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160-528: Baden-Württemberg ( / ˌ b ɑː d ən ˈ v ɜːr t ə m b ɜːr ɡ / BAH -dən VURT -əm-burg ; German: [ˌbaːdn̩ ˈvʏʁtəmbɛʁk] ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü , is a German state ( Land ) in Southwest Germany , east of the Rhine , which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France . With more than 11.07 million inhabitants as of 2019 across

320-616: A Frankish invasion led by Clovis I . The Holy Roman Empire was later established. The majority of people in this region continued to be Roman Catholics, even after the Protestant Reformation influenced populations in northern Germany. In the late 18th and early 19th century, Künzelsau , the capital of the Hohenlohe district , became the centre of emigration to the UK of pork butchers and bacon factors. The pioneers noticed

480-664: A chain of watchtowers or signal towers, forts and fortified ports (Gaul). Most of the Saxon Shore camps probably served as naval bases. The garrisons of the forts were composed of infantry and several cavalry regiments. Monitoring and surveillance of the Channel were the responsibility of the Classis Britannica and Classis Sambrica , whose headquarters were in Locus Quartensis (Port d'Etaple), guarding

640-505: A ditch. The width of the Fossatum is generally 3–6 m but in exceptional cases may be as much as 20 m. Wherever possible, it or its highest wall is constructed on the counterscarp . Excavations near Gemellae showed the depth there to be 2–3 m, with a width of 1 m at the bottom widening to 2–3 m at the top. The Fossatum is accompanied by many small watchtowers and numerous forts, often built within sight of one another. The Limes Arabicus

800-573: A dozen Fachhochschulen , i.e., universities of applied sciences, as well as Pädagogische Hochschulen , i.e., teacher training colleges, and other institutions of tertiary education in Baden-Württemberg. Pforzheim University is one of the oldest Fachhochschulen in Germany which is renowned and highly ranked for its Engineering and MBA programs. The state has the highest density of universities of any state in Germany. Railways form

960-480: A major part of the transport infrastructure in Baden-Württemberg. As of 2017, the main standard gauge railway network managed by DB Netz consists of about 3,350 kilometres (2,080 mi) of railway lines connecting all major settlements of the state, with about 6,500 trains operating every day. As part of high-speed rail in Germany , the Mannheim–Stuttgart and Stuttgart–Ulm high-speed lines were built, and

1120-511: A more independent status, especially in Bavaria. However, it has no legal significance. All sixteen states are represented at the federal level in the Bundesrat (Federal Council), where their voting power depends on the size of their population. Germany is a federal , parliamentary , representative democratic republic . The German political system operates under a framework laid out in

1280-520: A niche for speciality pork products in the rapidly growing English cities, especially those in the industrial centre and North. Many married local women and sent word home that a good living could be made in England; others followed. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, numerous people emigrated from this primarily rural area to the United States for economic reasons. At the beginning of

1440-570: A place of banishment. However Romans controlled the Nile many miles into Africa up to the modern border between Egypt and Sudan. In Africa Romans controlled the area north of the Sahara, from the Atlantic Ocean to Egypt, with many sections of limes ( Limes Tripolitanus , Limes Numidiae, etc.). The Fossatum Africae ("African ditch") of at least 750 km controlled the southern borders of

1600-581: A plan to divide the German Reich into 14 roughly equal-sized states. His proposal was turned down due to opposition of the states and concerns of the government. Article 18 of the constitution enabled a new delimitation of the German territory but set high hurdles: "Three fifth of the votes handed in, and at least the majority of the population are necessary to decide on the alteration of territory". In fact, until 1933 there were only four changes in

1760-628: A referendum in the Federal Republic as a whole (paragraph 4) was abolished, which meant territorial revision was no longer possible against the will of the population affected by it. East Germany had originally consisted of five states (i.e., Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia). In 1952, these states were abolished and the East was divided into 14 administrative districts called Bezirke . Soviet -controlled East Berlin – despite officially having

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1920-427: A revision, the federal government had to include the proposal into its legislation. Then a referendum was required in each territory or part of a territory whose affiliation was to be changed (paragraph 3). The proposal should not take effect if within any of the affected territories a majority rejected the change. In this case, the bill had to be introduced again and after passing had to be confirmed by referendum in

2080-526: A sovereign country (2020), it would have an economy comparable to that of Sweden in terms of nominal gross domestic product (GDP). A number of well-known enterprises are headquartered in the state, for example Mercedes-Benz Group , Porsche , Robert Bosch GmbH (automobile industry), Carl Zeiss AG (optics), SAP (Europe's most valuable brand as well as the largest non-American software enterprise) and Heidelberger Druckmaschinen (precision mechanical engineering). Despite this, Baden-Württemberg's economy

2240-584: A total area of nearly 35,752 km (13,804 sq mi), it is the third-largest German state by both area (behind Bavaria and Lower Saxony ) and population (behind North Rhine-Westphalia and Bavaria). As a federated state , Baden-Württemberg is a partly-sovereign parliamentary republic . The largest city in Baden-Württemberg is the state capital of Stuttgart , followed by Mannheim and Karlsruhe . Other major cities are Freiburg im Breisgau , Heidelberg , Heilbronn , Pforzheim , Reutlingen , Tübingen , and Ulm . Modern Baden-Württemberg includes

2400-646: A tourist magnet in all major towns, the largest being in Stuttgart during the three weeks before Christmas. The Bertha Benz Memorial Route is a 194 km signposted scenic route from Mannheim via Heidelberg and Wiesloch to Pforzheim and back, which follows the route of the world's first long-distance journey by automobile which Bertha Benz undertook in August 1888. Baden-Württemberg also contains Europa-Park in Rust . The largest theme park in Germany, and

2560-465: Is a popular holiday destination. Main sights include the capital and biggest city, Stuttgart , modern and historical at the same time, with its urban architecture and atmosphere (and famously, its inner-city parks and historic Wilhelma zoo), its castles (such as Castle Solitude ), its museums as well as a rich cultural programme (theatre, opera) and mineral spring baths in Bad Cannstatt (also

2720-544: Is considered as evidence that this type of boundary wall had never been used for defensive purposes. The land of Agri Decumates that was guarded by this limes had to be vacated by the Romans in 260–285 AD. They moved their bases back to the banks of the Rhine and Danube, which were much easier to defend militarily. The exact route of the limes along the border between Upper Germania and Raetia has not been fully explored. In

2880-626: Is dominated by small and medium-sized enterprises, like most companies in German-speaking countries are . Although poor in workable natural resources (formerly lead, zinc, iron, silver, copper, and salts) and still very rural in some areas, the region is heavily industrialised overall. In 2003, there were almost 8,800 manufacturing enterprises with more than 20 employees, but only 384 with more than 500. There are 3,779 companies in Baden-Württemberg corporate family which come to 1000–5000 employees in total. The latter category accounts for 43% of

3040-609: Is probable that a second, defensive line was created to the rear ( Castrum Locus Felicis ). The occupying troops, Exercitus Noricus , consisted mostly of auxilia cohorts and a legion stationed in Lauriacum / Enns acted as the strategic reserve. The surveillance and security of the Danube and its tributaries were the responsibility of the Classis Pannonia . Units of the legions, naval and auxiliary forces were commanded by

3200-429: Is referred to as "Land government" (Landesregierung) . Before 1 January 2000, Bavaria had a bicameral parliament, with a popularly elected Landtag , and a Senate made up of representatives of the state's major social and economic groups. The Senate was abolished following a referendum in 1998. The states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg are governed slightly differently from the other states. In each of those cities,

