Bonn , Aachen and Düsseldorf . Cologne is divided into 9 boroughs ( Stadtbezirke ) and 85 districts ( Stadtteile ): Located in the Rhine-Ruhr area, Cologne is one of the warmest cities in Germany. It has
1952-563: Is a major cultural center for the Rhineland ; it hosts more than 30 museums and hundreds of galleries. There are many institutions of higher education, most notably the University of Cologne , one of Europe's oldest and largest universities; the Technical University of Cologne , Germany's largest university of applied sciences; and the German Sport University Cologne . It hosts three Max Planck science institutes and
2074-603: Is a major research hub for the aerospace industry, with the German Aerospace Center and the European Astronaut Centre headquarters. Lufthansa , Europe's largest airline, have their main corporate headquarters in Cologne. It also has a significant chemical and automobile industry. Cologne Bonn Airport is a regional hub, the main airport for the region being Düsseldorf Airport . The Cologne Trade Fair hosts
2196-590: Is a small set of very closely related dialects, or variants, of the Ripuarian Central German group of languages. These dialects are spoken in the area covered by the Archdiocese and former Electorate of Cologne reaching from Neuss in the north to just south of Bonn , west to Düren and east to Olpe in the North-West of Germany. Kölsch is one of the very few city dialects in Germany, which also include
2318-655: Is further shaped by the Twelve Romanesque churches of Cologne . Cologne is famous for Eau de Cologne , which has been produced in the city since 1709; "cologne" has since come to be a generic term. Cologne was founded and established in Germanic Ubii territory in the 1st century CE as the Roman Colonia Agrippina , hence its name. Agrippina was later dropped (except in Latin), and Colonia became
2440-448: Is named after the rivers Rhine (Rhein) and Sieg . Cologne Cologne ( / k ə ˈ l oʊ n / , kə- LOHN ; German: Köln [kœln] ; Kölsch : Kölle [ˈkœlə] ) is the largest city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in
2562-547: Is regularly affected by flooding from the Rhine and is considered the most flood-prone European city. A city agency ( Stadtentwässerungsbetriebe Köln , "Cologne Urban Drainage Operations") manages an extensive flood control system which includes both permanent and mobile flood walls , protection from rising waters for buildings close to the river banks, monitoring and forecasting systems, pumping stations and programmes to create or protect floodplains , and river embankments. The system
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#17328449450432684-526: The Battle of Worringen in 1288, Cologne gained its independence from the archbishops and became a Free City . Archbishop Sigfried II von Westerburg was forced to reside in Bonn . The archbishop nevertheless preserved the right of capital punishment. Thus the municipal council (though in strict political opposition towards the archbishop) depended upon him in all matters concerning criminal justice. This included torture,
2806-630: The Burgundian State . The city of Lübeck faced financial troubles in 1403, leading dissenting craftsmen to establish a supervising committee in 1405. This triggered a governmental crisis in 1408 when the committee rebelled and established a new town council. Similar revolts broke out in Wismar and Rostock, with new town councils established in 1410. The crisis was ended in 1418 by a compromise. Eric of Pomerania succeeded Margaret in 1412 and sought to expand into Schleswig and Holstein levying tolls at
2928-470: The Cologne Bonn Region is home to 3,573,500 living on 4,415/km (11,430/sq mi). It is part of the polycentric megacity region Rhine-Ruhr with a population of over 11,000,000 people. There were 551,528 women and 527,773 men in Cologne. In 2021, there were 11,127 births in Cologne; 5,844 marriages and 1,808 divorces, and 10,536 deaths. In the city, the population was spread out, with 16.3% under
3050-639: The Cologne Central Mosque run by the Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs . In 2011, about 11.2% of the population was Muslim . Cologne also has one of the oldest and largest Jewish communities in Germany. In 2011, 0.3% of Cologne's population was Jewish. Hanseatic League The Hanseatic League was a medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central and Northern Europe. Growing from
3172-544: The Cologne mark ) were used throughout Europe. The economic structures of medieval and early modern Cologne were characterised by the city's status as a major harbour and transport hub on the Rhine. Craftsmanship was organised by self-administering guilds, some of which were exclusive to women. As a free imperial city , Cologne was a self-ruling state within the Holy Roman Empire , an imperial estate with seat and vote at
3294-619: The Communist and Social Democrats members of the city assembly, and Mayor Adenauer was dismissed. Compared to some other major cities, however, the Nazis never gained decisive support in Cologne. (Significantly, the number of votes cast for the Nazi Party in Reichstag elections had always been the national average.) By 1939, the population had risen to 772,221 inhabitants. During World War II, Cologne
3416-616: The French Republic (which had already occupied Cologne in 1794). Thus this region later became part of Napoleon's Empire. Cologne was part of the French Département Roer (named after the river Roer, German: Rur ) with Aachen (French: Aix-la-Chapelle) as its capital. The French modernised public life, for example by introducing the Napoleonic code and removing the old elites from power. The Napoleonic code remained in use on
3538-587: The Griffin dukes of Pomerania were in constant conflict over control of the Pomeranian Hanseatic towns. While not successful at first, Bogislav X eventually subjugated Stettin and Köslin , curtailing the region's economy and independence. A major Hansa economic advantage was its control of the shipbuilding market, mainly in Lübeck and Danzig. The League sold ships throughout Europe. The economic crises of
