Portal:Germany

Welcome to the Germany Portal!
Willkommen im Deutschland-Portal!

Germany (German: Deutschland), officially the Federal Republic of Germany (German: Bundesrepublik Deutschland), is a country in Central and Western Europe, lying between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north with the Alps to the south. It borders Denmark to the north, Poland and the Czech Republic to the east, Austria and Switzerland to the south, France to the southwest, and Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands to the west.

Germany includes 16 constituent states, covers an area of 357,596 square kilometres (138,069 sq mi) and has a largely temperate seasonal climate. With over 83 million inhabitants, it is the second most populous state of Europe after Russia, the most populous state lying entirely in Europe, as well as the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is a very decentralized country. Its capital and most populous city is Berlin, while Frankfurt serves as its financial capital and has the country's busiest airport.

In 1871, Germany became a nation-state when most of the German states unified into the Prussian-dominated German Empire. After World War I and the Revolution of 1918–19, the Empire was replaced by the parliamentary Weimar Republic. The Nazi seizure of power in 1933 led to World War II and the Holocaust. After the end of World War II in Europe and a period of Allied occupation, two new German states were founded: West Germany, formed from the American, British, and French occupation zones, and East Germany, formed from the western part of the Soviet occupation zone, reduced by the newly established Oder-Neisse line. Following the Revolutions of 1989 that ended communist rule in Central and Eastern Europe, the country was reunified on 3 October 1990.

Germany is a federal parliamentary republic led by a chancellor. It is a great power with a strong economy. As a global leader in several industrial, scientific and technological sectors, it is a major trading nation. The Federal Republic of Germany was a founding member of the European Economic Community in 1957 and the European Union in 1993. Read more...

Selected article

Michael Schumacher (/ˈʃuːmækər/ SHOO-mak-ər, US also /-mɑːk-/ -⁠mahk-, German: [ˈmɪçaʔeːl ˈʃuːmaxɐ] ^ⓘ; born 3 January 1969) is a German former racing driver who competed in Formula One from 1991 to 2006 and from 2010 to 2012. Schumacher won a record-setting seven Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, tied by Lewis Hamilton in 2020, and—at the time of his retirement—held the records for most wins (91), pole positions (68), and podium finishes (155), while he maintains the record for most fastest laps (77), among others.

Born in Hürth to a working-class family, Schumacher began competitive kart racing aged four in a pedal kart built from discarded parts. After a successful karting career—culminating in his victory at the direct-drive Karting European Championship in 1987—Schumacher graduated to junior formulae. He dominated Formula König in his debut season, before graduating to German Formula Three in 1989, where he finished third. He won the title in 1990, also claiming the Macau Grand Prix and becoming a race-winner in the World Sportscar Championship with Sauber Mercedes. Schumacher made his debut Formula One appearance with Jordan at the Belgian Grand Prix in 1991; his qualifying performance saw Benetton sign him for the remainder of the season. In 1992, he achieved his maiden victory in Belgium amongst several podiums, which he repeated at the Portuguese Grand Prix in 1993. Schumacher won his maiden World Drivers' Championship with eight victories in 1994, following a collision with his rival Damon Hill at the last race of the season. He won a further nine Grands Prix as he defended his title in 1995. (Full article...)

