1.
Hockenheimring
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The Hockenheimring Baden-Württemberg is a motor racing circuit situated in the Rhine valley near the town of Hockenheim in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, located on Bertha Benz Memorial Route. Amongst other motor racing events, it hosts the German Grand Prix. The circuit has very little change in elevation, the circuit has FIA Grade 1 license. The Hockenheimring was originally built in 1932 using roads in the forest as an alternative to the Wildpark-Circuit in Karlsruhe, the Hockenheimring was used for motorcycle racing and was expanded to be used as test track for Mercedes-Benz and Auto Union in 1936. In 1938 it was renamed the Kurpfalzring and that name was used until 1947, after World War II, former DKW and NSU factory rider and world record setter Wilhelm Herz promoted the track successfully. Grand Prix motorcycle racing events were held, with the German motorcycle Grand Prix alternating between Hockenheim and other tracks, the original circuit was almost eight kilometres long and consisted of two long straights with a long Eastern corner in the forest and a U-turn inside Hockenheim joining them together. In 1965, when the new Autobahn A6 separated the village from the part of the track. After Jim Clark was killed on 7 April 1968 in a Formula 2 racing accident, a small memorial was placed near the first chicane, at the site of his accident. In 1982, another chicane was added at the Ostkurve, after Patrick Depailler was killed there in 1980, and the first chicane was made slower as well. The long track length also meant that a typical Formula One race had only 45 laps, prost ran out at the end of the 1986 race, pushing his McLaren towards the line before giving up. He was placed 3rd when he ran dry and was eventually classified 6th, many problems came to light during the 2000 German Grand Prix, where Brazilian driver Rubens Barrichello won from having started 18th on the grid, in changeable weather conditions. All the overtaking moves that took place during the race were in the chicanes of the forest sector, a former Mercedes employee, who had been dismissed, breached the tracks security barriers on the first main straight, showing vulnerable security facilities in the forest. The state government of Baden-Württemberg secured the financing for the redesign by Hermann Tilke for the 2002 German Grand Prix, the stadium section remained mostly intact, despite a new surface and a tighter Turn 1. However, the circuit was shortened, with the long. In an extremely controversial move, the old forest section was torn up and replanted with trees, several drivers and team principals, including Ron Dennis, Jarno Trulli and Juan Pablo Montoya, criticised the changes and stated their preference for the old circuit. The new track has a capacity of 120,000. The complex also features a track for drag racing. The Hockenheim Circuit hosted the German Grand Prix for the first time in 1970 when the F1 drivers decided at the French Grand Prix to boycott the Nürburgring unless major changes were made
2.
Bavaria
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Bavaria is a free state and one of 16 federal states of Germany. Located in the German southeast with an area of 70,548 square kilometres and its territory comprises roughly a fifth of the total land area of Germany, and, with 12.9 million inhabitants, it is Germanys second most populous state. Munich, Bavarias capital and largest city, is the third largest city in Germany, the Duchy of Bavaria dates back to the year 555. In the 17th century CE, the Duke of Bavaria became a Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Bavaria existed from 1806 to 1918, when Bavaria became a republic. In 1946, the Free State of Bavaria re-organised itself on democratic lines after the Second World War, Bavaria has a unique culture, largely because of the states Catholic majority and conservative traditions. Bavarians have traditionally been proud of their culture, which includes such as Oktoberfest. The state also has the second largest economy among the German states by GDP figures, modern Bavaria also includes parts of the historical regions of Franconia, Upper Palatinate and Swabia. The Bavarians emerged in a north of the Alps, previously inhabited by Celts. The Bavarians spoke Old High German but, unlike other Germanic groups, rather, they seem to have coalesced out of other groups left behind by Roman withdrawal late in the 5th century. These peoples may have included the Celtic Boii, some remaining Romans, Marcomanni, Allemanni, Quadi, Thuringians, Goths, Scirians, Rugians, the name Bavarian means Men of Baia which may indicate Bohemia, the homeland of the Celtic Boii and later of the Marcomanni. They first appear in written sources circa 520, a 17th century Jewish chronicler David Solomon Ganz, citing Cyriacus Spangenberg, claimed that the diocese was named after an ancient Bohemian king, Boiia, in the 14th century BCE. From about 554 to 788, the house of Agilolfing ruled the Duchy of Bavaria and their daughter, Theodelinde, became Queen of the Lombards in northern Italy and Garibald was forced to flee to her when he fell out with his Frankish overlords. Garibalds successor, Tassilo I, tried unsuccessfully to hold the frontier against the expansion of Slavs. Tassilos son Garibald II seems to have achieved a balance of power between 610 and 616, after Garibald II little is known of the Bavarians until Duke Theodo I, whose reign may have begun as early as 680. From 696 onwards he invited churchmen from the west to organize churches and his son, Theudebert, led a decisive Bavarian campaign to intervene in a succession dispute in the Lombard Kingdom in 714, and married his sister Guntrud to the Lombard King Liutprand. At Theodos death the duchy was divided among his sons, at Hugberts death the duchy passed to a distant relative named Odilo, from neighbouring Alemannia. He was defeated near Augsburg in 743 but continued to rule until his death in 748, saint Boniface completed the peoples conversion to Christianity in the early 8th century. Bavaria was in ways affected by the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century
3.
