Saarbrücken

The German city of Saarbrücken is situated on the Saar river at the mouth of the Sulz, about 39 miles southeast of Trier. It was a Celtic and then a Roman river crossing, later settled by German Frankish kings who built a castle there in the 10th century. The town grew around the castle, and received its charter in 1321.The bishops of Metz and counts of Saarbrücken ruled it from the 14th century to 1793 when France invaded it and occupied it until it went to Prussia in 1815. With the industrial revolution it produced large amounts of coal, iron, and later steel. After World War I it became capital of the Saarland. It was bombed by the Allies in World War II, but has since been rebuilt and once again become a center of iron and steel industries. It also produces beer, cement, coal, and optical instruments. Surviving historic architecture includes a 13th-century Gothic church, an 18th-century castle, and an 18th-century town hall. It has a university founded in 1948. The calculated population for 2005 was 181,779.