Index
The “beer state” of Bavaria also produces fine wine in the Franconia region. The Oktoberfest, Neuschwanstein Castle and the magnificent Alpine scenery attract more foreign tourists than does any other federal state. Yet the slogan “Laptop and Lederhose” demonstrates that there is more to Bavaria than just a lively tradition. Its economy, which is stronger than that of Sweden, boasts global brands such as BMW, Audi, Siemens, MAN and Airbus Defence and Space. The state capital Munich commands top rankings in comparison with other German and international cities. And even outside Munich, Germany’s largest state is thriving: the annual Wagner Festival in Bayreuth is sold out every year, as is the Passion Play in Oberammergau, held once every ten years.
Capital: Munich
Population: 13,369,393
Surface area: 70,550 km2
Once a year, during the Berlinale film festival, the world of the silver screen focuses its attention on Berlin. And the city’s inhabitants are used to global interest. After all, the people of Berlin have lived in a capital city since 1458. However, there is also a shady side to the city’s history: the rule of the National Socialists and the East German regime, which built a wall right through the heart of the city. Since German unification in 1990, Berlin has once again been the undivided capital city. The Museum Island, the Berlin Philharmonic and more than 50 theaters ensure the city is unique in terms of cultural life. The “academic capital” boasts 39 universities and institutes of higher education, while also being home to businesses such as Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, while ITB, the worlds leading travel trade show, accentuates the slogan “Berlin is worth seeing”.
Capital: Berlin
Population: 3,866,385
Surface area: 892 km2
Brandenburg surrounds the capital city of Berlin and benefits from the latter’s “gin and martini belt”. However, with its numerous lakes and forests it also has several trump cards of its own. With the Hohenzollern castles, and in particular Sanssouci Castle, which is included in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List, the heart of the Kingdom of Prussia possesses jewels of courtly architecture. Indeed Potsdam is considered one of Germany’s most beautiful cities, featuring many architectural highlights. Today the citizens of Brandenburg boast Hollywood productions in the film-producing town of Babelsberg, the European University Viadrina in Frankfurt an der Oder and more than 300 foreign companies, including the German HQ of Ebay.
Capital: Potsdam
Population: 2,573,135
Surface area: 29,654 km2
The Hanseatic city of Bremen arose through classic maritime trading, in particular with coffee. In the smallest of the federal states (divided into the city of Bremen, and Bremerhaven, some 60 kilometers to the north) the port accounts for every fifth job. The largest private employer, however, is Daimler; and the ports turn around 2.3 million vehicles annually. The state’s cultural life is also influenced by commerce: The Überseemuseum (Overseas Museum) and the Deutsches Schiffahrtsmuseum (Maritime Museum) attract visitors from all over the country. The merchants’ wealth led to the birth of a truly beautiful architectural ensemble: the town hall market square with its Baroque and Renaissance buildings, a tribute to the city’s rich history, which began when it was awarded market rights back in 888.
Capital: Bremen
Population: 569,396
Surface area: 419 km2
In the city and state of Hamburg it is the port that is the power-house of the economy, though with Airbus, Otto Versand and Beiersdorf also located here, this is not immediately apparent. The tanker terminals, mean that almost all the major oil-refining companies are represented in the port. For pleasure-seekers, there is the entertainment district of St. Pauli. Yet Hamburg’s reputation as a media and science center is of greater importance to its inhabitants. The need for culture is satisfied by renowned institutes such as the Kunsthalle and more than 30 theaters – including the state opera company with world ballet star John Neumeier. On a national basis Hamburg leads the way when it comes to musicals, which every month bring thousands of visitors thronging to the city.
Capital: Hamburg
Population: 1,892,122
Surface area: 755 km2
It need not be from outer space, even from a plane Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, with more than 2,000 lakes, numerous waterways and lush green inbetween looks particularly attractive. Together with its 350-kilometer-long Baltic coastline, this Northeastern state is the major venue for water sports enthusiasts in the whole of Central Europe. Small wonder, then, that tourism is so important in this federal state. To make certain this remains the case, large parts of the state has been declared a nature conservation area. Away from the tourist centers, wind farms on the Baltic coast and small and medium-sized companies in the nutrition industry are the growth sectors in this, the country’s most thinly populated state. Northern Europe’s two oldest universities and several innovative R&D facilities make the state one of the dynamic regions for high-tech, bio-tech and medi-tech.