Hesse
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Hesse or Hessia is a federal state of the Federal Republic of Germany, with just over six million inhabitants. The state capital is Wiesbaden, the largest city is Frankfurt am Main, the English name Hesse originates in the Hessian dialects. The variant Hessia comes from the medieval Latin Hassia, the German term Hessen is used by the European Commission because their policy is to leave regional names untranslated. The term Hesse ultimately derives from a Germanic tribe called the Chatti, an inhabitant of Hesse is called a Hessian. The synthetic element hassium, number 108 on the table, is named after the state of Hesse. As early as the Paleolithic period, the Central Hessian region was inhabited, due to the favorable climate of the location, people lived there about 50,000 years ago during the last glacial period, as burial sites show from this era. Finds of paleolitical tools in southern Hesse in Rüsselsheim suggest Pleistocene hunters about 13,000 years ago, the Züschen tomb is a prehistoric burial monument, located between Lohne and Züschen, near Fritzlar, Hesse, Germany. Classified as a grave or a Hessian-Westphalian stone cist, it is one of the most important megalithic monuments in Central Europe. Dating to the fourth millennium BC, it belongs to the Late Neolithic Wartberg culture. An early Celtic presence in what is now Hesse is indicated by a mid-fifth-century BC La Tène style burial uncovered at Glauberg, the region was later settled by the Germanic Chatti tribe around the first century BC, and the name Hesse is a continuation of that tribal name. The ancient Romans had a camp in Dorlar, and in Waldgirmes directly on the eastern outskirts of Wetzlar was a civil settlement under construction. Presumably, the government for the occupied territories of the right bank of Germania was planned at this location. The governor of Germania, at least temporarily, likely had resided here, the settlement appears to have been abandoned by the Romans after the devastating Battle of the Teutoburg Forest failed in the year 9 AD. The Chatti were also involved in the Revolt of the Batavi in 69 AD, Hessia occupies the northwestern part of the modern German state of Hesse, its borders were not clearly delineated. Its geographic center is Fritzlar, it extends in the southeast to Hersfeld on the Fulda river, in the north to past Kassel and up to the rivers Diemel, to the west, it occupies the valleys of the rivers Eder and Lahn. It measured roughly 90 kilometers north-south, and 80 north-west, the area around Fritzlar shows evidence of significant pagan belief from the first century on. Excavations have produced a horse burial and bronze artifacts, a possible religious cult may have centered on a natural spring in Geismar, called Heilgenbron, the name Geismar itself may be derived from that spring. By 650, the Franks were establishing themselves as overlords, which is suggested by evidence of burials
4.
