(Redirected from Untertürkheim)
City Center seen from Weinsteige Road
'Stuttgart' (
IPA: []) is the capital of the state of
Baden-Württemberg in southern
Germany. The sixth-largest
city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 593,639 (as of
April 30 2006), while the metropolitan
Stuttgart Region has a population of 2.7 million.
Coat of Arms
The coat of arms of Stuttgart shows a black, rampant horse on a yellow or golden field. It is a
canting seal due to the fact that the name "Stuttgart" is an over the centuries modified version of "Stutengarten", in English roughly "mare garden" or "
stud farm". This is due to the origin of the city as a horse stable in the
10th century, where horses were bred for cavalry (see ''History'').
It is sometimes suggested that both the
Italian car factory
Ferrari and the city's own firm
Porsche designed part of their logos after the model of Stuttgart's coat of arms.
History
Ca.
950, Stuttgart was founded by Duke
Liudolf of
Swabia, one of the sons of Holy Roman Emperor
Otto I the Great, and used for horse breeding (especially for his father's cavalry, see
Battle of Lechfeld).
Ca.
1300, Stuttgart became the residence of the Counts of
Württemberg. In
1496, the counts were promoted to dukes by the
Holy Roman Emperor. During
Napoleon Bonaparte's breakup of the
Holy Roman Empire, the Dukes of Württemberg received the title of kings in 1805 and Stuttgart became a royal residence.
The name of the royal family of Württemberg and of the state originates from a steep Stuttgart hill, formerly known as Wirtemberg, nowadays called Württemberg. On top of that hill, the mausoleum from
1824 of Queen Katharina (daughter of
Tsar Paul I of Russia) and King
William I of Württemberg is located.
During the
revolution of 1848/1849, a democratic pan-German national parliament (
Frankfurt Parliament) was formed in
Frankfurt to overcome the division of Germany. After long discussions, the parliament decided to offer the title of German Emperor to King
Frederick William IV of Prussia. Since the democratic movement became weaker, the German princes regained control of their independent states. Finally the Prussian king declined the revolutionaries' offer. The members of parliament were driven out of Frankfurt, and the most radical members (those who wanted to establish a republic) fled to Stuttgart. A short while later, this
rump parliament was dissolved by the Württemberg military.
In
1871, as an autonomous kingdom, Württemberg joined the
German Empire, created by
Otto von Bismarck,
Prime Minister of Prussia, during the
unification of Germany. After
World War I, the monarchy broke down and the Free State of Württemberg was established, as a part of the
Weimar Republic. In
1920, Stuttgart was the seat of the German National Government (since the administration had to flee from
Berlin, see
Kapp Putsch). During
World War II, the city center of Stuttgart was nearly completely destroyed due to
Allied air raids.
In
1945 the Allied Forces took control of Germany. They merged parts of the former German States of
Baden and
Württemberg and later in
1952 on the new, democratic state Baden-Württemberg (3rd largest German state) with Stuttgart as its capital was created by a referendum.
After World War II, an early concept of the
Marshall Plan to support the reconstruction and economic/political recovery of Europe was presented during a speech given by US Secretary of State
James F. Byrnes at the Stuttgart Opera House (
September 6,
1946). This speech led directly to the unification of the British and American occupation zones, resulting in the so called bi-zone. Two years later, the French also joined the bi-zone, creating the tri-zone and thereby paving the way for the foundation of the
Federal Republic of Germany. Stuttgart, like
Frankfurt, was a serious contender to become the federal capital, but finally
Bonn succeeded.
In the late 1970s, the city district of Stammheim was center stage of one of the most controversial periods of German post-war history: The
Red Army Faction trial at the Stammheim high-security court and the subsequent suicides of
Ulrike Meinhof,
Andreas Baader, Gudrun Ensslin and Jan-Carl Raspe (all imprisoned in the Stammheim jail). The trial and the period thereafter were accompanied by several new terrorist assaults to liberate the inmates (
German Autumn 1977 including the abduction and murder of the German industrialist and President of the German Employers' Association
Hanns Martin Schleyer and the hijacking of
Lufthansa flight LH181, redirecting the jet to
Mogadishu).
