Hesse lies in the centre of Germany. Its total area of 21,115 square kilometres is populated by over 6 million inhabitants. The major Rhine-Main area includes Hesse’s largest city Frankfurt am Main and the state capital of Wiesbaden, the seat of the current Christian Democrat state government with its minister-president Roland Koch.
www.hessen.de
The name “Hessen” was first recorded in the 8th century. In an encyclical letter dated 738 to Boniface, Pope Gregory III refers to a “Populus Hassiorum” (Hessian People). The state of Hesse was founded in its present-day shape in 1945 by the American occupying power. In 1946 the people of Hesse then voted in favour of the state’s newly created constitution in a plebiscite.
Hesse has developed into one of Germany’s leading economic centres as well as one of Europe’s most dynamic regions. Hesse is an international financial centre (European Central Bank), an important location for industry and technology (Opel), an international trade fair centre (International Motor Show) and an important hub of transportation. Hesse often forms the launchpad for future- oriented ideas.
www.invest-in-hessen.de
There are over 300 domestic and international banks in Frankfurt am Main. Together with the German Federal Bank, the German Stock Exchange and the European Central Bank (ECB) this gives Frankfurt a leading position in Germany’s financial life and an outstanding role in Europe. Over 90 per cent of Germany’s stock market trade is carried out in Frankfurt. Ever since the euro was introduced, monetary policy for the eurozone has been regulated from Frankfurt.
Hesse’s cultural landscape offers a mixture of metropolitan vitality and rural charm. Outstanding international events include the Frankfurt Book Fair, the Rheingau Music Festival and the “documenta” art exhibition in Kassel. Each year “Hessentag” is celebrated in a different community. Outstanding cultural institutions include the Städel art museum in Frankfurt. Near Darmstadt a palaeontologist’s paradise awaits visitors at the former open-cast mine Grube Messel with its “primeval horse”.
Hesse has five universities, five universities of applied science and two art academies for 150,000 students. These institutions are part of a dense network of educational facilities which also include 33 completely separate research institutes. The average number of patents registered per capita in Hesse lies above the Federal German average. The peace research institute Hessische Stiftung Friedens- und Konfliktforschung is a think tank for political counselling.
Frankfurt am Main is a melting pot of cultures, languages and philosophies of life. Visitors simply have to taste Hesse’s “national drink”: Apfelwein (apple wine). The locals also call it “Ebbelwei” or “Äppler.” This dry-tasting “drop of stuff” or “Stöffche” is served in a “Bembel” (earthenware mug) or in “Gerippten” (glasses with a diamond pattern), and is often preferred as “Gespritzter” with a shot of mineral water. The Apfelwein bastion is in the Sachsenhausen district of Frankfurt with its many little cellars and cosy pubs.
