Kiel () is the capital and most populous city in the northern

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021). Kiel lies approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the

Jutland Jutland ( da, Jylland ; german: Jütland ; ang, Ēota land ), known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula ( la, Cimbricus Chersonesus; da, den Kimbriske Halvø, links=no or ; german: Kimbrische Halbinsel, links=no), is a peninsula of ...

peninsula on the southwestern shore of the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...

, Kiel has become one of Germany's major maritime centres, known for a variety of international

sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' ( land yacht) over a chose ...

events, including the annual Kiel Week, which is the biggest sailing event in the world. Kiel is also known for the Kiel Mutiny, when sailors refused to board their vessels in protest against Germany's further participation in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, resulting in the abdication of the Kaiser and the formation of the

Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic (german: link=no, Weimarer Republik ), officially named the German Reich, was the government of Germany from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a Constitutional republic, constitutional federal republic for the first time in ...

. The Olympic sailing competitions of the 1936 and the

1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 19 ...

were held in the Bay of Kiel. Kiel has also been one of the traditional homes of the German Navy's

Baltic Baltic may refer to: Peoples and languages *Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian *Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originatin ...

fleet, and continues to be a major high-tech

shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to bef ...

centre. Located in Kiel is the GEOMAR – Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel at the University of Kiel. Kiel is an important sea transport hub, thanks to its location on the Kiel Fjord (''Kieler Förde'') and the busiest artificial waterway in the world, Kiel Canal (''Nord-Ostsee-Kanal''). A number of passenger ferries to

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of ...

, Lithuania and other countries operate from here. Moreover, today Port of Kiel is a popular destination for

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports-of-call, where passengers may go on tours known as ...

s touring the Baltic Sea. Kiel's

recorded history Recorded history or written history describes the historical events that have been recorded in a written form or other documented communication which are subsequently evaluated by historians using the historical method. For broader world his ...

began in the 13th century. Before then, in the eighth century, it was a Danish village. Until 1864 it was administered by

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

personal union A personal union is the combination of two or more states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, would involve the constituent states being to some extent interli ...

. In 1866 the city was annexed by

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

and in 1871 it became part of Germany. Kiel was one of the founding cities of the original European Green Capital Award in 2006. In 2005 Kiel's GDP per capita was

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists o ...

35,618, which is well above

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

's national average, and 159% of the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...

's average.GDP per person 2005 in Euro

History

Middle Ages

Kiel Fjord and the village of Kiel was probably the last settled by

Vikings Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

who wanted to colonise the land that they had raided, and for many years they settled in German villages. This is evidenced by the geography and architecture of the fjord. The city of Kiel was founded in 1233 as ''Holstenstadt tom Kyle'' by Count Adolf IV of Holstein, and granted

Lübeck city rights Lübeck (; Low German also ), officially the Hanseatic City of Lübeck (german: Hansestadt Lübeck), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 217,000 inhabitants, Lübeck is the second-largest city on the German Baltic coast and in the st ...

in 1242 by Adolf's eldest son, John I of Schauenburg. As a part of Holstein, Kiel belonged to the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 unt ...

and was situated only a few kilometres south of the Danish border. Kiel Braun-Hogenberg

The capital of the county (later duchy) of Holstein, Kiel was a member of the Hanseatic League from 1284 until it was expelled in 1518 for harbouring pirates. The ''Kieler Umschlag'' ( trade fair), first held in 1431, became the central market for goods and money in Schleswig-Holstein. It began to decline circa 1850 and ceased in 1900, but it has recently been revived.

Modern times

The University of Kiel was founded on 29 September 1665 by Christian Albert, Duke of

Holstein-Gottorp Holstein-Gottorp or Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp () is the historiographical name, as well as contemporary shorthand name, for the parts of the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein, also known as Ducal Holstein, that were ruled by the dukes of Schl ...

