Wikipedia:WikiProject Germany/Portal:Baden-Württemberg

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 Baden-Württemberg 

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Introduction

Baden-Württemberg (/ˌbɑːdən ˈvɜːrtəmbɜːrɡ/ 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 across a total area of nearly 35,752 km2 (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.

What is now Baden-Württemberg was formerly 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 three states had been artificially created by the Allies after World War II out of the existing traditional states by their separation over different occupation zones.

Baden-Württemberg is especially known for its strong economy with various industries like car manufacturing, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, 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 the local Swabian, Alemannic and Franconian dialects, is sometimes used as a synonym for Baden-Württemberg. (Full article...)

Selected article

Stuttgart Schlossplatz at night
Stuttgart Schlossplatz at night

Stuttgart (/ˈʃtʊtɡɑːrt/; German pronunciation: [ˈʃtʊtɡaʁt] , Swabian: Schduagert [ˈʃd̥ua̯ɡ̊ɛʕt]) is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southwest Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,068 (October 2014). Retrieved 17 Feb 2015 while the greater Stuttgart Metropolitan Region has a population of 5.3 million (2008), being the fourth-biggest in Germany after the Rhine-Ruhr area, Berlin/Brandenburg and Frankfurt/Rhine-Main. The city lies at the centre of a densely populated area, surrounded by a ring of smaller towns. This area called Stuttgart Region has a population of 2.7 million.

Stuttgart is spread across a variety of hills (many of them vineyards), valleys and parks – unusual for a German city and often a source of surprise to visitors who primarily associate the city with its industrial reputation as the 'cradle of the automobile'. Stuttgart has the status of Stadtkreis, a type of self-administrating urban county. It is also the seat of the State Parliament and State Government of Baden-Württemberg, the Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Württemberg as well as one of the two co-seats of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart.

Selected biography

Friedrich Schiller
Friedrich Schiller

Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (German: [ˈjoːhan ˈkʁɪstɔf ˈfʁiːdʁɪç fɔn ˈʃɪlɐ]; 10 November 1759 – 9 May 1805) was a German poet, philosopher, historian, and playwright. During the last seventeen years of his life (1788–1805), Schiller struck up a productive, if complicated, friendship with the already famous and influential Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. They frequently discussed issues concerning aesthetics, and Schiller encouraged Goethe to finish works he left as sketches. This relationship and these discussions led to a period now referred to as Weimar Classicism. They also worked together on Xenien, a collection of short satirical poems in which both Schiller and Goethe challenge opponents to their philosophical vision. Friedrich Schiller was born on 10 November 1759, in Marbach, Württemberg.

State facts

Selected image

Schiltach
Schiltach
Credit: Harke
The river Schiltach in Schiltach in the Black Forest.

Did you know?

  • ...that Oberried is home to the Barbarastollen caves, the central safekeeping archive of Germany. The Barbarastollen holds microfilms with millions of images from German archives and museums. The entire complex is buried under 400 meters of rock. It is intended to survive a nuclear war.
  • ...that the civic symbol of Mannheim is der Wasserturm, a Romanesque water tower completed in 1886 that rises to 60 metres above the highest point of the art nouveau area Friedrichsplatz.

Subcategories

Selected panorama

Heidelberg
Heidelberg
Credit: Mateusz Frycz

Heidelberg is a college town in Baden-Württemberg situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. At the 2015 census, its population was 156,257, with roughly a quarter of its population being students. A former residence of the Electorate of the Palatinate, Heidelberg is a popular tourist destination due to its romantic cityscape, including Heidelberg Castle, the Philosophers' Walk, and the baroque style Old Town.

Topics

Cities: FreiburgHeidelbergHeilbronnKarlsruheMannheimPforzheimReutlingenStuttgartUlm

Politics of Baden-Württemberg: List of Ministers-President of Baden-WürttembergBundesverfassungsgerichtDemokratische VolksparteiLandtag

Economy: BoschEnBWHeidelberger DruckmaschinenHugo BossMercedes-BenzPorscheSAP

History of Baden-Württemberg: List of Ministers-President of Baden-WürttembergKingdom of WürttembergGrand Duchy of BadenHohenzollernWürttemberg-Baden

Symbols: Coat of arms of Baden-WürttembergFlag of Baden-WürttembergBadnerlied

Languages and culture: Alemannic dialectsSwabian GermanSwabian-Alemannic FastnachtKehrwocheBollenhut

The Kaiserstuhl hills including the Totenkopf.

Badische LandesbibliothekBibliotheca Palatina

WeißenhofsiedlungStuttgarter FernsehturmVitra Design Museum

Hochschule für Gestaltung UlmState Academy of Fine Arts StuttgartStaatsgalerie StuttgartStaatliche Kunsthalle KarlsruheZKM

BlautopfSource of the DanubeDanube SinkholeBlack Forest National ParkTriberg Waterfalls

Related portals

Associated Wikimedia

The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject:

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