3660-689: The Imperial Diet , and as such had the right (and obligation) to contribute to the defense of the Empire and maintain its own military force. As they wore a red uniform, these troops were known as the Rote Funken (red sparks). These soldiers were part of the Army of the Holy Roman Empire ("Reichskontingent"). They fought in the wars of the 17th and 18th century, including the wars against revolutionary France in which
3782-782: The Kingdom of Poland , (from 1466 to 1569 referred to as Royal Prussia , region of Poland) by the Second Peace of Thorn . Poland in turn was heavily supported by the Holy Roman Empire through family connections and by military assistance under the Habsburgs . Kraków , then the Polish capital, had a loose association with the Hansa. The lack of customs borders on the River Vistula after 1466 helped to gradually increase Polish grain exports, transported down
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3904-504: The Kontor of Bruges , became significant enclaves . The London Kontor , the Steelyard , stood west of London Bridge near Upper Thames Street , on the site later occupied by Cannon Street station . It grew into a walled community with its warehouses, weigh house , church, offices, and homes. In addition to the major Kontors , individual ports with Hanseatic trading outposts or factories had
4026-738: The North and Baltic Seas . It established a network of trading posts in numerous towns and cities, notably the Kontors in London (known as the Steelyard ), Bruges , Bergen , and Novgorod , which became extraterritorial entities that enjoyed considerable legal autonomy. Hanseatic merchants, commonly referred to as Hansards, operated private companies and were known for their access to commodities, and enjoyed privileges and protections abroad. The League's economic power enabled it to impose blockades and even wage war against kingdoms and principalities. Even at its peak,
4148-463: The Peterhof from 1443 to 1448. After extended conflicts with the League from the 1370s, English traders gained trade privileges in the Prussian region via the treaties of Marienburg (the first in 1388, the last in 1409). Their influence increased, while the importance of Hanseatic trade in England decreased over the 15th century. Over the 15th century, tensions between the Prussian region and
4270-577: The Royal Air Force in World War ;II. 1,046 heavy bombers attacked their target with 1,455 tons of explosives, approximately two-thirds of which were incendiary. This raid lasted about 75 minutes, destroyed 600 acres (243 ha) of built-up area (61%), killed 486 civilians and made 59,000 people homeless. The devastation was recorded by Hermann Claasen from 1942 until the end of the war, and presented in his exhibition and book of 1947 Singing in
4392-698: The Scania Market ; Cologne joined them in the Diet of 1260. The towns raised their armies, with each guild required to provide levies when needed. The Hanseatic cities aided one another, and commercial ships often served to carry soldiers and their arms. The network of alliances grew to include a flexible roster of 70 to 170 cities. In the West, cities of the Rhineland such as Cologne enjoyed trading privileges in Flanders and England. In 1266, King Henry III of England granted
4514-661: The Second Temple in the Siege of Jerusalem and the associated dispersion (diaspora) of the Jews , there is evidence of a Jewish community in Cologne. In 321 CE, Emperor Constantine approved the settlement of a Jewish community with all the freedoms of Roman citizens. It is assumed that it was located near the Marspforte within the city wall. The Edict of Constantine to the Jews is the oldest documented evidence in Germany. Early medieval Cologne
4636-452: The Vistula , from 10,000 short tons (9,100 t) per year, in the late 15th century, to over 200,000 short tons (180,000 t) in the 17th century. The Hansa-dominated maritime grain trade made Poland one of the main areas of its activity, helping Danzig to become the Hansa's largest city. Polish kings soon began to reduce the towns' political freedoms. Beginning in the mid-15th century,
4758-801: The Yorkist side during the Wars of the Roses of 1455–1487. Tsar Ivan III of Russia closed the Hanseatic Kontor at Novgorod in 1494 and deported its merchants to Moscow, in an attempt to reduce Hanseatic influence on Russian trade. At the time, only 49 traders were at the Peterhof. The fur trade was redirected to Leipzig, taking out the Hansards; while the Hanseatic trade with Russia moved to Riga, Reval, and Pleskau. When
4880-583: The dialect spoken in Berlin , for example. As of 2015, 35.5% of the population belonged to the Catholic Church , the largest religious body, and 15.5% to the Protestant Church . Irenaeus of Lyons claimed that Christianity was brought to Cologne by Roman soldiers and traders at an unknown early date. It is known that in the early second century it was a bishop's seat. The first historical Bishop of Cologne
5002-602: The "Wendish" cities (Lübeck and its eastern neighbours) increased. Lübeck was dependent on its role as center of the Hansa; Prussia's main interest, on the other hand, was the export of bulk products such as grain and timber to England, the Low Countries and later on Spain and Italy. Frederick II, Elector of Brandenburg , tried to assert authority over the Hanseatic towns Berlin and Cölln in 1442 and blocked all Brandenburg towns from participating in Hanseatic diets. For some Brandenburg towns, this ended their Hanseatic involvement. In 1488, John Cicero, Elector of Brandenburg did
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5124-435: The 1380s, the League regained its trade privileges in 1392, agreeing to Russian trade privileges for Livonia and Gotland. In 1424, all German traders of the Petershof kontor in Novgorod were imprisoned and 36 of them died. Although rare, arrests and seizures in Novgorod were particularly violent. In response, and due to the ongoing war between Novgorod and the Livonian Order , the League blockaded Novgorod and abandoned