Capital: Schwerin
Population: 1,628,378
Surface area: 23,214 km2
No state in Germany has more inhabitants than North Rhine-Westphalia, and there is a correspondingly large number of cities: Cologne, with its Gothic cathedral, Bonn, the Federal Republic’s first capital city, Düsseldorf, the fashion-conscious state capital, Aachen, under the rule of Charlemagne the capital of Europe, Duisburg with Europe’s largest inland port, the silk town of Krefeld, the linen town of Bielefeld, not to mention Essen and Dortmund, two major cities in the Ruhr region. They bear witness to the changes Germany’s largest industrial area has seen: coal mining and steel production are more and more replaced by bio-chemicals and high-tech. Yet “NRW”, as the state is referred to, not only has one of Europe’s most highly concentrated research networks, its six UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Sites make it one of the most important cultural regions.
Capital: Düsseldorf
Population: 17,947,221
Surface area: 34,110 km2
Meissen may well be a small town but, thanks to its porcelain, is as well known as the state capital Dresden and Leipzig, the trade-fair city. The Free State is one of the most dynamic economic regions in East Germany, in particular in IT; precision watch-making and car-making are typical of this new gearing, symbolized by the restored Frauenkirche in Dresden’s Baroque center. As in the past, Saxony’s culture is highly influential in the world of music, represented by the Semper opera house in Dresden and the 800-year old Thomaner Choir in Leipzig, where Johann Sebastian Bach was once a cantor. Is he the greatest Saxon ever? Bach at least has a serious rival – in the person of Richard Wagner.
Capital: Dresden
Population: 4,086,152
Surface area: 18,420 km2
The Basic Law determines that Germany is a constitutional state: All state authorities are subject to judicial control. Section 1 of the Basic Law is of particular relevance. It stipulates that respect for human dignity is the most important aspect of the constitution: “Human dignity shall be inviolable. To respect and protect it shall be the duty of all state authority.” Among other things, the other basic rights guarantee the freedom to act within the law, equality before the law, freedom of the press and media, freedom of association and protection of the family.
In determining that it is the people who exercise power through special bodies, the Basic Law lays down representative democracy as the form of rulership. Furthermore, it determines that Germany is a constitutional state: All state authorities are subject to judicial control. Another principle of the constitution is that Germany is a federal state, in other words the ruling authorities are divided up into a number of member states and the central state. In conclusion, the Basic Law defines Germany as a welfare state. The welfare state requires the political system to take precautions such that people are guaranteed a decent standard of material well-being in case of unemployment, disability, illness and in old age. One particular feature of the Basic Law is the so-called “eternal character” of these governing constitutional principles. Subsequent alterations to the Basic Law or a completely new constitution cannot encroach on the basic rights, the democratization of sovereignty, the federal state and the welfare state.
The Bundesrat represents the federal states and alongside the Bundestag is a form of Second Chamber. It is obliged to deliberate on each federal law. As the chamber of the federal states, the Bundesrat has the same function as those Second Chambers in other federal states that are mostly referred to as the Senate. The Bundesrat is made up exclusively of representatives of the federal state governments. The number of votes each state holds is aligned in a sense to the size of its population: Each state has at least three, and those with the highest populations up to six.
The Bundesrat plays a part in the passing of federal legislation. Here, it differs from the Second Chamber of other federal states. The Basic Law envisages two forms of participation. Central laws that cause the federal states additional administrative costs or replace existing central laws require the approval of the Bundesrat: The latter is required to endorse laws passed by the Bundestag for these to become legally binding. In this regard, the Bundesrat enjoys the same rights as the Bundestag in terms of being a legislative organ. Currently almost 50 percent of all laws passed require the approval of the Bundesrat. Since federal laws are in principle enforced by the administrative bodies of the federal states, the most important and most costly laws involve the administrative sovereignty of the federal states. A difference should be made between these approval laws and the appeal laws. Though the Bundesrat can reject the latter, the Bundestag can overrule the objection with the same majority as in the Bundesrat, with a simple or two-thirds majority, in the event of the latter with at least the majority of the members of the Bundestag (absolute majority).
Since September 2006, the reform of the federal system has recalibrated the respective scope of central government and of the individual federal states. The goal of the reform: to improve the decision-making abilities and scope for action of both central government and the federal state governments, and to more clearly assign political responsibilities.
The mountains in the Thuringian Forest provide a backdrop for one of Germany’s most beautiful trails, the 168-kilometer long Rennsteig. It is just as much a trademark of the state as its long thin sausages, the historic Wartburg and the Weimar poets Goethe and Schiller. However, Thuringia not only has a culinary and literary tradition, it was always a state of researchers. Zeiss and Schott founded the modern optics industry in Jena; Jenoptik is nowadays one of the most important companies there. Erfurt, the state capital, is proud of the flourishing biotechnology and microelectronics solar technology there, in addition to the excellent educational opportunities offered by four institutes of higher education.
Capital: Erfurt
Population: 2,133,378
Surface area: 16,202 km2