64-601: The Soden Railway is a line in the western suburbs of Frankfurt am Main and was one of the oldest railways in Germany , opened in 1847. The Soden Railway runs from Frankfurt-Höchst to Bad Soden am Taunus and is 6.6 km long. It was also called the Höchst–Soden Railway. The line has timetable route number 643 and is operated as line RB 11 of the Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund . The line
128-552: A Reichsstadt ( Imperial Free City ), i.e., directly subordinate to the Holy Roman Emperor and not to a regional ruler or a local nobleman. In 1585, Frankfurt traders established a system of exchange rates for the various currencies that were circulating to prevent cheating and extortion. Therein lay the early roots for the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. Frankfurt managed to remain neutral during
192-591: A Frankish king named Zuna, who ruled over the province then known as Sicambri . He hoped thereby to perpetuate the name of his lineage. This is chronologically incompatible, however, with the archaeologically demonstrated Roman occupation of the area around Nida fortress in modern Heddernheim . The name is derived from the Franconofurd of the Germanic tribe of the Franks ; Furt ( cf. English ford ) where
256-595: A camp for Sinti and Romani people (see Romani Holocaust ), the Dulag Luft West transit camp for Allied prisoners of war, and a subcamp of the Natzweiler-Struthof concentration camp . Frankfurt was severely bombed in World War II (1939–1945). About 5,500 residents were killed during the raids, and the once-famous medieval city center , by that time one of the largest in Germany,
320-656: A city divided into four sectors , could no longer rival it. In 1948, the Allies founded the Bank deutscher Länder , the forerunner of Deutsche Bundesbank . Following this decision, more financial institutions were re-established, e.g. Deutsche Bank and Dresdner Bank . In the 1950s, Frankfurt Stock Exchange regained its position as the country's leading stock exchange. Frankfurt also reemerged as Germany's transportation hub and Frankfurt Airport became Europe's second-busiest airport behind London Heathrow Airport in 1961. During
384-458: A district committee and chairperson. The largest city district by population and area is Sachsenhausen , while the smallest is Altstadt , Frankfurt's historical center. Three larger city districts (Sachsenhausen, Westend and Nordend ) are divided for administrative purposes into a northern ( -Nord ) and a southern ( -Süd ) part, respectively a western ( -West ) and an eastern ( -Ost ) part, but are generally considered as one city district (which
448-557: A free city, becoming the seat of its Bundestag , the confederal parliament where the nominally presiding Habsburg Emperor of Austria was represented by an Austrian "presidential envoy". After the ill-fated revolution of 1848 , Frankfurt was the seat of the first democratically elected German parliament, the Frankfurt Parliament , which met in the Frankfurter Paulskirche (St. Paul's Church) and
512-581: A newly established primogeniture in Italy), Grand Duke of Frankfurt after Dalberg's death (since the latter as a Catholic bishop had no legitimate heirs). The Grand Duchy remained a short episode lasting from 1810 to 1813 when the military tide turned in favor of the Anglo-Prussian-led allies that overturned the Napoleonic order. Dalberg abdicated in favor of Eugène de Beauharnais, which of course
576-560: A part of early Franconia , the inhabitants were the early Franks , thus the city's name reveals its legacy as "the ford of the Franks on the Main". Among English speakers, the city is commonly known simply as Frankfurt, but Germans occasionally call it by its full name to distinguish it from the other (significantly smaller) German city of Frankfurt an der Oder in the Land of Brandenburg on
640-541: A population of 5.5 million. Other important cities in the region are Wiesbaden (capital of Hesse ), Mainz (capital of Rhineland-Palatinate ), Darmstadt , Offenbach am Main , Hanau , Aschaffenburg , Bad Homburg vor der Höhe , Rüsselsheim , Wetzlar and Marburg . The city is divided into 46 city districts ( Stadtteile ), which are in turn divided into 121 city boroughs ( Stadtbezirke ) and 448 electoral districts ( Wahlbezirke ). The 46 city districts combine into 16 area districts ( Ortsbezirke ), which each have
704-681: A population of more than 5.8 million and is Germany's second-largest metropolitan region after the Rhine-Ruhr region and the fourth biggest metropolitan region by GDP in the European Union . Frankfurt is home to the European Central Bank , one of the institutional seats of the European Union, while Frankfurt's central business district lies about 90 km (56 mi) northwest of the geographic center of