5246-466: The 15th century, the League became further institutionalized. This was in part a response to challenges in governance and competition with rivals, but also reflected changes in trade. A slow shift occurred from loose participation to formal recognition/revocation. Another general trend was Hanseatic cities' increased legislation of their kontors abroad. Only the Bergen kontor grew more independent in this period. In Novgorod, after extended conflict since
5368-401: The 17th and 18th centuries, resulting in complicated affairs, which were handled by diplomatic means and propaganda as well as by the supreme courts of the Holy Roman Empire. Cologne lost its status as a free city during the French period. According to the Treaty of Lunéville (1801) all the territories of the Holy Roman Empire on the left bank of the Rhine were officially incorporated into
5490-399: The 1980s and 1990s Cologne's economy prospered for two main reasons. The first was the growth in the number of media companies, both in the private and public sectors; they are especially catered for in the newly developed Media Park, which creates a strong visual focal point in Cologne's city centre and includes the KölnTurm , one of Cologne's most prominent high-rise buildings. The second was
5612-400: The Alps. Cologne is shown on the 4th century Peutinger Map . Maternus, who was elected as bishop in 313, was the first known bishop of Cologne. The city was the capital of a Roman province until it was occupied by the Ripuarian Franks in 462. Parts of the original Roman sewers are preserved underneath the city, with the new sewerage system having opened in 1890. After the destruction of
5734-461: The Baltic. Although the blockade of the grain trade hurt Holland and Zeeland more than Hanseatic cities, it was against Prussian interest to maintain it. In 1454, the year of the marriage of Elisabeth of Austria to King-Grand Duke Casimir IV Jagiellon of Poland-Lithuania , the towns of the Prussian Confederation rose up against the dominance of the Teutonic Order and asked Casimir IV for help. Gdańsk (Danzig), Thorn and Elbing became part of
5856-408: The Bavarian Wittelsbach dynasty . Due to the free status of Cologne, the archbishops were usually not allowed to enter the city. Thus they took up residence in Bonn and later in Brühl on the Rhine. As members of an influential and powerful family, and supported by their outstanding status as electors , the archbishops of Cologne repeatedly challenged and threatened the free status of Cologne during
5978-493: The Carpathians were another important source of copper and iron, often sold in Thorn . Lubeck had a vital role in the salt trade; salt was acquired in Lüneburg or shipped from France and Portugal and sold on Central European markets, taken to Scania to salt herring, or exported to Russia. Stockfish was traded from Bergen in exchange for grain; Hanseatic grain inflows allowed more permanent settlements further north in Norway. The league also traded beer, with beer from Hanseatic towns
6100-401: The Danish dominion, as had Hamburg in 1189. Also in this period Wismar, Rostock, Stralsund, and Danzig received city charters. Hansa societies worked to remove trade restrictions for their members. The earliest documentary mention (although without a name) of a specific German commercial federation dates between 1173 and 1175 (commonly misdated to 1157) in London. That year, the merchants of
6222-598: The French (1794–1815) and the British (1918–1926), and was part of Prussia beginning in 1815. Cologne was one of the most heavily bombed cities in Germany during World War II. The bombing reduced the population by 93% mainly due to evacuation, and destroyed around 80% of the millennia-old city center. The post-war rebuilding has resulted in a mixed cityscape, restoring most major historic landmarks like city gates and churches (31 of them being Romanesque ). The city nowadays consists of around 25% pre World War II buildings and boasts around 9,000 historic buildings. Cologne
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#17328449450436344-474: The French in 1798, was reopened. This was considered to be a replacement for the loss of the University of Strasbourg on the west bank of the Rhine, which reverted to France with the rest of Alsace . Cologne prospered during the Weimar Republic (1919–33), and progress was made especially in public governance, city planning, housing and social affairs. Social housing projects were considered exemplary and were copied by other German cities. Cologne competed to host
6466-436: The German and Scandinavian coasts, making it the best-lighted coast in the world, largely thanks to the Hansa. The weakening of imperial power and imperial protection under the late Hohenstaufen dynasty forced the League to institutionalize a cooperating network of cities with a fluid structure, called the Städtehanse , but it never became a formal organization and the Kaufmannshanse continued to exist. This development
6588-458: The Hansa in Cologne convinced King Henry II of England to exempt them from all tolls in London and to grant protection to merchants and goods throughout England. German colonists in the 12th and 13th centuries settled in numerous cities on and near the east Baltic coast, such as Elbing ( Elbląg ), Thorn ( Toruń ), Reval ( Tallinn ), Riga , and Dorpat ( Tartu ), all of which joined the League, and some of which retain Hansa buildings and bear
6710-520: The Hanseatic League remained a loosely aligned confederation of city-states . It lacked a permanent administrative body, a treasury, and a standing military force. In the 14th century, the Hanseatic League instated an irregular negotiating diet that operated based on deliberation and consensus . By the mid-16th century, these weak connections left the Hanseatic League vulnerable, and it gradually unraveled as members merged into other realms or departed, ultimately disintegrating in 1669. The League used
