1.
Geographic coordinate system
–
A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
Geographic coordinate system
–
Longitude lines are perpendicular and latitude lines are parallel to the equator.
2.
Germany
–
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a federal parliamentary republic in central-western Europe. It includes 16 constituent states, covers an area of 357,021 square kilometres, with about 82 million inhabitants, Germany is the most populous member state of the European Union. After the United States, it is the second most popular destination in the world. Germanys capital and largest metropolis is Berlin, while its largest conurbation is the Ruhr, other major cities include Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Düsseldorf and Leipzig. Various Germanic tribes have inhabited the northern parts of modern Germany since classical antiquity, a region named Germania was documented before 100 AD. During the Migration Period the Germanic tribes expanded southward, beginning in the 10th century, German territories formed a central part of the Holy Roman Empire. During the 16th century, northern German regions became the centre of the Protestant Reformation, in 1871, Germany became a nation state when most of the German states unified into the Prussian-dominated German Empire. After World War I and the German Revolution of 1918–1919, the Empire was replaced by the parliamentary Weimar Republic, the establishment of the national socialist dictatorship in 1933 led to World War II and the Holocaust. After a period of Allied occupation, two German states were founded, the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic, in 1990, the country was reunified. In the 21st century, Germany is a power and has the worlds fourth-largest economy by nominal GDP. As a global leader in industrial and technological sectors, it is both the worlds third-largest exporter and importer of goods. Germany is a country with a very high standard of living sustained by a skilled. It upholds a social security and universal health system, environmental protection. Germany was a member of the European Economic Community in 1957. It is part of the Schengen Area, and became a co-founder of the Eurozone in 1999, Germany is a member of the United Nations, NATO, the G8, the G20, and the OECD. The national military expenditure is the 9th highest in the world, the English word Germany derives from the Latin Germania, which came into use after Julius Caesar adopted it for the peoples east of the Rhine. This in turn descends from Proto-Germanic *þiudiskaz popular, derived from *þeudō, descended from Proto-Indo-European *tewtéh₂- people, the discovery of the Mauer 1 mandible shows that ancient humans were present in Germany at least 600,000 years ago. The oldest complete hunting weapons found anywhere in the world were discovered in a mine in Schöningen where three 380, 000-year-old wooden javelins were unearthed
Germany
–
The
Nebra sky disk is dated to c. 1600 BC.
Germany
–
Flag
Germany
–
Martin Luther (1483–1546) initiated the
Protestant Reformation.
Germany
–
Foundation of the
German Empire in
Versailles, 1871.
Bismarck is at the center in a white uniform.
3.
States of Germany
–
Germany is a federal republic consisting of sixteen federal states. Since todays Germany was formed from a collection of several states, it has a federal constitution. The remaining 13 states are called Flächenländer, the creation of the Federal Republic of Germany in 1949 was through the unification of the western states created in the aftermath of World War II. West Berlin, while not part of the Federal Republic, was largely integrated and considered as a de facto state. In 1952, following a referendum, Baden, Württemberg-Baden, in 1957, the Saar Protectorate rejoined the Federal Republic as the Saarland. Federalism is one of the constitutional principles of Germany. After 1945, new states were constituted in all four zones of occupation, in 1949, the states in the three western zones formed the Federal Republic of Germany. This is in contrast to the development in Austria, where the Bund was constituted first. The use of the term Länder dates back to the Weimar Constitution of 1919, before this time, the constituent states of the German Empire were called Staaten. Today, it is common to use the term Bundesland. However, this term is not used officially, neither by the constitution of 1919 nor by the Basic Law of 1949, three Länder call themselves Freistaaten, Bavaria, Saxony, and Thuringia. He summarizes the arguments for boundary reform in Germany. The German system of dual federalism requires strong Länder that have the administrative and fiscal capacity to implement legislation, too many Länder also make coordination among them and with the federation more complicated. But several proposals have failed so far, territorial reform remains a topic in German politics. Federalism has a tradition in German history. The Holy Roman Empire comprised many petty states numbering more than 300 around 1796, the number of territories was greatly reduced during the Napoleonic Wars. After the Congress of Vienna,39 states formed the German Confederation, the new German Empire included 25 states and the imperial territory of Alsace-Lorraine. The empire was dominated by Prussia, which controlled 65% of the territory, after the territorial losses of the Treaty of Versailles, the remaining states continued as republics of a new German federation
States of Germany
4.
Thuringia
–
The Free State of Thuringia is a federal state in central Germany. It has an area of 16,171 square kilometres and 2.29 million inhabitants, making it the sixth smallest by area, most of Thuringia is within the watershed of the Saale, a left tributary of the Elbe. Thuringia has been known as the heart of Germany from the late 19th century. It is home to the Rennsteig, Germanys most well-known hiking trail, half of Germanys 136 Winter Olympic gold medals have been won by Thuringian athletes. Johann Sebastian Bach spent the first part of his life and important further stages of his career in Thuringia, goethe and Schiller lived in Weimar and both worked at the University of Jena, which today hosts Thuringias most important science centre. Other Universities in this state are the Ilmenau University of Technology, the University of Erfurt. The name Thuringia or Thüringen derives from the Germanic tribe Thuringii, an older theory claims that they were successors of the Hermunduri, but later research rejected the idea. Other historians argue that the Thuringians were allies of the Huns, came to central Europe together with them, publius Flavius Vegetius Renatus first mentioned the Thuringii around 400, during that period, the Thuringii were famous for their excellent horses. The Thuringian Realm existed until after 531, the Landgraviate of Thuringia was the largest state in the region, after the Treaty of Leipzig, Thuringia had its own dynasty again, the Ernestine Wettins. Their various lands formed the Free State of Thuringia, founded in 1920, the Prussian territories around Erfurt, Mühlhausen and Nordhausen joined Thuringia in 1945. The coat of arms of Thuringia shows the lion of the Ludowingian Landgraves of 12th-century origin, the eight stars around it represent the eight former states which formed Thuringia. The flag of Thuringia is a bicolor, derived from the white. The coat of arms and flag of Hesse are quite similar to the Thuringian ones, symbols of Thuringia in popular culture are the Bratwurst and the Forest, because a large amount of the territory is forested. Named after the Thuringii tribe who occupied it around AD300, Thuringia became a landgraviate in 1130 AD. Most of the remaining Thuringia came under the rule of the Wettin dynasty of the nearby Margraviate of Meissen, in Mühlhausen and elsewhere, the Anabaptists found many adherents. Thomas Müntzer, a leader of some groups of this sect, was active in this city. Some reordering of the Thuringian states occurred during the German Mediatisation from 1795 to 1814, in 1920, after World War I, these small states merged into one state, called Thuringia, only Saxe-Coburg voted to join Bavaria instead. Weimar became the new capital of Thuringia, the coat of arms of this new state was simpler than those of its predecessors
Thuringia
–
Map of Thuringian States 1890
Thuringia
–
Flag
Thuringia
Thuringia
5.
Districts of Germany
–
A German district is an administrative subdivision known as Landkreis, except in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Schleswig-Holstein where it is known simply as Kreis. Most major cities in Germany are not part of a rural district, in this context, those cities are referred to as Kreisfreie Stadt or Stadtkreis. Rural districts are at a level of administration between the German states and the municipal governments. They correspond to level 3 administrative units of the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics, previously, the similar title Reichskreis was given to groups of states in the Holy Roman Empire. The related term Landeskommissariat was used for administrative divisions in some German territories until the 19th century. The majority of German districts are rural districts of which there are 295, cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants do not usually belong to a district, but take over district responsibilities themselves, similar to the concept of independent cities. These are known as urban districts —cities which constitute a district in their own there are currently 107 of them. As of 2011, approximately 25 million people live in these 107 urban districts, in North Rhine-Westphalia, there are some cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants which are not urban districts, for example Recklinghausen, Siegen, Paderborn, Bergisch Gladbach, Neuss and Moers. Nevertheless, these cities take over many district responsibilities themselves, although they are part of a larger rural district. Midsize towns can perform particular administrative functions of the district as well, the classification as midsize town is usually based on a towns registered population, but varies from state to state. Aachen, Hanover and Göttingen retain certain rights of an urban district, urban districts have these responsibilities and also those of the municipalities. The district council is the highest institution of a district and is responsible for all fundamental guidelines of regional self-administration. This council is elected every five years, except in Bavaria where it is elected every six years. Usually the administrative seat of a district is located in one of its largest towns. However, district council and administrative seat of rural districts are not situated within the district proper. Most of those districts are named after this central city as well. Moers is the biggest city in Germany that is neither an urban district, in parts of northern Germany, Landrat is also the name of the entire district administration, which in southern Germany is known as Kreisverwaltung or Landratsamt. In urban districts similar administrative functions are performed by a mayor, rural districts in some German states have an additional administrative commission called Kreisausschuss
Districts of Germany
–
Administrative divisions of Germany
6.