. A number of important scholars, including Theodor Mommsen, Felix Jacoby, Hans Geiger and Max Planck, studied or taught there. SatSchleswigHolstein Hamburg

From 1773 to 1864, the town belonged to the king of

. However, because the king ruled Holstein as a fief of the

only through a

, the town was not incorporated as part of Denmark proper. Thus Kiel belonged to Germany, but it was ruled by the Danish king. Even though the empire was abolished in 1806, the Danish king continued to rule Kiel only through his position as Duke of Holstein, which became a member of the

German Confederation The German Confederation (german: Deutscher Bund, ) was an association of 39 predominantly German-speaking sovereign states in Central Europe. It was created by the Congress of Vienna in 1815 as a replacement of the former Holy Roman Empire, w ...

in 1815. When Schleswig and Holstein rebelled against Denmark in 1848 (the First Schleswig War), Kiel became the capital of Schleswig-Holstein until the Danish victory in 1850. During the Second Schleswig War in 1864, Kiel and the rest of the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein were conquered by a

alliance of the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central- Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence, ...

and the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. ...

. After the war, Kiel was briefly administered by both the Austrians and the Prussians, but the Austro-Prussian War in 1866 led to the formation of the Province of Schleswig-Holstein and the annexation of Kiel by Prussia in 1867. On 24 March 1865 King William I based Prussia's Baltic Sea fleet in Kiel instead of Danzig (Gdańsk). The Imperial shipyard Kiel was established in 1867 in the town. When William I of Prussia became Emperor William I of the

German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

in 1871, he designated Kiel and Wilhelmshaven as ''Reichskriegshäfen'' ("Imperial War Harbours"). The prestigious

Kiel Yacht Club Kieler Yacht-Club (''Kiel Yacht Club'') is one of the oldest yacht clubs in Germany. It is located in the harbor city of Kiel. This club is well known for some of the yacht racing events it organizes. The main one is the yearly Kieler Woche (K ...

was established in 1887 with Prince Henry of Prussia as its patron. Emperor Wilhelm II became its commodore in 1891. Because of its new role as Germany's main naval base, Kiel very quickly increased in size in the following years, from 18,770 in 1864 to about 200,000 in 1910. Much of the old town centre and other surroundings were levelled and redeveloped to provide for the growing city. The Kiel tramway network, opened in 1881, had been enlarged to 10 lines, with a total route length of , before the end of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. Kiel was the site of the

sailors' mutiny The Chilean naval mutiny of 1931 ( es, Sublevación de la Escuadra) was a violent rebellion of Chilean Navy enlisted men against the government of Vice President Manuel Trucco. Background In 1931 Chile was bankrupt. The situation had caused the d ...

which sparked the German Revolution in late 1918. Just before the end of the First World War, the German fleet stationed at Kiel was ordered to be sent out on a last great battle with the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...

. The sailors, who thought of this as a suicide mission which would have no effect on the outcome of the war, decided they had nothing to lose and refused to leave the safety of the port. The sailors' actions and the lack of response of the government to them, fuelled by an increasingly critical view of the Kaiser, sparked a revolution which caused the abolition of the monarchy and the creation of the

Kiel, Royal Air Force Bomber Command, 1942-1945 CL2772

During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, Kiel remained one of the major naval bases and shipbuilding centres of the German Reich. There was also a slave

labour camp A labor camp (or labour camp, see spelling differences) or work camp is a detention facility where inmates are forced to engage in penal labor as a form of punishment. Labor camps have many common aspects with slavery and with prisons (espe ...

for the local industry. Owing to its status as a naval port and as production site for submarines, Kiel was heavily bombed by the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

during this period. The bombing destroyed more than 80% of the remaining old town, 72% of the central residential areas, and 83% of the industrial areas. During the RAF bombing of 23/24 July 1944, Luftwaffe fighters tried to intercept the spoof (i.e. decoy) force instead of the main force attacking Kiel, and there was no water for three days; trains and buses did not run for eight days and there was no gas available for cooking for three weeks.Campaign Diary: July 44

. Accessed 4 May 2007 There were several bombing raids of the port area during the period 20 February – 20 April 1945 which successfully eliminated many

U-boats U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare rol ...

