Dortmund
From Freepedia
Dortmund is a city in Germany, located in the Bundesland of North Rhine-Westphalia, in the Ruhr area. Population: 587,288 (1 January 2004).
The Ruhr river flows south of the city, the small Emscher river flows through the municipal area. Linking Dortmund to the North Sea, the Dortmund-Ems Canal terminates at Dortmund Harbour, the largest German canal port.
Dortmund is the home of the famous football club Borussia Dortmund (BVB 09), who have their home matches at the Westfalenstadion, which opened in 1974, has a capacity of 80,000 spectators and already hosted some World Cup matches. Dortmund will also be one of the cities to host matches in the 2006 World Cup.
Dortmund is known as Westphalia's "green metropolis". Nearly half the municipal territory consists of waterways, woodland, agriculture and green spaces with spacious parks such as Westfalenpark and the Romberg park. This after nearly a hundred years of extensive coal mining, coking, and steel milling within the city limits.
The Christmas market (Weihnachtsmarkt) is one of the largest in Germany, and is host to the largest "christmas tree" in the world, formed by stacking hundreds of trees into the shape of a pyramid.
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Traffic
Dortmund Airport is a medium, but fast growing airport 13 km east of the city centre at the city limit to Holzwickede.
The central train station (Hauptbahnhof) is the third largest long distance traffic junction in Germany.
Dortmund Harbour (Hafen) is the largest canal harbour in Europe; almost as large as the one in Duisburg, the world's largest inland port.
Dortmund also serves as a major European and German crossroads for the Autobahn system. The Ruhrschnellweg follows old Hanseatic trade routes to connect the city with the other metropolises of the Ruhr Area. Connections to the more distant parts of Germany are maintained by the A1 and the A2 which pass closely to the north and east of the city and cross each other at the Kamener Kreuz interchange northeast of Dortmund. For public transportation, the city has an extensive Stadtbahn, streetcar and bus system. An additional light rail line is currently under construction in the city centre.
The H-Bahn at Dortmund University is a unique hanging monorail built specifically to shuttle passengers across the university's campus, which is now also flanked by research laboratories and other high-tech corporations.
History
The history of Dortmund goes back as far as 880 AD, when the city was first mentioned in official documents as Throtmanni. It was a small village at that time. In 1152 the emperor Barbarossa came to the region and rebuilt the town, which had been destroyed in a fire shortly before. For two years Dortmund was the residence of Barbarossa - a short time, but afterwards it grew to become one of the most powerful towns of the empire. In the 13th century Dortmund joined the Hanseatic League. In 1220, it attained the status of an Imperial Free City, i.e. it was directly subordinated to the emperor. After 1320, the wealthy trading city started to appear in writing as Dorpmunde. The etymology of the name is uncertain.
Dortmund lost its status as an Imperial Free City in 1803. It was incorporated into Prussia after the Napoleonic Wars and became a major center for coal, steel, and beer.
During the rule of the Third Reich, Dortmund was home to the Aplerbeck Hospital that "took care" of mentally and/or physically disabled persons. Located in the heart of the Ruhr region (Ruhrgebiet), Dortmund, along with neighboring cities, was a target of allied bombing raids. During World War II about two-thirds of homes in Dortmund were destroyed.
Today the city is a center for hi-tech industry. It is also one of the greenest cities in Westphalia, with extensive parks and gardens laid out in the reconstruction period after the Second World War. Additionally, the Dortmund chess tournament, one of the strongest in the world, is held here annually.
Buildings
- Florianturm (TV Tower Dortmund) One of the first TV towers built in Germany has a revolving restaurant--one of the first in the world. Used to offer the adventerous an opportunity to bungee jump from a height of nearly 140m high, which got canceled after some tragic accidents which resulted in fatalities.
- Westfalenstadion - Soccer Ground of Borussia Dortmund. Close to it is the Westfalenhalle, a large convention center, the site of several major conventions, trade fairs, ice-skating competitions, and other major events since the 1950s.
External links
| Cities and Districts in the German Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) | ||
|---|---|---|
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Cities |
Aachen | Bielefeld | Bochum | Bonn | Bottrop | Dortmund | Duisburg | Düsseldorf | Essen | Gelsenkirchen | |
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Districts |
Aachen | Borken | Kleve (Cleves) | Coesfeld | Düren |
Ennepe-Ruhr | Euskirchen | Gütersloh |
Heinsberg | Herford
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