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#1732780265527768-553: A simplified manner (e.g., Römer , St. Paul's Church , and Goethe House ). The collection of historically significant Cairo Genizah documents of the Municipal Library was destroyed by the bombing. According to Arabist and Genizah scholar S.D. Goitein , "not even handlists indicating its contents have survived." The end of the war marked Frankfurt's comeback as Germany's leading financial hub, mainly because Berlin, now
832-762: Is "FRA", the IATA code for Frankfurt Airport. Roman Empire , pre 475 Francia , ca. 475–843 East Francia , 843–962 [REDACTED] Holy Roman Empire , 962–1806 [REDACTED] Free City of Frankfurt , 1372–1806 [REDACTED] Grand Duchy of Frankfurt , 1806–1813 [REDACTED] Free City of Frankfurt , 1813–1866 [REDACTED] Kingdom of Prussia , 1866–1871 [REDACTED] German Empire , 1871–1918 [REDACTED] Weimar Republic , 1918–1933 [REDACTED] German Reich , 1933–1945 [REDACTED] American occupation zone , 1945–1949 [REDACTED] West Germany , 1949–1990 [REDACTED] Germany , 1990–present At
896-645: Is 248.31 km (95.87 sq mi) and extends over 23.4 km (14.54 mi) east to west and 23.3 km (14.48 mi) north to south. Its downtown is north of the river Main in Altstadt district (the historical center) and the surrounding Innenstadt district. The geographical center is in Bockenheim district near Frankfurt West station . Frankfurt at the heart of the densely populated Frankfurt Rhine-Main Metropolitan Region with
960-459: Is also not an administrative city district (it covers parts of the western Innenstadt district, the southern Westend district and the eastern Bahnhofsviertel district). Many city districts are incorporated suburbs ( Vororte ) or were previously independent cities, such as Höchst . Some like Nordend and Westend arose during the rapid growth of the city in the Gründerzeit following
1024-879: Is home to influential educational institutions, including the Goethe University with the Universitätsklinikum Frankfurt ( de ) (Hesse's largest hospital), the FUAS , the FUMPA , and graduate schools like the FSFM . The city is one of two seats of the German National Library (alongside Leipzig ), the largest library in the German-speaking countries and one of the largest in the world. Its renowned cultural venues include
1088-609: Is one of the world's busiest international airports by passenger traffic and the main hub for Germany's flag carrier Lufthansa . Frankfurt Central Station is one of the largest rail stations in Europe and the busiest junction operated by Deutsche Bahn , the German national railway company, with 342 trains a day to domestic and European destinations. Frankfurter Kreuz , also known as the Autobahn interchange and located close to
1152-488: Is one of the few cities in the European Union (EU) to have such a skyline, which is why Germans sometimes refer to Frankfurt as Mainhattan , combining the local river Main and " Manhattan ". The other well-known nickname is Bankfurt . Before World War II , the city was noted for its unique old town , the largest timber-framed old town in Europe. The Römer area was later rebuilt and is popular with visitors and for events such as Frankfurt Christmas Market . Other parts of
1216-511: Is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse . Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany . Located in the foreland of the Taunus on its namesake Main , it forms a continuous conurbation with Offenbach am Main ; its urban area has a population of over 2.7 million. The city is the heart of the larger Rhine-Main metropolitan region, which has
1280-435: Is why often only 43 city districts are mentioned, even on the city's official website). Some larger housing areas are often falsely called city districts, even by locals, like Nordweststadt (part of Niederursel , Heddernheim and Praunheim ), Goldstein (part of Schwanheim ), Riedberg (part of Kalbach-Riedberg ) and Europaviertel (part of Gallus ). The Bankenviertel ( banking district ), Frankfurt's financial district,
1344-506: The A 66 autobahn would from part of the proposed Regionalstadtbahn Regionaltangente West line through the western fringes of Frankfurt. If built, this would have a new station called Zuckschwerdtstraße . Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt am Main ( / ˈ f r æ ŋ k f ər t / ; German: [ˈfʁaŋkfʊʁt ʔam ˈmaɪn] ; lit. " Frank ford on the Main ")
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#17327802655271408-548: The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority and European Systemic Risk Board in 2011. Frankfurt is the largest city in the state of Hesse in the western part of Germany. Frankfurt is located on both sides of the river Main , south-east of the Taunus mountain range. The southern part of the city contains the Frankfurt City Forest , Germany's largest city forest. The city area