3360-670: Is sometimes propagated by the richer states as a means to avoid or reduce fiscal transfers . In southwestern Germany, territorial revision seemed to be a top priority since the border between the French and American occupation zones was set along the Autobahn Karlsruhe-Stuttgart-Ulm (today the A8 ). Article 118 stated "The division of the territory comprising Baden , Württemberg-Baden and Württemberg-Hohenzollern into Länder may be revised, without regard to

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3520-509: Is the Landtag , located in Stuttgart. The state government is currently formed by a Greens - CDU coalition as the third cabinet of Minister-President Winfried Kretschmann (Greens). The politics of Baden-Württemberg have traditionally been dominated by the conservative Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU), which had led all but one government since 1952 until 2011. In the Landtag elections held on 27 March 2011 , voters replaced

3680-404: Is very common to use the term Bundesland (federated Land ). Officially this term Bundesland neither appears in the constitution of 1919 nor in the current one. Three Länder call themselves Freistaaten ("free states", an older German term for "republic"): Bavaria (since 1919), Saxony (originally from 1919 and again since 1990), and Thuringia (since 1994). Of the 17 states at the end of

3840-461: The Classis Britannica , whose headquarters were in Rutupiae (Richborough). Legions, auxilia and the fleet were commanded by the provincial governors. From the 3rd century, units of comitatenses , limitanei and liburnaria (marines) came under the command of two generals: This section of the limes existed from the 3rd to 5th centuries AD and covered the provinces of: This limes of

4000-665: The Congress of Vienna (1815), 39 states formed the German Confederation . The Confederation was dissolved after the Austro-Prussian War in which Prussia defeated Austria and forced Austria to remove itself from the affairs of the German states. Territorial boundaries were essentially redrawn as a result of military conflicts and interventions from the outside: from the Napoleonic Wars to

4160-682: The Congress of Vienna , the number of territories decreased from about 300 to 39; in 1866 Prussia annexed the sovereign states of Hanover , Nassau , Hesse-Kassel , and the Free City of Frankfurt . Prussia and the other states in Northern and Central Germany united as a federal state , the North German Federation , on 1 July 1867. Four of the five southern German states (Bavaria, Württemberg, Baden and Hesse-Darmstadt) entered military alliances with Prussia but Austria did not. In

4320-772: The Deutsche Mark was introduced as legal tender in the Saarland. Paragraph 6 of Article 29 stated that, if a petition was successful, a referendum should be held within three years. Since the deadline passed on 5 May 1958 without anything happening, the Hesse state government filed a constitutional complaint with the Federal Constitutional Court in October 1958. The complaint was dismissed in July 1961 on

4480-604: The Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, those four states joined the North German Federation which was consequently renamed to German Empire . The parliament and Federal Council decided to give the Prussian king the title of German Emperor (since 1 January 1871). The new German Empire included 25 states (three of them, Hanseatic cities) and the imperial territory of Alsace-Lorraine . Within

4640-641: The German constitution providing an accession procedure. On 9 December 1951, a referendum was held in Württemberg-Baden, Württemberg-Hohenzollern and (South) Baden over a possible merger, or the restoration of the former pre-war states. There was strong support for the merger in Württemberg and Hohenzollern, but opposition in Baden. While a majority in the historic area of Baden (52%) voted to restore

4800-652: The Karlsruhe–Basel high-speed line , paralleling the traditional Mannheim–Karlsruhe–Basel railway , is currently under construction. In and around Stuttgart, the old terminal station is currently being replaced with an underground through station as part of the controversial Stuttgart 21 project. Local branch lines of around 860 kilometres (530 mi), managed by the state-owned SWEG and Hohenzollerische Landesbahn (HzL), Karlsruhe-owned Albtal-Verkehrs-Gesellschaft (AVG), private Württembergische Eisenbahn (WEG) and other smaller rail infrastructure operators, complete

4960-877: The Late Antiquity ran through the territory of the present-day United Kingdom and France . In the 3rd century, a separate military district, the Litus Saxonicum , was established on the British side of the English Channel between the estuaries of the Wash and the Solent , to repel Saxon pirates and plunderers. The Gallic side of the English Channel and Atlantic coast were included therein. Monitoring and coastal surveillance were carried out by

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5120-673: The Oder-Neisse line fell under either Polish or Soviet administration but attempts were made at least symbolically not to abandon sovereignty well into the 1960s. The former provinces of Farther Pomerania , East Prussia , Silesia and Posen-West Prussia fell under Polish administration with the Soviet Union taking the area around Königsberg (now Kaliningrad), pending a final peace conference with Germany which eventually never took place. More than 8 million Germans had been expelled from these territories that had formed part of

5280-680: The Regierender Bürgermeister (governing mayor) in Berlin. The parliament for Berlin is called the Abgeordnetenhaus (House of Representatives), while Bremen and Hamburg both have a Bürgerschaft . The parliaments in the remaining 13 states are referred to as Landtag (State Parliament). The city-states of Berlin and Hamburg are subdivided into Districts . The City of Bremen consists of two urban districts : Bremen and Bremerhaven , which are not contiguous. In

5440-837: The Republic of Baden , the Free People's State of Württemberg and the Free State of Prussia . Following Adolf Hitler becoming chancellor of Germany in 1933, the democratic institutions of Baden, Württemberg and Prussia were abolished as part of the Gleichschaltung . After World War II, the Allies established three states in the territory of modern-day Baden-Württemberg: (South) Baden , Württemberg-Baden and Württemberg-Hohenzollern . Baden and Württemberg-Hohenzollern were occupied by France , while Württemberg-Baden

5600-787: The Rhine , defended by a chain of camps , that ran from the North Sea (Katwijk-Brittenburg camp) to Vinxtbach (opposite Rheinbrohl fort on the Upper Germanic Limes ), forming the border between the Roman provinces of Germania Inferior and Germania Superior . By contrast with the Upper Germanic-Rhaetian Limes , it was not marked by a solid palisade or wall. Neither can any defensive ditch or rampart be identified. The guards were stationed in nearby castra and watchtowers usually built immediately on

5760-694: The Roman Empire to defend and control the southern borders of the Empire in the Roman province of Africa . It is considered to have many similarities of construction to Hadrian's Wall at the northern border of the Empire in Britain. Generally the Fossatum consists of a ditch and earth embankments on either side using the material from the ditch. Sometimes the embankments are supplemented by dry stone walls on one or both sides; rarely, there are stone walls without

5920-537: The Saarland  – which later received a special status – in the French zone; Mecklenburg(-Vorpommern) , Brandenburg , Saxony , Saxony-Anhalt , and Thuringia in the Soviet zone . No single state comprised more than 30% of either population or territory; this was intended to prevent any one state from being as dominant within Germany as Prussia had been in the past. Initially, only seven of

6080-514: The Swabian Jura mountain range. The Black Forest formed part of the border between Baden and Württemberg. In 100 AD, the Roman Empire invaded and occupied Württemberg, constructing a limes along its northern borders. Over the course of the third century AD, the Alemanni forced the Romans to retreat west beyond the Rhine and Danube rivers. In 496 AD the Alemanni were defeated by

6240-567: The Weimar Republic , six still exist (though partly with different borders): The other 11 states of the Weimar Republic either merged into one another or were separated into smaller entities: Some territories bordering other states were annexed to the bordering state. Also, Prussia had exclaves that were surrounded by other states. These became part of their surrounding states. All states, except Bavaria , now have territory of