, and the few large warships (cruisers Hipper, Scheer, and Köln) still afloat at that time. Although the town was beyond the stop-line set for the western Allies in the

German surrender at Lüneburg Heath On 4 May 1945, at 18:30 British Double Summer Time, at Lüneburg Heath, south of Hamburg, Field Marshal Sir Bernard Law Montgomery accepted the unconditional surrender of the German forces in the Netherlands, northwest Germany including all ...

, it and its port, its scientists, and the canal were seized by a British

T-Force T-Force was the operational arm of a joint US Army–British Army mission to secure German scientific and industrial technology before it could be destroyed by retreating German forces or looters during the final stages of the Second World War ...

led by Major

Tony Hibbert Anthony James Hibbert (born 20 February 1981) is an English footballer, currently playing for French amateur side ES Louzy. Originally a midfielder, Hibbert converted to play at right-back. He spent his entire professional career with Everto ...

on 5 May 1945. This forestalled capture of the town by the Soviets, whom the western Allies expected to advance from Germany to

in violation of the Yalta agreement. Like other heavily bombed German cities, the city was rebuilt after the war. In 1946, Kiel was named the seat of government for Schleswig-Holstein, and it officially became the state's capital in 1952. Admiralty Chart No 696 Kieler Hafen, Published 1971

Admiralty Chart No 696 Kieler Hafen, Published 1971

Today, Kiel is once again an important maritime centre of Germany, with high-tech shipbuilding, submarine construction and one of the three leading institutions in the field of marine sciences in Europe, the IFM-GEOMAR. Regular ferries to Scandinavia and Lithuania, as well as the largest sailing event in the world called the Kiel Week (Kieler Woche) in German and The Kiel Regatta in English. The ''Kieler Umschlag'' is another festival, which has been taking place again since 1975. Kiel is also home to a large service sector and a number of research institutions including the University of Kiel, which is the oldest, largest, and most prestigious university in the state.

Geography

Climate

Kiel has an oceanic climate (''Cfb'' in the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...

Districts

Kiel has about 40 districts, but there is not standard division. The districts are traditionally grouped into 30 boroughs (Stadtteil

Another, more recent structure summarizes the districts in 18 political districts (Ortsteil

The city has 25 electoral districts. The biggest districts, by population, are Gaarden (23,000), Mettenhof (20,000) and Elmschenhagen (17,000). Gaarden, located at the southern end of the fjord, is a traditional working-class district that used to be home to mainly shipyard workers. Mettenhof is a large housing estate (satellite town) that was built in the 1960s and 1970s on the western outskirts of the city. The city districts of Düsternbrook, Schreventeich, Ravensberg and Blücherplatz, north of the city centre, are popular places to live with many 19th century buildings, villas and tree-lined streets. The government offices, ministries and parliament of the state of Schleswig-Holstein are also mainly based in these neighbourhoods, particularly Düsternbrook. In contrast to the heavy bomb damage inflicted on the central parts of the city during the

, most of the residential areas were not severely damaged. Hence, Kiel's more modern-style inner city and Kiel's more historic/elaborate residential areas stand in architectural contrast to one another. There are plans for large-scale improvement and building efforts for the inner city, providing better pavements, better access to and view of the waterfront, and a generally more attractive feel to the place. These plans, most notably the "Kleiner Kiel Kanal", a restoration of a historic canal that was filled in to make place for road infrastructure, are to be implemented in the next few years. The largest groups of foreign residents by 31.12.2018 are listed below:

Main sights

The oldest building in the city is the 13th century '' St. Nikolai, Kiel, Church of St. Nicholas'', which has a sculpture by Ernst Barlach in front of it called ''Geistkämpfer''. Kiel is Schleswig-Holstein's largest city, and therefore Kiel's shopping district is a major attraction, and will see further improvement and renovation efforts in the upcoming years. Kiel's Holstenstraße (Holsten Street) is one of the longest shopping streets in Germany. The Rathaus (Town Hall), which was built in 1911, has an operating paternoster lift and the design of its tower was based on one in

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

. The square in front of it is bordered by a lake and the

Opernhaus Kiel Opernhaus Kiel (Kiel Opera House) is the major venue for opera, ballet, and orchestral performances in Kiel, and home to Theater Kiel. It is a Grade II listed building. History After an architectural competition, the Kiel City Council commi ...

