Twin city Frankfurt am Main (Germany)
History and profile of the twin city
The city was first mentioned in historic records in 794 as "Franconofurd".
Frankfurt hosted its first Autumn Fair as early as 1240. In 1356, the Golden Bull determined Frankfurt as the place for the election of the German kings. From 1810 to 1813, Frankfurt was the capital of the Dukedom Frankfurt and in 1848/49 St. Paul's Church was the seat of the first freely elected parliament of the German states including Austria.
Having been a trade fair centre from 1240 onwards, Frankfurt developed into a major financial centre in the 20th century. At the same time it is also an industrial city with chemical industry, electronics, metal processing, food industry, precision mechanics, optical industry, car manufacturing, textile and leather industry and publishing industry. Germany’s largest airport is also located in Frankfurt, making the city one of Germany’s most important traffic junctions.
As the seat of federal and state authorities and the European Central Bank, Frankfurt is one of the most important cities in Germany and Central Europe.
The universities and colleges of higher education, research institutions and libraries (Frankfurt is the home of the German National Library) add to its importance.
As a city of arts and sports, Frankfurt has museums, archives, an opera house and theatres, the Goethe house, the zoo and many important sports facilities. Even though it was severely damaged in WW II, Frankfurt has a large number of sights, including many churches.
Facts and Figures
- Fifth-largest city of Germany and economic centre of the Rhine-Main area.
- Population: approx. 650,000 inhabitants
- Twin city of Leipzig since 1990