6400-603: The West German constitution thus applied to the entire German people . Article 23, which had allowed "any other parts of Germany" to join, was rephrased. It had been used in 1957 to reintegrate the Saar Protectorate as the Saarland into the Federal Republic, and this was used as a model for German reunification in 1990. The amended article now defines the participation of the Federal Council and

6560-446: The highest exports (2019) and third-highest imports (2020), the second-lowest unemployment rate with 4.3% (March 2021), the most patents pending per capita (2020), the second-highest absolute and highest relative number of companies considered " hidden champions ", and the highest absolute and relative research and development expenditure (2017) among all states in Germany, as well as the highest measured Innovationsindex (2012), making it

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6720-517: The limes existed from the 1st to the 5th century AD and guarded part of the Roman province of Noricum . It is on the soil of the present-day Austrian states of Upper and Lower Austria . It ran along the Danube from Passau/ Boiodurum to Zeiselmauer/ Cannabiaca . This is also a ripa (river border), which was guarded by a loose chain of cohort forts. The main road on the Norican Limes

6880-520: The service sector , and more. It has the third-highest gross regional product (GRP) in Germany. Part of the Four Motors for Europe and located in the Blue Banana , some of the largest German companies are headquartered in Baden-Württemberg, including Mercedes-Benz Group , Schwarz Group , Porsche , Bosch and SAP . The sobriquet Ländle , a diminutive of the word Land in

7040-559: The 1.2 million persons employed in the industry. The Mittelstand or mid-sized company model is the backbone of the Baden-Württemberg economy. Medium-sized businesses and a tradition of branching into different industrial sectors have ensured specialisation over a wide range. A fifth of the "old" Federal Republic's industrial gross value added is generated by Baden-Württemberg. Turnover for manufacturing in 2003 exceeded 240,000 million, 43% of which came from exports. The region depends to some extent on global economic developments, though

7200-556: The 16 German states in matters concerning the European Union . Article 29 was again modified and provided an option for the states to "revise the division of their existing territory or parts of their territory by agreement without regard to the provisions of paragraphs (2) through (7)". Article 118a was introduced into the Basic Law and provided the possibility for Berlin and Brandenburg to merge "without regard to

7360-423: The 1949 constitutional document known as the Grundgesetz (Basic Law). By calling the document the Grundgesetz , rather than Verfassung (constitution), the authors expressed the intention that it would be replaced by a true constitution once Germany was reunited as one state. Amendments to the Grundgesetz generally require a two-thirds majority of both chambers of the parliament; the fundamental principles of

7520-442: The 1990s, the around 120 individual regional train services in Baden-Württemberg have been managed by the state-owned Nahverkehrsgesellschaft Baden-Württemberg (NVBW), which has started to commercially tender out these train operations. DB Regio, SWEG, HzL, AVG and WEG have been joined in operating regional trains by Abellio , Agilis , Bodensee-Oberschwaben-Bahn , Go-Ahead , SBB , Schwäbische Alb-Bahn and VIAS , which entered

7680-440: The 20th century, the territory of modern-day Baden-Württemberg consisted of the Grand Duchy of Baden , the Kingdom of Württemberg and the province of Hohenzollern of the Kingdom of Prussia . Since 1871, these had been part of the German Empire . In the aftermath of World War I and as part of the German revolution of 1918 , the monarchs of Baden, Württemberg and Prussia were deposed, and these states became democratic republics:

7840-435: The 2nd century, the strategic reserve comprised three legions stationed in Bonna / Bonn, Novaesium / Neuss, Vetera / Xanten and Noviomagus / Nijmegen. The control and surveillance of the waters of the North Sea, the Rhine estuary and the Lower Rhine was the responsibility of the Classis Germanica whose headquarters was in Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium /Cologne. Legions, auxilia and fleet units were commanded by

8000-404: The 2nd century, the strategic reserve was formed from three legions stationed in Mogontiacum / Mainz, Argentorate / Strasbourg and Castra Regina /Regensburg. The monitoring of the Upper Rhine was the responsibility of the Classis Germanica ; that of the Rhaetic Danube came under the Classis Pannonia , whose headquarters was in Aquincum /Budapest. Legions and auxilia cohorts were under

8160-430: The 4th century, redesigned and massively strengthened in order to match new strategic requirements. The gaps between the camps were closed by a chain of watchtowers or signal towers. In late Roman times huge inland camps were built and towns in the hinterland were fortified to create a second line of defence. In addition, at vulnerable points, units of the Danube fleet were stationed. In the time of Emperor Marcus Aurelius

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8320-459: The American states and regional governments in other federations without serious calls for territorial changes" in those other countries. Arthur B. Gunlicks summarizes the main 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 and pay for it from own source revenues. Too many Länder also make coordination among them and with

8480-712: The Atlantic coast of northern Britain , through Europe to the Black Sea , and from there to the Red Sea and across North Africa to the Atlantic coast. The positions of the borders changed especially during the main periods of Roman expansion and contraction, and first became more stable during the early Empire period under Augustus , but the borders continued to change with time in different provinces. The borders had different constituents depending on local needs; often they consisted of natural boundaries (e.g. rivers) with roads behind for easier movement of troops between linked forts (e.g. Danubian Limes ), or else roads with linked forts (e.g. Stanegate , Fosse Way ). The remains of

8640-480: The Basic Law as a binding order. An expert commission was established, named after its chairman, the former Secretary of State Professor Werner Ernst. After two years of work, the experts delivered their report in 1973. It provided an alternative proposal for the two regions: the north and center-southwest. In the north, either a single new state consisting of Schleswig-Holstein, Hamburg, Bremen and Lower Saxony should be created (solution A) or two new states, one in

8800-409: The Christian Democrats and centre-right Free Democrats (FDP) coalition with an alliance of the Greens and Social Democrats (SPD), which secured a four-seat majority in the state parliament. The alliance elected the Greens-led first Kretschmann cabinet under Winfried Kretschmann because the Greens had surprisingly won 36 seats, one more than the Social Democrats' 35 seats. In the 2016 election ,

8960-420: The Danube, in Donaueschingen is often referred to as the "source of the Danube" ( Donauquelle ). Hydrologically, the source of the Danube is the source of the Breg as the larger of the two formative streams, which rises near Furtwangen . The forests in this region are home to common pests such as Melolontha Hippocastrani , that cause damage to the foliage and soil. Baden-Württemberg is – along with Bavaria –

9120-402: The Empire and had many similarities of construction to Hadrian's Wall . There are similar, but shorter, fossatae in other parts of North Africa. Between the Matmata and Tabaga ranges in modern Tunisia there is a fossatum which was duplicated during World War II. There also appears to be a 20 km fossatum at Bou Regreg , in Morocco , although this would not have been within the scope of

9280-429: The Federal Constitutional Court decided in 1969 that another referendum should be held by 30 June 1970. The referendum in the historic area of Baden was finally held on 7 June 1970, with 81.9% of the voters voting in favour of the merger of Baden and Württemberg. Baden-Württemberg shares borders with the German states of Rhineland-Palatinate , Hesse , and Bavaria , and also shares borders with France ( Alsace , within

9440-403: The Federal Minister of the Interior by reference to the referendum of 1951. However, the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany ruled that the rejection was unlawful: the population of Baden had the right to a new referendum because the one of 1951 had taken place under different rules from the ones provided for by article 29. In particular, the outcome of the 1951 referendum did not reflect

