1.
Germany
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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
2.
States of Germany
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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
3.
Saxony
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Its capital is Dresden, and its largest city is Leipzig. Saxony is the tenth largest of Germanys sixteen states, with an area of 18,413 square kilometres, located in the middle of a large, formerly all German-speaking part of Europe, the history of the state of Saxony spans more than a millennium. It has been a medieval duchy, an electorate of the Holy Roman Empire, a kingdom, the area of the modern state of Saxony should not be confused with Old Saxony, the area inhabited by Saxons. Old Saxony corresponds approximately to the modern German states of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Saxony is divided into 10 districts,1. After a reform in 2008, these regions - with some alterations of their respective areas - were called Direktionsbezirke, in 2012, the authorities of these regions were merged into one central authority, the Landesdirektion Sachsen. The Erzgebirgskreis district includes the Ore Mountains, and the Schweiz-Osterzgebirge district includes Saxon Switzerland, the largest cities in Saxony according to the 31 December 2015 estimate. To this can be added that Leipzig forms a metropolitan region with Halle. The latter city is located just across the border to Saxony-Anhalt, Leipzig shares for instance an S-train system and an airport with Halle. Saxony has, after Saxony Anhalt, the most vibrant economy of the states of the former East Germany and its economy grew by 1. 9% in 2010. Nonetheless, unemployment remains above the German average, the eastern part of Germany, excluding Berlin, qualifies as an Objective 1 development-region within the European Union, and is eligible to receive investment subsidies of up to 30% until 2013. FutureSAX, a business competition and entrepreneurial support organisation, has been in operation since 2002. Microchip makers near Dresden have given the region the nickname Silicon Saxony, the publishing and porcelain industries of the region are well known, although their contributions to the regional economy are no longer significant. Today the automobile industry, machinery production and services contribute to the development of the region. Saxony is also one of the most renowned tourist destinations in Germany - especially the cities of Leipzig and Dresden, new tourist destinations are developing, notably in the lake district of Lausitz. Saxony reported an unemployment of 8. 8% in 2014. By comparison the average in the former GDR was 9. 8% and 6. 7% for Germany overall, the unemployment rate reached 8. 2% in May 2015. The Leipzig area, which recently was among the regions with the highest unemployment rate, could benefit greatly from investments by Porsche. With the VW Phaeton factory in Dresden, and many part suppliers, zwickau is another major Volkswagen location
4.
Vehicle registration plate
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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
5.
Leipzig
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Leipzig is the largest city in the federal state of Saxony, Germany. With a population of 570,087 inhabitants it is Germanys tenth most populous city, Leipzig is located about 160 kilometres southwest of Berlin at the confluence of the White Elster, Pleisse, and Parthe rivers at the southern end of the North German Plain. Leipzig has been a city since at least the time of the Holy Roman Empire. The city sits at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, Leipzig was once one of the major European centers of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing. Leipzig became an urban center within the German Democratic Republic after the Second World War. Leipzig later played a significant role in instigating the fall of communism in Eastern Europe, through events which took place in, Leipzig today is an economic center and the most livable city in Germany, according to the GfK marketing research institution. Since the opening of the Leipzig City Tunnel in 2013, Leipzig forms the centerpiece of the S-Bahn Mitteldeutschland public transit system, Leipzig is currently listed as Gamma World City and Germanys Boomtown. Outside of Leipzig the Neuseenland district forms a lake area of approximately 300 square kilometres. Leipzig is derived from the Slavic word Lipsk, which means settlement where the linden trees stand, an older spelling of the name in English is Leipsic. The Latin name Lipsia was also used, the name is cognate with Lipetsk in Russia and Liepāja in Latvia. In 1937 the Nazi government officially renamed the city Reichsmessestadt Leipzig, the common usage of this nickname for Leipzig up until the present is reflected, for example, in the name of a popular blog for local arts and culture, Heldenstadt. de. Leipzig was first documented in 1015 in the chronicles of Bishop Thietmar of Merseburg as urbs Libzi and endowed with city, Leipzig Trade Fair, started in the Middle Ages, became an event of international importance and is the oldest remaining trade fair in the world. During the Thirty Years War, two battles took place in Breitenfeld, about 8 kilometres outside Leipzig city walls, the first Battle of Breitenfeld took place in 1631 and the second in 1642. Both battles resulted in victories for the Swedish-led side, on 24 December 1701, an oil-fueled street lighting system was introduced. The city employed light guards who had to follow a schedule to ensure the punctual lighting of the 700 lanterns. The Leipzig region was the arena of the 1813 Battle of Leipzig between Napoleonic France and a coalition of Prussia, Russia, Austria and Sweden. It was the largest battle in Europe prior to the First World War, in 1913 the Monument to the Battle of the Nations celebrating the centenary of this event was completed. The railway station has two entrance halls, the eastern one for the Royal Saxon State Railways and the western one for the Prussian state railways
6.