Rhineland-Palatinate
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Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of 19,846 square kilometres and about four million inhabitants, Rhineland-Palatinate is located in western Germany and borders Belgium, Luxembourg and France, and the German states of North Rhine-Westphalia, Hesse, Baden-Württemberg and Saarland. The state of Rhineland-Palatinate dates from 30 August 1946, as of 201044. 9% of the population of the state adhered to the Roman Catholic Church,30. 6% to the Evangelical Church in Germany. 22. 0% of the population is irreligious or adheres to other religions, muslims made up 2. 5% of the total. The league of ShUM-cities in the later Rhineland-Palatinate comprised the Jewish communities of Mainz, Speyer, the Takkanot Shum, or Enactments of ShUM were a set of decrees formulated and agreed upon over a period of decades by their Jewish community leaders. Rhineland-Palatinate leads all German states with a rate of approximately 50%. Important sectors are the industry, chemical industry, pharmaceutical industry. Distinctive regional industries includes gemstone industry, ceramic and glass industry, small and medium enterprises are considered the backbone of the economy in Rhineland-Palatinate. The principal employer is the chemical and plastics processing industry which is represented by BASF in Ludwigshafen, boehringer, Joh. A. Benckiser, SGE Deutsche Holding, Schott Glassworks concludes the top 5 companies in the state. Rhineland-Palatinate is Germanys leading producer of wine in terms of grape cultivation, of thirteen wine regions producing quality wine in Germany, six are located in Rhineland-Palatinate, with 65% to 70% of the production of wine grapes in Germany having their origin within the state. 13,000 wine producers generate 80% to 90% of the German wine export, traditional grape varieties and a wide range of varieties developed during the last 125 years are characteristic for the region. Classical white varieties are cultivated at 63,683 hectares and these comprise the famous Rieslings 14,446 hectares, Müller-Thurgau, Silvaner and Kerner. The share of red varieties grew constantly during the last decades, dornfelder, a new cultivar, is the leading red grape cultivated on 7,626 hectares, which is more than a third. Blauer Portugieser and Spätburgunder show also appreciable cultivated shares, the state supports the wine industry by providing a comprehensive consultancy and education program in the service supply centers of the land. The Geilweilerhof Institute for Grape Breeding is fully financed by the state, many well known new breeds, such as Morio-Muskat, Bacchus, Optima and Regent have been created in these institutes. The worldwide leader in sparkling wine production, producing 245 million bottles in 2006, is the renowned Schloss Wachenheim Group and this company is headquartered in Trier, with operations in several locations in Rhineland-Palatinate
5.
Heidelberg
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Heidelberg is a college town situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. At the 2015 census, its population was 156,257, located about 78 km south of Frankfurt, Heidelberg is the fifth-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg. Heidelberg is part of the densely populated Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region, founded in 1386, Heidelberg University is Germanys oldest and one of Europes most reputable universities. A scientific hub in Germany, the city of Heidelberg is home to internationally renowned research facilities adjacent to its university. Heidelberg is in the Rhine Rift Valley, on the bank of the lower part of the Neckar in a steep valley in the Odenwald. It is bordered by the Königsstuhl and the Gaisberg mountains, the Neckar here flows in an east-west direction. On the right bank of the river, the Heiligenberg mountain rises to a height of 445 meters, the Neckar flows into the Rhine approximately 22 kilometres north-west in Mannheim. Villages incorporated during the 20th century stretch from the Neckar Valley along the Bergstraße, Heidelberg is on European walking route E1. Alongside the Philosophenweg on the side of the Old Town. There is a population of African rose-ringed parakeets, and a wild population of Siberian swan geese. Heidelberg is an authority within the Regierungsbezirk Karlsruhe. The Rhein-Neckar-Kreis rural district surrounds it and has its seat in the town, Heidelberg is a part of the Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region, often referred to as the Rhein-Neckar Triangle. The Rhein-Neckar Triangle became a European metropolitan area in 2005, Heidelberg consists of 15 districts distributed in six sectors of the town. The new district will have approximately 5, 000–6,000 residents, Heidelberg has an oceanic climate, defined by the protected valley between the Pfälzerwald and the Odenwald. Year-round, the temperatures are determined by maritime air masses coming from the west. In contrast to the nearby Upper Rhine Plain, Heidelbergs position in the leads to more frequent easterly winds than average. The hillsides of the Odenwald favour clouding and precipitation, the warmest month is July, the coldest is January. Temperatures often rise beyond 30 °C in midsummer, according to the German Meteorological Service, Heidelberg was the warmest place in Germany in 2009
6.
