14-04-2014, 02:32 PM
Germany Flag
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HISTORY OF GERMANY
The concept of Germany as a distinct region in central Europe can be traced to Roman commander Julius Caesar, who referred to the unconquered area east of the Rhine as Germania, thus distinguishing it from Gaul (France), which he had conquered. The victory of the Germanic tribes in the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest (AD 9) prevented annexation by the Roman Empire. Following the fall of the Roman Empire, the Franks conquered the other West Germanic tribes. When the Frankish Empire was divided among Charlemagne's heirs in 843, the eastern part became East Francia. In 962, Otto I became the first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, the medieval German state.
In the High Middle Ages, the dukes and princes of the empire gained power at the expense of the emperors. Martin Luther led the Protestant Reformation against the Catholic Church after 1517, as the northern states became Protestant, while the southern states remained Catholic. They clashed in the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648), which was ruinous to the twenty million civilians. 1648 marked the effective end of the Holy Roman Empire and the beginning of the modern nation-state system, with Germany divided into numerous independent states, such as Prussia, Bavaria and Saxony.
After the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815), feudalism fell away and liberalism and nationalism clashed with reaction. The 1848 March Revolution failed. The Industrial Revolution modernized the German economy, led to the rapid growth of cities and to the emergence of the Socialist movement in Germany. Prussia, with its capital Berlin, grew in power. German universities became world-class centers for science and the humanities, while music and the arts flourished. Unification was achieved with the formation of the German Empire in 1871 under the leadership of Prussian Chancellor Otto von Bismarck. The Reichstag, an elected parliament, had only a limited role in the imperial government.
Weather in spring :
As soon as those first rays of sun come out (even if it’s still chilly), you'll see many Germans in parks and outdoor cafes, soaking up the sun and enjoying the eagerly anticipated beginning of the warm season.
As any time of year, the weather in Germany can be unpredictable, and sometimes, spring seems to arrive hesitantly: It can still snow in March, and the weather in April may change from sun to rain or hail showers in a couple of hours. So bring those layers and pack some wet weather gear.
Average Temperatures:
March: Average low 33° F, average high 47° F
April: Average low 39° F, average high 58° F
May: Average low 47° F, average high 67° F
Transport, tourisms
According to Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Reports, Germany is rated as one of the safest travel destinations worldwide. Germany is also the fifth most visited country in Europe, with a total of 369.6 million overnights during 2010.[3][4] This number includes 56.5 million nights by foreign visitors, the majority of foreign tourists in 2009 coming from the Netherlands, the United States and Switzerland (see table).
The official body for tourism in Germany is the German National Tourist Board (GNTB), represented worldwide by National Tourist Offices in 29 countries. Surveys by the GNTB include perceptions and reasons for holidaying in Germany, which are as follows: culture (75%), outdoors/countryside (59%), cities (59%), cleanliness (47%), security (41%), modernity (36%), good hotels (35%), good gastronomy/cuisine (34%), good accessibility (30%), cosmopolitanism/hospitality (27%), good shopping opportunities (21%), exciting nightlife (17%) and good price/performance ratio (10%) (multiple answers were possible).
More than 30% of Germans spend their holiday in their own country. With more than 133 million foreign visitors (2008) Germany is ranked as the 7th most visited travel destination worldwide. A total of 27.2 billion Euros is spent on travel and tourism: this is equivalent to 3.2% of Germany's GNP.