Visit Cologne Germany
Cologne KГ In German, Colonia Italian and Spanish; pop 986,000, metropolitan area of about 2 million inhabitants is the fourth largest city in Germany after Berlin, Hamburg and Munich, and the largest city in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
It is one of the oldest cities in Germany, having been founded by the Romans in 38 BC, University of Cologne, established in 1389, is the second oldest German university after Heidelberg and the most important.
Cologne is a major media center, with several radio and television stations based in the city, including RTL and WDR WDR The city is also an important cultural center, and has more than 30 museums and hundreds of galleries.
The local dialect is known as KГ LSCH, and belongs to the variety Ripuarian Franconian German The famous local beer is also named KГ LSCH and is sold under a dozen different labels.
The famous Cologne KГ lnisch Wasser was created in 1709 by Italian perfumer Giovanni Maria Farina 1685 to 1766 He called after the Rhineland town where he was born.
Although no German cars are manufactured in Cologne, the European models of the Ford Fiesta and Ford Fusion are assembled in the city of Toyota Motorsport GmbH, official motorsport team from Toyota, responsible for Toyota rally cars, and until 2009 for Formula One cars, has its headquarters and workshops in Cologne.
The 155m high Colonia Colonia-Hochhaus high-rise building was the tallest residential building in Europe of its completion in 1973 until 2001, when it was overtaken by another round in the city, the 165 KГ lnTurm 48 meters with antenna .
Ubii, a Germanic tribe, established the first permanent settlement on the site of Cologne in 38 BCE The Romans called by the Latin name of Oppidum Ubiorum settlement literally Ubii The Romans gave it the status of the city in 50 CE and renamed Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium.
260-271 of Cologne was the capital of the Gallic Empire under Postumus, Marius and Victorinus In 310 under Constantine a bridge was built over the Rhine in Cologne.
Materne, who was elected as bishop in 313, was the first known bishop of Cologne The city was the capital of a Roman province until occupied by the Franks in 459 785, Cologne became the seat of an archbishop.
From the 9th century until 1806, the Archbishop of Cologne was one of the seven electors ith members of the electoral college electing the Holy Roman Empire.
The Archbishop Rainald of Dassel gave the relics of the Magi to the cathedral in 1164, and the city quickly became a place of pilgrimage in Europe, playing an important economic and political role in the local history of Cologne also keeps the Holy relics of Ursula and Albert le Grand.
Cologne was a member of the Hanseatic League and became a free imperial city in 1475. It was a hub port and transportation on the Rhine.
Since the second half of the 16th century, the archbishops were taken from the powerful House of Wittelsbach, who also ruled Bavaria and the Electoral Palatinate, and provided many Prince Bishops of LiГЁge among others because of the state free Cologne archbishops normally not permitted to reside in the city where they had their official residence in Bonn 1597-1794 and from 1729 also kept a beautiful private palace in BrГјhl.
The French occupied Cologne in 1798 and in 1801 joined the German territories on the left bank of the Rhine to the French Republic, in the Roer department with Aachen as the Holy Roman Empire's capital was dissolved by Napoleon in 1806, and Cologne lost its free city privilege the region was annexed to the kingdom of Prussia after the Congress of Vienna in 1815, but the Napoleonic code remained in use in the Rhineland until 1900.
In World War II, Cologne endured exactly 262 air raids by the Western Allies, which caused approximately 20,000 civilian victims and decimated the city center end of the war, the population of Cologne was reduced from 95 in due to a massive evacuation of people.
After the war, DГјsseldorf was chosen as the state capital, and Bonn as the federal capital, leaving Cologne between the two major administrative centers 1876-1963 Konrad Adenauer became the first mayor postwar Cologne in 1945 before being elected the first chancellor of West Germany in 1949.
In 1975, the population of Cologne has exceeded 1 million people for about a year, but fell slightly below since.
If there is a view that should not be missed in Cologne, it is undoubtedly the Cathedral City having been left in a pile of rubble at the end of World War II, there is virtually no other historical buildings, apart from some rebuilt including twelve Romanesque churches another reason to visit Cologne for its amazing range of museums.
The main shopping street is Hohe Strasse High Street, opposite the cathedral is one of the largest in the country Other commercial areas include the Schildergasse Apostelnstrasse Ehrenstrasse and Rudolfplatz.
Known in German as KГ lner Dom or more officially Hohe Domkirche St. Peter und Maria, this marvel of Gothic architecture over 600 years.