During the
Cold War, the joint command center of all
United States military forces in Europe, Africa and the Atlantic was moved to Stuttgart (US European Command, EUCOM).
EUCOM is still headquartered there today. U.S. Army bases in and around Stuttgart include or included the following:
Patch Barracks (HQ EUCOM), Robinson Barracks,
Kelley Barracks (General Patton's son once lived there).
Geography
Stuttgart lies close to both the
Black Forest and the
Swabian Jura. The city center, situated in a lush valley, ringed with vineyards and forests, close to the River
Neckar, covers an area of . Stuttgart with its metropolitan area (the political entity "
Stuttgart Region" enlarged by the nearby cities of
Ludwigsburg,
Böblingen,
Esslingen,
Waiblingen,
Göppingen and their respective districts) is one of the most prominent and well-known German towns, especially due to its cultural, administrative and economic importance.
The Stuttgart Region is the nation's fourth largest
conurbation (behind Ruhr Area, Rhine/Main Area and Berlin). Neighbouring large cities are
Frankfurt (210 km north of Stuttgart),
Nuremberg (200 km northeast of Stuttgart) and
Munich (220 km southeast of Stuttgart).
The city of Stuttgart is subdivided into 23 city districts, among the most well-known are:
★
Bad Cannstatt (Western Europe's largest mineral spas / Zoo
Wilhelma / "
Cannstatter Wasen" and "
Stuttgarter Frühlingsfest" on the Cannstatter Wasen / Home of
VfB Stuttgart)
★
Degerloch (
Fernsehturm Stuttgart / Home of
Stuttgarter Kickers)
★
Möhringen (Musical Theaters)
★
Stammheim (High-security court & jail, see
RAF terrorists)
★
Untertürkheim (
DaimlerChrysler HQ and Original
Mercedes-Benz plant)
★ Vaihingen (One of two campuses of Stuttgart's university,
headquarters of US armed forces in Europe. Stuttgart-Vaihingen should not be confused with nearby
Vaihingen (Enz))
★
Zuffenhausen (Home of the
Porsche Sports Cars Company)
★
Feuerbach (Home of the original
Bosch plant)
★
Botnang (Original home of
Jürgen Klinsmann)
Stuttgart is also the seat of a
Protestant bishop (Protestant State Church of Württemberg) and one of the two co-seats of the bishop of the
Roman Catholic diocese
Rottenburg-Stuttgart. The Stuttgart-based
pentecostal ''Biblische Glaubens-Gemeinde'' is the largest evangelical
megachurch in Germany.
Economy
Approximately 150,000 companies are located in the Stuttgart region. The area is known for its high-tech industry; some of its most prominent companies include
Daimler AG,
Porsche,
Bosch,
Celesio,
Hewlett-Packard and
IBM all of whom located their world or German headquarters here. In fact, the Porsche badge, as seen on the front of Porsche cars has this town's name in the centre of the badge, something that is unique amongst the world's vehicle makers.
Stuttgart is the place where the motorbike and the four-wheeled automobile were invented (invented by Gottlieb Daimler and Karl Benz, industrialised 1887 by Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach in their 1887
Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft), it's hence the starting point of the worldwide automotive industry. Such famous and prestigious brands as
Mercedes-Benz,
Porsche and
Maybach are produced there. Also the very first prototypes of the eventual
VW Beetle were fabricated in Stuttgart, based on a design by
Ferdinand Porsche.
View of Stuttgart from the top of the TV Tower
The region currently has Germany's highest density of scientific, academic and research organizations, and tops the national league for patent applications. More than 11% of all R&D-expenses in the Federal Republic of Germany are generated in the Stuttgart Region (approximately 4.3 billion Euro per year). In addition to several universities and colleges (i.a.