Burgomaster
–
The name in English was derived from the Dutch burgemeester. In some cases, Burgomaster was the title of the head of state and head of government of a sovereign city-state, contemporary titles are commonly translated into English as mayor. Bürgermeister, in German, in Germany, Austria, and formerly in Switzerland, in Switzerland, the title was abolished mid-19th century, various current titles for roughly equivalent offices include Gemeindepräsident, Stadtpräsident, Gemeindeamtmann, and Stadtamtmann. Oberbürgermeister is the most common version for a mayor in a big city in Germany, the Ober- prefix is used in many ranking systems for the next level up including military designations. The mayors of cities, which comprise one of Germanys 112 urban districts usually bear this title. Urban districts are comparable to independent cities in the English-speaking world, however, also the mayors of some cities, which do not comprise an urban district, but often used to comprise one until the territorial reforms in the 1970s, bear the title Oberbürgermeister. In the Netherlands nominated by the council but appointed by the crown. In theory above the parties, in practice a high-profile party-political post, bourgmestre in Belgium, Luxembourg and the Democratic Republic of the Congo Bürgermeister Burmistras, derived from German. Burmistrz, a title, derived from German. The German form Oberbürgermeister is often translated as Nadburmistrz, the German-derived terminology reflects the involvement of German settlers in the early history of many Polish towns. Borgmästare, kommunalborgmästare, the title is not used in Sweden in present times, boargemaster Pormestari In history in many free imperial cities the function of burgomaster was usually held simultaneously by three persons, serving as an executive college. One of the three being burgomaster in chief for a year, the second being the prior burgomaster in chief, präsidierender Bürgermeister is now an obsolete formulation sometimes found in historic texts
Burgomaster
–
The Burgomaster's Family, possibly painted by
Gerard Donck c. 1640
Burgomaster
–
Arnold von Brauweiler, a German burgomaster, known in German as Bürgermeister
7.
Social Democratic Party of Germany
–
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany. The party, led by Chairman Martin Schulz since 2017, has one of the two major contemporary political parties in Germany, along with the Christian Democratic Union. The SPD has governed at the level in Germany as part of a grand coalition with the CDU. The SPD participates in 14 state governments, nine of them governed by SPD Minister-Presidents, the SPD is a member of the Party of European Socialists and of the Socialist International, and became a founding member of the Progressive Alliance on 22 May 2013. Established in 1863, the SPD is the oldest extant political party represented in the German Parliament and was one of the first Marxist-influenced parties in the world. The General German Workers Association, founded in 1863, and the Social Democratic Workers Party, founded in 1869, merged in 1875, under the name Socialist Workers Party of Germany. From 1878 to 1890, any grouping or meeting that aimed at spreading socialist principles was banned under the Anti-Socialist Laws, in 1890, when the ban was lifted and it could again present electoral lists, the party adopted its current name. In the years leading up to World War I, the party remained ideologically radical in official principle, by 1912, the party claimed the most votes of any German party. Despite the agreement of the Second International to oppose the First World War, after 1918 the SPD played an important role in the political system of the Weimar Republic, although it took part in coalition governments only in few years. Adolf Hitler prohibited the party in 1933 under the Enabling Act – party officials were imprisoned, killed or went into exile, in exile, the party used the name Sopade. In the Soviet Zone of Occupation, the Soviets forced the Social Democrats to form a party with the Communists. In the Western zones, the Communist Party was later banned by West Germanys Federal Constitutional Court, since 1949, in the Federal Republic of Germany, the SPD has been one of the two major parties, with the other being the Christian Democratic Union. From 1969 to 1982 and 1998 to 2005 the Chancellors of Germany were Social Democrats whereas the other years the Chancellors were Christian Democrats, the SPD was established as a Marxist party in 1875. After World War II, under the leadership of Kurt Schumacher, the SPD re-established itself as a socialist party, representing the interests of the working class and the trade unions. With the Godesberg Program of 1959, however, the party evolved from a socialist working-class party to a modern social-democratic party working within capitalism. The current party platform of the SPD espouses the goal of social democracy, according to the party platform, freedom, justice, and social solidarity, form the basis of social democracy. The coordinated social market economy should be strengthened, and its output should be distributed fairly, the party sees that economic system as necessary in order to ensure the affluence of the entire population. The SPD also tries to protect the poor with a welfare state
Social Democratic Party of Germany
–
Sigmar Gabriel
Social Democratic Party of Germany
–
Social Democratic Party of Germany Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands
8.
Central European Summer Time
–
It corresponds to UTC + two hours. Other names which have been applied to Central European Summer Time are Middle European Summer Time, Central European Daylight Saving Time, and Bravo Time. Since 1996 European Summer Time has been observed between 1,00 UTC on the last Sunday of March and 1,00 on the last Sunday of October, the following countries and territories use Central European Summer Time. In addition, Libya used CEST during the years 1951–1959, 1982–1989, 1996–1997, European Summer Time Other countries and territories in UTC+2 time zone Other names of UTC+2 time zone
Central European Summer Time
–
light blue
9.
List of postal codes in Germany
–
Postal codes in Germany, Postleitzahl, since 1 July 1993 consist of five digits. The first two digits indicate the area, the last three digits the postal district. Before reunification, both the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic used four-digit codes. Under a transitional arrangement following reunification, between 1989 and 1993 postal codes in the west were prefixed with W, e. g. W-100030 and those in the east with O, e. g. O-1xxx Berlin. City administrations and postal customers with high volumes, or Großkunden have their own postal codes. Postal regions do not necessarily follow state boundaries, so sorting by state is not practical, the postal regions and some postal codes are, The 5-digit postal codes were established on July 1,1993. All mail from, to and within this region is handled by the distribution center in Elmshorn
List of postal codes in Germany
–
German Postleitzahl map of the first two digits. The green lines mark state borders which do not correspond with postal code areas.
10.