Wurzen
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Wurzen is a town in the Leipzig district, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Mulde, here crossed by two bridges,25 km east of Leipzig, by rail N. E. of Leipzig on the line via Riesa to Dresden. The village has a history since the 70s. Nazis fought youngsters who cared for a liberal democracy. The then authorities blamed the violent far-right attacks on immigrants and asylum - seekers on the political left, victims of violence were hospitalized, some sustaind long lasting injuries. Today, the local parliament hosts two members of the neo-nazi NPD party, founded after 600 by the Slavs, Wurzen is first mentioned in the act of donation from Otto I in 961 as a Burgward civitas vurcine. Situated in the anderen Gau Neletici, it was an early in the twelfth century when Herwig, bishop of Meissen. In 1581 it passed to the elector of Saxony, during the Thirty Years War it was sacked by the Swedish army and almost burned down completely. In 1768 Goethe travelled from Leipzig to Dresden and back through Wurzen, the long waiting for the ferry inspired him later a passage in his first edition of Faust. On 31 July 1838 Wurzen was connected with Wurzen railway station to the first German long distance railway, therefore the first German railway bridge was constructed to cross the Mulde. Wurzen is twinned with, Barsinghausen, Germany Warstein, Germany Tamási, furthermore there are several high-performance medium-sized businesses in mechanical engineering and some specialty companies in town. Romanesque up to late Gothic architecture, large ensemble of bronze sculptures from Georg Wrba Lutheran Church St. Wenceslai Catholic Church Herz-Jesu, in Neo-Romanesque style. Castle of Wurzen, an example of late Gothic architecture House Lossow, mannerism/ Baroque Birthplace of the fabulist Magnus Gottfried Lichtwer at Cathedrals square Birthplace of Joachim Ringelnatz. Fountain at the marketplace in honour of Joachim Ringelnatz, it shows Ringelnatz on a Seahorse, former post-office of the Electorate of Saxony with emblem adorned gate. Today library and gallery of the town, former Gymnasium with mural paintings from Max Seliger. Memorial for the soldiers of World War I in the former old cemetery. Pesthäuschen, memorial for the victims of the Bubonic plague 1607 in the old cemetery. Memorial for the victims of Fascism and the deads of the march in the new cemetery
7.
Sorbs
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Sorbs, known also by their former autonyms Lusatians and Wends, are a West Slavic ethnic group predominantly inhabiting their homeland in Lusatia, a region divided between Germany and Poland. They traditionally speak the Sorbian languages, closely related to Polish, Kashubian, Czech, Sorbian is an officially recognized minority language of Germany. The Sorbs are linguistically and genetically closest to the Czechs and Poles, the community is divided religiously between Roman Catholicism and Lutheranism. An indicator of the degree of assimilation is the fact that the Prime Minister of Saxony is at present a Sorb, the ethnonym Sorbs derives from the medieval tribe, Sorbs. The original ethnonym, Srbi, was retained by the Sorbs and Serbs in the Balkans, by the 6th century, Slavs occupied the area west of the Oder formerly inhabited by Germanic peoples. The Sorbs are first mentioned in the 7th century, in the 19th century the autonym of the Slavic population of Lusatia was Lusatians. According to a study published in May 2011, Sorbs show the greatest genetic similarity to Poles, followed by Czechs. They show subtle evidence of genetic isolation but less than Sardinians, demographic history of the Sorb population since 1700, Sorbs are divided into two ethnographical groups, Upper Sorbs, who speak Upper Sorbian. Lower Sorbs, who speak Lower Sorbian, the dialects spoken vary in intelligibility in different areas. Sorbs arrived in the area extending between the Bober, Kwisa, and Oder rivers to the East and the Saale and Elbe rivers to the West during the 6th century, in the north, the area of their settlement reached Berlin. The earliest surviving mention of the tribe was in 631 A. D. when Fredegars Chronicle described them as Surbi and as under the rule of a Dervan, an ally of Samo. The Annales Regni Francorum state that in 806 A. D. Sorbian Duke Miliduch fought against the Franks and was killed, in 840, Sorbian Duke Czimislav was killed. In 932, Henry I conquered Lusatia and Milsko, gero II, Margrave of the Saxon Ostmark, reconquered Lusatia the following year and, in 939, murdered 30 Sorbian princes during a feast. As a result, there were many Sorbian uprisings against German rule, a reconstructed castle, at Raddusch in Lower Lusatia, is the sole physical remnant from this early period. Lusatian tribes are noted in the work of the Bavarian Geographer, the document contains a list of the tribes in Central-Eastern Europe east of the Elbe and north of the Danube to the Volga rivers to the Black and Caspian Sea most of them of Slavic origin. Having settled by the Elbe, Spree and Neisse in the 6th century, Sorbs living on the swampy broads of the Lower Spree have taken their name from the word marsh. The Milceni settled on fertile soil around Upper Spree, the name derives from the word měl’, the two groups were separated from each other by a wide and uninhabited forest range. The rest of the tribes settled themselves between the Elbe and Saale, among the many Slavic tribes, the Bavarian Geographer also noted a few Lusatian tribes, Glomacze - Dolomici, Milceni, Chutizi and Sitice
8.