University of Stuttgart,
University of Hohenheim and the several branches of the
University of Applied Sciences Stuttgart), the area has six institutes of the
Fraunhofer Gesellschaft, four institutes for collaborative industrial research at local universities, two
Max-Planck Institutes, as well as one large-scale research centre—the German Aerospace Centre (DLR).
Stuttgart holds top place of all European Union regions according to the share of employment in high-tech and medium-high tech manufacturing with a figure of 21.0% (2001 data from Eurostat).
The Stuttgart Stock Exchange is the second largest in Germany (second only to Frankfurt Stock Exchange) and important financial companies are headquartered in Stuttgart (e.g. LBBW Bank or Wüstenrot&Württembergische, and Allianz Life Insurance), as well. In addition to these global players, the Stuttgart economy consists of many highly versatile and dynamic medium-sized enterprises (the so-called "
Mittelstand").
Furthermore, Stuttgart is still one of Germany's largest wine-growing towns with a century-long tradition and is situated at the geographic center of the "Württemberg Wine Growing Area" (110.30 km², one of 13 official German growing areas, according to the German Wine Law), and also celebrates an annual wine festival called "weindorf". Stuttgart is also home to several famous breweries, such as Stuttgarter Hofbräu,
Dinkelacker, and Schwabenbräu.
Transportation
Local transport
Stuttgart Stadtbahn underground station
Stuttgart has a
light rail system, known as the
Stuttgart Stadtbahn, which has incrementally replaced the city's tram lines. In the city centre as well as in other densely built-up districts of the city, the Stadtbahn runs underground and uses the "U"-symbol (for ''
Unabhängig''). One regular
tram service still operates in the city, together with a couple of heritage routes. Stuttgart also has a large
bus network. The Stadtbahn, trams and buses are operated by the
Stuttgarter Straßenbahnen AG (SSB), the local public transport operator.
Stuttgart, like other cities in Germany, is also served by a rapid transit system called the
Stuttgart S-Bahn, which operates on the rails of the national
Deutsche Bahn AG (DBAG). Although the S-Bahn is operated by a subsidiary company of the DBAG, rather than the SSB, both undertakings are part of the regional transport cooperative, the
Verkehrs- und Tarifverbund Stuttgart (VVS), which coordinates tickets and fares among all transport operators in the metropolitan area.
A peculiarity of Stuttgart is the
''Zahnradbahn'', a
rack railway operating from Marienplatz in the heart of the city to the Degerloch district; it is the only urban rack railway in Germany and is powered by electricity. Furthermore, there is the
''Standseilbahn Stuttgart'', a
funicular railway that operates in the city's Heslach district to the forest cemetery (Waldfriedhof), employing cars built of wood. In the
Killesberg Park, on a prominent hill in the city, there is the
Killesberg park railway run by diesel (and on weekends with steam).
Air links
Stuttgart is served by
Stuttgart Airport (in German ''Flughafen Stuttgart''), which is an international airport located approximately 8 miles (13 km) south of the city center in the neighbouring town of
Leinfelden-Echterdingen. The airport is within 30 minutes travelling time from the city using S-Bahn lines S2 or S3. The airport is adjacent to the Autobahn A8.
Rail links
Stuttgart is a hub in the
InterCityExpress and
InterCity networks of
Deutsche Bahn AG (DBAG), with through services to
Berlin and most other major German cities. There are also international services to
Strasbourg,
Paris,
Vienna and
Zurich. These long distance trains call at
Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof, the city's main line terminus. Since June 2007, a
SNCF-operated high speed (
TGV) service runs between Stuttgart and Paris four times a day, taking 3 hours 40 minutes for the journey.
The Hauptbahnhof terminus is also used by DBAG's
RegionalExpress and
RegionalBahn regional services, which do serve other stations in the Stuttgart metropolitan area. Below the terminus are separate underground stations on the city's two local rail networks, the S-Bahn and the Stadtbahn.