List of dialling codes in Germany
–
Country Code, +49International Call Prefix, 00Trunk Prefix,0 Area codes in Germany have two to five digits, not counting the leading trunk access code 0. The leading 0 must be dialed when calling from within Germany, when calling via fixed networks within the same area, the area code is not required. In general, shorter area codes are assigned to larger cities, private telephone numbers are usually inversely long, those in larger cities have seven or eight digits, while those in smaller towns may have as few as three or four digits. 1 are special numbers such as phones, shared cost service. The former codes 0130 for free phone numbers and 0190 for premium-rate numbers are now moved to 0800 and 0900 to meet international standards,0700 is used for personal national phone numbers. Prefix 01 is used for numbers, and is not tied to a geographic area. After reunification, East Germany was merged into the existing German numbering plan, neugersdorf 03587035872 Neusalza-Spremberg 035873 Herrnhut 035874 Bernstadt a. d.037296 Stollberg/Erzgeb. 037297 Thum 037298 Oelsnitz 03731 Freiberg 03732037320 Mulda/Sa,037433 Gutenfürst 037434 Bobenneukirchen 037435 Reuth 037436 Weischlitz 037437 Bad Elster 037438 Bad Brambach 037439 Jocketa 03744 Auerbach/Vogtl. 03745 Falkenstein 03746037462 Rothenkirchen 037463 Bergen, Vogtlandkreis 037464 Schöneck/Vogtl,037465 Tannenbergsthal 037467 Klingenthal 037468 Treuen 0375 Zwickau 037603760037600 Neumark 037601 Mülsen St.04443 Dinklage 04444 Goldenstedt 04445 Visbek Kr. Vechta 04446 Bakum Kr. 08553 Spiegelau 08554 Schönberg 08555 Perlesreut 08556 Haidmühle 08557 Mauth 08558 Hohenau 085608561 Pfarrkirchen Niederbay,08562 Triftern 08563 Bad Birnbach Rottal 08564 Johanniskirchen 08565 Dietersburg-Baumgarten 085708571 Simbach am Inn 08572 Tann Niederbay. 08573 Ering 08574 Wittibreut 085808581 Waldkirchen Niederbay,08582 Röhrnbach 08583 Neureichenau 08584 Breitenberg 08585 Grainet 08586 Hauzenberg 085908591 Obernzell 08592 Wegscheid Niederbay. 09549 Lisberg 095509551 Burgwindheim 09552 Burghaslach 09553 Ebrach Oberfr,09704 Euerdorf 09708 Bad Bocklet 0971 Bad Kissingen 097209720 Üchtelhausen 09721 Schweinfurt 09722 Werneck 09723 Röthlein 09724 Stadtlauringen 09725 Poppenhausen Unterfr. 09726 Euerbach 09727 Schonungen-Marktsteinach 09728 Wülfershausen Unterfr,097609761 Bad Königshofen 09762 Saal a. d. Saale 09763 Sulzdorf a. d. d. Heide 09823 Leutershausen 09824 Dietenhofen 09825 Herrieden 09826 Weidenbach Mittelfr,09828 Rügland 09829 Flachslanden 098309831 Gunzenhausen 09832 Wassertrüdingen 09833 Heidenheim Mittelfr. 098609861 Rothenburg ob der Tauber 09865 Adelshofen 09867 Geslau 09868 Schillingsfürst 09869 Wettringen Mittelfr,098709871 Windsbach 09872 Heilsbronn 09873 Abenberg-Wassermungenau 09874 Neuendettelsau 09875 Wolframs-Eschenbach 09876 Rohr Mittelfr
List of dialling codes in Germany
–
Area code zones in Germany
11.
Vehicle registration plate
–
A vehicle registration plate, also known as a number plate or a license plate, is metal or plastic plate attached to a motor vehicle or trailer for official identification purposes. The registration identifier is a numeric or alphanumeric ID that uniquely identifies the owner within the issuing regions database. The first two letters indicate the state to which the vehicle is registered, the next two digit numbers are the sequential number of a district. Due to heavy volume of vehicle registration, the numbers were given to the RTO offices of registration as well, the third part indicates the year of registration of the vehicle and is a 4 digit number unique to each plate. In some countries, the identifier is unique within the entire country, whether the identifier is associated with a vehicle or a person also varies by issuing agency. In the vast majority of jurisdictions, the government holds a monopoly on the manufacturing of vehicle registration plates for that jurisdiction. Thus, it is illegal for private citizens to make and affix their own plates. Alternately, the government will merely assign plate numbers, and it is the owners responsibility to find an approved private supplier to make a plate with that number. In some jurisdictions, plates will be assigned to that particular vehicle for its lifetime. If the vehicle is destroyed or exported to a different country. Other jurisdictions follow a policy, meaning that when a vehicle is sold the seller removes the current plate from the vehicle. Buyers must either obtain new plates or attach plates they already hold, as well as register their vehicles under the buyers name, a person who sells a car and then purchases a new one can apply to have the old plates put onto the new car. One who sells a car and does not buy a new one may, depending on the laws involved, have to turn the old plates in or destroy them. Some jurisdictions permit the registration of the vehicle with personal plates, in some jurisdictions, plates require periodic replacement, often associated with a design change of the plate itself. Vehicle owners may or may not have the option to keep their original plate number, alternately, or additionally, vehicle owners have to replace a small decal on the plate or use a decal on the windshield to indicate the expiration date of the vehicle registration. Plates are usually fixed directly to a vehicle or to a frame that is fixed to the vehicle. Sometimes, the plate frames contain advertisements inserted by the service centre or the dealership from which the vehicle was purchased. Vehicle owners can also purchase customized frames to replace the original frames, in some jurisdictions licence plate frames are illegal
Vehicle registration plate
–
Some
jurisdictions license non-traditional vehicles, such as
golf carts, particularly on on-road vehicles, such as this one in
Put-in-Bay, Ohio.
Vehicle registration plate
–
Burkina passenger plate
Vehicle registration plate
–
Burkina Faso Gendarmerie plate
Vehicle registration plate
–
Botswana plate
12.
Spa town
–
A spa town is a resort town based around a mineral spa. Patrons visited spas to take the waters for their health benefits. The word spa is derived from the name of Spa, such a town in Belgium, thomas Guidott set up a medical practice in the English town of Bath in 1668. He became interested in the properties of the hot mineral waters there and in 1676 wrote A discourse of Bathe. Also, Some Enquiries into the Nature of the water and this brought the health-giving properties of the waters to the attention of the aristocracy, who started to partake in them soon after. The term spa is used for towns or resorts offering hydrotherapy, Most are within 30 km of Daylesford, Victoria, the Daylesford and Hepburn Springs call themselves the Spa Centre of Australia. Chaudfontaine Ostend Spa See, List of spa towns in Bosnia and Herzegovina Banja Vrućica, the traditional ones are, Águas de Lindoia, Serra Negra, Águas de São Pedro, Caxambu, Poços de Caldas, Caldas Novas, Araxá, and São Lourenço. See, List of spa towns in Bulgaria Bulgaria is known for its more than 500 mineral springs, other famous spa towns include Sandanski, Hisarya, Bankya, Devin, Kyustendil, Varshets, Velingard. In Bulgarian, the word for a spa is баня, See, List of spa towns in Canada Harrison Hot Springs is one of the oldest among 18 in British Columbia, there are also two in Alberta and one in Ontario. See, List of spa towns in Croatia In Croatia, the word Toplice implies a spa town, the most famous spa towns in Croatia are Daruvar, Šibenik and Sisak. See, Spa towns in the Czech Republic In the Czech Language, the most famous spa towns in Czech Republic are Karlovy Vary, Teplice, Františkovy Lázně and Mariánské Lázně. See, List of spa towns in France In France, the words bains, thermes, there are more than 50 spa towns in France, including Vichy, Aix-les-Bains, Bagnoles-de-lOrne, Dax, and Enghien-les-Bains. See, List of spa towns in Germany In Germany, the word Bad implies a spa town, blasien, Titisee, Tegernsee, Travemünde and Zingst. Wiesbaden is the largest spa town in Germany, See, List of spa towns in Hungary In Hungary, the word fürdő or the more archaic füred, fürdőváros or fürdőhely implies a spa town. Hungary is rich in waters with health benefits, and many spa towns are popular tourist destinations. Budapest has several spas, including Turkish style spas dating back to the 16th century, eger also has a Turkish spa. Other famous spas include the ones at Hévíz, Harkány, Bük, Hajdúszoboszló, Gyula, Bogács, Bükkszék, Zalakaros, the Cave Bath at Miskolctapolca and the Zsóry-fürdő at Mezőkövesd. See, List of spa towns in Italy In Italy, spa towns and these places were known and used since the Roman age
Spa town
–
The statue of "A man breaking a walking crutch" in the spa town
Piešťany (
Slovakia) - a very eloquent symbol of spa towns and balneotherapy.
Spa town
–
Print of
Spa,
Belgium, 1895
Spa town
–
The Roman walls of Hisarya. Many spa towns in Bulgaria have existed since the
Roman Empire.
Spa town
–
A spa town
Mariánské Lázně
13.
