Hamburg

The northern German city of Hamburg is located on Elbe River, which connects it to the North Sea. It is one of Europe's busiest ports and Germany's largest port and commercial and industrial city. The site was first used for a fortress against the Slavs built by Charlemagne in 825. With Lübeck, it formed the Hanseatic League in 1241, and grew steadily over the next several centuries as a trade center. It accepted the Reformation in 1529 and became Protestant. Hamburg went its own way as the Hanseatic League gradually faded from existence; a stock exchange was founded there in 1558 and the bank of Hamburg was established in 1619. Napoleon I annexed it to the French Empire in 1810, and after his fall it joined the German Confederation, all the while retaining its traditional self-government to a large degree. The city was devastated by fire in 1842, but was rebuilt. It suffered terrible destruction by bombing in World War II, but its value as a port soon lead to its restoration and the resumption of its busy economic life. It is cosmopolitan in character with fine art collections in its museums, a world famous opera and two symphony orchestras, and a famous red-light district where prostitution is legal. The 2004 estimated population was 1,731,200.