Selected picture

Image 1
Lichtenstein Castle
Photo credit: Andreas Tille
Lichtenstein Castle is a fairy-tale castle located near Honau in the Swabian Alb, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Although there have been previous castles on the site, the current castle was constructed by Duke Wilhelm of Urach in 1840 after being inspired by Wilhelm Hauff's novel Lichtenstein. The romantic Neo-Gothic design of the castle was created by the architect Carl Alexander Heideloff.
Image 2
Speicherstadt
Credit: Dietmar Rabich
Speicherstadt in Hamburg, June 2016
Image 3
Thomas Müller
Photograph: Michael Kranewitter
Thomas Müller (b. 1989) is a German professional footballer who has played for Bayern Munich since 2009; he is also the team's vice-captain. A versatile player, Müller plays as a midfielder or forward but has also been deployed in attacking roles such as attacking midfielder, second striker, centre forward and on either wing. He has represented Germany on its national team since 2010.
Image 4
German Instrument of Surrender
The German Instrument of Surrender, the main portion of which was signed at Reims, France, at 02:41 on 7 May 1945, was the legal instrument that established the armistice ending World War II in Europe. It was signed by representatives of the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht, the Allied Expeditionary Force and Soviet High Command. Another act of military surrender was signed, shortly before midnight, on 8 May in the outskirts of Berlin, Germany, at the insistence of the Soviets.
Image 5
Stefan Heym
Photograph: Marcel Antonisse / Anefo
Helmut Flieg (1913–2001) was a German writer best-known by the pseudonym Stefan Heym. He lived in the United States (or served in its army abroad) between 1935 and 1952, before moving back to his native Germany. He published works in English and German at home and abroad, including Nazis in the U.S.A. (1938), Goldsborough (1953), and Five Days in June (1977).
Image 6
New Synagogue, Berlin
Image credit: Wilhelm Ernst & Sohn
An 1896 engraving of the interior of the New Synagogue, Berlin. The synagogue was noted for its Moorish style and resemblance to the Alhambra. During the Kristallnacht pogrom of 1938, the Synagogue was set ablaze. Today the synagogue serves as an exhibit for various aspects of the Holocaust, particularly Kristallnacht.
Image 7
Blankenhain Castle
Credit: André Karwath
Blankenhain Castle is an open-air museum and castle near Crimmitschau, a large district town in the Saxon landkreis of Zwickauer Land, Germany.
Image 8
SMS Fürst Bismarck (1897)
Illustration: Hugo Graf; restoration: Adam Cuerden
SMS Fürst Bismarck was Germany's first armored cruiser, built for the Kaiserliche Marine before the turn of the 20th century and launched in 1900. Named for the German statesman Otto von Bismarck, the ship was primarily intended for colonial duties. She served in this capacity as part of the East Asia Squadron until she was relieved in 1909, at which point she returned to Germany. The ship was rebuilt between 1910 and 1914, and after the start of World War I, she was briefly used as a coastal defense ship. She proved inadequate to this task, and so she was withdrawn from active duty and served as a training ship for engineers until the end of the war. Fürst Bismarck was decommissioned in 1919 and sold for scrap.
Image 9
Ulm Minster
Credit: Uwe Aranas
Interior of the Ulm Minster, Ulm
Image 10
Dresden
Photochrom: Detroit Publishing Co.
Restoration: Lise Broer
An 1890s photochrom print of Dresden, the capital city of Saxony in Germany, with Dresden Frauenkirche (left), Augustus Bridge (centre), and Katholische Hofkirche (right) visible. Dresden in the early 20th century was a leading European centre of culture and science, but suffered heavy damage due to an Allied bombing on February 13, 1945.
Image 11
Cologne Stadtbahn
Photograph credit: Martin Falbisoner
The underground station Rochusplatz on the Cologne Stadtbahn, a light rail system in the German city of Cologne. The station entrance is at the junction of Venloer Straße with Äußere Kanalstraße in the district of Ehrenfeld. It was opened in 1992 and consists of a mezzanine and one island platform with two rail tracks. The station was previously known as Äußere Kanalstraße, but was renamed to its present title on 15 December 2019. The system uses pairs of K5000/K5200 units built by Bombardier Transportation, which are almost identical to the M5000 trams used by Metrolink in Manchester, England.
Image 12
Bastei
Credit: Thomas Wolf
Bastei (Elbe Sandstone Mountains) in Saxony
Image 13
Reichstag
Credit: Ansgar Koreng
Reichstag in Berlin, December 2015
Image 14
City hall of Zwickau
Credit: André Karwath
This image shows the townhall (Rathaus) of Zwickau located on the main market which has been built after a big town blaze in 1403. Above the main entrance you can see the city arms of Zwickau.
Image 15
Wanderer above the Sea of Fog
Painting: Caspar David Friedrich
Wanderer above the Sea of Fog is an 1818 painting by Caspar David Friedrich, a German Romantic. It has been read as a metaphor for the uncertainty of the future.
Image 16
Externsteine
Photo credit: Daniel Schwen
The Externsteine, a distinctive rock formation located in the Teutoburger Wald region of northwestern Germany, are a popular tourist attraction. Stairs and a small bridge connecting two of the rocks lead to the top.
Image 17
Giacomo Meyerbeer
Poster credit: Henri Télory; restored by Adam Cuerden
Giacomo Meyerbeer (1791–1864) was a German opera composer. Born to a wealthy Berlin family, he began his musical career as a pianist but soon decided to devote himself to opera. Meyerbeer spent several years in Italy studying and composing, before moving to Paris, where he became a dominant figure in the world of opera. This poster advertised the premiere of Meyerbeer's opera Le pardon de Ploërmel, which opened at the Opéra-Comique in Paris on 4 April 1859.
Image 18
Bollenhut
Credit: Michel Lefranc aka Tournachon
Women wearing tracht and Bollenhut at Black Forest Open Air Museum in Gutach
Image 19
Cairn in Snow
Painting: Caspar David Friedrich
Cairn in Snow is a landscape painting by Caspar David Friedrich that was completed in 1807. The painting is a Romantic allegorical landscape, showing a pagan burial site between three oaks, near the town Gützkow in Germany. It is held by the Galerie Neue Meister in Dresden, Germany.
Image 20
East Frisia
Photo credit: Matthias Süßen
Morning fog on the plains of East Frisia, a coastal region in the northwest of the German federal state of Lower Saxony. It connects Western Frisia (in the Netherlands) with the district of Nordfriesland ("Northern Frisia") in Schleswig-Holstein, all of which belong to the historic and geographic Frisia.
Image 21
Hoher Göll
Photograph credit: Jörg Braukmamm
The Hoher Göll is a mountain in the Berchtesgaden Alps. At 2,522 metres (8,274 feet), it is the highest peak of the Göll massif, which straddles the border between the German state of Bavaria and the Austrian state of Salzburg. This photograph shows the Hoher Göll (left) and the Hohes Brett (right) from the west.
Image 22
Adolf Mosengel
Painting credit: Adolf Mosengel
Adolf Mosengel (1837–1885) was a landscape painter from Hamburg, Germany, who built a reputation painting Alpine scenes, later turning to scenes from Westphalia. From 1854 to 1857, he studied at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf under Hans Gude, and from 1858 to 1859 in Paris, after which he moved to Geneva to study under Alexandre Calame. He spent most of his life working in Hamburg, but travelled in 1879 to the lakes of Northern Italy, where he painted en plein air. This oil-on-canvas painting by Mosengel shows a village in the Bernese Alps.