Unstrut
–
The Unstrut is a river in eastern Germany and a left tributary of the Saale. It originates in northern Thuringia near Dingelstädt and its catchment area is the whole of the Thuringian Basin and it breaks out of the basin through the Thuringian Gate west of Heldrungen and, in its lower reaches, flows through Saxony-Anhalt before emptying into the Saale near Naumburg. The total length of the Unstrut is 192 kilometres, towns along the Unstrut include Mühlhausen, Sömmerda, Bad Frankenhausen, Artern, Roßleben, and Freyburg. The main tributaries of the Unstrut are the Gera, Wipper, Helme, the countryside around the Saale and Unstrut rivers forms the wine-growing region of Saale-Unstrut. The well-known brand of sparkling wine, Rotkäppchen is produced in the cellars of Freyburg, old High German Strödu means boggy thicket and un- is a prefix to intensify the meaning, and so the Unstrut region was a very swampy area. In 575, the river was attested as the Onestrudis, in the 7th century it was referred to as the Unestrude, and in 994 as the Vnstruod. In 933 the German king Henry I fought, after a truce, against a Hungarian army in the Battle of Riade, a place near the Unstrut. His victory led to a period of peace, until the Hungarians returned in 955 and were defeated again, one of his favourite places was Memleben on the Unstrut, where a royal residence, a so-called Pfalz, palatium or villa regia, was built. He died there in 936, as did his son, Otto I, a monastery was built there in the next years, becoming one of the most important in the German realm for a short time. Its ruins may still be seen, the location of the palatium is not known any more. Due to its character, the Unstrut was not navigable for ships for a long time. Finally, in the years 1790–94, the river was made navigable on the orders of the Elector of Saxony and it became an important shipping lane for a century, in particular, sandstone and limestone were shipped. From 1889, when the Unstrut Railway, was alongside the river. Although the Unstrut wine-growing region, with an area of 300 hectares, is one of the smallest, historic town of Mühlhausen Ruined castle of Wendelstein Ruined abbey of Memleben Neuenburg Castle at Freyburg Gerlinde Schlenker, Jürgen Laubner, Die Unstrut. Schriftenreihe des Vereins zur Rettung und Erhaltung der Neuenburg e. V, saale-Unstrut-Jahrbuch des Saale-Unstrutvereins für Kulturgeschichte und naturkunde e. V. Druckhaus Naumburg. Erscheint jährlich seit 1996 Andreas Schmölling, Klaus Schmölling,200 Jahre Schiffbare Unstrut 1795-1995, sommer, G. Hesse, Hydrogeologie einer anthropogen überprägten Flusslandschaft - das Unstruttal zwischen Quelle und Sömmerda in, Jber. Neue Folge 84, Stuttgart 2002 Sagen der Unstrut-Finne-Region, Die schönsten Sagen von der Quelle bis zur Mündung
Unstrut
–
Bridge over the Unstrut
14.
Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor
–
Frederick I, also known as Frederick Barbarossa, was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death. He was elected King of Germany at Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 and he became King of Italy in 1155 and was crowned Roman Emperor by Pope Adrian IV on 18 June 1155. Two years later, the term sacrum first appeared in a document in connection with his Empire and he was later formally crowned King of Burgundy, at Arles on 30 June 1178. He was named Barbarossa by the northern Italian cities which he attempted to rule, Barbarossa means red beard in Italian, in German, he was known as Kaiser Rotbart, before his imperial election, Frederick was by inheritance Duke of Swabia. He was the son of Duke Frederick II of the Hohenstaufen dynasty and Judith, daughter of Henry IX, Duke of Bavaria, Frederick therefore descended from the two leading families in Germany, making him an acceptable choice for the Empires prince-electors. Historians consider him among the Holy Roman Empires greatest medieval emperors, in 1147 he became Duke of the southern German region of Swabia, and shortly afterwards made his first trip to the East, accompanied by his uncle, the German king Conrad III, on the Second Crusade. The expedition proved to be a disaster, but Frederick distinguished himself, when Conrad died in February 1152, only Frederick and the prince-bishop of Bamberg were at his deathbed. Frederick energetically pursued the crown and at Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 the kingdoms princely electors designated him as the next German king and he was crowned King of the Romans at Aachen several days later, on 9 March 1152. Fredericks father was from the Hohenstaufen family, and his mother was from the Welf family, the Hohenstaufens were often called Ghibellines, which derives from the Italianized name for Waiblingen castle, the family seat in Swabia, the Welfs, in a similar Italianization, were called Guelfs. The reigns of Henry IV and Henry V left the status of the German empire in disarray, for a quarter of a century following the death of Henry V in 1125, the German monarchy was largely a nominal title with no real power. The king was chosen by the princes, was given no resources outside those of his own duchy, the royal title was furthermore passed from one family to another to preclude the development of any dynastic interest in the German crown. When Frederick I of Hohenstaufen was chosen as king in 1152, royal power had been in abeyance for over twenty-five years. The only real claim to lay in the rich cities of northern Italy. The Salian line had died out with the death of Henry V in 1125, one of the Hohenstaufens gained the throne as Conrad III of Germany. When Frederick Barbarossa succeeded his uncle in 1152, there seemed to be excellent prospects for ending the feud, the Welf duke of Saxony, Henry the Lion, would not be appeased, however, remaining an implacable enemy of the Hohenstaufen monarchy. Barbarossa had the duchies of Swabia and Franconia, the force of his own personality, the Germany that Frederick tried to unite was a patchwork of more than 1600 individual states, each with its own prince. A few of these, such as Bavaria and Saxony, were large, many were too small to pinpoint on a map. The titles afforded to the German king were Caesar, Augustus, by the time Frederick would assume these, they were little more than propaganda slogans with little other meaning
Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor
–
A golden bust of Frederick I, given to his godfather Count Otto of Cappenberg in 1171. It was used as a reliquary in
Cappenberg Abbey and is said in the deed of the gift to have been made "in the likeness of the emperor".
Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor
–
Penny or denier with Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa, struck in
Nijmegen.
Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor
–
Frederick Barbarossa in a 13th-century chronicle
Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor
–
Frederick Barbarossa, middle, flanked by two of his children, King Henry VI (left) and Duke Frederick VI (right). From the Historia Welforum.
15.
Barbarossa city
–
Barbarossa city is a nickname for five German cities that the Staufer Emperor Frederick Barbarossa stayed in or near for some time. Sinzig is a city on the Middle Rhine in Ahrweiler County, celtic in its early history and settled by the Romans, the city was first mentioned in 762 as a Franconian kings court, sentiacum. The city was at its height from the 12th through the 14th century as a Kaiserpfalz often visited by the German kings, Barbarossa himself stayed at Sinzig four times. The settlement history of Kaiserslautern, a city and university seat at the northern edge of the Palatinate forest. Around 1100 Salian rulers built themselves a castle on the grounds of the city hall. Between 1152 and 1158 Barbarossa had the castle expanded that would bear his name and he designated Lautern the center of his Staufen empire, which marked the beginning of a boom for the community. The Kaisers palace was mentioned for the first time as castrum domini imperatoris, in 1176 Barbarossa donated a hospital to the community and called Norbertines into Lautern to take on the hospitals management. The people of Kaisers Lautern were proud to call their city a Barbarossa city, the Barbarossa city of Gelnhausen is a city in Main-Kinzig County in the eastern part of Hesse. It was founded in 1170 by Barbarossa in this convenient location because the merchant highway Via Regia from Frankfurt to Leipzig intersected here with other roads. Frederick I founded the city by combining three existing villages into the free city of Gelnhausen. Imperial trading privileges such as duty-free zones lead to an aggregation of traders. Only ten years after it was born the city hosted an important Reichstag where Henry the Lion was tried in absentia, the Kaiserpfalz in Gelnhausen is the best maintained Staufer country palace still in existence. Altenburg in the east of Thuringia may also call itself a Barbarossa city. It was first mentioned in 976 by Emperor Otto II and Barbarossa stayed in the imperial castle Altenburg, first mentioned in 1132, in 1172 he consecrated the Augustinian monastery of Our dear Lady St. Mary at the top of the mountain. Excavations evidence first settlements in Bad Frankenhausen at the edge of the Kyffhäuser area at approximately 8000 BC. The town itself was first mentioned in the 9th century in documents of the abbey in Fulda where it was referred to as a Franconian settlement. Because of these items, Frankenhausen is counted among the Barbarossa cities even though there is no evidence the Emperor ever stayed here
Barbarossa city
–
Memorial for Frederick Barbarossa in Sinzig
Barbarossa city
–
Imperial country castle at Gelnhausen 2005
Barbarossa city
–
Rote Spitzen of Augustine monastery
Barbarossa city
–
Kyffhäuser Monument with Frederick Barbarossa
16.