9600-399: The Federal Republic as a whole (paragraph 4). The reorganization should be completed within three years after the Basic Law had come into force (paragraph 6). Article 29 states that "the division of the federal territory into Länder may be revised to ensure that each Land be of a size and capacity to perform its functions effectively". In their letter to Konrad Adenauer ,

9760-438: The Federal Republic of Germany in 1949. This was in contrast to the post-war development in Austria , where the national Bund ("federation") was constituted first, and then the individual states were carved out as units of that federal nation. The German use of the term Länder ("lands") dates back to the Weimar Constitution of 1919. Previously, the states of the German Empire had been called Staaten ("states"). Today, it

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9920-424: The Federal Territory must be revised (paragraph 1). Moreover, in territories or parts of territories whose affiliation with a Land had changed after 8 May 1945 without a referendum, people were allowed to petition for a revision of the current status within a year after the promulgation of the Basic Law (paragraph 2). If at least one tenth of those entitled to vote in Bundestag elections were in favour of

10080-430: The Fosse Way road was a frontier. From the 1st to the 2nd century first the Gask Ridge and then the Stanegate, with their chains of forts and watchtowers, marked the northern boundary of Britannia . Later Hadrian's Wall was built as the frontier and for a short time the Antonine Wall further north. The defence of Hadrian's Wall was achieved through the incorporation of forts and castella . Security and monitoring on

10240-399: The French-occupied Saar Protectorate was returned and formed into the Saarland , the Federal Republic consisted of ten states, which are referred to as the " Old States " today. West Berlin was under the sovereignty of the Western Allies and neither a Western German state nor part of one. However, it was in many ways integrated with West Germany under a special status. A new delimitation of

10400-407: The German state with the third-highest gross regional product (GRP) as of 2019 (behind North Rhine-Westphalia and Bavaria ) with €524,325 billion (around US$ 636.268 billion). Baden-Württemberg also has the most employees (233,296) in the automotive industry of all German states as of 2018, as well as the third-highest number of motor vehicles of all German states (2020). If Baden-Württemberg were

10560-470: The German-speaking lands for centuries and which mostly did not have sizable Polish minorities before 1945. However, no attempts were made to establish new states in these territories, as they lay outside the jurisdiction of West Germany at that time. In 1948, the military governors of the three Western Allies handed over the so-called Frankfurt Documents to the minister-presidents in the Western occupation zones. Among other things, they recommended revising

10720-443: The Nazi regime via the Gleichschaltung process, as the states administratively were largely superseded by the Nazi Gau system . Three changes are of particular note: on 1 January 1934, Mecklenburg-Schwerin was united with neighbouring Mecklenburg-Strelitz ; and, by the Greater Hamburg Act ( Groß-Hamburg-Gesetz ) of 1937, the territory of the city-state was extended, while Lübeck lost its independence and became part of

10880-480: The Prussian province of Schleswig-Holstein . During the Allied occupation of Germany after World War II , internal borders were redrawn by the Allied military governments. New states were established in all four zones of occupation: Bremen , Hesse , Württemberg-Baden , and Bavaria in the American zone ; Hamburg , Schleswig-Holstein , Lower Saxony , and North Rhine-Westphalia in the British zone ; Rhineland-Palatinate , Baden , Württemberg-Hohenzollern and

11040-437: The Rhaetian Limes, a solid stone wall was erected. In its final stages, the Upper Germanic-Rhaetian Limes was about 550 kilometres long and ran from Rheinbrohl , in the county of Neuwied in northern Rhineland-Palatinate, as far as Hienheim on the Danube. Between the villages of Osterburken and Welzheim , the limes ran for 81 kilometres almost in a straight line southwards. In the scholarly literature, this unusual section

11200-604: The Rhine. The limes was served by a well-developed military road. Each camp had its own river port or landing stage and a storage area, because the Rhine not only formed the border but was also the most important transport and trade route in the region. In the first section, between the camps of Rigomagus (Remagen) and Bonna (Bonn), there were only a few camps. In the second, middle, section between Bonna and Ulpia Noviomagus Batavorum (Nijmegen), there were considerably more. Here there were also larger legion camps; with one exception, all were cavalry barracks. The landscape of

11360-402: The Roman province of Rhaetia that lay north of the Danube and guarded the eastern border of that part of Germania Superior that lay east of the Rhine. In Upper Germania the border defences initially consisted only of a post road. From about 162/63 AD, the Romans constructed a defensive barrier with watchtowers and signal towers, palisades , ditches and earthworks. On one short section of

11520-460: The Saarland (solution C), the district of Germersheim would then become part of Baden-Württemberg. The other alternative was that the Palatinate (including the region of Worms ) could be merged with the Saarland and Baden-Württemberg, and the rest of Rhineland-Palatinate would then merge with Hesse (solution D). Both alternatives could be combined (AC, BC, AD, BD). At the same time,

11680-478: The Western Allies, viewed itself as part of the Federal Republic and was largely integrated and considered a de facto state. In 1952, following a referendum , Baden, Württemberg-Baden, and Württemberg-Hohenzollern merged into Baden-Württemberg . In 1957, the Saar Protectorate joined the Federal Republic as the state of Saarland . The next change occurred with German reunification in 1990, in which

11840-462: The affected states, the proposals were shelved. Public interest was limited or nonexistent. The referendum in Baden was held on 7 June 1970. 81.9% of voters decided for Baden to remain part of Baden-Württemberg, only 18.1% opted for the reconstitution of the old state of Baden . The referendums in Lower Saxony and Rhineland-Palatinate were held on 19 January 1975 (the percentages given are

12000-433: The ancestor of an entire group of words in many languages related to Latin; for example, English limit or French limite . The Latin noun līmes ( English: / ˈ l aɪ m iː z / ; Latin pl.   līmitēs ) had a number of different meanings: a path or balk delimiting fields ; a boundary line or marker; any road or path; any channel, such as a stream channel; or any distinction or difference. The term

12160-548: The border between Rome and Germania ran mostly along the line of the late antique Danube-Iller-Rhine Limes (DIRL) before the Romans advanced further north into the Agri decumates . Because of troop withdrawals and massive barbarian invasions, the Upper Germanic-Rhaetian Limes were abandoned in the late 3rd century and the Roman forces pulled the border back to the banks of the three rivers. Especially around

12320-656: The boundaries of the West German states in a way that none of them should be too large or too small in comparison with the others. As the premiers did not come to an agreement on this question, the Parliamentary Council was supposed to address this issue. Its provisions are reflected in Article ;29 of the Basic Law . There was a binding provision for a new delimitation of the federal territory:

12480-466: The camps of Favianis and Melk , watchtowers were built only sporadically. Here the narrow valley of the Wachau , with its densely forested escarpments, made access to the riverbank more difficult, providing some defensive function. Every camp had its own river port or landing stage and a storage area because the Danube was not only a border zone, but also the most important transport and trade route in

12640-521: The city of Ulm are colder than in Berlin. While winters in the warmest areas often lack snow, the Black Forest , Swabian Alb and the Alps tend to get snow frequently, especially in areas of high elevation. Summers here have more rain than in the valleys, but winters tend to have more sun. Due to the differences of the landscapes, average annual temperatures reach from only 5 °C (41 °F) in

12800-538: The coasts in the west and southeast were achieved by forts and by chains of watchtowers or signal towers, both along the coastline. The garrisons, Exercitus Britannicus , consisted mostly of cohorts of auxilia . The strategic reserve comprised three legions based in Eburacum (York), Isca Silurum and Deva . The observation and surveillance of the waters around the British Isles was the responsibility of

