Kiel

Infobox German Location
Art = City
image_photo = KielerStadtzentrumLuftaufnahme.jpg
image_caption = Aerial view of the city
Wappen = Wappen Kiel.svg
lat_deg = 54 |lat_min = 19 |lat_sec = 31
lon_deg = 10 |lon_min = 8 |lon_sec = 26
Bundesland = Schleswig-Holstein
Kreis = urban
Höhe = 5
Fläche = 118.6
Einwohner = 236902
Stand = 2007-12-31
PLZ = 24103–24159
PLZ-alt = 2300
Vorwahl = 0431
Kfz = KI
Gemeindeschlüssel = 01 0 02 000
NUTS = DEFO2
LOCODE = DE KEL
Gliederung = 18 districts
Adresse = Fleethörn 9
24103 Kiel
Website = [http://www.kiel.de/ www.kiel.de]
Bürgermeister = Angelika Volquartz
Bürgermeistertitel = Oberbürgermeisterin
Partei = CDU
ruling_party1 = CDU
ruling_party2 = Green:"For the city in the United States, see Kiel, Wisconsin. For the name see Kiel (name)."Kiel (Audio-IPA|De-Kiel Pronunciation.ogg| [kiːl] ) is the capital of the northernmost German state Schleswig-Holstein. It is located on the eastern side of the base of the Jutland peninsula in the southwest corner of the Baltic Sea. Located on the Bay of Kiel at the head of the Kiel Fjord, the city has been one of the country's main naval bases since the 1860s, a centre for German shipbuilders, and the eastern terminus of the busiest artificial waterway in the world, the Kiel Canal.

Kiel is famous for its sailing events, including Kiel Week, the biggest sailing event in the world. In 1936 and 1972, when the Olympic Games were held in Berlin and Munich respectively, the Olympic sailing competitions were held in Kiel-Schilksee. [cite web
title=General Information
work=Kieler Woche
url=http://www.kieler-woche.de/eng/Media_English/general_inf_dates_and_events.htm
accessdate=2006-03-13] It had a population of 232,340 as of 31 December 2006.

History

The Kiel Fjord was first settled by Normans or Vikings who would colonize the land along their raids for many years staying in German villages. This is recorded by the geography and architecture of the fjord. Kiel was first originally founded in 1233 as "Holstenstadt tom Kyle" by Count Adolf IV, and granted Lübeck city rights in 1242 by Adolf's eldest son, John I of Schauenburg. [cite web
title=A brief history of Kiel
work=Kiel — a portrait of the city
publisher=City of Kiel
url=http://www.kiel.de/Aemter_01_bis_20/05/City_history/1history.htm
accessdate=2007-07-01]

Kiel, the capital of Holstein, was a member of the Hanseatic League from 1284 until it was expelled in 1518 for harbouring pirates. In 1431, the "Kieler Umschlag" (trade fair) was first held, which became the central market for goods and money in Schleswig-Holstein until it began to lose significance from 1850 on, being held for the last time in 1900. Fact|date=September 2008 The University of Kiel was founded on 29 September, 1665, by Christian Albert, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp. A number of important scholars, including Theodor Mommsen and Max Planck, studied or taught there.

From 1773 to 1864, the town belonged to the King of Denmark. However, because the king ruled Holstein as a fief of the Holy Roman Empire only through a personal union, the town was not incorporated as part of Denmark proper. Fact|date=September 2008 Thus Kiel belonged to Germany but was ruled by the Danish king. Even though the Empire was abolished in 1806, the Danish king continued to rule Kiel only through his position as Duke of Holstein. When Schleswig and Holstein rebelled against Denmark in 1848 (the First Schleswig War), Kiel became the capital of Schleswig-Holstein until the Danish victory in 1852. Fact|date=September 2008

During the Second Schleswig War in 1864, Kiel and the rest of Schleswig and Holstein were conquered by a German Confederation alliance of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. After the war Kiel was briefly administered by both the Austrians and the Prussians, but the Austro-Prussian War in 1866 led to the annexation of Kiel by Prussia in 1867. On 24 March, 1865, King William I based Prussia's Baltic Sea fleet out of Kiel instead of Danzig (Gdańsk). Fact|date=September 2008

When William I of Prussia became Emperor William I of the German Empire in 1871, he designated Kiel and Wilhelmshaven as "Reichskrieghafen", or "Imperial War Harbour". The prestigious Yacht Club of Kiel was established in 1887 with Prince Heinrich of Prussia as its patron. Emperor Wilhelm II became its commodore in 1891.