Franks
–
Some Franks raided Roman territory, while other Frankish tribes joined the Roman troops of Gaul. In later times, Franks became the rulers of the northern part of Roman Gaul. The Salian Franks lived on Roman-held soil between the Rhine, Scheldt, Meuse, and Somme rivers in what is now Northern France, Belgium, the kingdom was acknowledged by the Romans after 357 CE. Following the collapse of Rome in the West, the Frankish tribes were united under the Merovingians, who succeeded in conquering most of Gaul in the 6th century, which greatly increased their power. The Merovingian dynasty, descendants of the Salians, founded one of the Germanic monarchies that would absorb large parts of the Western Roman Empire, the Frankish state consolidated its hold over the majority of western Europe by the end of the 8th century, developing into the Carolingian Empire. This empire would gradually evolve into the state of France and the Holy Roman Empire, in the Middle Ages, the term Frank was used in the east as a synonym for western European, as the Franks were then rulers of most of Western Europe. The Franks in the east kept their Germanic language and became part of the Germans, Dutch, Flemings, the Franconian languages, which are called Frankisch in Dutch or Fränkisch in German, originated at least partly in the Old Frankish language of the Franks. Nowadays, the German and Dutch names for France are Frankreich and Frankrijk, respectively, the name Franci was originally socio-political. To the Romans, Celts, and Suebi, the Franks must have seemed alike, they looked the same and spoke the same language, so that Franci became the name by which the people were known. Within a few centuries it had eclipsed the names of the tribes, though the older names have survived in some place-names, such as Hesse. Following the precedents of Edward Gibbon and Jacob Grimm, the name of the Franks has been linked with the word frank in English and it has been suggested that the meaning of free was adopted because, after the conquest of Gaul, only Franks were free of taxation. It is traditionally assumed that Frank comes from the Germanic word for javelin, there is also another theory that suggests that Frank comes from the Latin word francisca meaning. Words in other Germanic languages meaning fierce, bold or insolent, eumenius addressed the Franks in the matter of the execution of Frankish prisoners in the circus at Trier by Constantine I in 306 and certain other measures, Ubi nunc est illa ferocia. Feroces was used often to describe the Franks, contemporary definitions of Frankish ethnicity vary both by period and point of view. According to their law and their custom, writing in 2009, Professor Christopher Wickham pointed out that the word Frankish quickly ceased to have an exclusive ethnic connotation. North of the River Loire everyone seems to have considered a Frank by the mid-7th century at the latest. Two early sources describe the origin of the Franks are a 7th-century work known as the Chronicle of Fredegar. Neither of these works are accepted by historians as trustworthy, compared with Gregory of Tourss Historia Francorum, the chronicle describes Priam as a Frankish king whose people migrated to Macedonia after the fall of Troy
Franks
–
Aristocratic Frankish grave goods from the Merovingian period
Franks
–
A 19th century depiction of different Franks (AD 400–600)
Franks
–
Detail of the
Tabula Peutingeriana, showing Francia at the top
Franks
–
A 6th-7th century necklace of glass and ceramic beads with a central amethyst bead. Similar necklaces have been found in the graves of Frankish women in the Rhineland.
17.
Abbey of Fulda
–
It was founded in 744 by Saint Sturm, a disciple of Saint Boniface. Through the 8th and 9th centuries, Fulda Abbey became a prominent center of learning and culture in Germany, the growth in population around Fulda would result in its elevation to a prince-bishopric in the second half of the 18th century. In the mid-8th century, Saint Boniface commissioned Saint Sturmi to establish a church than any other founded by Boniface. In January 744, Saint Sturmi selected a plot along the Fulda River. The foundation of the dates to March 12,744. Sturmi travelled to notable monasteries of Italy, such as that of Monte Cassino, for inspiration in creating a monastery of such grand size and splendor. Boniface was proud of Fulda, and he would obtain autonomy for the monastery from the bishops of the area by appealing to Pope Zachary for placement directly under the Holy See in 751. Boniface would be entombed at Fulda following his martyrdom in 754 in Frisia, as per his request, creating a destination for pilgrimage in Germany, Saint Sturmi would be named the first abbot of the newly established monastery, and would lead Fulda through a period of rapid growth. The monks of Fulda practiced many specialized trades, and much production took place in the monastery, production of manuscripts increased the size of the library of Fulda, while skilled craftsmen produced many goods that would make monastery a financially wealthy establishment. As Fulda grew, members of the monastery would move from the main building and they would establish themselves based on trade and agriculture, while still remaining connected to the monastery. Together, the monks of Fulda would create a library, financially stable production. In 774, Charlemagne placed Fulda under his control to ensure its continued success. Fulda was becoming an important cultural center to the Carolingian Empire, a notable work that the monks of Fulda produced was the “Annales necrologici”, a list of all the deceased members of the abbey following the death of Saint Sturmi in 744. The monks would offer prayer for the dead listed in the Annales to ensure their eternal salvation. While at first this record only contained the names of those at Fulda, as the power and prominence of Fulda grew, patrons, citizens, and nobles of the area would all come to be recorded in this piece of Fulda and its concept of community. The documenting of dates of passing, beginning with Sturmi, created a sense of continuity, the school at the Fulda monastery would become a major focus of the monks under Sturmis successor, Abbot Baugulf, at the turn of the century. It contained a school for Christian studies, and an outer school for secular. In 787 Charlemagne praised Fulda as a school for others, leading by example in educating the public in secular
Abbey of Fulda
–
Fulda Cathedral
Abbey of Fulda
–
Flag
18.
German town law
–
The German town law or German municipal concerns was a set of early town privileges based on the Magdeburg rights developed by Otto I. The Magdeburg Law became the inspiration for regional town charters not only in Germany, the German town law was used in the founding of many German cities, towns, and villages beginning in the 13th century. As Germans began establishing towns throughout northern Europe as early as the 10th century, such privileges often included the right to self-governance, economic autonomy, criminal courts, and militia. Town laws were more or less copied from neighboring towns, such as the Westphalian towns of Soest, Dortmund, Minden. The granting of German city rights modelled after a town to a new town regarded the original model as a Rechtsvorort. For instance, Magdeburg became the sponsor of towns using Magdeburg Rights, as territorial borders changed through the passage of time, changes to German city rights were inevitable. During the course of the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries, ultimately, the older towns laws, along with local autonomy and jurisdiction, gave way to landed territorial rulers. The only remnants of medieval town rights included in the Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch of 1 January 1900 were single articles concerning family, the cities of Hamburg, Bremen, and Berlin are currently administered under Landesrechte, or laws of the federal states of Germany. Many towns granted German city rights had existed for some time. Many European localities date their foundation to their reception of a town charter, German town law was frequently applied during the Ostsiedlung of Central and Eastern Europe by German colonists beginning in the early 13th century. Because many areas were considered underpopulated or underdeveloped, local rulers offered urban privileges to peasants from German lands to them to immigrate eastward. Some towns which received a German town law charter were based on pre-existing settlements, many towns were formed in conjunction with the settlement of nearby rural communities, but the towns urban rights were jealously guarded. Initially German town law was applied only to ethnic Germans, but gradually in most localities all town-dwellers were regarded as citizens, regardless of ethnic origin. Lübeck law spread rapidly among the settlements along the southern shore of the Baltic Sea and was used in northern Mecklenburg, Western Pomerania. It formed the basis of Riga law in Riga, used in the lands of the Livonian Order in Livonia, Estonia, other variants included Brandenburg, Litoměřice, and Olomouc law. South German law, broadly referring to the codes of Nuremberg and Vienna, was used in Bavaria, Austria, and Slovenia, jihlava law was a variant used frequently by mining communities in Bohemia, Moravia, the mountains of Slovakia, and Transylvania. Other town laws were only suitable for or were modified to fit local conditions, such as Głubczyce, Görlitz, Goslar, Lüneburg, Lwówek Śląski, Nysa, Spiš, and Székesfehérvár laws. Many Transylvanian Saxon settlements in Transylvania, especially in the regions of Altland, Burzenland, in the 16th century Muscovy granted or reaffirmed Magdeburg rights to various towns along the Dnieper acquired from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
German town law
–
Town charter for
Höchst on Main and
Gau-Algesheim from February 11, 1355
19.