12960-481: The command of the governor. From the 3rd century the Upper Germanic-Rhaetian border troops ( comitatenses, repenses , and liburnaria ), were commanded by three generals: This limes existed from the 3rd to the 5th centuries AD and guarded the provinces of: It lies on the territory of present-day Germany, Austria , Switzerland and Liechtenstein . As early as the period 15 BC to about 70 AD,

13120-454: The commission developed criteria for classifying the terms of Article 29 Paragraph 1. The capacity to perform functions effectively was considered most important, whereas regional, historical, and cultural ties were considered as hardly verifiable. To fulfill administrative duties adequately, a population of at least five million per state was considered as necessary. After a relatively brief discussion and mostly negative responses from

13280-631: The configuration of the German states: the 7  Thuringian states were merged in 1920, whereby Coburg opted for Bavaria , Pyrmont joined Prussia in 1922, and Waldeck did so in 1929. Any later plans to break up the dominating Prussia into smaller states failed because political circumstances were not favourable to state reforms. After the Nazi Party seized power in January 1933, the Länder were gradually abolished and reduced to provinces under

13440-476: The consent of the federal government (Article 32 of the Basic Law). Typical treaties relate to cultural relationships and economic affairs. Some states call themselves a " free state " ( Freistaat ). It is merely a historic synonym for "republic" and was a description used by most German states after the abolishment of monarchy after World War I . Today, Freistaat is associated emotionally with

13600-401: The constituent states have certain limited powers in this area: in matters that affect them directly, the states defend their interests at the federal level through the Bundesrat ("Federal Council"), and in areas where they have the legislative authority they have limited powers to conclude international treaties "with the consent of the federal government". It was the states that formed

13760-475: The constitution, as expressed in the articles guaranteeing human dignity, the separation of powers, the federal structure, and the rule of law are valid in perpetuity. Despite the original intention, the Grundgesetz remained in effect after the German reunification in 1990, with only minor amendments. The federal constitution stipulates that the structure of each Federated State's government must "conform to

13920-432: The constitution. An appeal against the decision was rejected as inadmissible by the Federal Constitutional Court. On 24 August 1976, the binding provision for a new delimitation of the federal territory was altered into a mere discretionary one. Paragraph 1 of Article 29 was rephrased, with the provision that any state had to be "of a size and capacity to perform its functions effectively" put first. The option for

14080-502: The east on this section of the limes intensified. The tributaries emptying into the Danube offered cheap transport routes, but also made good approach routes for invaders and raiders. The military camps were therefore built by the most important fords or confluences and road termini. The legion- and auxilia camps were mainly located in the immediate vicinity of the riverbank. The initial wood and earth structures, were systematically converted under Emperor Hadrian into stone barracks and, in

14240-538: The empire, 65% of the territory and 62% of the population belonged to the state of Prussia. After the territorial losses of the Treaty of Versailles , the remaining states continued as republics of a new German federation. The debate on a new delimitation of the German territory started in 1919 as part of discussions about the new constitution. Hugo Preuss , the father of the Weimar Constitution , drafted

14400-647: The executive branch consists of a Senate of approximately eight, selected by the state's parliament; the senators carry out duties equivalent to those of the ministers in the larger states. The equivalent of the minister-president is the Senatspräsident (president of the senate), also commonly referred to as Bürgermeister (Mayor) in Bremen, the Erster Bürgermeister (first mayor) in Hamburg, and

14560-402: The federal system: the legislatures are popularly elected for four or five years (depending on the state), and the minister-president is then chosen by a majority vote among the Landtag ' s members. The minister-president is typically the head of the biggest party of a coalition. The minister-president appoints a cabinet to run the state's agencies and to carry out the executive duties of

14720-487: The federal territory has been discussed since the Federal Republic was founded in 1949 and even before. Committees and expert commissions advocated a reduction of the number of states; academics ( Werner Rutz , Meinhard Miegel , Adrian Ottnad , etc.) and politicians ( Walter Döring , Hans Apel , and others) made proposals – some of them far-reaching – for redrawing boundaries but hardly anything came of these public discussions. Territorial reform

14880-412: The federation more complicated." But several proposals have failed so far; territorial reform remains a controversial topic in German politics and public perception. Federalism has a long tradition in German history. The Holy Roman Empire comprised many petty states , numbering more than 300 in around 1796. The number of territories was greatly reduced during the Napoleonic Wars (1796–1814). After

15040-412: The federation. The states retain residual or exclusive legislative authority for all other areas, including culture, which in Germany includes not only topics such as the financial promotion of arts and sciences, but also most forms of education and job training (see Education in Germany ). Though international relations including international treaties are primarily the responsibility of the federal level,

15200-598: The first mention is made in Pannonia of stone watchtowers ( burgi , panelled towers and fortlets ( praesidia ). In late antiquity, the Pannonian military district was divided into two parts ( pars inferior and pars superior ). Advance defences were provided by bridgehead camps (e.g. Castra Contra Aquincum or Celemantia ) and military stations on main transport routes in the Barbaricum (e.g. near Musov). At

15360-446: The five " New States " on 3 October 1990. The former district of East Berlin joined West Berlin to form the new state of Berlin. Henceforth, the 10 "old states" plus 5 "new states" plus the new state Berlin add up to current 16 states of Germany. After reunification, the constitution was amended to state that the citizens of the 16 states had successfully achieved the unity of Germany in free self-determination and that

15520-671: The flower island of Mainau , and the hometown of the Zeppelin , Friedrichshafen a.o., are especially popular for outdoor activities in the summer months. In spring and autumn (April/May and September/October), beer festivals (fun fairs) take place at the Cannstatter Wasen in Stuttgart. The Cannstatter Volksfest , in the autumn, is the second-largest such festival in the world after the Munich Oktoberfest . In late November and early December Christmas markets are

15680-409: The former Free State of Prussia. Other former Prussian territories lying east of the rivers Neisse and Oder were lost in 1945 and are now part of Poland or Russia . They are Silesia (Upper and Lower), Pomerania, West Prussia-Posen, and East Prussia respectively. Possible boundary changes between states continue to be debated in Germany, in contrast to how there are "significant differences among

15840-491: The former pre-war states, the majority of voters overall (69%) voted in favor of a merger. Baden-Württemberg officially became a state on 25 April 1952. There were still opponents to the merger of Baden and Württemberg, however. In 1956 the Federal Constitutional Court decided that the population of Baden should have their say in a separate referendum. The second referendum was delayed, however, and

16000-435: The frontiers today consist of vestiges of roads, forts, fortresses, walls and ditches, and associated civilian settlements. The soldiers at a border were referred to as limitanei . They were not expected to win large-scale wars, but rather to deter small-to-medium-sized raiding parties. Notable examples of Roman frontiers include: The stem of limes , limit -, which can be seen in the genitive case, limitis , marks it as

16160-507: The great adaptability of the region's economy has generally helped it through crises. Half of the employees in the manufacturing industry are in mechanical and electrical engineering and automobile construction. This is also where the largest enterprises are to be found. The importance of the precision mechanics industry also extends beyond the region's borders, as does that of the optical, clock making, toy, metallurgy and electronics industries. The textile industry, which formerly dominated much of

16320-761: The greatest extent of the Roman Empire, the southern border lay along the deserts of Arabia in the Middle East (see History of the Romans in Arabia ) and the Sahara in North Africa , which represented a natural barrier against expansion. The Empire controlled the Mediterranean shores and the mountain ranges further inland. The Romans attempted twice to occupy the Siwa Oasis and finally used Siwa as