Because of its new role as Germany's main naval base, Kiel quickly increased in size in the following years, from 18,770 in 1864 to about 200,000 in 1910. Much of the old town centre and other surroundings were leveled and redeveloped to provide for the growing city. Kiel was the site of the sailors' mutiny which sparked the German Revolution in late 1918. Fact|date=September 2008

At the end of World War I the German fleet stationed at Kiel was sent out on a last glorious mission against the British navy. This was a suicide mission that would not have achieved much, so the men stationed on the ships decided they had nothing to lose and refused to leave the relative safety of the port. Fact|date=September 2008 The lack of response to this from the government was partly to blame for the revolution that soon followed and therefore the rise of the Weimar Republic.

Kiel was the site of several camps that provided slave labour for local industry during World War II. [cite web|author=Victor, Edward|title=Alphabetical List of Camps, Subcamps and Other Camps|url=http://www.edwardvictor.com/Holocaust/List%20of%20Camps.htm|accessdate=July 25|accessyear=2008] Because of its status as a naval port and as production site for submarines, Kiel was heavily bombed by the Allies during World War II. The Bombing of U-boat Pens & Yards destroyed 80% of the remaining old town, 72% of the residential areas, and 83% of the industrial areas. [cite web|url=http://www.kiel.de/Aemter_01_bis_20/05/City_history/2history.htm|title=The Navy changed the face of Kiel|publisher=City of Kiel|work=Kiel — a portrait of the city|accessdate=July 25|accessyear=2008] In particular, after the large July 23/24 1944 RAF Bomber Command raid targeting the Deutsche Werke, there was no water for 3 days; trains and buses did not run for 8 days and there was no gas for cooking for 3 weeks. [http://www.raf.mod.uk/bombercommand/jul44.html Campaign Diary: July 44] , [http://www.raf.mod.uk/bombercommand/diary.html Royal Air Force Bomber Command 60th Anniversary site] . Accessed 4 May 2007]

The city was rebuilt after the war. However, Kiel was less meticulously restored than other towns in Schleswig-Holstein like Lübeck, Flensburg, or Schleswig.

In 1946, Kiel was named the seat of government for Schleswig-Holstein, and it officially became the state's capital in 1972. The "Kieler Umschlag" has been held again yearly since 1975. It is now a festival with music and food stalls, historical costumes, special bread, and a wedding, the "Umschlagshochzeit" for which every young bride and groom can apply. Above all, Kiel is most famous for its Kiel Week sailing festival held annually in June.

Main sights

In the vicinity of Kiel are seaside resorts such as Kiel-Strande, Kiel-Schilksee, Möltenort and Laboe. Laboe has an important naval memorial, as well as the WWII-era submarine "U-995", a popular tourist site since 1972.

Sights in Kiel include:
* The "Nikolaikirche" (church of St Nicholas, 14th/15th century)
* "Der Geistkämpfer" (The Spirit Fighter), a sculpture by Ernst Barlach in front of the Nikolaikirche
* The "Rathaus" (town hall, 1911) which has an operating paternoster, or revolving wooden elevator. (No longer open for tourism)
* a WWII-era air raid bunker (not open for tourism)
* Fernmeldeturm Kiel (Transmission Tower)
* Holsteinstadion, home of the football club Holstein Kiel
* Sparkassen-Arena

Economy

Kiel is the home of HDW Howaldtswerke Deutsche Werft GmbH, a shipyard founded in 1838 famed for its construction of submarines. HDW built the first German submarine "Brandtaucher" in 1850, and is today a subsidiary of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, the leading German group of shipyards.

