Stuttgart

Link zu GoogleMaps

1/54

2005

10D

The main shopping street in downtown Stuttgart, called 'Königsstraße'. As empty as this one can only see it at 10 o'clock on a Sunday morning. And why? Thanks to stupid German ideas, on sunday (the day when everyone could go shopping) shops are closed. DUH

Many times ☺

Stuttgart is the capital of the state Baden-Württemberg, and has roughly half a million citizens. Once it used to be the seat of the rulers of Württemberg, starting out as a county, getting upgraded to duchy (1496) and later becoming a kingdom (1806), in the process of the breakup of the Holy Roman Empire of German Nation by Napoleon.

In the area of the basin where Stuttgart lies has been small settlements for a long time, but in the 10^th century the son of Emperor Otto I., Duke Liudolf of Swabia, founded Stutengarten (stud farm), now Stuttgart, to breed horses for his fathers cavalery.

Later on the area was owned by the markgraves of Baden, and got acquired by marriage by the counts of Wirtemberg, which turned it into the center of the state of Württemberg.

Nowadays, Stuttgart is one of the largest cities in Germany, has an international airport, and the Region Stuttgart (the city of Stuttgart and the five surrounding cities) is seat of the HQs of such companies as DaimlerChrysler, Porsche and HP Germany.

Part of Stuttgart is also the museum Staatsgalerie and the zoo Wilhelma. In the woods to the west is also the Castle Solitude, on the hill Württemberg (east of Stuttgart) the Sepulchral Chapel of Queen Katharina and on the hill Hoher Bopser (south of Stuttgart) is the TV tower of Stuttgart.
There is also a slideshow with the modern buildings of Stuttgart (like the new Mercedes-Benz-Museum).