Stuttgart is also a rail freight center, with
marshalling yards and a
container terminal at
Stuttgart Obertürkheim.
Road links
The motorway
''Autobahn'' A8 (
Paris -
Strasbourg -
Karlsruhe - Stuttgart -
Munich -
Salzburg -
Vienna) forms the southern boundary of the city. The city is also served by the Autobahns A81 (
Zürich –
Singen –
Würzburg –
Hamburg) and A831.
Waterway links
The city has an inland port at
Stuttgart Hedelfingen on the
River Neckar.
People, culture, and architecture
The State Opera House
Neues Schloss and Schlossplatz in Winter 2006
Wilhelma Zoo and Botanical Garden, around 1900
Stuttgart is known for its cultural life, in particular the
Staatstheater and
Staatsgalerie. The
Staatstheater contains an opera house and three smaller theaters, where opera, ballet, theatre and concerts are produced. The
Staatstheater was awarded the title "Theatre of the year" (Germany/Austria/Switzerland) in 2006. The world-renowned Stuttgart Opera won the prestigious "Opera of the year" (Germany/Austria/Switzerland) award six times: 1994, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002 and again in 2006. The famous Stuttgart Ballet is connected to names like
John Cranko and
Marcia Haydée. The city also offers two broadway-style Musical theaters, the Apollo and the Palladium Theater (each approx. 1800 seats).
Stuttgart's Swabian cuisine, beer and wine (produced in the area since the 1600s) are also well known. The
Gaisburger Marsch, a stew, was invented in Stuttgarts district Gaisburg. Stuttgart hosts the world-famous annual
Stuttgart Beer Festival; it is second in size only to the
Oktoberfest in
Munich. The
Christmas Market of Stuttgart is the largest (more than 3.6 million visitors in 2006) and one of the oldest and most beautiful in Europe, especially renowned for the abundant decorations.
Stuttgart is home to the
Württembergische Landesbibliothek (WLB) state library.
Stuttgart's city center was heavily damaged during World War II and its aftermath. Nevertheless, many historic buildings have been reconstructed, and the city boasts of some fine pieces of modern post-war architecture.
★ 1200 - 1600 Collegiate Church (Stiftskirche; Exterior:
Romanesque/
Gothic); Interior: Romanesque/Gothic/Modern); reconstructed with simplified interior
★ 1300 - 1500
Old Castle (Altes Schloß;
Renaissance Style); reconstructed
★ 1700 - 1800
New Castle (Neues Schloß;
Baroque /
Classicism); reconstructed with modern interior
★ 1700 - 1800
Castle Solitude (Baroque /
Rococo);
★ 1850 King's Building (Königsbau; Classicism); reconstructed
★ 1910 Market Hall (
Art Nouveau);
★ 1920 Main Railway Station (Pre-Modern);
★ 1927
Weissenhof Estate (
International Style);
★ 1950
TV Tower (World's First concrete TV Tower);
★ 1980 New State Gallery (
Neue Staatsgalerie;
Postmodern);
★ 2000
Stuttgart Airport Terminal Building (Modern) - located just outside the city in neighboring
Leinfelden-Echterdingen
★ 2005
Kunstmuseum Stuttgart (Modern).
★ 2006
Mercedes-Benz Museum (Modern)
The famous "
Wilhelma" is Germany's only combined zoological and botanical garden. The whole compound was built around 1850 as a summer palace in moorish style for King
Wilhelm I of
Württemberg. Close to the Wilhelma, there are the Stuttgart city districts of
Bad Cannstatt and Berg which are the second largest mineral spas in Europe (only surpassed by
Budapest).
Other important towns in the Stuttgart Region are
Ludwigsburg with its enormous
baroque palace,
Sindelfingen and
Esslingen.
Sports
In 1992,
VfB Stuttgart (a leading
Bundesliga soccer team) claimed the first German Championship title after the reunification of the soccer federations of West and East Germany (its fourth championship overall). The fifth title was won in 2007, celebrated by 250.000 people when bringing the trophy to the city. The team will thus participate in the 2007/08 season of the
UEFA Champions League.