County of Schwarzburg
–
The House of Schwarzburg is one of the oldest noble families of Thuringia. The County of Schwarzburg was a state of the Holy Roman Empire from 1195 to 1595 and it was ruled by counts from the House of Schwarzburg. Schwarzburg Castle was first mentioned in a 1071 deed, sizzo also established Georgenthal Abbey and in 1157, he accompanied Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa during his campaign against High Duke Bolesław IV the Curly of Poland. In 1197, Sizzos grandson Heinrich II divided the common heritage with his brother Günther III and his territory then also comprised the nearby castle of Blankenburg. The most famous member is Günther von Schwarzburg. In 1349, he was elected as German king by the majority of electors, but, due to less support, he renounced some month later and died shortly after. The Schwarzburg lands were divided among his successors until in 1538 when Count Günther XL the Rich was able to unite the territories including Frankenhausen. He was succeeded by his eldest son Günther XLI, the partition was finally confirmed by the 1599 Treaty of Stadtilm
County of Schwarzburg
–
The castle at
Schwarzburg. The building is being renovated now.
County of Schwarzburg
–
House of Schwarzburg
County of Schwarzburg
–
Coat of arms
County of Schwarzburg
–
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt in brown color, Schwarzburg-Sondershausen in dark grey color (1910)
20.
George, Duke of Saxony
–
George the Bearded, Duke of Saxony, was duke of Saxony from 1500 to 1539. Duke George was a member of the Order of the Golden Fleece and his father was Albert the Brave of Saxony, founder of the Albertine line of the Wettin family, his mother was Sidonie, daughter of George Podiebrad, King of Bohemia. Elector Frederick the Wise, a member of the Ernestine branch of the same family, George, as the eldest son, received an excellent training in theology and other branches of learning, and was thus much better educated than most of the princes of his day. George was married at Dresden, on 21 November 1496, to Barbara Jagiellon, daughter of Casimir IV, King of Poland and Elisabeth and they had ten children, but all, with the exception of a daughter, died before their father, Christof. Johann, Hereditary Duke of Saxony, married on 20 May 1516 to Elizabeth of Hesse, Frederick, Hereditary Duke of Saxony, married on 27 January 1539 to Elisabeth of Mansfeld. Christine, married on 11 December 1523 to Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse, magdalena, married on 6 November 1524 to Joachim Hector, then Hereditary Elector of Brandenburg. In 1498, the emperor granted Albert the Brave the hereditary governorship of Friesland, at Maastricht,14 February 1499, Albert settled the succession to his possessions, and endeavoured by this arrangement to prevent further partition of his domain. He died 12 September 1500, and was succeeded in his German territories by George as the head of the Albertine line, the Saxon occupation of Friesland, however, was by no means secure and was the source of constant revolts in that province. But this arrangement did not restore peace in Friesland, which remained a source of trouble to Saxony, in 1515 George sold Friesland to the future Emperor Charles V for the very moderate price of 100,000 florins. He tried tot keep the lands of het Bildt which werent granted him by Charles V. These troubles outside of his Saxon possessions did not prevent George from bestowing much care on the government of the ducal territory proper. When regent, during the lifetime of his father, the difficulties arising from conflicting interests, in his desire to achieve good order, severity, and the amelioration of the condition of the people, he sometimes ventured to infringe even on the rights of the cities. From the beginning of the Reformation in 1517, Duke George directed his energies chiefly to ecclesiastical affairs, the duke was not blind to the undeniable abuses existing at that time in the Church. Some years later, he wrote a preface to a translation of the New Testament issued at his command by his private secretary, Hieronymus Emser. Lutheran books were confiscated by his order, wherever found, though he refunded the cost of the books, for those, however, who merely held anti-catholic opinions, the punishment was only expulsion from the duchy. The duke deeply regretted the constant postponement of the ardently desired council and he vainly sought to obtain from the Curia the right, which was sometimes granted by Rome, to make official visitations to the conventual institutions of his realm. His reforms were confined mainly to uniting the almost vacant monasteries and to matters of economic management, in 1525, Duke George formed, with some other German rulers, the League of Dessau, for the protection of Catholic interests. In the same way he was the spirit of the League of Halle, formed in 1533
George, Duke of Saxony
–
Portrait by
Lucas Cranach the Elder
George, Duke of Saxony
–
Guldengroschen of
Saxony, c. 1508-1525. The
obverse shows George's cousin,
Frederick, while on the
reverse, George is portrayed face to face with the future
Elector,
John.
George, Duke of Saxony
–
Albert the brave of Saxony
George, Duke of Saxony
–
Barbara Duchess of Saxony
21.
Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse
–
Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse, nicknamed der Großmütige was a leading champion of the Protestant Reformation and one of the most important of the early Protestant rulers in Germany. Philip was the son of Landgrave William II of Hesse and his second wife Anna of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. His father died when Philip was five years old, and in 1514 his mother, after a series of struggles with the Estates of Hesse, the struggles over authority continued, however. To put an end to them, Philip was declared of age in 1518, the power of the Estates had been broken by his mother, but he owed her little else. His education had been imperfect, and his moral and religious training had been neglected. Despite all this, he developed rapidly as a statesman, the first meeting of Philip of Hesse with Martin Luther took place in 1521, at the age of 17, at the Diet of Worms. There he was attracted by Luthers personality, though he had at first little interest in the elements of the gathering. Philip embraced Protestantism in 1524 after a meeting with the theologian Philipp Melanchthon. He then helped suppress the German Peasants War by defeating Thomas Müntzer at the Battle of Frankenhausen, Philip refused to be drawn into the anti-Lutheran league of George, Duke of Saxony, in 1525. At the same time, he united political motives with his religious policy, as early as the spring of 1526, he sought to prevent the election of the Catholic Archduke Ferdinand as Holy Roman Emperor. Although there was no strong popular movement for Protestantism in Hesse, the University of Marburg was founded in the summer of 1527 to be, like the University of Wittenberg, a school for Protestant theologians. Their activities, along with other circumstances, including rumors of war and his suspicions were confirmed to his own satisfaction by a forgery given him by an adventurer who had been employed in important missions by George of Saxony, one Otto von Pack. Both Luther and the chancellor, Gregor Brück, though convinced of the existence of the conspiracy. Nevertheless, he took a part in uniting the Protestant representatives. Before leaving the city he succeeded in forming, on 22 April 1529, Philip was especially anxious to prevent division over the subject of the Eucharist. Through him Huldrych Zwingli was invited to Germany, and Philip thus prepared the way for of the celebrated Marburg Colloquy, the result was that Philip was suspected of a tendency toward Zwinglianism. Philip eagerly embraced Zwinglis plan of a great Protestant alliance to extend from the Adriatic to Denmark to keep the Holy Roman Emperor from crossing into Germany, the arrival of the emperor put an end to these disputes for the time being. Moreover, Bucer fully agreed with the landgrave on the importance of compromise measures in treating the controversy surrounding the Eucharist and this effort resulted in the foundation of, the League of Gotha, then the League of Torgau, and finally the Schmalkaldic League
Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse
–
Portrait of Philip I
Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse
–
Philip of Hesse, etching by
Matthäus Merian
Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse
–
Margarethe von der Saale, copy of a painting by an unknown artist
Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse
–
Allegory showing
Charles V (centre) enthroned over his defeated enemies (from left to right):
Suleiman the Magnificent,
Pope Clement VII,
Francis I, the
Duke of Cleves, the
Duke of Saxony and the Landgrave of Hesse
22.