6832-603: The Hanseatic network of merchant guilds. The dominant language of trade was Middle Low German , which had a significant impact on the languages spoken in the area, particularly the larger Scandinavian languages , Estonian , and Latvian . Visby , on the island of Gotland, functioned as the leading center in the Baltic before the Hansa. Sailing east, Visby merchants established a trading post at Novgorod called Gutagard (also known as Gotenhof ) in 1080. In 1120, Gotland gained autonomy from Sweden and admitted traders from its southern and western regions. Thereafter, under
6954-413: The League as the combination of a north German trading system oriented on the Baltic and a Rhinelandic trading system targeting England and Flanders. German cities speedily dominated trade in the Baltic during the 13th century, and Lübeck became a central node in the seaborne trade that linked the areas around the North and Baltic seas . Lübeck hegemony peaked during the 15th century. Well before
7076-592: The League's power and tried to diminish it. For example, in London, local merchants exerted continuing pressure for the revocation of privileges. Most foreign cities confined Hanseatic traders to specific trading areas and their trading posts. The refusal of the Hansa to offer reciprocal arrangements to their counterparts exacerbated the tension. League merchants used their economic power to pressure cities and rulers. They called embargoes, redirected trade away from towns, and boycotted entire countries. Blockades were erected against Novgorod in 1268 and 1277/1278. Bruges
7198-451: The League, including Holland and Zeeland. The treaty marked the height of Hanseatic influence; for this period the League was called a "Northern European great power ". The Confederation lasted until 1385, while the Øresund fortresses were returned to Denmark that year. After Valdemar's heir Olav died, a succession dispute erupted over Denmark and Norway between Albert of Mecklenburg, King of Sweden and Margaret I, Queen of Denmark . This
7320-404: The League, offering traders toll privileges and protection on affiliated territory and trade routes. Economic interdependence and familial connections among merchant families led to deeper political integration and the reduction of trade barriers. This gradual process involved standardizing trade regulations among Hanseatic Cities. During its time, the Hanseatic League dominated maritime trade in
7442-514: The League. Over the 13th century, older and wealthier long-distance traders increasingly chose to settle in their hometowns as trade leaders, transitioning from their previous roles as landowners. The growing number of settled merchants afforded long-distance traders greater influence over town policies. Coupled with an increased presence in the ministerial class , this elevated the status of merchants and enabled them to expand to and assert dominance over more cities. This decentralized arrangement
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#17328449450437564-542: The Lübeck and Hamburg Hansa a charter for operations in England , initially causing competition with the Westphalians. But the Cologne Hansa and the Wendish Hansa joined in 1282 to form the Hanseatic colony in London, although they didn't completely merge until the 15th century. Novgorod was blockaded in 1268 and 1277/1278. Nonetheless, Westphalian traders continued to dominate trade in London and also Ipswich and Colchester , while Baltic and Wendish traders concentrated between King's Lynn and Newcastle upon Tyne . Much of
7686-453: The Olympics, and a modern sports stadium was erected at Müngersdorf. When the British occupation ended, the prohibition of civil aviation was lifted and Cologne Butzweilerhof Airport soon became a hub for national and international air traffic, second in Germany only to Berlin Tempelhof Airport . The democratic parties lost the local elections in Cologne in March 1933 to the Nazi Party and other extreme-right parties. The Nazis then arrested
7808-502: The age of 18, and 17.8% were 65 years of age or older. 203 people in Cologne were over the age of 100. According to the Statistical Office of the City of Cologne, the number of people with a migrant background is at 40.5% (436,660). 2,254 people acquired German citizenship in 2021. In 2021, there were 559,854 households, of which 18.4% had children under the age of 18; 51% of all households were made up of singles. 8% of all households were single-parent households. The average household size
7930-399: The airport, where temperatures are classified). Still temperatures can vary noticeably over the course of a month with warmer and colder weather. Precipitation is spread evenly throughout the year with a light peak in summer due to showers and thunderstorms. The progressing climate change can be seen by looking at the climate data of the previous decade with lower mean temperatures. Cologne
8052-432: The archbishops of Cologne first gained noteworthy secular power when bishop Bruno was appointed as duke by his brother Otto I , King of Germany . In order to weaken the secular nobility, who threatened his power, Otto endowed Bruno and his archiepiscopal successors with the prerogatives of secular princes, thus establishing the Electorate of Cologne , formed by the temporal possessions of the archbishopric and included in
8174-488: The availability of trade opportunities. The intersection of these trade routes was the basis of Cologne's growth. By the end of the 12th century, Archbishop Phillip von Heinsberg enclosed the entire city with walls . By 1300 the city population was 50,000–55,000. Cologne was a member of the Hanseatic League in 1475, when Frederick III confirmed the city's imperial immediacy. Cologne was so influential in regional commerce that its systems of weights and measurements (e.g.