Construction began in 1248 on the site of the old buildings, including a Roman church of the time, and a Carolingian Cathedral Most of the building was built in 1473, outside the towers Some work continued intermittently until 'in 1560, and all work stopped until the 19th century due to lack of funds Driven by a romantic enthusiasm for the Middle Ages, the Prussian court decided to finish the cathedral in 1842 to huge fees more than 1 billion US in today's money, the completion of the largest cathedral in Germany was finally celebrated under the patronage of Kaiser Wilhelm I.
The imposing 144 5m high twin towers made the tallest structure in the world between 1880 and 1884 when it was surpassed by the Ulm cathedral interior closely resembles that of the Amiens Cathedral, on which he was modeled.
The Treasure of the Cathedral Domschatzkamer is exceptional masterpiece is the 12th century Sanctuary of the Three Kings, said to contain the bones of the Magi Kings parts of the sanctuary have been designed by the famous medieval goldsmith Nicolas de Verdun is acclaimed as one of the best example of Mosan art, and is considered the largest reliquary in the Western world Near the sacristy is the Gero-Kreuz 10th century is the oldest large crucifix north of the Alps.
The cathedral has twelve bells of the oldest church is 3 8 tons DreikГ nigenglocke Bell of the Three Kings, expressed in 1418 and installed in 1437 The largest, St Petersglocke 24 tons Bell of St. Peter, was thrown in 1922 and is the largest bell in the world without hesitation.
The cathedral suffered fourteen hits aerial bombs during World War II, but did not collapse, and everything has been repaired by the end of 1956, it is a World Heritage Site by UNESCO since 1996 it is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne, founded in C 88 E.
Cologne architectural heyday was undoubtedly the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries, when its 12 Romanesque churches were built, namely St Andreas St Aposteln, St CГ cilien, St George, St Gereon, St Kunibert, St. Maria im Kapitol, St. Maria Lyskirchen, GroГџ St. Martin, St. Pantaleon, St. Severin and St. Ursula.
All but one of St. Maria Lyskirchen have been very badly damaged during World War II and the reconstruction lasted until 1990 most impressive for its size is gross St Martin on the Fischmarkt between City Hall and the Rhine.
The price for the most richly decorated interior is in St Gereon, which is also the oldest 12 and Saint Severin, founded as a chapel in the 4th century on a Roman cemetery.
Cologne was once the largest ancient city north of the Alps Most of what survived from this period is now in the Roman-Germanic Museum, see below the south wall of the museum has two Roman well, and what remains of Roman port streets.
Some ruins of larger structures are still scattered around the city Foundations and plantar arch side of Roman North Gate is between the cathedral and the tourist information center.
300 m south of the Roman-Germanic Museum was formerly the Praetorian Palace Praetorian Its foundations are now in the medieval town hall Rathaus, where you can also attend the Roman engineering the municipal sewer system.
The segments of the wall of the Roman city can be seen to the west of accommodation Zeughaus Museum Cologne City, in the so-called wall box and Burgmauer Am RГ merturm the streets of Roman tower.
The sections of the 95 km long aqueduct are still visible on Eifel Friesenplatz 1 km due west of the cathedral, in the so-called Belgian or Belgisches Viertel District This aqueduct, built in 80 CE was one of the longest in the Roman Empire It has water all the Ardennes forest path near the current Belgian border.
Here is a list of major museums.
Cologne is the culinary center of the Rhineland and perhaps the best city to eat in Germany Check out our list of the best restaurants in Cologne.
All roads lead out in Rhineland, Cologne A wide junction all highways in the area, you can come up with a few.
A4 E40 Belgium and Aachen in the west and northern Hesse and Saxony in the east.
The E35 A3 Bonn Mainz and Frankfurt south or DГјsseldorf Arnhem and Amsterdam north.
The E31 Bonn Koblenz and Mannheim in the south, or DГјsseldorf Nijmegen and Rotterdam in the north and west.
The E37 A1 Wuppertal, Dortmund, MГјnster and Bremen.
Thalys connects Cologne to Brussels 2h20min, 3h50min and Paris, while the ICE is a fast connection to Frankfurt am Main 1:20, Brussels and Amsterdam 2h20min 2h50min.
There are many direct trains to DГјsseldorf 30min, Bonn 20 to 30 minutes Aachen 50min to 1h, and Koblenz 50min to 1h10min There are also trains direct hourly Mannheim 1h30min Mainz 1h45min, Stuttgart 2h15min, Munich 4:45, Hamburg 4h 4h20min and Berlin.
The airport of Cologne-Bonn airport is the sixth largest in Germany, with flights throughout most of Europe Apart from destinations in Germany, Spain and Turkey are well served particularily because of vacationers is one of the few airports with flights of 24 hours.
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