1472-520: The Free City of Frankfurt . The Prussian administration incorporated Frankfurt into its province of Hesse-Nassau . The Prussian occupation and annexation were perceived as a great injustice in Frankfurt, which retained its distinct western European, urban and cosmopolitan character. The formerly independent towns of Bornheim and Bockenheim were incorporated in 1890. In 1914, the citizens founded
1536-747: The Taunus Railway Company . Since 1972, there has been a connection in Bad Soden to the Limes Railway to Niederhöchstadt, which connects Bad Soden with the Rhine-Main S-Bahn network. The railway was originally only operated in the summer months. In 1860 the operating company stopped operations and demanded subsidies from the Nassau Government , which refused. Operations only resumed on 1 October 1863 after
1600-531: The Thirty Years' War , but suffered from the bubonic plague that refugees brought to the city. After the war, Frankfurt regained its wealth. In the late 1770s the theater principal Abel Seyler was based in Frankfurt, and established the city's theatrical life. Following the French Revolution , Frankfurt was occupied or bombarded several times by French troops. It remained a Free city until
1664-546: The Unification of Germany , while others were formed from territory which previously belonged to other city district(s), such as Dornbusch and Riederwald . Until the year 1877 the city's territory consisted of the present-day inner-city districts of Altstadt , Innenstadt , Bahnhofsviertel , Gutleutviertel , Gallus , Westend , Nordend , Ostend and Sachsenhausen . Bornheim was part of an administrative district called Landkreis Frankfurt , before becoming part of
1728-865: The Wallanlagen , Volkspark Niddatal , Grüneburgpark , the City Forest , two major botanical gardens (the Palmengarten and the Botanical Garden Frankfurt ) and the Frankfurt Zoo . Frankfurt is the seat of the German Football Association (Deutscher Fußball-Bund – DFB) , is home to the first division association football club Eintracht Frankfurt , the Löwen Frankfurt ice hockey team, and
1792-401: The 1970s, the city created one of Europe's most efficient underground transportation systems. That system includes a suburban rail system ( S-Bahn ) linking outlying communities with the city center, and a deep underground light rail system with smaller coaches ( U-Bahn ) also capable of travelling above ground on rails. In 1998, the European Central Bank was founded in Frankfurt, followed by
1856-421: The Allies' wartime bombardment. Frankfurt was the original choice for the provisional capital city of the newly founded state of West Germany in 1949. The city constructed a parliament building that was never used for its intended purpose (it housed the radio studios of Hessischer Rundfunk ). In the end, Konrad Adenauer , the first postwar Chancellor , preferred the town of Bonn , for the most part because it
1920-596: The Apostle and now Frankfurt Cathedral . Frankfurt was one of the most important cities in the Holy Roman Empire . From 855, the German kings were elected and crowned in Aachen . From 1562, the kings and emperors were crowned and elected in Frankfurt, initiated for Maximilian II . This tradition ended in 1792, when Francis II was elected. His coronation was deliberately held on Bastille Day , 14 July,
1984-493: The Big Five, are frequently compared with other European metropolitan regions (EMR) in terms of investment and market development. They are (from north to south): Hamburg , Berlin , the polycentric Ruhr - Düsseldorf - Cologne region (collectively referred to as Rhine-Ruhr ), Frankfurt and Munich . The Globalization and World Cities Study Group ( GaWC ) considers Frankfurt and Munich as "α" (alpha) global cities , whereas
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2048-587: The EU at Gadheim in Lower Franconia . Like France and Franconia , the city is named after the Franks . Frankfurt is the largest city in the Rhenish Franconian dialect area. Frankfurt was a city state , the Free City of Frankfurt , for nearly five centuries, and was one of the most important cities of the Holy Roman Empire , as a site of Imperial coronations ; it lost its sovereignty upon
2112-486: The EU. Frankfurt is one of the major financial centers of the European continent, with the headquarters of the European Central Bank , Deutsche Bundesbank , Frankfurt Stock Exchange , Deutsche Bank , DZ Bank , KfW , Commerzbank , DekaBank , Helaba , several cloud and fintech startups , and other institutes. Automotive, technology and research, services, consulting, media and creative industries complement
