Germany, Kiel

Kiel is a city and the capital of the northernmost German Bundesland Schleswig-Holstein and located on the eastern side of the base of the Jutland peninsula off the south-east corner of the Baltic Sea.

Kiel is famous for its sailing events, including Kiel Week (German: Kieler Woche), the biggest sailing event in the world. In 1936 and 1972, when the Olympic Games were held in Berlin and Munich respectively, the Olympic sailing competitions were held in Kiel-Schilksee.The largest local newspaper is the Kieler Nachrichten. It had a population of 232,340 as of 31 December 2006.

History

The Kiel Fjord was first settled by Normans or vikings who would colonize the land along their raids for many years staying in German villages. This is recorded by the geography and architecture of the fjord.

From 1773 to 1864, the town belonged to the King of Denmark. However, because the king ruled Holstein as a fief of the Holy Roman Empire only through a personal union, the town was not incorporated as part of Denmark proper.

In 1946, Kiel was named the seat of government for Schleswig-Holstein, and it officially became the state's capital in 1972. The Kieler Umschlag has been held again yearly since 1975.

Economy

Kiel is the home of HDW Howaldtswerke Deutsche Werft GmbH, a shipyard founded in 1838 famed for its construction of submarines. HDW built the first German submarine Brandtaucher in 1850, and is today a subsidiary of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, the leading German group of shipyards.