16480-460: The ground and fastened together in the manner of a palisade). Some experts suggested that the Germanic limes may have been called Munimentum Traiani (Trajan's Bulwark) by contemporaries, referring to a passage by Ammianus Marcellinus , according to which emperor Julian had reoccupied this fortification in 360 AD. The frontier in Britain existed from the 1st to the 5th century AD. Initially

16640-586: The grounds that Article 29 had made the new delimitation of the federal territory an exclusively federal matter. At the same time, the Court reaffirmed the requirement for a territorial revision as a binding order to the relevant constitutional bodies. The grand coalition decided to settle the 1956 petitions by setting binding deadlines for the required referendums. The referendums in Lower Saxony and Rhineland-Palatinate were to be held by 31 March 1975, and

16800-581: The historical territories of Baden , Prussian Hohenzollern , and Württemberg . Baden-Württemberg became a state of West Germany in April 1952 through the merger of South Baden , Württemberg-Baden , and Württemberg-Hohenzollern . These states had been created by the Allies as they separated traditional states into occupation zones after World War II Baden-Württemberg is especially known for its strong economy with various industries like car manufacturing , electrical engineering , mechanical engineering ,

16960-560: The house. Some scholars have viewed the frontier as a threshold . The Merriam–Webster dictionaries take this view, as does J. B. Hofmann in Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Griechischen under leimon . The White Latin Dictionary denies any connection, deriving limen from * ligmen , as in lien from *leig- , "tie". In this sense, the threshold ties together the doorway. W. Gebert also wrote an article discussing

17120-509: The initial campaigning success was achieved by Quintus Anicius Faustus , the legate of Legio III Augusta . Following his African conquests, the Roman Empire may have reached its greatest extent during the reign of Septimius Severus , under whom the empire encompassed an area of 2 million square miles (5.18 million square kilometers ). Fossatum Africae ("African ditch") is a linear defensive structure ( limes ) that extended over 750 km or more in northern Africa constructed during

17280-660: The international borders within its waters not being clearly defined. It shares the foothills of the Alps (known as the Allgäu ) with Bavaria and the Austrian Vorarlberg , but Baden-Württemberg itself has no mainland border with Austria. The Danube is conventionally taken to be formed by the confluence of the two streams Brigach and Breg just east of Donaueschingen . The source of the Donaubach , which flows into

17440-654: The late 4th and early 5th centuries, the Rhaetian Limes was reorganized and divided into three sections. The northern border of Rhaetia formed the pars superior (upper part), the western border was the pars media (central part) with the fortified town of Cambodunum and bases from Vemania ( Isny im Allgäu ) to Cassilacum ( Memmingen ); the pars inferior (lower part) was the section between Castra Regina ( Regensburg ) and Batavis ( Passau ). The defending troops, Exercitus Germaniae superioris and Exercitus Raeticus , consisted mostly of auxilia cohorts. From

17600-449: The local Swabian , Alemannic and Franconian dialects, is sometimes used as a synonym for Baden-Württemberg. Baden-Württemberg is formed from the historical territories of Württemberg , Baden and Prussian Hohenzollern . Baden spans along the flat right bank of the river Rhine from north-west to the south ( Lake Constance ) of the present state, whereas Württemberg and Hohenzollern lay more inland and hillier, including areas such as

17760-446: The local topography. This meant that they could not be built in the classical 'pack of cards' shape. Between them a dense chain of watchtowers and signal towers were constructed to provide an additional security measure ( burgi ). Flotillas of patrol boats were stationed on the large lakes in this region. Comitatenses , ripenses , and liburnaria in this section of the limes were under the command of four generals: This section of

17920-596: The market. Starting in the 1970s, regional rail around major cities has been transformed into high-frequent S-Bahn networks, currently the following systems exist (partly) in Baden-Württemberg: Stuttgart S-Bahn , Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn , Breisgau S-Bahn and Basel S-Bahn . In and around the cities of Karlsruhe and Heilbronn, the Karlsruhe Stadtbahn system combines elements of traditional S-Bahns with tram operations within

18080-739: The microclimates of Black Forest and Allgäu up to 13 °C (55 °F) in the Upper Rhine Valley. Baden-Württemberg is divided into thirty-five districts ( Landkreise ) and nine independent cities ( Stadtkreise ), both grouped into the four Administrative Districts ( Regierungsbezirke ) of Freiburg , Karlsruhe , Stuttgart , and Tübingen . [REDACTED] The 35 districts: Baden-Württemberg contains nine additional independent cities not belonging to any district: The Baden-Württemberg General Auditing Office acts as an independent body to monitor public offices' correct use of public funds. The state parliament of Baden-Württemberg

18240-461: The mouth of the River Somme . The units of comitatenses , limitanei and liburnaria in this area came under the command of three generals: This section of limes existed from the 1st to the 5th century AD and ran through the province of Lower Germania ( Germania Inferior ). It lies on the territory of today's Netherlands and Germany . This limes was a river border ( limes ripa ) on

18400-459: The necessary majority vote in Brandenburg, while a majority of Berliners voted in favour. Federalism is one of the entrenched constitutional principles of Germany . According to the German constitution , some topics, such as foreign affairs and defence, are the exclusive responsibility of the federation (i.e., the federal level), while others fall under the shared authority of the states and

18560-404: The neo-liberal thinktank Initiative for New Social Market Economy and the trade newspaper Wirtschaftswoche awarded Baden-Württemberg for being the "economically most successful and most dynamic state" among the 16 states. The unemployment rate stood at 3% in October 2018 and was the second lowest in Germany behind only Bavaria and one of the lowest in the European Union . Baden-Württemberg

18720-547: The northeast consisting of Schleswig-Holstein, Hamburg and the northern part of Lower Saxony (from Cuxhaven to Lüchow-Dannenberg ) and one in the northwest consisting of Bremen and the rest of Lower Saxony (solution B). In the center and southwest, one alternative was that Rhineland-Palatinate (with the exception of the Germersheim district but including the Rhine-Neckar region) should be merged with Hesse and

18880-608: The other states there are the subdivisions below. The most populous state of North Rhine-Westphalia is uniquely divided into two area associations ( Landschaftsverbände ), one for the Rhineland , and one for Westphalia - Lippe . This arrangement was meant to ease the friction caused by uniting the two culturally different regions into a single state after World War II . The Landschaftsverbände now have very little power. Limes (Roman Empire) The Roman frontier stretched for more than 5,000 kilometres (3,100 mi) from

19040-421: The percentages of those eligible who voted in favour): The votes in Lower Saxony were successful as both proposals were supported by more than 25% of eligible voters. The Bundestag, however, decided that both Oldenburg and Schaumburg-Lippe should remain part of Lower Saxony. The justification was that a reconstitution of the two former states would contradict the objectives of paragraph 1 of article 29 of

19200-762: The popular Kretschmann and his Greens were reelected and, with their nationwide best result, turned out first place for the first time in any election in German history. However, because of the Social Democrats' heavy losses, the Greens formed a coalition government with the Christian Democrats, the second Kretschmann cabinet . After the most recent election in 2021, the Greens-CDU coalition was upheld. Although Baden-Württemberg has relatively few natural resources compared to other regions of Germany,

19360-407: The pre-War states remained: Baden (in part), Bavaria (reduced in size), Bremen, Hamburg, Hesse (enlarged), Saxony, and Thuringia. The states with hyphenated names, such as Rhineland-Palatinate, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Saxony-Anhalt, owed their existence to the occupation powers and were created out of mergers of former Prussian provinces and smaller states. Former German territory that lay east of