The city also has a reputation for organizing other major sports events. It hosted the
1993 World Championships in Athletics and many other world and European championships of all kind of sports. It was one of the twelve host cities of the
FIFA World Cup 2006, six matches, a.o. the 3rd and 4th place playoff of the World Cup, were played at the
Daimler Stadium. Stuttgart also is "European Sports Capital 2007" and will host the 2007
UCI World Cycling Championships Road Race and Time Trials for elite men, women, and under-23 year old riders.
Stuttgart's third division football club,
Stuttgarter Kickers, host its matches at a pure football stadium ("Gazi Stadium"), close to the city's TV tower, in the city district of Degerloch. That stadium is also the home ground of the German first division American Football team
Stuttgart Scorpions.
Sportfreunde Stuttgart are another lower-division football team. They are most famous for taking part in the
Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy in 1908, considered the first ''World Cup''.
[2]
Sister cities
★ '
Jeddah',
Saudi Arabia, since 1988
★
Wales
'
Cardiff,
Wales', since 1955
★ '
St. Louis', USA, since 1960
★
Strasbourg
'
Strasbourg', France, since 1962
★ '
Mumbai' (formerly known as Bombay), India, since 1968
★ '
Menzel Bourguiba', Tunisia, since 1971
★ '
Cairo', Egypt, since 1979
★ '
Łódź', Poland, since 1988
★ '
Ogaki',
Japan, since 1988
★ '
Brno', Czech Republic, since 1989
Notable residents
Notable people born in Stuttgart or residents who influenced the history of the city:
★
Rosalie Abella - Justice, Supreme Court of Canada
★
Günther Behnisch - architect
★
Robert Bosch - inventor (founded the
Robert Bosch GmbH)
★
Gottlieb Daimler - inventor of the motorbike and automobile, founded what would become
Mercedes-Benz
★
Roland Emmerich - film producer, director and writer
★
Bernd Glemser - international concert pianist
★
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel - philosopher
★
Theodor Heuss - First German Post-War President
★
Jürgen Klinsmann - football player, former coach of the German football squad
★
Helmut Lachenmann - composer
★
Mark Landler - ''
New York Times'' European economic correspondent
★
Hermann Lang - Grand Prix race car driver
★
Fritz Leonhardt - structural engineer
★
Wilhelm Maybach - inventor together with
Gottlieb Daimler
★
Frei Otto - architect
★
Ferdinand Porsche - creator of the
VW Beetle, founder of the
Porsche car company
★
Manfred Rommel - Mayor of Stuttgart 1974-1996, son of
Erwin Rommel
★
Friedrich von Schiller - famous German poet
★
Peter Schilling - popular musician and ''
Neue Deutsche Welle'' artist
★
Het Smut - Grand Prix Motocross Rider
★
Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg - member of the German Resistance who
tried to kill Hitler
★
Bernard Tomic -
Tennis child prodigy
★
Richard von Weizsäcker - German President, Lord Mayor of Berlin
External links
★
★
Official homepage of Stuttgart
★
Official Stuttgart Tourist Board
★
Stuttgart International Airport
★
Stuttgart Public Transportation System
★
Stuttgarter Staatstheater official site, including the Staatsoper Stuttgart
★
University of Stuttgart-Hohenheim official site
★
University of Stuttgart official site
★
Stuttgart Media University
★
University of Applied Sciences Stuttgart official site
★
Evangelische Landeskirche in Württemberg - Stuttgart
★
Weissenhof Estate (Gropius, Le Corbusier, Mies van der Rohe)
★
Daimler Stadium Stuttgart official site
★
Stuttgart Metropolitan Forum
★
War and Holocaust memorials in Stuttgart at the ''Sites of Memory'' webpage
References
1. Population and area data from Statistisches Landesamt Baden-Württemberg
2. Lipton Trophy
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