Heilbronn
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Heilbronn is a city in northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is surrounded by Heilbronn County and, with approximately 123,000 residents, the city on the Neckar is a former Imperial Free City and is the seat of Heilbronn County. Heilbronn is also the center of the Heilbronn-Franken region that includes most of northeast Baden-Württemberg. Heilbronn is known for its industry and is nicknamed Käthchenstadt. Heilbronn is located in the corner of the Neckar basin at the bottom of the Wartberg. It occupies both banks of the Neckar, and the highest spot inside city limits is the Schweinsberg with a height of 372 meters, Heilbronn is adjacent to Swabian-Franconian Forest Nature Park and is surrounded by vineyards. Heilbronn and its surroundings are located in the part of the larger Stuttgart metropolitan area. The city is the center of the Heilbronn-Franken region and is one of fourteen such cities in the Baden-Württemberg master plan of 2002. The city is divided into nine boroughs, The oldest traces of humans in, the fertile Neckar floodplains in the Heilbronn basin aided early settlement by farmers and ranchers. The city limits of present-day Heilbronn contain many sites of Bronze Age finds, later on, but still before AD, the Celts already mined here for salt from brine. Under Roman Emperor Domitian the Romans pushed east away from the Rhine, a castle in todays borough of Böckingen was part of that limes, and nearby numerous Roman villas and plantations were built. Around 260, the Romans surrendered the limes, and the Alamanni became rulers of the Neckar basin, between the 4th and 7th centuries, the area became part of the Frankish Empire, and the first settlement was built in the general vicinity of the present center of town. In 741 Heilbronn is first mentioned in a document of the Diocese of Würzburg as villa Helibrunna. The name Heilbrunna hints to a well that is located not far from the basilica, in 1225 Heilbronn was incorporated into the Hohenstaufen Empire as oppidum Heilecbrunnen. Oppidum signified a city fortified by parapet and trenches, later during the 13th century, the Teutonic Knights obtained ownership of a large area south of Heilbronn which would remain owned by that order until German Mediatisation in 1805. Starting in 1268, the built the Deutschhof there as one of its residences. After the demise of the Staufen dynasty, King Rudolf I returned city status to Heilbronn in 1281, in addition to the advocate he put a council in place that was headed up by a mayor. Around 1300, the first city hall was erected in the market place, the Neckar privilege gave the city the right to modify the flow of the river in 1333, which meant it now had the right to construct dams, harbors and mills
7.
Heilbronn (district)
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Landkreis Heilbronn is a district in the north of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Neighboring districts are Neckar-Odenwald, Hohenlohe, Schwäbisch Hall, Rems-Murr, Ludwigsburg, Enz, Karlsruhe, in the centre of it is the free-city of Heilbronn, which is its own separate administrative area. The predecessor to the district is the Oberamt Heilbronn, which was created in 1803 when the previously Free Imperial City of Heilbronn was incorporated into the Electorate of Württemberg, in 1926, about half of the Oberamt of Weinsberg was added. In 1938, it was recognized as a district, and in addition to the previous Oberamt, parts of the dissolved Oberämter Neckarsulm, Brackenheim, Marbach, the city of Heilbronn was not included into the district. In 1973, the Landkreise were reorganized, and part of the districts of Sinsheim, Mosbach, Buchen. Within the following two years 5 municipalities were incorporated into the city and therefore left the district, which got its current borders in 1975, the main river in the district is the Neckar, which flows through the district from the south to the north. The western part of the district belongs to the landscape Kraichgau, the east to the Hohenloher Ebene, Kocher-Jagst-Ebene, and the Löwensteiner Berge
8.
Karlsruhe (district)
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Karlsruhe is a rural district in the north-west of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Neighboring districts are Rhein-Neckar, Heilbronn, Enz, Calw, Rastatt, Germersheim, Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, the urban district Karlsruhe, which contains the City of Karlsruhe, is located in the middle of the district, and partially cuts it into a northern and a southern part. The historic origin of the district is the Oberamt Karlsruhe, in 1809 it was split into one part responsible for the city Karlsruhe, and one for the surrounding municipalities. In 1865 however both parts were merged again to the Bezirksamt Karlsruhe,1938 it was split again, this time with the district of Karlsruhe for the surrounding part, and the urban district of Karlsruhe for the urban area. Since the founding of the Federal Republic, Karlsruhe has been the seat of the Federal Constitutional Court, the western part of the district is located in the Rhine valley. The area in the east belongs to the landscape of the Kraichgau, the Karlsruhe district partners with the following sister regions outside of Germany, Gwent, Wales, since 1978. Official city website Official municipalities website
9.