Witch-hunt
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A witch-hunt is a search for people labelled witches or evidence of witchcraft, often involving moral panic or mass hysteria. Including illegal and summary executions estimate 200,000 or more witches were tortured, the last executions of people convicted as witches in Europe took place in the 18th century. The wide distribution of the practice of witch-hunts in geographically and culturally separated societies since the 1960s has triggered interest in the background of this behaviour. The belief in magic and divination, and attempts to use magic to influence personal well-being are human cultural universals, Belief in witchcraft has been shown to have similarities in societies throughout the world. It presents a framework to explain the occurrence of otherwise random misfortunes such as sickness or death, One study finds that witchcraft beliefs are associated with antisocial attitudes, lower levels of trust, charitable giving and group participation. Another study finds that income shocks lead to a increase in the murder of witches in Tanzania. Punishment for malevolent sorcery is addressed in the earliest law codes preserved, if the holy river overcome him and he is drowned, the man who put the spell upon him shall take possession of his house. If the holy river declares him innocent and he remains unharmed the man who laid the spell shall be put to death and he that plunged into the river shall take possession of the house of him who laid the spell upon him. In 451 BC, the Twelve Tables of Roman law had provisions against evil incantations, in 331 BC,170 women were executed as witches in the context of an epidemic illness. Livy emphasizes that this was a scale of persecution without precedent in Rome, in 186 BC, the Roman senate issued a decree severely restricting the Bacchanals, ecstatic rites celebrated in honor of Dionysus. Persecution of witches continued in the Roman Empire until the late 4th century AD, the Lex Cornelia de sicariis et veneficiis promulgated by Lucius Cornelius Sulla in 81 B. C. became an important source of late medieval and early modern European law on witchcraft. This law banned the trading and possession of drugs and poisons, possession of magical books. In A. D.354, whilst Tiberius Claudius was emperor,45 men and 85 women, later the womens relatives took revenge by bringing false witnesses against Simeons son and causing him to be executed in turn. The 6th century AD Getica of Jordanes records a persecution and expulsion of witches among the Goths in an account of the origin of the Huns. The ancient fabled King Filimer is said to have found among his people certain witches, suspecting these women, he expelled them from the midst of his race and compelled them to wander in solitary exile afar from his army. The Councils of Elvira, Ancyra, and Trullo imposed certain ecclesiastical penances for devil-worship and this mild approach represented the view of the Church for many centuries. The Lombard code of 643 states, Let nobody presume to kill a foreign serving maid or female servant as a witch, for it is not possible, Other examples include an Irish synod in 800, and a sermon by Agobard of Lyons. King Kálmán of Hungary, in Decree 57 of his First Legislative Book, banned witch hunting because he said, the Decretum of Burchard, Bishop of Worms, and especially its 19th book, often known separately as the Corrector, is another work of great importance
9.