8296-403: The city during World War II, destroying 61% of its built up area. During the Bombing of Cologne in World War II , Cologne endured 262 air raids by the Western Allies , which caused approximately 20,000 civilian casualties and almost completely wiped out the central part of the city. During the night of 31 May 1942, Cologne was the target of " Operation Millennium ", the first 1,000 bomber raid by
8418-493: The city fell to him in the Battle of Cologne . Charles fled to the Eifel mountains, rallied supporters and took the city back that same year after defeating Chilperic in the Battle of Amblève . Cologne had been the seat of a bishop since the Roman period; under Charlemagne , in 795, bishop Hildebold was promoted to archbishop . In the 843 Treaty of Verdun Cologne fell into the dominion of Lothair I 's Middle Francia – later called Lotharingia ( Lower Lorraine ). In 953,
8540-464: The city proper and over 3.1 million people in the Cologne Bonn urban region . Cologne is also part of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region , the second biggest metropolitan region by GDP in the European Union. Centered on the left (west) bank of the Rhine , Cologne is located on the River Rhine ( Lower Rhine ), about 35 km (22 mi) southeast of the North Rhine-Westphalia state capital Düsseldorf and 25 km (16 mi) northwest of Bonn ,
8662-471: The city, the remains of which can be seen to this day. The military demands on what became Germany's largest fortress presented a significant obstacle to urban development, with forts, bunkers, and wide defensive dugouts completely encircling the city and preventing expansion; this resulted in a very densely built-up area within the city itself. During World War I Cologne was the target of several minor air raids but suffered no significant damage. Cologne
8784-465: The cottage industry occurred in other fields, e.g. etching, wood carving, armor production, engraving of metals, and wood-turning . The league primarily traded beeswax, furs, timber, resin (or tar), flax, honey, wheat, and rye from the east to Flanders and England with cloth, in particular broadcloth , (and, increasingly, manufactured goods ) going in the other direction. Metal ore (principally copper and iron) and herring came south from Sweden, while
8906-421: The drive for cooperation came from the fragmented nature of existing territorial governments, which did not provide security for trade. Over the next 50 years, the merchant Hansa solidified with formal agreements for co-operation covering the west and east trade routes . Cities from the east modern-day Low Countries, but also Utrecht, Holland, Zealand, Brabant, Namur, and modern Limburg joined in participation over
9028-594: The end a strip of territory along the left Bank of the Rhine east of Jülich , as well as the Duchy of Westphalia on the other side of the Rhine, beyond Berg and Mark . By the end of the 12th century, the Archbishop of Cologne was one of the seven electors of the Holy Roman Emperor. Besides being prince elector, he was Archchancellor of Italy as well, technically from 1238 and permanently from 1263 until 1803. Following
9150-400: The end of 1945, however, the population had already recovered to approximately 450,000. By the end of the war, essentially all of Cologne's pre-war Jewish population of 11,000 had been deported or killed by the Nazis. The six synagogues of the city were destroyed. The synagogue on Roonstraße was rebuilt in 1959. Despite Cologne's status as the largest city in the region, nearby Düsseldorf
9272-579: The expense of the city's historic heritage with much being demolished (for example, the city walls or the area around the cathedral) and sometimes replaced by contemporary buildings. Cologne was designated as one of the Fortresses of the German Confederation . It was turned into a heavily armed fortress (opposing the French and Belgian fortresses of Verdun and Liège ) with two fortified belts surrounding
9394-552: The focus of the conflict. In 1837 the archbishop of Cologne, Clemens August von Droste-Vischering , was arrested and imprisoned for two years after a dispute over the legal status of marriages between Catholics and Protestants ( Mischehenstreit ). In 1874, during the Kulturkampf , Archbishop Paul Melchers was imprisoned before taking asylum in the Netherlands. These conflicts alienated the Catholic population from Berlin and contributed to
9516-555: The former capital of West Germany . The city's medieval Cologne Cathedral ( Kölner Dom ) was the world's tallest building 1880–1890 and is today the third-tallest church and tallest cathedral in the world . It was constructed to house the Shrine of the Three Kings and is a globally recognized landmark and one of the most visited sights and pilgrimage destinations in Europe. The cityscape
9638-522: The furnace. Cologne – Remains of an old city . Cologne was taken by the American First Army in early March 1945 during the Invasion of Germany after a battle . By the end of the war, the population of Cologne had been reduced by 95%. This loss was mainly caused by a massive evacuation of the people to more rural areas. The same happened in many other German cities in the last two years of war. By
9760-423: The late 15th century did not spare the Hansa. Nevertheless, its eventual rivals emerged in the form of territorial states . New vehicles of credit were imported from Italy. When Flanders and Holland became part of the Duchy of Burgundy , Burgund Dutch and Prussian cities increasingly excluded Lübeck from their grain trade in the 15th and 16th century. Burgund Dutch demand for Prussian and Livonian grain grew in
9882-661: The late 15th century onwards. Nuremberg in Franconia developed an overland route to sell formerly Hansa-monopolised products from Frankfurt via Nuremberg and Leipzig to Poland and Russia, trading Flemish cloth and French wine in exchange for grain and furs from the east. The Hansa profited from the Nuremberg trade by allowing Nurembergers to settle in Hanseatic towns, which the Franconians exploited by taking over trade with Sweden as well. The Nuremberger merchant Albrecht Moldenhauer