2176-471: The Frankfurt spelling for Frankfurt am Main on 24 October 1953 and last used the Frankfort spelling on 10 June 1954. The suffix am Main has been used regularly since the 14th century. In English, the city's full name of Frankfurt am Main means "Frankfurt on the Main" (pronounced like English mine or German mein ). Frankfurt is located on an ancient ford (German: Furt ) on the river Main . As
2240-468: The Polish border. The city district Bonames has a name probably dating back to Roman times, thought to be derived from bona me(n)sa (good table). The common abbreviations for the city, primarily used in railway services and on road signs, are Frankfurt (Main) , Frankfurt (M) , Frankfurt a. M. , Frankfurt/Main or Frankfurt/M . The common abbreviation for the name of the city is "FFM". Also in use
2304-585: The University of Frankfurt, later named Goethe University Frankfurt . This marked the only civic foundation of a university in Germany; today it is one of Germany's largest. From 6 April to 17 May 1920, following military intervention to put down the Ruhr uprising , Frankfurt was occupied by French troops . The French claimed that Articles 42 to 44 of the peace treaty of Versailles concerning
2368-479: The airport, is the most-heavily used interchange in the EU, used by 320,000 cars daily. In 2011 human-resource-consulting firm Mercer ranked Frankfurt as seventh in its annual 'Quality of Living' survey of cities around the world. According to The Economist cost-of-living survey, Frankfurt is Germany's most expensive city and the world's tenth most expensive. Frankfurt has many downtown high-rise buildings that form its renowned Frankfurt skyline . In fact, it
2432-800: The anniversary of the storming of the Bastille . The elections and coronations took place in St. Bartholomäus Cathedral , known as the Kaiserdom (Emperor's Cathedral), or its predecessors. The Frankfurter Messe ('Frankfurt Trade Fair') was first mentioned in 1150. In 1240, Emperor Frederick II granted an imperial privilege to its visitors, meaning they would be protected by the empire. The fair became particularly important when similar fairs in French Beaucaire lost attraction around 1380. Book trade fairs began in 1478. In 1372, Frankfurt became
2496-591: The basketball club Frankfurt Skyliners , and is the venue of the Frankfurt Marathon and the Ironman Germany . Frankfurt is the largest financial hub in continental Europe . It is home to the European Central Bank , Deutsche Bundesbank , Frankfurt Stock Exchange and several large commercial banks. The Frankfurt Stock Exchange is one of the world's largest stock exchanges by market capitalization and accounts for more than 90 percent of
2560-430: The city on 1 January 1877, followed by Bockenheim on 1 April 1895. Seckbach , Niederrad and Oberrad followed on 1 July 1900. The Landkreis Frankfurt was finally dispersed on 1 April 1910, and therefore Berkersheim , Bonames , Eckenheim , Eschersheim , Ginnheim , Hausen , Heddernheim , Niederursel , Praunheim , Preungesheim and Rödelheim joined the city. In the same year a new city district, Riederwald ,
2624-708: The collapse of the Holy Roman Empire in 1805/6. In 1806, it became part of the principality of Aschaffenburg under the Fürstprimas ( Prince-Primate ), Karl Theodor Anton Maria von Dalberg . This meant that Frankfurt was incorporated into the Confederation of the Rhine . In 1810, Dalberg adopted the title of a Grand Duke of Frankfurt . Napoleon intended to make his adopted son Eugène de Beauharnais , already Prince de Venise (" prince of Venice ",
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2688-523: The collapse of the empire in 1806, regained it in 1815 and then lost it again in 1866, when it was annexed (though neutral) by the Kingdom of Prussia . It has been part of the state of Hesse since 1945. Frankfurt is culturally, ethnically and religiously diverse, with half of its population, and a majority of its young people, having a migrant background . A quarter of the population consists of foreign nationals, including many expatriates . In 2015, Frankfurt
2752-912: The concert hall Alte Oper , continental Europe's largest English theater and many museums, 26 of which line up along the Museum Embankment , including the Städel , the Liebieghaus , the German Film Museum ( de ), the Senckenberg Natural Museum , the Goethe House and the Schirn art venue. Frankfurt's skyline is shaped by some of Europe's tallest skyscrapers, which has led to the term Mainhattan . The city has many notable green areas and parks, including
