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Hesse
A future-oriented center of business and industry. With
a population of six million and an area of 21,000 square kilometers,
Hesse is Germany's fifth largest state. Today it is one of the
major centers of business and industry in the Federal Republic
and one of the most dynamic regions in Europe: an international
financial center with more than 400 banks, the Frankfurt Stock
Exchange, the Deutsche Bundesbank and the European Monetary
Institute;
the location of prominent branches of industry and technology;
the venue for numerous international trade
fairs; and a hub of
air transport with the Rhine-Main Airport, which already ranks
first among Europe's airports in volume of cargo as well as second
in number of passengers - and is still being expanded.
Political unity since 1945. The region has a turbulent
history. In 1848 and 1849 the National Assembly, the first democratic
German parliament, convened in St. Paul's Church in Frankfurt
(which has meanwhile become a national monument). This democratic
beginning failed, however, as a result of the power wielded by
Germany's ruling princes. Prior to Bismarck's wars of unification,
the territory which is now Hesse - like many other regions at
that time - resembled a patchwork quilt, encompassing four principalities
and duchies, an earldom and the free city of Frankfurt. After
the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, Prussia absorbed all of this
territory except the Grand Duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt. With the
"Proclamation No. 2” of 19 September 1945, issued in
the IG Farben complex in Frankfurt, the American military government
merged Hesse-Darmstadt and most of what had previously been Prussian
territory to form the state of Hesse.
Lush idyllic countryside and vibrant cities. Whereas historians
describe Hesse as "unity born of diversity”, geographically
the countryside between the Diemel and Weser rivers in the north
and the Neckar River in the south is characterized as a "colorful
and confusing juxtaposition of uplands and depressions”.
Western Hesse is part of the Rhenish Schist Massif; the iron ore
deposits on the Lahn, Dill and Sieg rivers were already exploited
during the pre-Christian era. Eastern Hesse is geologically younger;
the prevalent Bunter sandstone is poor in minerals and unsuitable
for use. The east is barren and more sparsely populated. Typical
of the region are its volcanic landscapes: Old massifs can be
found in the Westerwald, in the Rhön, on the Hoher Meissner,
in the Kaufunger Forest and in the Knüll. Amidst charming
landscapes are the university towns of Marburg and Giessen as
well as the city of Wetzlar, famous for its optical industry.
The Bergstrasse and the Rhinegau are among Germany's best fruit
and wine-growing areas. In eastern Hesse lies the bishopric of
Fulda, a Baroque town of considerable historical importance. The
state capital Wiesbaden (266,000 inhabitants) is not only an administrative
center but also an elegant spa with a much-frequented casino.
Modern industry with a long tradition. Together with the
service metropolis Frankfurt, four branches of industry - the
chemical, vehicle, mechanical engineering and electrical industries
- have been instrumental in propelling this state to a position
of economic strength: Hesse's per-capita gross domestic product
is approximately DM 50,000. With their chemical products,
pharmaceuticals, dyes, or assembly components for the computer
industry, firms such as Hoechst,
Degussa and Rütgers in
Frankfurt
or Merck in
Darmstadt are fixtures in the world's markets just
like thee Opel main plant in Rüsselsheim, the
VW plant in
Baunatal and the Thyssen-Henschel-Werke (machinery and transport
technology) in Kassel. Vehicle manufacturers around the globe
use the asbestos-free brake linings produced by Teves in Frankfurt;
VDO is the world's second largest producer of automobile instruments
and electronic regulation and control instruments for vehicle
engineering. Honeywell in Offenbach is known for its electronic
measurement and control systems for climate control engineering.
Crucial to Hesse's economic success is the state's central location
with its many junctions of air, rail and waterway traffic. The
Rhine-Main
Airport is one of the most important traffic hubs in
Europe. With nearly 60,000 employees it has meanwhile become the
largest employer in Hesse - and is still growing. Business and
industry, the scientific community and the state government are
collaborating within the framework of the Hessische Technologiestiftung
(Technology Foundation Hesse) to promote innovation and competitiveness.
Research scientists and inventors from what is now Hesse laid
the foundations for entire branches of industry and new technologies
with their trailblazing discoveries and inventions. The Darmstadt
chemist Justus Liebig developed the chemical fertilization of
agricultural plants at the University of Giessen around 1840.
The Gelnhausen physicist Johann Philipp Reis constructed the first
electric telephone in 1861. Television and modern communications
technology can be traced back to the invention of the electron
tube by the Nobel Prize laureate Karl Ferdinand Braun of Fulda.
Konrad Zuse, a long-time resident of Bad Hersfeld, developed the
first computer.
The International Book Fair and "Handkäs mit Musik”.
The Deutsche Bibliothek (German Library) in
Frankfurt, repository
for every German-language work to appear in print since 1945,
is "Germany's largest bookcase”. Internationally noted
cultural events in Hesse are the world's largest book fair in
Frankfurt and the "documenta” art exhibition in Kassel.
Famous festivals are held in Bad Hersfeld, Wetzlar, Wiesbaden
and in the Rhinegau, for instance. Artistic impulses emanate from
the Junges Literaturforum Hessen (Young Literature Forum Hesse).
The Georg Büchner Prize for Literature conferred by the state
is one of Germany's most prestigious literary awards. Hesse offers
a wealth of interesting museums and exhibitions: Aside from Frankfurt's
"museum embankment” on the Main River with its wide
variety of museums addressing the most diverse subjects, as well
as the other museums in the city, people can visit the Ivory Museum
in Erbach, the Brothers Grimm Museum in Kassel, or the Hessenpark
Open-Air Museum in Neu-Anspach featuring original reconstructed
Hessian houses dating from many different centuries. A truly distinctive
type of open-air exhibition is the Mathildenhöhe Art Nouveau
complex in Darmstadt.
The Hessians speak a marked dialect. Their typical regional dishes - such as "Handkäs mit Musik” (a strong-smelling round cheese served with onions, vinegar and oil), "Schäufelchen” (salted pork shoulder), green herb sauce or pork ribs with sauerkraut - call for a glass of apple wine or a dry, earthy Rhinegau Riesling.