10004-417: The late 15th century. These trade interests differed from Wendish interests, threatening political unity, but also showed a trade where the Hanseatic system was impractical. Hollandish freight costs were much lower than the Hansa's, and the Hansa were excluded as middlemen. After naval wars between Burgundy and the Hanseatic fleets, Amsterdam gained the position of leading port for Polish and Baltic grain from
10126-788: The left bank of the Rhine until 1900, when a unified civil code (the Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch ) was introduced in the German Empire . In 1815 at the Congress of Vienna , Cologne was made part of the Kingdom of Prussia , first in the Province of Jülich-Cleves-Berg and then the Rhine Province . The permanent tensions between the Catholic Rhineland and the overwhelmingly Protestant Prussian state repeatedly escalated with Cologne being in
10248-454: The most important major trade routes between east and western Europe (including the Brabant Road , Via Regia and Publica). Cologne was a free imperial city of the Holy Roman Empire and one of the major members of the trade union Hanseatic League . It was one of the largest European cities in medieval and renaissance times. Prior to World War II , the city had undergone occupations by
10370-630: The most valued, and Wendish cities like Lübeck, Hamburg, Wismar, and Rostock developed export breweries for hopped beer. The Hanseatic League, at first the merchant hansas and eventually its cities, relied on power to secure protection and gain and preserve privileges. Bandits and pirates were persistent problems; during wars, these could be joined by privateers . Traders could be arrested abroad and their goods could be confiscated. The league sought to codify protection; internal treaties established mutual defense and external treaties codified privileges. Many locals, merchant and noble alike, envied
10492-634: The name of the city in its own right, which developed into modern German as Köln . Cologne , the French version of the city's name, has become standard in English as well. Cologne functioned as the capital of the Roman province of Germania Inferior and as the headquarters of the Roman military in the region until occupied by the Franks in 462. During the Middle Ages the city flourished as being located on one of
10614-576: The permanent improvement of the diverse traffic infrastructure, which made Cologne one of the most easily accessible metropolitan areas in Central Europe. Due to the economic success of the Cologne Trade Fair , the city arranged a large extension to the fair site in 2005. At the same time the original buildings, which date back to the 1920s, were rented out to RTL , Germany's largest private broadcaster, as their new corporate headquarters. Cologne
10736-532: The recesses; representatives would sometimes leave the Diet prematurely to give their towns an excuse not to ratify decisions. Only a few Hanseatic cities were free imperial cities or enjoyed comparable autonomy and liberties, but many temporarily escaped domination by local nobility. Between 1361 and 1370, League members fought against Denmark in the Danish-Hanseatic War . Though initially unsuccessful with
10858-486: The same to Stendal and Salzwedel in the Altmark . Until 1394, Holland and Zeeland actively participated in the Hansa, but in 1395, their feudal obligations to Albert I, Duke of Bavaria prevented further cooperation. Consequently, their Hanseatic ties weakened, and their economic focus shifted. Between 1417 and 1432, this economic reorientation became even more pronounced as Holland and Zeeland gradually became part of
10980-457: The sea and many were linked to partners by river trade or even land trade. These formed an integrated network, while many smaller Hanseatic towns had their main trading activity in subregional trade. Internal Hanseatic trade was the Hanse's quantitatively largest and most important business. Trade over rivers and land was not tied to specific Hanseatic privileges, but seaports such as Bremen , Hamburg and Riga dominated trade on their rivers. This
11102-506: The sentence for which was only allowed to be handed down by the episcopal judge known as the greve. This legal situation lasted until the French conquest of Cologne. Besides its economic and political significance Cologne also became an important centre of medieval pilgrimage, when Cologne's archbishop, Rainald of Dassel , gave the relics of the Three Wise Men to Cologne's cathedral in 1164 (after they had been taken from Milan ). Besides
11224-482: The small force was almost completely wiped out in combat. The tradition of these troops is preserved as a military persiflage by Cologne's most outstanding carnival society, the Rote Funken . The Free Imperial City of Cologne must not be confused with the Electorate of Cologne , which was a state of its own within the Holy Roman Empire. Since the second half of the 16th century the majority of archbishops were drawn from
11346-505: The style of their Hanseatic days. Most adopted Lübeck law , after the league's most prominent town. The law provided that they appeal in all legal matters to Lübeck's city council. Others, like Danzig from 1295 onwards, had Magdeburg law or its derivative, Culm law . Later, the Livonian Confederation of 1435 to c. 1582 incorporated modern-day Estonia and parts of Latvia ; all of its major towns were members of
11468-548: The term Hanse appeared in a document in 1267, in different cities began to form guilds , or hansas , with the intention of trading with overseas towns, especially in the economically less-developed eastern Baltic. This area could supply timber, wax , amber , resins , and furs, along with rye and wheat brought on barges from the hinterland to port markets. Merchant guilds formed in hometowns and destination ports as medieval corporations ( universitates mercatorum ), and despite competition increasingly cooperated to coalesce into
11590-405: The third largest city by area. The population density was 2,700/km (7,000/sq mi). Cologne first reached the population of 1,000,000 in 1975 due to the incorporation of Wesseling , however this was reversed after public opposition. In 2009 Cologne's population again reached 1,000,000 and it became one of the four cities in Germany with a population exceeding 1 Million. The metropolitan area of