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Parent portals

Europe
European Union

Regional

Rhön
Baden-Württemberg
Bavaria
Berlin
Brandenburg
Hamburg
Lower Saxony
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
Ore Mountains
North Rhine-Westphalia
Rhineland-Palatinate
Saxony

History

Holy Roman Empire (900–1806)
East Germany (1949–1990)

Neighbouring countries

Austria
Belgium
Czech Republic
Denmark
France
Luxembourg
Netherlands
Poland
Switzerland
Sweden

Anniversaries for December 26

1194 – Birth of Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor
1890 – Death of Heinrich Schliemann, excavator of Troy

Did you know...

... that a cartel was formed to purchase papyri for the Berlin Papyrus Collection?
... that Lale Andersen, who was popular on both sides of World War II for her version of "Lili Marleen", represented Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 1961?
... that Nazi officer Reinhard Höhn founded a business school after the Second World War?
... that recruitment for the French SS Volunteer Assault Brigade was promoted through a Waffen-SS exhibition in Paris that attracted thousands of visitors daily?
... that the 2022 German presidential election was held at Paul Löbe House instead of the Reichstag due to the COVID-19 pandemic?
... that four US Army soldiers stole $36 million in valuables from a German castle in late 1945?
... that the Ferber House was rumoured to be haunted after the family who owned it went extinct?
sabotage in World War II involved delaying the Nazi nuclear program, derailing trains, freeing Jews – and explosive rats?

Selected cuisines, dishes and foods

Schweinshaxe (German pronunciation: [ˈʃvaɪnshaksə] ^ⓘ; literally 'swine's hock'), in German cuisine, is a roasted ham hock (or pork knuckle). The ham hock is the end of the pig's leg, just above the ankle and below the meaty ham portion. It is especially popular in Bavaria as Schweinshaxn (pronounced [ˈʃvaɪnshaksn̩]) or Sauhax(n) ([ˈsao̯haks(n̩)]). A variation of this dish is known in parts of Germany as Eisbein, in which the ham hock is pickled and usually slightly boiled.

Schweinshaxe is one of the formerly typical peasant foods, in which recipes were composed to make inexpensive and tough cuts of meat more palatable (cf. for beef the popular Sauerbraten). Such inexpensive cuts usually require long periods of preparation; the meat is sometimes marinated for days, and in the case of big cuts up to a week. The Schweinshaxe is then roasted at low temperatures, typically—depending on size—for two to three hours. (Full article...)

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Requests: German Archaeological Institute at Rome, Deutsche Familienversicherung, Hermann Bachmann (Journalist), Dietlof von Arnim-Boitzenburg, Rolf von Bargen, Hennes Bender, Eduard Georg von Bethusy-Huc, Rolf Brandt (1886–1953), Jan Philipp Burgard, Rudolf Epp, Lisa Feller, Georg Arbogast von und zu Franckenstein, Georg Gafron, Ferdinand Heribert von Galen, Gundula Gause, Wolfgang von Geldern, Karl-Heinz Hagen, Herbert Helmrich, Nils von der Heyde, Monty Jacobs (1875–1945), Siegfried Kauder, Klimbim Matze Knop, Wolfgang Kryszohn, Claus Larass, Isidor Levy (1852–1929), Richard Lewinsohn (1894-1968), Markus Löning, Tobias Mann, Mathias Müller von Blumencron ,Günther Nonnenmacher, Nord bei Nordwest, Günter von Nordenskjöld, Anke Plättner, Hans Heinrich X. Fürst von Pless, Günter Prinz, Ulrich Reitz, Hans Sauer (inventor), Franz August Schenk von Stauffenberg, Paul Schlesinger (1878-1928), Hajo Schumacher, Der Seewolf (1971), Otto Theodor von Seydewitz, Christoph Sieber (comedian), Dorothea Siems, Werner Sonne, Udo zu Stolberg-Wernigerode, Christoph Strässer, Joseph von Utzschneider, Hedda von Wedel, Jürgen Wieshoff, Hans Wilhelmi, Dietmar Wischmeyer, Doris Wittner (1880-1937), Alexandra Würzbach
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