Bonn

Bonn is a city in Germany (Population (2002 est): 310 930), in the
Bundesland of North Rhine-Westphalia, located ca. 20 kilometres south of
Cologne on the river Rhine. It was the capital of the Federal Republic of
Germany from 1949 to 1994.

The history of the city dates back to Roman times. About 10 BC the Romans
constructed a bridge across the Rhine close to a place called "Bonna". After
the Roman defeat in the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest this small camp was
enlarged to become a fort for 7000 legionnaires.

The fort became a town and continued to exist through medieval times.
Between the 11th and 13th centuries, the Romanesque style Munster
(cathedral) was built, and in 1597 it became the capital of the principality
of Cologne. The town gained more influence and grew considerably. The
elector Clemens August (ruled 1724-1761) ordered to construct a series of
Baroque buildings characterising the townscape to date. Another memorable
ruler was Max Franz (ruled 1784-1794), who founded the university and the
spa quarter of Bad Godesberg. In addition he was a patron of the young
Ludwig van Beethoven, who was born in the city in 1770; the elector financed
the composer's first journey to Vienna.

In 1794 the town was seized by French troops. It became a part of the
Napoleonic Empire. In 1815 Bonn was taken by Prussia and remained a Prussian
city until 1945. The town was of few relevance in these years.

In 1949 Bonn was declared the provisional capital of West Germany. This
status should be valid until a German reunification, that should reestablish
Berlin as the capital of Germany. The decision for Bonn was made due to the
advocacy of Konrad Adenauer, who was a citizen of near Cologne.

The German reunification in 1990 made Berlin the nominal capital of Germany
again. However, this decision did not yet imply that the republic's
political institutions should also move. This was only concluded by the
Bundestag (Germany's parliament) on June 20, 1991, after a heated debate.
While the government and parliament moved, as a compromise, some of the
ministries largely remained in Bonn, with only the top officials in Berlin.
There is presently no plan to move these departments, so Bonn will remain a
second, inofficial capital. Because of the required construction work, the
move took several years (until 1999) to complete.

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