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt
–
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt was a small historic state in present-day Thuringia, Germany with its capital at Rudolstadt. Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt was established in 1599 in the course of a resettlement of Schwarzburg dynasty lands, in 1583 Count Günther XLI of Schwarzburg, the eldest son of Günther XL the Rich and ruler over the united Schwarzburg lands, had died without issue. He was succeeded by his brothers, whereby Albert VII received the territory around Rudolstadt. Alberts descendants ruled as sovereign counts of the Holy Roman Empire and it withstood the mediatisation and after the Empires dissolution joined the Confederation of the Rhine in 1807 and the German Confederation in 1815. On 23 November 1918, during the German Revolution of 1918–1919, the former principality became a Free State in 1919, that was merged into the new state of Thuringia in the next year. In 1905 Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt had an area of 940 km2 and a population of 97,000, on the death of the childless Prince Günther Victor in 1925, he was succeeded by Prince Sizzo, who was the son of Prince Friedrich Günther from his second, morganatic marriage. Prince Sizzo was recognised as a member of the House of Schwarzburg in 1896. He was succeeded in 1926 by his son, Prince Friedrich Günther
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt
–
Flag
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt
–
Heidecksburg residence at Rudolstadt
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt
–
Prince
Günther Victor, the last ruler of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt
23.
Principality
–
Most of these states have historically been a polity, but in some occasions were rather territories in respect of which a princely title is held. The princes estate and wealth may be located mainly or wholly outside the confines of the principality. Generally recognised surviving sovereign principalities are Liechtenstein, Monaco, and the co-principality of Andorra, extant royal primogenitures styled as principalities include Asturias, and Wales. The term principality is often used informally to describe Wales as it currently exists, since that time, the title Prince of Wales has traditionally been granted to the heir to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom, but it confers no responsibilities for government in Wales. It has country status and is one of four countries in the United Kingdom, principality of Asturias is the official name of autonomous community of Asturias. No sovereign duchy currently exists, but Luxembourg is an example of a sovereign grand duchy. Historically there have been sovereign principalities with many styles of ruler, such as Countships, Margraviates and even Lordships, feudalism increased the power of local princes within a kings lands. As princes continued to more power over time, the authority of the king was diminished in many places. This led to political fragmentation as the lands were broken into mini-states ruled by princes and dukes who wielded absolute power over their small territories. This was especially prevalent in Europe, and particularly with the Princes of the Holy Roman Empire, during the Late Middle Ages from 1200 to 1500, principalities were often at war with each other as royal houses asserted sovereignty over smaller principalities. These wars caused a deal of instability and economies were destroyed. Episodes of bubonic plague reduced the power of principalities to survive independently. Eventually, agricultural progress and development of new goods and services boosted commerce between principalities. Many of these states became wealthy, expanded their territories and improved the services provided to their citizens, Princes and dukes developed their lands, established new ports and chartered large thriving cities. Some used their wealth to build palaces and other institutions now associated with sovereign states. While some principalities prospered in their independence, less successful states were swallowed by stronger royal houses, Europe saw consolidation of small principalities into larger kingdoms and empires. This had already happened in England in the first millennium, and this subsequently led to the creation of such states as France, Portugal. Another form of consolidation was orchestrated in Italy during the Renaissance by the Medici family, a banking family from Florence, the Medici took control of governments in various Italian regions and even assumed the papacy
Principality
–
Prince
Johann I Josef, last prince of
Liechtenstein prior to the end of the
Holy Roman Empire
24.
Schwarzburg-Sondershausen
–
Schwarzburg-Sondershausen was a small principality in Germany, in the present day state of Thuringia, with its capital at Sondershausen. Schwarzburg-Sondershausen was a county until 1697, in that year, it became a principality, which lasted until the fall of the German monarchies in 1918, during the German Revolution of 1918–1919. After the German Revolution, it became a republic, in 1920, it joined with other small states in the area to form the new state of Thuringia. Schwarzburg-Sondershausen had an area of 862 km² and a population of 85,000, towns placed in the state were, Arnstadt, Sondershausen, Gehren, Langewiesen, Großbreitenbach, Ebeleben, Großenehrich, Greußen and Plaue. Prince Sizzo was recognised as a member of the House of Schwarzburg in 1896. He was succeeded in 1926 by his son, Prince Friedrich Günther
Schwarzburg-Sondershausen
–
Karl Gunther, the last Prince of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen
Schwarzburg-Sondershausen
–
Flag
Schwarzburg-Sondershausen
–
The castle at
Sondershausen
25.
Saline water
–
Saline water is water that contains a significant concentration of dissolved salts. The salt concentration is expressed in parts per thousand or parts per million. The United States Geological Survey classifies saline water in three salinity categories. Salt concentration in slightly saline water is around 1,000 to 3,000 ppm, in saline water 3,000 to 10,000 ppm. Seawater has a salinity of roughly 35,000 ppm, equivalent to 35 grams of salt per one liter of water, the saturation level is dependent on the temperature of the water. At 20 °C one milliliter of water can dissolve about 0.357 grams of salt, at boiling the amount that can be dissolved in one milliliter of water increases to about 0.391 grams or 28. 1% saline solution. Some industries make use of water, such as mining. In the United States,14 percent of all used in 2000 was saline. Almost all saline withdrawals, over 92 percent, were used by the power industry to cool electricity-generating equipment. About three percent of the saline water was used for mining and other industrial purposes. Due to their proximity to the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, states near the coast make the most use of saline water, almost 40% of all saline water use in 2000 occurred in California, Florida, and Maryland. The use of water, as with freshwater, has been trending downward since a peak in 1968. But, in the period between 1950 and 1968, the use of water increased at a much higher rate than freshwater use. The thermal conductivity of seawater is 0.6 W/mK at 25 °C, brackish water Brine Media related to Saline water at Wikimedia Commons
Saline water
–
Water salinity diagram
26.
Saline (medicine)
–
Saline, also known as saline solution, is a mixture of sodium chloride in water and has a number of uses in medicine. Applied to the area it is used to clean wounds, help remove contact lenses. By injection into a vein it is used to treat such as from gastroenteritis. It is also used to other medications to be given by injection. Large amounts may result in fluid overload, swelling, acidosis, in those with long standing low blood sodium excessive use may result in osmotic demyelination syndrome. Saline is in the family of medications. It is most commonly used as a sterile 9 g of salt per litre solution, higher and lower concentrations may also occasionally be used. The medical use of saline began around 1831 and it is on the World Health Organizations List of Essential Medicines, the most effective and safe medicines needed in a health system. The wholesale cost in the world is about 0.60 to 4.20 USD per liter of normal saline. Concentrations vary from low to normal to high, high concentrations are used rarely in medicine but frequently in molecular biology. Normal saline is the commonly used phrase for a solution of 0. 90% w/v of NaCl,308 mOsm/L or 9.0 g per litre. NS is used frequently in intravenous drips for patients who cannot take fluids orally and have developed or are in danger of developing dehydration or hypovolemia, NS is also used for aseptic purpose. However, it is now known that rapid infusion of NS can cause metabolic acidosis, the solution is 9 grams of sodium chloride dissolved in water, to a total volume of 1000 ml. The mass of 1 millilitre of normal saline is 1.0046 gram at 22 °C, the molecular weight of sodium chloride is approximately 58.5 grams per mole, so 58.5 grams of sodium chloride equals 1 mole. Since normal saline contains 9 grams of NaCl, the concentration is 9 grams per litre divided by 58.5 grams per mole, since NaCl dissociates into two ions – sodium and chloride –1 molar NaCl is 2 osmolar. Thus, NS contains 154 mEq/L of Na+ and Cl− and it has a slightly higher degree of osmolarity than blood Nonetheless, the osmolarity of normal saline is a close approximation to the osmolarity of NaCl in blood. One litre of 0. 9% Saline contains,154 mEq of sodium ion =154 mmol 154 mEq of chloride ion =154 mmol For medical purposes, saline is used to flush wounds. Normal saline will not burn or sting when applied, Saline is also used in I. V. therapy, intravenously supplying extra water to rehydrate patients or supplying the daily water and salt needs of a patient who is unable to take them by mouth
Saline (medicine)
–
Saline solution for intravenous infusion. The white port at the base of the bag is where additives can be injected with a
hypodermic needle. The port with the blue cover is where the bag is spiked with an infusion set.