2816-399: The country's most densely populated cities and their catchment areas . They represent Germany's political, commercial and cultural centres. The eleven metropolitan regions in Germany were organised into political units for planning purposes. Based on a narrower definition of metropolises commonly used to determine the metropolitan status of a given city, only four cities in Germany surpass
2880-603: The demilitarization of the Rhineland had been broken. In 1924, Ludwig Landmann became the first Jewish mayor of the city, and led a significant expansion during the following years. During the Nazi era , the synagogues of the city were destroyed and the vast majority of the Jewish population fled or was killed. During World War II , Frankfurt was the location of a Nazi prison for underage girls with several forced labour camps,
2944-633: The economic base. Frankfurt's DE-CIX is the world's largest internet exchange point . Messe Frankfurt is one of the world's largest trade fairs . Major fairs include the Music Fair and the Frankfurt Book Fair , the world's largest book fair. With 108 consulates, among which the largest is the US Consulate General , Frankfurt is second to New York City among non-capital cities in regards to consulate seats. Frankfurt
3008-442: The end of the war, Frankfurt became a part of the newly founded state of Hesse, consisting of the old Hesse-(Darmstadt) and the Prussian Hesse provinces. The city was part of the American Zone of Occupation of Germany. The Military Governor for the United States Zone (1945–1949) and the United States High Commissioner for Germany (HICOG) (1949–1952) had their headquarters in the IG Farben Building , intentionally left undamaged by
3072-428: The former West Germany , Frankfurt Airport became the busiest in Germany , one of the busiest in the world, the airport with the most direct routes in the world, and the primary hub for Lufthansa , the national airline of Germany and Europe's largest airline. Frankfurt Central Station is Germany's second-busiest railway station after Hamburg Hbf , and Frankfurter Kreuz is the most-heavily used interchange in
3136-457: The line. These operations have since been rebranded as Hessische Landesbahn (Hessian State Railways). Despite the fact that the line is electrified, it had been operated, along with the Hessische Landesbahn's other routes through the Taunus, by a diesel multiple unit for many years (usually a LHB VT 2E, sometimes a LINT ). Since 2019, the line has been operated by electrical multiple units ( Alstom Coradia Continental ) The section south of
3200-440: The old town were reconstructed as part of the Dom-Römer Project from 2012 to 2018. Frankonovurd (in Old High German ) or Vadum Francorum (in Latin ) were the first names mentioned in written records from 794. It transformed to Frankenfort during the Middle Ages and then to Franckfort and Franckfurth in the modern era . According to historian David Gans , the city was named c. 146 AD by its builder,
3264-452: The river was shallow enough to be crossed on foot. By the 19th century, the name Frankfurt had been established as the official spelling. The older English spelling of Frankfort is now rarely seen in reference to Frankfurt am Main, although more than a dozen other towns and cities, mainly in the United States, use this spelling, including Frankfort, Kentucky , Frankfort, New York , and Frankfort, Illinois . The New York Times first used
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#17327802655273328-500: The threshold of at least one million inhabitants within their administrative borders: Berlin , Hamburg , Munich , and Cologne . For urban centres outside metropolitan areas that are a similar focal point for their region, but on a smaller scale, the concept of the Regiopolis and the related concepts of regiopolitan area or regio were introduced by urban and regional planning professors in 2006. Sorted alphabetically: The five most important regions, collectively often called
3392-421: The track had been sold to the Taunus Railway Company for 100,000 guilders . On 1 January 1872 the Soden Railway was sold to the Prussian state railways and subsequently ran all year. From 1979 to 1997 Soden Railway formed part of S-Bahn line S3 . In addition, the line was electrified. Train patronage was very poor, so S-Bahn services were abandoned. From 1997, the Frankfurt-Königsteiner Eisenbahn operated
3456-430: The turnover in the German market. In 2010, 63 national and 152 international banks had their registered offices in Frankfurt, including Germany's major banks, notably Deutsche Bank , DZ Bank , KfW , Deka Bank and Commerzbank , as well as 41 representative offices of international banks. Frankfurt is considered a global city (alpha world city) as listed by the GaWC group's 2012 inventory. Among global cities it