(Kiel Opera House). There are also a number of lakes and parks in the city centre, such as Schrevenpark. There are two

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

s, the Old Botanical Garden and the Botanischer Garten der Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel (or New Botanical Garden). As Kiel is situated near the sea, the beaches to the north of Kiel, such as Strande, Kiel- Schilksee, Möltenort and Laboe, are also popular places to visit in spring and summer. Kiel Week, also known in English as the Kiel Regatta, is the largest sailing event in the world and takes place every year in the last full week in June. Many thousands of boats and ships of all kinds and eras take part in the parade. Kiel Week is also a festival, '' Volksfest'' and fair as well as a maritime event. There are a number of yachting and sailing clubs in picturesque settings. Kiel also features a number of museums, including zoological, geological, historical, fine art, industrial and military museums. Notable is the Stadt- und Schifffahrtsmuseum Warleberger Hof (City and Maritime Museum), which belongs to the association ''museen am meer''. In addition to preserving architecture from the 16th century and historic rooms with painted stucco ceilings, it displays urban and cultural exhibits of the 19th and 20th centuries."Kieler Stadtmuseum Warleberger Hof"
, City of Kiel webpage, in German Particularly intriguing is the history of the carnival in Kiel. The Schifffahrtsmuseum is in the former fish market building in the harbour. Laboe is home to the Laboe Naval Memorial and the

submarine , which are both popular tourist sites. File:Willy Lucas - Die Holstenstraße in Kiel 1917.jpg, Holstenstraße Kiel 1917, by Willy Lucas File:Ubena von Bremen Kiel2007.jpg, Historic ships at Kiel Week File:Alter Botanischer Garten Kiel Pavillon.jpg, Old Botanical Garden, Kiel File:U995 Laboe.jpg, U995 Laboe File:Warleberger Hof Wappen Kiel2008.jpg, Warleberger Hof File:Matthias Suessen SH-6920.jpg, Maritime Museum in the former fish market

Politics

Mayor

The current mayor of Kiel is Ulf Kämpfer of the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties For ...

(SPD). The most recent mayoral election was held on 29 October 2019, and the results were as follows: ! colspan=2, Candidate ! Party ! Votes ! % , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Ulf Kämpfer , align=left,

, 48,033 , 65.8 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Andreas Ellendt , align=left, Christian Democratic Union , 14,776 , 20.3 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Björn Thoroe , align=left, The Left , 6,643 , 9.1 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Florian Wrobel , align=left, Die PARTEI , 3,513 , 4.8 , - ! colspan=3, Valid votes ! 72,965 ! 99.3 , - ! colspan=3, Invalid votes ! 500 ! 0.7 , - ! colspan=3, Total ! 73,465 ! 100.0 , - ! colspan=3, Electorate/voter turnout ! 193,653 ! 37.9 , - , colspan=7, Source
City of Kiel

City council

The Kiel city council governs the city alongside the Mayor. The most recent city council election was held on 6 May 2018, and the results were as follows: ! colspan=2, Party ! Votes ! % ! +/- ! Seats ! +/- , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

(SPD) , 26,617 , 29.9 , 5.8 , 18 , 1 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Christian Democratic Union (CDU) , 20,987 , 23.5 , 6.2 , 14 , 1 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Alliance 90/The Greens (Grüne) , 18,215 , 20.4 , 2.8 , 12 , 3 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, The Left (Die Linke) , 6,437 , 7.2 , 3.8 , 4 , 2 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Free Democratic Party (FDP) , 5,764 , 6.5 , 2.6 , 4 , 2 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Alternative for Germany (AfD) , 5,293 , 5.9 , New , 3 , New , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

South Schleswig Voters' Association da, Sydslesvigsk Vælgerforening frr, Söödschlaswiksche Wäälerferbånd , logo = Südschleswigscher Wählerverband, Logo.svg , logo_size = 165px , chairman = Christian Dirschauer , leader1_title = Vice Chairmen ...