11712-575: The thirteenth century. This network of Hanseatic trading guilds became called the Kaufmannshanse in historiography. The League succeeded in establishing additional Kontors in Bruges ( Flanders ), Bryggen in Bergen (Norway), and London (England) beside the Peterhof in Novgorod. These trading posts were institutionalised by the first half of the 14th century (for Bergen and Bruges) and, except for
11834-420: The three magi Cologne preserves the relics of Saint Ursula and Albertus Magnus . Cologne's location on the river Rhine placed it at the intersection of the major trade routes between east and west as well as the main south–north Western Europe trade route, Venice to Netherlands; even by the mid-10th century, merchants in the town were already known for their prosperity and luxurious standard of living due to
11956-564: The traders' hometowns. Outposts in Lisbon , Bordeaux , Bourgneuf , La Rochelle and Nantes offered the cheaper Bay salt. Ships that plied this trade sailed in the salt fleet . Trading posts operated in Flanders, Denmark-Norway, the Baltic interior, Upper Germany, Iceland, and Venice. Hanseatic trade was not exclusively maritime, or even over water. Most Hanseatic towns did not have immediate access to
12078-524: The war a large increase in automobile traffic could be anticipated. Plans for new roads had already, to a certain degree, evolved under the Nazi administration, but the actual construction became easier when most of the city centre was in ruins. The destruction of 95% of the city centre, including the famous Twelve Romanesque churches such as St. Gereon , Great St. Martin , St. Maria im Kapitol and several other monuments in World War II, meant
12200-527: The wharf area, where a 1,900-year-old Roman boat was discovered in late 2007. From 260 to 271, Cologne was the capital of the Gallic Empire under Postumus , Marius , and Victorinus . In 310, under emperor Constantine I , a bridge was built over the Rhine at Cologne. Roman imperial governors resided in the city and it became one of the most important trade and production centers in the Roman Empire north of
12322-559: The Øresund toll, which caused tensions with Holland and Zeeland . The Sound tolls, and a later attempt of Lübeck to exclude the English and Dutch merchants from Scania harmed the Scanian herring trade when the excluded regions began to develop their own herring industries. In the Dutch–Hanseatic War (1438–1441), a privateer war mostly waged by Wendish towns, the merchants of Amsterdam sought and eventually won free access to
12444-536: The Øresund. Hanseatic cities were divided initially; Lübeck tried to appease Eric while Hamburg supported the Schauenburg counts against him. This led to the Danish-Hanseatic War (1426-1435) and the Bombardment of Copenhagen (1428). The Treaty of Vordingborg renewed the League's commercial privileges in 1435, but the Øresund tolls continued. Eric of Pomerania was subsequently deposed and in 1438 Lübeck took control of
12566-508: Was Saint Maternus . Thomas Aquinas studied in Cologne in 1244 under Albertus Magnus . Cologne is the seat of the Archdiocese of Cologne . According to the 2011 census, 2.1% of the population was Eastern Orthodox , 0.5% belonged of an Evangelical Free Church and 4.2% belonged to further religious communities officially recognized by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia (such as Jehovah's Witnesses ). There are several mosques, including
12688-579: Was 1.88. Cologne residents with a foreign citizenship as of 31 December 2021 is as follows: Cologne is home to 90,000 people of Turkish origin and is the second largest German city with Turkish population after Berlin . Cologne has a Little Istanbul in Keupstraße that has many Turkish restaurants and markets. Famous Turkish-German people like rapper Eko Fresh and TV presenter Nazan Eckes were born in Cologne. Colognian or Kölsch ( Colognian pronunciation: [kœɫːʃ] ) (natively Kölsch Platt )
12810-472: Was a major Rus trade centre . Scandinavians led the Baltic trade before the League, establishing major trading hubs at Birka , Haithabu , and Schleswig by the 9th century CE. The later Hanseatic ports between Mecklenburg and Königsberg (present-day Kaliningrad ) originally formed part of the Scandinavian-led Baltic trade system. The Hanseatic League was never formally founded, so it lacks
12932-456: Was a Military Area Command Headquarters ( Militärbereichshauptkommandoquartier ) for Wehrkreis VI (headquartered at Münster ). Cologne was under the command of Lieutenant-General Freiherr Roeder von Diersburg, who was responsible for military operations in Bonn , Siegburg , Aachen , Jülich , Düren , and Monschau . Cologne was home to the 211th Infantry Regiment and the 26th Artillery Regiment. The Allies dropped 44,923.2 tons of bombs on
13054-517: Was also called Stalhof), Bristol , Bishop's Lynn (later King's Lynn , which featured the sole remaining Hanseatic warehouse in England), Hull , Ipswich , Newcastle upon Tyne , Norwich , Scarborough , Yarmouth (now Great Yarmouth ), and York , many of which were important for the Baltic trade and became centers of the textile industry in the late 14th century. Hansards and textile manufacturers coordinated to make fabrics meet local demand and fashion in
13176-514: Was applied to bands of merchants traveling between the Hanseatic cities. Hanse in Middle Low German came to mean a society of merchants or a trader guild. Claims that it originally meant An-See , or "on the sea", are incorrect. Exploratory trading ventures, raids, and piracy occurred throughout the Baltic Sea. The sailors of Gotland sailed up rivers as far away as Novgorod , which
13298-539: Was chosen as the political capital of the federated state of North Rhine-Westphalia . With Bonn being chosen as the provisional federal capital ( provisorische Bundeshauptstadt ) and seat of the government of the Federal Republic of Germany (then informally West Germany ), Cologne benefited by being sandwiched between two important political centres. The city became–and still is–home to a number of federal agencies and organizations. After reunification in 1990, Berlin