Saline (medicine)
–
Saline solution for irrigation. This solution is used for irrigating wounds, tissues, body cavities, and bladders. Saline solution for irrigation should not be administered intravenously.
27.
Nacre
–
Nacre, also known as mother of pearl, is an organic-inorganic composite material produced by some molluscs as an inner shell layer, it also makes up the outer coating of pearls. It is strong, resilient, and iridescent, nacre is found in some of the most ancient lineages of bivalves, gastropods, and cephalopods. The outer layer of pearls and the layer of pearl oyster and freshwater pearl mussel shells are made of nacre. Other mollusc families that have an inner shell layer include marine gastropods such as the Haliotidae, the Trochidae. Nacre is composed of hexagonal platelets of aragonite 10–20 µm wide and 0.5 µm thick arranged in a continuous parallel lamina and these layers are separated by sheets of organic matrix composed of elastic biopolymers. This mixture of brittle platelets and the layers of elastic biopolymers makes the material strong and resilient. Strength and resilience are also likely to be due to adhesion by the arrangement of the platelets. This structure, at multiple length sizes, greatly increases its toughness, nacre appears iridescent because the thickness of the aragonite platelets is close to the wavelength of visible light. These structures interfere constructively and destructively with different wavelengths of light at different viewing angles, the crystallographic c-axis points approximately perpendicular to the shell wall, but the direction of the other axes varies between groups. Adjacent tablets have shown to have dramatically different c-axis orientation. In bivalves and cephalopods, the points in the direction of shell growth. The interlocking of bricks of nacre has large impact on both the mechanism as well as its toughness. In addition, the mineral–organic interface results in enhanced resilience and strength of the organic interlayers, nacre formation is not fully understood. The initial onset assembly, as observed in Pinna nobilis, is driven by the aggregation of nanoparticles within a matrix that arrange in fibre-like polycrystalline configurations. The particle number increases successively and, when critical packing is reached, nacre growth is mediated by organics, controlling the onset, duration and form of crystal growth. Individual aragonite bricks are believed to grow to the full height of the nacreous layer. This produces the hexagonal close-packing characteristic of nacre, bricks may nucleate on randomly dispersed elements within the organic layer, well-defined arrangements of proteins, or may grow epitaxially from mineral bridges extending from the underlying tablet. Nacre differs from fibrous aragonite – a brittle mineral of the same form – in that the growth in the c-axis is slow in nacre, nacre is secreted by the epithelial cells of the mantle tissue of various molluscs
Nacre
–
The iridescent nacre inside a
Nautilus shell.
Nacre
–
Electron microscopy image of a fractured surface of nacre
Nacre
–
Fossil
nautiloid shell with original iridescent nacre in fossiliferous asphaltic limestone,
Oklahoma. Dated to the late Middle Pennsylvanian, which makes it - by far - the oldest deposit in the world with aragonitic nacreous shelly fossils.
28.
Garrison
–
Garrison is the collective term for a body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it, but now often simply using it as a home base. The garrison is usually in a city, town, fort, castle, garrison town is a common expression for any town that has a military base nearby. Garrison towns were used during the Arab Islamic conquests of Middle Eastern lands by Arab-Muslim armies to increase their dominance over indigenous populations. In Ireland, Association football has historically been termed the game or the garrison sport for its connections with British military serving in Irish cities. In Israel, a unit is a regular unit defending a specified Israeli zone in need of protection from attack from combatants. Israeli garrison units placed in the territories of West Bank are recognized under UN Resolution 242 as occupied pending peaceful recognition by all regional combatants. It was an old custom in ancient Italy to send out colonies for the purpose of securing new conquests, the Romans, having no standing army, used to plant bodies of their own citizens in conquered towns as a kind of garrison
Garrison
–
"Arrival of the dean fleet ", showing the garrison of
Malta in 1565 and the
Ottoman invasion force.
29.
Motorised infantry
–
In NATO and most other western countries, motorized infantry is infantry that is transported by trucks or other un-protected motor vehicles. In Russia and the former Soviet Union, the term motostrelki is used to indicate mechanized infantry, motorizing infantry is the first stage towards the mechanization of an army. Civilian trucks are readily adaptable to military uses of transporting soldiers, towing guns and that greatly increases the strategic mobility of infantry units, which would otherwise rely on marches or railroads. In practice, armies have found it advantageous to develop trucks to military specifications, such as drive, to have vehicles that function reliably in extremes of weather. Motorization provides no direct tactical advantage in combat, as trucks and jeeps are vulnerable to artillery. The disadvantage of motorization is that the formation required many vehicles, the British created the Experimental Mechanized Force between the wars to test the capabilities of all-arms formations of mechanized units, this included motorized infantry. The speed advantages of motorized infantry first became important in World War II in the German Blitzkrieg. While it was no more robust than the infantry that moved on foot, its increased speed became decisive in the Blitzkrieg strategy, as it could follow the panzer forces. Even large armies were affected by such factors, the bulk of German and Soviet infantry remained on foot, but US infantry divisions could, if needed, redirect the activities of enough trucks to motorize an infantry regiment. Likewise, infantry divisions of the British Empire could motorize chosen subordinate units, after the Cold War, motorization of infantry is now becoming more popular since humanitarian deployments are more prevalent with troops acting as quasi-police units. There is also a trend for motorized infantry to be up-armored because of the situation of insurgency, infantry mobility vehicle Dragoon Mounted infantry Tank desant Notes Bibliography
Motorised infantry
–
Motorized infantry of
Estonia
Motorised infantry
–
Cold War era (1975) Snow Trac on patrol in Norway
30.
13th Mechanized Infantry Division (Germany)
–
The 13th Panzergrenadier Division was a mechanized division of the German Army. Its staff was based at Leipzig, the division was a unit of the German Armys stabilization forces and specialized on conflicts of low intensity and homeland defense. The division was Germanys permanent contribution to Multinational Corps North East and this division was formed in 1990 after German reunification and integrated troops of the former German Democratic Republics National Peoples Army into the new unified military of Germany. The division saw action in the Balkans during numerous deployments, including one deployment to Kosovo with division commander Lieutenant General Roland Kather serving as KFOR commanding officer. Troops of this division were deployed to the support of civilian agencies during large natural disasters such as disastrous floods in 1997. In more recent times, the division has seen action against insurgents in northern Afghanistan. A member of the 13th Panzergrenadier Division was awarded his nations highest decoration for gallantry, master Sergeant Daniel Seibert led a heroic counterattack against a superior insurgent force in the village of Basoz in Afghanistans Kunduz Province on June 4,2009. His actions killed ten Taliban insurgents and saved a jeopardized reconnaissance squad from almost certain destruction, the 13th Panzergrenadier Division was disbanded on June 28,2013, as part of a restructuring of the German armed forces. The divisions units had previously transferred to 1st Panzer Division. 13th Panzergrenadier Division was succeeded by the Army Training Command
13th Mechanized Infantry Division (Germany)
–
13th Panzergrenadier Division insignia
Bad Sooden-Allendorf, Werra-Meißner-Kreis, Hesse, Germany since 1990.
"Frankenhausen". The American Cyclopædia. 1879.
"