19520-478: The principles of republican, democratic, and social government, based on the rule of law" (Article 28). Most of the states are governed by a cabinet led by a Ministerpräsident (minister-president), together with a unicameral legislative body known as the Landtag (State Diet ). The states are parliamentary republics and the relationship between their legislative and executive branches mirrors that of

19680-585: The pristine Danube valley Swabian Alb (with Hohenzollern Castle and Sigmaringen Castle ), as well as the largely pristine Swabian Forest , the Upper Rhine Valley , and Lake Constance , where all kinds of water sports are popular, with the former Imperial, today border town of Konstanz (where the Council of Constance took place), the Neolithic and Bronze Age village at Unteruhldingen ,

19840-617: The proclamation of the Codex Theodosianus because at that time the province was not in Africa, administratively speaking. In the south of Mauritania Tingitana the frontier in the third century lay just north of Casablanca near Sala and stretched to Volubilis . Septimius Severus expanded the "Limes Tripolitanus" dramatically, even briefly holding a military presence in the Garamantian capital Garama in 203 AD. Much of

20000-420: The provisions of Article 29, by agreement between the Länder concerned. If no agreement is reached, the revision shall be effected by a federal law, which shall provide for an advisory referendum." Since no agreement was reached, a referendum was held on 9 December 1951 in four different voting districts, three of which approved the merger ( South Baden refused but was overruled, as the result of total votes

20160-467: The provisions of Article 29, by agreement between the two Länder with the participation of their inhabitants who are entitled to vote". A state treaty between Berlin and Brandenburg was approved in both parliaments with the necessary two-thirds majority, but in a popular referendum of 5 May 1996, about 63% voted against the merger. The German states can conclude treaties with foreign countries in matters within their own sphere of competence and with

20320-639: The public support of Federal German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer for the plan. The rejection of the plan by the Saarlanders was interpreted as support for the Saar to join the Federal Republic of Germany. On 27 October 1956, the Saar Treaty established that Saarland should be allowed to join Germany, as provided by the German constitution. Saarland became part of Germany effective 1 January 1957. The Franco-Saarlander currency union ended on 6 July 1959, when

20480-540: The referendum in Baden was to be held by 30 June 1970. The threshold for a successful vote was set at one-quarter of those entitled to vote in Bundestag elections. Paragraph 4 stated that the vote should be disregarded if it contradicted the objectives of paragraph 1. In his investiture address, given on 28 October 1969 in Bonn, Chancellor Willy Brandt proposed that the government would consider Article 29 of

20640-614: The region of Grand Est ), and Switzerland (cantons of Basel-Landschaft , Basel-Stadt , Aargau , Zürich , Schaffhausen and Thurgau ). Most of the major cities of Baden-Württemberg straddle the banks of the Neckar River , which has its source in Villingen-Schwenningen and runs downstream (from southwest to the centre, then northwest) through the state past Tübingen , Stuttgart , Heilbronn , Heidelberg , and Mannheim . The Rhine (German: Rhein ) forms

20800-522: The region, has disappeared from Baden-Württemberg. Research and development (R&D) is funded jointly by the state and industry. In 2001, more than a fifth of the 100,000 or so persons working in R&;D in Germany were located in Baden-Württemberg, most of them in the Stuttgart area. Baden-Württemberg is also the region with the highest GDP of the Four Motors for Europe . A study performed in 2007 by

20960-472: The region. Over time civilian settlements or vici were established immediately next to the camps. In the immediate hinterland of the limes , walled towns or municipia were founded – for example, Aelium Cetium or Ovilava (Wels). They were the administrative or commercial centres of the region. In late antiquity, the Norican area was divided into two parts ( pars inferior and pars superior ). It

21120-457: The respective governors. In late antiquity – according to Notitia Dignitatum – four newly established flotillas undertook this task. From the 3rd century, the Norian comitatenses , ripenses and liburnari were under the command of two generals: This stretch of limes was in use from the 1st to the 5th centuries AD and helped to guard the provinces of: The Pannonian Limes is situated on

21280-493: The respective provincial governor. From the 3rd century the ripenses (river guards), comitatenses , and liburnaria were under the command of the Dux Belgicae secundae . This limes existed from the 1st to 5th centuries AD and guarded the provinces of: It lay on the territory of the present German states of Rhineland-Palatinate , Hesse , Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria . To the north, it bordered those parts of

21440-408: The river Neckar, are popular smaller towns. Sites of former monasteries such as the ones on Reichenau Island and at Maulbronn (both World Heritage Sites ) as well as Bebenhausen Abbey are to be found. Baden-Württemberg also boasts rich old Free Imperial Cities such as Biberach , Esslingen am Neckar , Heilbronn , Ravensburg , Reutlingen , Künzelsau , Schwäbisch Hall and Aalen as well as

21600-550: The same status as West Berlin – was declared East Germany's capital and its 15th district. The debate on territorial revision restarted shortly before German reunification . While academics (Rutz and others) and politicians (Gobrecht) suggested introducing only two, three, or four states in East Germany, legislation reconstituted the East German states in an arrangement similar to that which they had had before 1952, as

21760-659: The second most popular theme park in Europe, after Disneyland Paris . Baden-Württemberg is home to some of the oldest, most renowned, and prestigious universities in Germany, such as the universities of Heidelberg (founded in 1386, the oldest university within the territory of modern Germany), Freiburg (founded in 1457), and Tübingen (founded in 1477). It also contains three of the eleven German excellence universities (Heidelberg, Tübingen, Konstanz and Karlsruhe and formerly, Freiburg ). Other university towns are Mannheim and Ulm . Furthermore, two universities are located in

21920-431: The site of a Roman Castra ); it is the only major city in Germany with vineyards in an urban territory. The residential (court) towns of Ludwigsburg and Karlsruhe , the spas and casino of luxurious Baden-Baden , the medieval architecture of Ulm ( Ulm Münster is the tallest church in the world), the vibrant, young, but traditional university towns of Heidelberg and Tübingen with their old castles looking out above

22080-495: The southernmost and sunniest city of Germany, Freiburg , close to Alsace and Switzerland, being an ideal base for exploring the heights of the nearby Black Forest (e.g., for skiing in winter or for hiking in summer) with its traditional villages and the surrounding wine country of the Rhine Valley of South Baden. The countryside of the lush Upper Neckar valley (where Rottweil is famous for its Fastnacht carnival) and

22240-472: The southernmost part of Germany. The climate across the states varies. This is mostly due to a high amount of mountains and highlands inside of the state. Most parts in the western parts (Baden) lower than 500–800 metres (1,600–2,600 ft) enjoy an almost year round mild oceanic climate (cfb in Köppen classification). The climate in the eastern parts of the state is more continental. For instance, winters in

22400-672: The state capital Stuttgart , the University of Hohenheim , and the University of Stuttgart . Ludwigsburg is home to the renowned national film school Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg (Film Academy Baden-Wuerttemberg). The private International University in Germany was situated in Bruchsal , but closed in 2009. Another private university is located in Friedrichshafen, Zeppelin University . Furthermore, there are more than

22560-416: The state is among the most prosperous and wealthiest regions in Europe with a generally low unemployment rate historically. The state's economic performance benefits from and relies on its well-developed infrastructure. Apart from the city-states of Berlin , Bremen and Hamburg , Baden-Württemberg offers the fourth-shortest routes to trains and buses on average among all German states. Baden-Württemberg has