13420-541: Was delayed by the conquest of Wendish cities by the Danish king Eric VI Menved or by their feudal overlords between 1306 and 1319 and the restriction of their autonomy. Assemblies of the Hanse towns met irregularly in Lübeck for a Hansetag [ de ] (Hanseatic Diet) – starting either around 1300, or possibly 1356. Many towns chose not to attend nor to send representatives, and decisions were not binding on individual cities if their delegates were not included in
13542-501: Was especially successful, though the heavy industry was less ubiquitous than in the Ruhr area . The cathedral , started in 1248 but abandoned around 1560, was eventually finished in 1880 not just as a place of worship but also as a German national monument celebrating the newly founded German empire and the continuity of the German nation since the Middle Ages. Some of this urban growth occurred at
13664-468: Was fostered by slow travel speeds: moving from Reval to Lübeck took between 4 weeks and, in winter, 4 months. In 1241, Lübeck, which had access to the Baltic and North seas' fishing grounds, formed an alliance—a precursor to the League—with the trade city of Hamburg, which controlled access to the salt-trade routes from Lüneburg . These cities gained control over most of the salt-fish trade, especially
13786-399: Was further complicated when Swedish nobles rebelled against Albert and invited Margaret. Albert was taken prisoner in 1389, but hired privateers in 1392, the socalled Victual Brothers , who took Bornholm and Visby in his name. They and their descendants threatened maritime trade between 1392 and the 1430s. Under the 1395 release agreement for Albert, Stockholm was ruled from 1395 to 1398 by
13908-502: Was influential in developing the trade with Sweden and Norway, and his sons Wolf and Burghard Moldenhauer established themselves in Bergen and Stockholm, becoming leaders of the local Hanseatic activities. King Edward IV of England reconfirmed the league's privileges in the Treaty of Utrecht despite the latent hostility, in part thanks to the significant financial contribution the League made to
14030-472: Was made the capital of Germany. In 1945 architect and urban planner Rudolf Schwarz called Cologne the "world's greatest heap of rubble". Schwarz designed the master plan for reconstruction in 1947, which included the construction of several new thoroughfares through the city centre, especially the Nord-Süd-Fahrt ("North-South-Drive"). The master plan took into consideration the fact that even shortly after
14152-582: Was more attractive than Schleswig . It became a transshipment port for trade between the North Sea and the Baltics. Lübeck also granted extensive trade privileges to Russian and Scandinavian traders. It was the main supply port for the Northern Crusades , improving its standing with various Popes. Lübeck gained imperial privileges to become a free imperial city in 1226, under Valdemar II of Denmark during
14274-640: Was not possible for the Rhine where trade retained an open character. Digging canals for trade was uncommon, although the Stecknitz Canal was built between Lübeck and Lauenburg from 1391 to 1398. Starting with trade in coarse woolen fabrics, the Hanseatic League increased both commerce and industry in northern Germany. As trade increased, finer woolen and linen fabrics, and even silks, were manufactured in northern Germany. The same refinement of products out of
14396-643: Was occupied by the British Army of the Rhine until 1926, under the terms of the Armistice and the subsequent Versailles Peace Treaty . In contrast with the harsh behaviour of the French occupation troops in Germany, the British forces were more lenient to the local population. Konrad Adenauer , the mayor of Cologne from 1917 until 1933 and later a West German chancellor, acknowledged the political impact of this approach, especially since Britain had opposed French demands for
14518-569: Was part of Austrasia within the Frankish Empire . Cunibert, made bishop of Cologne in 623, was an important advisor to the Merovingian King Dagobert I and served with domesticus Pepin of Landen as tutor to the king's son and heir Siegebert III, the future king of Austrasia. In 716, Charles Martel commanded an army for the first time and suffered the only defeat of his life when Chilperic II , King of Neustria , invaded Austrasia and
14640-898: Was pressured by temporarily moving the Hanseatic emporium to Aardenburg from 1280 to 1282, from 1307 or 1308 to 1310 and in 1350, to Dordt in 1358 and 1388, and to Antwerp in 1436. Boycotts against Norway in 1284 and Flanders in 1358 nearly caused famines. They sometimes resorted to military action. Several Hanseatic cities maintained their warships and in times of need, repurposed merchant ships. Military action against political powers often involved an ad hoc coalition of stakeholders, called an alliance ( tohopesate ). As an essential part of protecting their investments, League members trained pilots and erected lighthouses, including Kõpu Lighthouse . Lübeck erected in 1202 what may be northern Europe's first proper lighthouse in Falsterbo . By 1600 at least 15 lighthouses had been erected along
14762-594: Was redesigned after a 1993 flood, which resulted in heavy damage. In the Roman Empire, the city was large and rich with a population of 40,000 in 100–200 AD. The city was home to around 20,000 people in 1000 AD, growing to 50,000 in 1200 AD. The Rhineland metropolis still had 50,000 residents in 1300 AD. Cologne is the fourth-largest city by population in Germany after Berlin , Hamburg and Munich . As of 31 December 2021, there were 1,079,301 people registered as living in Cologne in an area of 404.99 km (156.37 sq mi), which makes Cologne
14884-529: Was the focus of the 2015-16 New Year's Eve sexual assaults in Germany , with over 500 women reporting that they were sexually assaulted by persons of African and Arab appearance. The metropolitan area encompasses over 405 square kilometres (156 square miles), extending around a central point that lies at 50° 56' 33 latitude and 6° 57' 32 longitude. The city's highest point is 118 m (387 ft) above sea level (the Monte Troodelöh ) and its lowest point
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