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 little relevance in these years.
Following World War II Bonn was in the British zone of occupation, and in 1949 became the capital of West Germany. The choice of Bonn was made due to the advocacy of Konrad Adenauer, who was from near Cologne.
The German reunification in 1990 made Berlin the nominal capital of Germany again. However, this decision did not necessarily imply that the republic’s political institutions would 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, unofficial capital. Because of the necessary construction work, the move took several years (until 1999) to complete.
The University of Bonn, with ca. 30,000 students, is one of the biggest in Germany.
Related Travel Information
Siegen: Germany
Siegen is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the capital of the district Siegen-Wittgenstein. As of December 31, 2003 it has a population of 106,143.
Twinned cities:
Berlin-Spandau, Germany, since 1952
Rijnsburg, the Netherlands, since 1963
Leeds, since 1966
Ypres, Belgium, since 1967
Zakopane, Poland, since 1989
Plauen, Saxony, Germany, since 1990
Recklinghausen: Germany
Recklinghausen is a city in the Ruhr Area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With 123.562 inhabitants as of June 30, 2003 it is the capital of the district Recklinghausen.
Heilbronn: Germany
Heilbronn is a city in northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany, near Stuttgart. This district-free city is completely surrounded by the district Heilbronn. It is located on the river Neckar . As of 2004, it has ~120,900 inhabitants.
Heilbronn was first mentioned as Helibrunna in 741. In 1281, it was declared city by Rudolph I.
Mülheim an der Ruhr: Germany
Mülheim an der Ruhr is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. It is located in the Ruhr area between Duisburg and Essen, 20 km to the north-east of Düsseldorf. Geographical location 51°26? N 6°53? E.
Its population is 170.745 (status 12/31/2003). The city covers about 91.26 km² and is between 26.0 and 152.7 m above sea level.
Witten: Germany
Witten is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany in the southern Ruhr area in the Ruhr valley. It was first mentioned in historic sources in 1214, however the borough Herbede (which was incorporated into the city in 1975) even dates back to 851. The city was a mining town from 1578.
Witten is twinned with the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, UK