2013 European floods
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Extreme flooding in Central Europe began after several days of heavy rain in late May and early June 2013. Flooding and damages primarily affected south and east German states, western regions of the Czech Republic, in addition, Switzerland, Slovakia, Belarus, Poland, Hungary and Serbia were affected to a lesser extent. The flood crest progressed down the Elbe and Danube drainage basins and tributaries, leading to high water and flooding along their banks. The spring weather preceding the flooding had been wet in the region, Austria saw twice as much rainfall as average during the month, resulting in the ground in the region becoming saturated. Soils in Germany were showing record levels of prior to the rains. The already saturated soils led to greater runoff when the rains began, late May saw a blocking high Sabine located over the Sole sea area to the west of the UK and France. This split the jet stream over Europe which maintained the pattern in Central Europe. Though later analysis found this flooding did not fit into this type, low pressure areas Frederik and Günther formed over the northern Adriatic and tracked north towards central Europe. The high pressure Sabine and low pressure brought a airflow from the north across Germany. The air mass was pushed to the south west by the flow, where it was lifted as it moved south from the North European Plain over the Thuringian Forest, Ore Mountains. The air was then lifted along the side of the Alps in Austria as the air masses were pushed into the Alps by the northerly flow. Heavy rain was reported in the Austrian states of Vorarlberg and Tyrol and the area of Salzburg, and to the mountains of Upper Austria and Lower Austria and Upper Styria in a short time. On 30 May to 1 June,150 to 200 mm of rain fell, in places reaching around 250 mm, the rainfall experienced in Austria has an expected return period of between 30 and 70 years. The bulk of the fell in only two days in Salzburg, Tyrol, and Vorarlberg, which is thought to have a return period of more than 100 years. Following the intense rain, sporadic showers and rainfall continued to raise the risk of further flooding, some Flash flooding occurred in the Polish capital Warsaw on 9 June, as a result of thunderstorms. The flood waters were expected to exceed the levels seen during the disastrous once in a century Central European floods of 2002 in some areas, in Bavaria and eastern Germany water levels significantly exceeded those of 2002 in many places on the Danube and Elbe. In Passau, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Inn and Ilz, in Dresden, by contrast, the old city centre was largely spared, unlike in 2002. Thanks to better control, fewer dykes on the upper reaches of the Elbe broke than in 2002
10.
Augustinians
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The term Augustinians, named after Augustine of Hippo, applies to two distinct types of Catholic religious orders and some Anglican religious orders. Within Anglicanism the Rule of St Augustine is followed only by women, Augustine, a brief document providing guidelines for living in a religious community. The largest and most familiar, originally known as the Hermits of Saint Augustine, two other Orders, the Order of Augustinian Recollects and the Discalced Augustinians, were once part of the Augustinian Order under a single Prior General. The Recollect friars, founded in 1588 as a movement of the Augustinian friars in Spain, became autonomous in 1612 with their first Prior General. The Discalced friars became an independent congregation with their own Prior General in 1592 and they generally form one large community, which might serve parishes in the vicinity, and are organized into autonomous congregation, which normally are distinct by region. In a religious community, charism is the contribution that each religious order, congregation or family. The teaching and writing of Augustine, the Augustinian Rule, and it does not unduly single out the exceptional, especially favour the gifted, nor exclude the poor or marginalised. Love is not earned through human merit, but received and given freely by Gods free gift of grace and these same imperatives of affection and fairness have driven the order in its international missionary outreach. This balanced pursuit of love and learning has energised the various branches of the order into building communities founded on mutual affection, Augustine spoke passionately of Gods beauty so ancient and so new, and his fascination with beauty extended to music. He taught that to sing once is to pray twice and music is also a key part of the Augustinian ethos, the Canons Regular follow the more ancient form of religious life which developed toward the end of the first millennium and thus predates the founding of the friars. They represent a clerical adaptation of life, as it grew out of an attempt to organize communities of clerics to a more dedicated way of life. Historically it paralleled the lay movement of monasticism or the life from which the friars were later to develop. In their tradition, the added the commitment of religious vows to their primary vocation of pastoral care. As the canons became independent of the structures, they came to form their own monastic communities. The official name of the Order is the Canons Regular of St. Augustine, like the Order of Saint Benedict, it is not one legal body, but a union of various independent congregations. Though they also follow the Rule of St. Augustine, they differ from the friars in not committing themselves to corporate poverty, which is a defining element of the mendicant orders. Unlike the friars and like monks, the canon are generally organized as one community to which they are attached for life with a vow of stability. Their houses are given the title of an abbey, from which the canons then serve various surrounding towns, the religious superior of their major houses is titled an abbot
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Grimma". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
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