3520-446: The western borders of Frankfurt lies the Kapellenberg as part of the Taunus with one of the first Stone Age cities in Europe. The Celts had different settlements in the Taunus mountains north of Frankfurt, the biggest one the Heidetrank Oppidum . The first traces of Roman settlements established in the area of the river Nidda date to the reign of Emperor Vespasian in the years 69 to 79 AD. Nida (modern Heddernheim , Praunheim )
3584-447: Was a Roman civitas capital ( Civitas Taunensium ). Alemanni and Franks lived there , and by 794, Charlemagne presided over an imperial assembly and church synod, at which Franconofurd (alternative spellings end with -furt and -vurd) was first mentioned. It was one of the two capitals of Charlemagne's grandson Louis the German , together with Regensburg . Louis founded the collegiate church , rededicated in 1239 to Bartholomew
3648-509: Was almost completely destroyed. It became a ground battlefield on 26 March 1945, when the Allied advance into Germany was forced to take the city in contested urban combat that included a river assault. The 5th Infantry Division and the 6th Armored Division of the United States Army captured Frankfurt after several days of intense fighting, and it was declared largely secure on 29 March 1945. Frankfurt consists to over 40% of buildings from before World War II, besides all destruction. After
3712-517: Was close to his hometown, but also because many other prominent politicians opposed the choice of Frankfurt out of concern that Frankfurt would be accepted as the permanent capital, thereby weakening the West German population's support for a reunification with East Germany and the eventual return of the capital to Berlin . Postwar reconstruction took place in a sometimes simple modern style, thus changing Frankfurt's architectural face. A few landmark buildings were reconstructed historically, albeit in
3776-561: Was created on territory that had formerly belonged to Seckbach and Ostend. On 1 April 1928 the City of Höchst became part of Frankfurt, as well as its city districts Sindlingen , Unterliederbach and Zeilsheim . Simultaneously the Landkreis Höchst was dispersed with its member cities either joining Frankfurt ( Fechenheim , Griesheim , Nied , Schwanheim , Sossenheim ) or joining the newly established Landkreis of Main-Taunus-Kreis . Metropolitan regions in Germany There are eleven metropolitan regions in Germany consisting of
3840-405: Was home to 1,909 ultra high-net-worth individuals , the sixth-highest number of any city. As of 2023, Frankfurt is the 13th-wealthiest city in the world and the second-wealthiest city in Europe (after London ). Frankfurt is a global hub for commerce, culture, education, tourism and transportation, and is the site of many global and European corporate headquarters. Due to its central location in
3904-414: Was only a symbolic action, as the latter effectively never ruled after the ruin of the French armies and Frankfurt's takeover by the allies. After Napoleon's final defeat and abdication, the Congress of Vienna (1814–1815) dissolved the grand-duchy and Frankfurt became a fully sovereign city-state with a republican form of government. Frankfurt entered the newly founded German Confederation (till 1866) as
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#17327802655273968-435: Was opened on 18 May 1848. In the year of its existence, the assembly developed a common constitution for a unified Germany, with the Prussian king as its monarch. The institution failed in 1849 when the Prussian king, Frederick William IV , declared that he would not accept "a crown from the gutter". Frankfurt lost its independence after the Austro-Prussian War in 1866 when Prussia annexed several smaller states, among them
4032-408: Was opened on 22 May 1847 and is might be described as the first German branch line. In Höchst it connects with the Taunus Railway opened in 1839 from Frankfurt to Wiesbaden . It was built to connect the emerging spa town of Soden to the new rail network. The builder and owner of the line was the Soden Company ( German : Sodener Actien-Gesellschaft ). The line was managed from the beginning by
4096-407: Was ranked tenth by the Global Power City Index 2011 and 11th by the Global City Competitiveness Index 2012 . Among financial hubs, the city was ranked eighth by the International Financial Centers Development Index 2013 and ninth in the 2013 Global Financial Centres Index . Its central location in Germany and Europe makes Frankfurt a major air, rail, and road transport hub . Frankfurt Airport
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