Mannheim
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Mannheim is a city in the southwestern part of Germany, the third-largest in the German state of Baden-Württemberg after Stuttgart and Karlsruhe. Mannheim is among the twenty largest cities in Germany, with a 2015 population of approximately 305,000 inhabitants, the city is at the centre of the larger densely populated Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region which has a population of 2,400,000 and is Germanys eighth-largest metropolitan region. Mannheim is located at the confluence of the Rhine and the Neckar in the corner of Baden-Württemberg. The Rhine separates Mannheim from the city of Ludwigshafen, just to the west of it in Rhineland-Palatinate, Mannheim is downstream along the Neckar from the city of Heidelberg. Mannheim is unusual among German cities in that its streets and avenues are laid out in a grid pattern, the eighteenth century Mannheim Palace, former home of the Prince-elector of the Palatinate, now houses the University of Mannheim. In addition, Mannheims SAP Arena is not only the home of the German ice hockey record champions the Adler Mannheim, but also the well-known handball team, the Rhein-Neckar Löwen. According to the Forbes magazine, Mannheim is known for its exceptional power and was ranked 11th among the Top 15 of the most inventive cities worldwide. The New Economy Magazine elected Mannheim under the 20 cities that best represent the world of tomorrow emphasizing Mannheims positive economic, since 2014, Mannheim has been a member of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network and holds the title of UNESCO City of Music. Mannheim is a Smart City the citys electrical grid is installed with a Power-line communication network, the citys tourism slogan is Leben. The civic symbol of Mannheim is der Wasserturm, a Romanesque water tower completed in 1886 that rises to 60 metres above the highest point of the art nouveau area Friedrichsplatz, Mannheim is the starting and finishing point of the Bertha Benz Memorial Route. The name of the city was first recorded as Mannenheim in a transaction in 766. The name is interpreted as the home of Manno, a form of a Germanic name such as Hartmann or Hermann. Mannheim remained a mere village throughout the Middle Ages, in 1606, Frederick IV, Elector Palatine started building the fortress of Friedrichsburg and the adjacent city centre with its grid of streets and avenues. On January 24,1607, Frederick IV gave Mannheim the status of a city, Mannheim was mostly levelled during the Thirty Years War around 1622 by the forces of Johan Tillys troops. After being rebuilt, it was severely damaged by the French Army in 1689 during the Nine Years War. During the eighteenth century, Mannheim was the home of the Mannheim School of classical music composers, Mannheim was said to have one of the best court orchestras in Europe under the leadership of the conductor Carlo Grua. The royal court of the Palatinate left Mannheim in 1778, two decades later, in 1802, Mannheim was removed from the Palatinate and given to the Grand Duchy of Baden. In 1819, Norwich Duff wrote of Mannheim, In 1819, the climate crisis of 1816-17 caused famine and the death of many horses in Mannheim
10.
Neckar-Odenwald-Kreis
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Neckar-Odenwald-Kreis is a district in the north of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Neighboring districts are Main-Tauber-Kreis, Hohenlohe-Kreis, Heilbronn, Rhein-Neckar-Kreis, Odenwaldkreis and Landkreis Miltenberg, the Neckar-Odenwald-Kreis is part of to the Rhine Neckar Area. The district was created in 1973 by merging the previous districts Buchen, at first it was named Odenwaldkreis, however to avoid confusion with the neighboring district in Hesse with the same name it was renamed in 1974 to be Neckar-Odenwald-Kreis. As the name suggests the district is located in the Odenwald mountains. The main river of the district is the Neckar
pronunciation (help·info)) is a town in northwest Baden-Württemberg, Germany, about 20 km south of Mannheim and 10 km west of Walldorf. It is located in the Upper Rhine valley on the touristical theme routes Baden Asparagus Route ("Badische Spargelstraße") and Bertha Benz Memorial Route. The town is widely known for its Hockenheimring, a motor racing course, which has hosted over 30 Formula One German Grand Prix races since 1970.
Commercy, France, since 1970
Hohenstein-Ernstthal, Saxony, Germany, since 1990 (town in former East Germany before reunification)
Mooresville, North Carolina, United States, since 2002.
(in German)