Notable people

Notable residents

* Tomma Abts, painter and 2006 Turner Prize winner (born in Kiel but resident in London)
* Ernst Busch, actor, writer & collector of songs
* Alfred Brinckmann (1891 - 1967), chessmaster
* Britta Carlson (b. 1978 ), footballer
* Francisco Copado (b. 1974 ), footballer
* Heinrich Dahlinger (1922 - 2008), Fieldhandball player
* Bruno Diekmann (1897 - 1982), politician
* Cora E. (Sylvia Macco) (b. 1968 ), musician
* Michael F. Feldkamp (b. 1962 ), (1936 - 2004), historian
* Heinrich Heesch (1906 - 1995), mathematician
* Rudolf Hell, inventor
* Heike Henkel (b. 1964 ), athlete
* Johannes Wolfgang Willy Friedlieb Heuer (1910 - 1993), businessman
* August Howaldt, founder of Howaldtswerke
* Sigrid Hunke (1913 - 1999), author
* Otto Kretschmer, U-boat commander
* Oswalt Kolle (1928 - ), author
* Andreas Köpke (b. 1962 ), footballer
* August Leskien, linguist
* Henri Lehmann (1814 - ), painter
* Helmut Lemke (1907 - 1990), politician
* Marina Lewycka (b. 1946 - ), author
* Detlev von Liliencron (1844 - 1909), poetrist
* Carl Loewe, composer
* Judith Malina (1926 - 1995), actress ("The Addams Family")
* Peter III of Russia
* Max Planck, physicist
* Heinz Reincke (1925 - ), actor
* Karl Leonhard Reinhold, philosopher
* Sidney Sam (b. 1988 ), footballer
* Harro Schulze-Boysen (1909 - 1942), resistance fighter
* Ernst von Salomon, writer
* Manfred Stahnke (b. 1951 - ), composer
* Ernst Steinitz, mathematician
* Gerhard Stoltenberg (1928 - 2001) politician
* Johannes Nikolaus Tetens, philosopher
* Ferdinand Tönnies, sociologist,philosopher
* Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker (1912 - 2007), sociologist,philosopher
* Heiner Zieschang (1936 - 2004), mathematician
* Carl Zuckmayer, writer and playwright

Important historic mayors and lord mayors of Kiel

* 1688 - 1720: Asmus Bremer
* 1730 - 1732: Ernst Joachim von Westphalen
* 1920 - 1933: Emil Lueken (removed from office by the Nazis)

Lord mayors after World War II

* 1946 - 1954: Andreas Gayk (SPD)
* 1954 - 1965: Hans Müthling (SPD)
* 1965 - 1980: Günther Bantzer (SPD)
* 1980 - 1994: Karl-Heinz Luckhardt (SPD)
* 1994 - 1997: Otto Kelling (SPD)
* 1997 - 2003: Norbert Gansel (SPD)
* 2003 - today: Angelika Volquartz (CDU)

ister towns

Kiel is twinned with:
* Brest, France (1964)
* Coventry, United Kingdom (1967)
* Vaasa, Finland (1967)
* Gdynia, Poland (1985)
* Tallinn, Estonia (1986 — at that time in the flag|Soviet Union)
* Stralsund, Germany (1987 — at that time in flag|East Germany)
* Kaliningrad, Russia (1992)
* Sovetsk, Russia (1992)

Maritime services

Kiel is significant port for all shipping companies transporting passengers and goods to the Baltic states.

Passenger ferries from Kiel to
* Göteborg, Sweden (Stena Line, 13½ hours, daily)
* Oslo, Norway (Color Line, 19½ hours, daily)
* Klaipėda, Lithuania (DFDS LISCO, 21 hours, 6 times per week)Cargo ferries form Kiel to
* Sankt Petersburg, Russia (DFDS LISCO, twice a week)
* Kaliningrad, Russia (NSA, once a week)

ee also

* Kiel, Wisconsin

References

External links

* [http://www.kiel.de/ Official website]
*