22720-462: The state's government. Like in other parliamentary systems, the legislature can dismiss or replace the minister-president after a successful no-confidence vote . The governments in Berlin , Bremen and Hamburg are referred to as " senates ". In the free states of Bavaria and Saxony , the government is referred to as "state government" (Staatsregierung) ; and in the other states, the government

22880-527: The state's railway infrastructure. Passenger train services in Baden-Württemberg are operated partly by various subsidiaries of Deutsche Bahn , the national railway operator, such as DB Fernverkehr with its high-speed ICE , as well as IC trains ; and DB Regio , operating some regional train services in the state. Cross-border train services are also provided by French Railways ' TGV trains, as well as by Swiss Federal Railways and Austrian Federal Railways (including its Nightjet night trains). Since

23040-556: The term. The first use of the term limes as meaning "land border" appears for the first time in 98 AD by Tacitus : ...nec iam de limite imperii et ripa, sed de hibernis legionum et de possessione dubitatum (...not only were the frontier of the empire and the banks [of the Danube] in danger but also the winter-quarters of the legions and the provinces). Its definitive use for the Danubian border seems to date from about 122 in

23200-487: The territory of present-day Austria, Slovakia and Hungary . Although this section of the frontier was relatively well protected by the Danube river border or Ripa , the Roman military presence here was always exceptionally strong (three military camps in Pannonia, but only one in Lower Pannonia) because especially after the abandonment of Roman Dacia in the late 3rd century, the pressure of migrant peoples from

23360-481: The territory of the former German Democratic Republic ( East Germany ) became part of the Federal Republic, by accession of the re-established eastern states of Brandenburg , Mecklenburg-West Pomerania ( Mecklenburg-Vorpommern ), Saxony ( Sachsen ), Saxony-Anhalt ( Sachsen-Anhalt ), and Thuringia ( Thüringen ), and the reunification of West and East Berlin into a city state. A referendum in 1996 to merge Berlin with surrounding Brandenburg failed to reach

23520-462: The third section between Ulpia Noviomagus Batavorum and Mare Germanicum (the North Sea) was characterised by numerous small streams and boggy marshland. Consequently, in this area there was only one cavalry camp. Border security here consisted mainly of tightly packed, relatively small cohort forts. The occupying troops, Exercitus Germaniae Inferioris , consisted mostly of auxilia cohorts. From

23680-484: The three western military governors approved the Basic Law but suspended Article 29 until such time as a peace treaty should be concluded. Only the special arrangement for the southwest under Article 118 could enter into force. Upon its founding in 1949, West Germany thus had eleven states. These were reduced to nine in 1952 when three south-western states ( South Baden , Württemberg-Hohenzollern , and Württemberg-Baden ) merged to form Baden-Württemberg . From 1957, when

23840-429: The time of Hadrian: Per ea tempora et alia frequenter in plurimis locis, in quibus barbari non fluminibus sed limitibus dividuntur, stipitibus magnis in modum muralis saepis funditus iactis atque conexis barbaros separavit (During this period and on many other occasions also, in many regions where the barbarians are held back not by rivers but artificial barriers, [Hadrian] shut them out by tall stakes planted deep in

24000-525: The urban cores ( tram-trains ). States of Germany The Federal Republic of Germany , as a federal state , consists of sixteen states . Berlin , Hamburg and Bremen (with its seaport exclave , Bremerhaven ) are called Stadtstaaten (" city-states "), while the other thirteen states are called Flächenländer ("area states") and include Bavaria , Saxony , and Thuringia , which describe themselves as Freistaaten ("free states"). The Federal Republic of Germany ("West Germany")

24160-741: The western border as well as large portions of the southern border. The Black Forest (Schwarzwald), the central mountain range of the state, rises east of the Upper Rhine valley . The high plateau of the Swabian Alb , between the Neckar, the Black Forest, and the Danube, is an essential European watershed . Baden-Württemberg shares Lake Constance (Bodensee, also known regionally as the Swabian Sea) with Switzerland, Austria and Bavaria,

24320-423: The wishes of the majority of Baden's population. The two Palatine petitions (for a reintegration into Bavaria and integration into Baden-Württemberg) failed with 7.6% and 9.3%. Further requests for petitions (Lübeck, Geesthacht, Lindau, Achberg, and 62 Hessian communities) had already been rejected as inadmissible by the Federal Minister of the Interior or were withdrawn as in the case of Lindau. The rejection

24480-556: The year 300, the Emperor Diocletian had new fortifications built directly on the river banks or on major roads in the hinterland here. Around 370 AD, the line of fortifications was considerably strengthened under the Emperor Valentinian I to counter the Alemanni , who were steadily advancing southwards. By contrast with the Upper Germanic-Rhaetian Limes, the DIRL primarily fulfilled defensive purposes; its camps had much stronger and higher walls than their High Imperial predecessors. Furthermore, they had in most cases been built to conform to

24640-422: Was also commonly used after the 3rd century AD to denote a military district under the command of a dux limitis . An etymology by Julius Pokorny in Indogermanisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch says that limes comes from Indo-European el- , elei- , lei- , "to bow", "to bend", "elbow". According to Pokorny, Latin limen , "threshold", is related to limes , being the stone over which one enters or leaves

24800-409: Was confirmed by the Federal Constitutional Court in the case of Lübeck. In the Paris Agreements of 23 October 1954, France offered to establish an independent "Saarland", under the auspices of the Western European Union (WEU), but on 23 October 1955 in the Saar Statute referendum the Saar electorate rejected this plan by 67.7% to 32.3% (out of a 96.5% turnout: 423,434 against, 201,975 for) despite

24960-609: Was created in 1949 through the unification of the three western zones previously under American, British, and French administration in the aftermath of World War II . Initially, the states of the Federal Republic were Baden (until 1952), Bavaria (in German: Bayern ), Bremen , Hamburg , Hesse ( Hessen ), Lower Saxony ( Niedersachsen ), North Rhine-Westphalia ( Nordrhein-Westfalen ), Rhineland-Palatinate ( Rheinland-Pfalz ), Schleswig-Holstein , Württemberg-Baden (until 1952), and Württemberg-Hohenzollern (until 1952). West Berlin , while still under occupation by

25120-411: Was decisive). On 25 April 1952, the three former states merged to form Baden-Württemberg. With the Paris Agreements in 1954, West Germany regained (limited) sovereignty. This triggered the start of the one-year period as set in paragraph 2 of Article 29. As a consequence, eight petitions for referendums were launched, six of which were successful: The last petition was originally rejected by

25280-436: Was occupied by the United States . The new artificial borders were a consequence of France requesting its own occupation zone in Germany after World War II, and the Americans' wish to keep the A8 motorway , which spans east-west across northern Baden and northern Württemberg, wholly within their occupation zone. In 1949, each state became a founding member of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany), with Article 118 of

25440-425: Was the via iuxta amnem Danuvium . The initially simple wood and earth structures were systematically converted under Emperor Hadrian into stone encampments. During the 4th century, they were brought once more up to date and massively reinforced. Between the camps, in strategic places or good points of observation, were watchtowers or signal towers and, in the Late Antiquity, burgi . In the middle section, between

25600-408: Was the frontier of the Roman province of Arabia Petraea , facing the desert. It runs from the Gulf of Aqaba to northern Syria, for about 1,500 kilometers (930 mi) at its greatest extent The Limes Saxoniae in Holstein was established in 810 AD, long after the fall of the Western Roman Empire . Charlemagne considered his empire (later called the Carolingian Empire ) as the true successor to

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