(SSW) , 2,521 , 2.8 , 0.6 , 2 , ±0 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Die PARTEI , 2,278 , 2.6 , New , 2 , New , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Pirate Party Germany (Piraten) , 1,011 , 1.1 , 1.9 , 1 , 1 , - , colspan=7 bgcolor=lightgrey, , - , , align=left, Independent , 36 , 0.0 , New , 0 , New , - ! colspan=2, Valid votes ! 89,159 ! 99.1 ! ! ! , - ! colspan=2, Invalid votes ! 766 ! 0.9 ! ! ! , - ! colspan=2, Total ! 89,925 ! 100.0 ! ! 59 ! 6 , - ! colspan=2, Electorate/voter turnout ! 196,334 ! 45.8 ! 8.7 ! ! , - , colspan=7, Source
City of Kiel

Culture

Sports

There are a number of sports venues in Kiel, most notably the Sparkassen-Arena (formerly known as Baltic Sea Hall or ''Ostseehalle''), which is the home ground of one of the most successful

team handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the ...

clubs in the world and multiple German champion, THW Kiel. There is currently no

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footb ...

football club in Kiel, but

2. Bundesliga The 2. Bundesliga ( ) is the second division of professional football in Germany. It was implemented 11 years after the founding of the Fußball-Bundesliga as the new second division for professional football. The 2. Bundesliga is ranked below ...

side Holstein Kiel plays at Holstein-Stadion.

Education and scientific research

The University of Kiel (German: Christian-Albrechts-Universität) was founded by Duke

Christian Albrecht Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

in 1665. It is the only full university of Schleswig-Holstein, with about 25.000 students. Partly linked to the University Kiel are other independent research facilities such as the German National Library of Economics – Leibniz Informationcenter for Economy, the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel and the research institute of the

Bundeswehr The ''Bundeswehr'' (, meaning literally: ''Federal Defence'') is the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. The ''Bundeswehr'' is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part con ...

for water sound and geophysics. Besides these there are other educational institutions such as the Fachhochschule Kiel (founded in 1969) and the Muthesius School of Arts (founded in 1907). The projects Murmann School of Global Management and Economics and Multimedia Campus Kiel were ultimately unsuccessful. The Wirtschaftsakademie Schleswig-Holstein offers besides advanced training at the Berfusakademie dual study courses for economists, business information specialists and industrial engineers. Noteworthy as departmental research institute is the federal institute for dairy research which was merged into the Max-Rubner-Institut together with other institutions in 2004. The state capital Kiel is a corporative sponsoring member of the Max Planck Society. The ARGE-SH, the oldest research institution of the republic of Germany, has its headquarters in Kiel. There are twelve gymnasiums in Kiel, of which the Kieler Gelehrtenschule, founded in 1320 as a humanistic gymnasium, is the oldest. Other secondary schools include the Gymnasium Elmschenhagen and the Max-Planck-Schule with a focus on natural sciences. There are many comprehensive schools – partially with secondary schools – all over the city area, as well as private schools.

Economy and infrastructure

Kiel's economy is dominated by the service sector, transport and maritime industries. Kiel is also one of the major ports of the German Navy, and a leading centre of German high-tech military and civil shipbuilding. Kiel is the home of

Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (often abbreviated HDW) is a German shipbuilding company, headquartered in Kiel. It is part of the ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) group, owned by ThyssenKrupp. The Howaldtswerke shipyard was founded in Kiel in ...

, a shipyard founded in 1838 famed for its construction of

submarines A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

. HDW built the first German submarine ''

Brandtaucher ''Brandtaucher'' (German for ''Fire-diver'') was a submersible designed by the Bavarian inventor and engineer Wilhelm Bauer and built by Schweffel & Howaldt in Kiel for Schleswig-Holstein's Flotilla (part of the '' Reichsflotte'') in 1850 ...

'' in 1850, and is today a subsidiary of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, the leading German group of shipyards.

Statistics

In 2005, the GDP per person was €35,618, which is well above the national average of

and 159% of the

average.

Notable companies

Some of the most notable companies having branches or their headquarters in Kiel are: Ferry operators * DFDS Seaways *

Stena Line Stena Line is a Swedish shipping line company and one of the largest ferry operators in the world. It services Denmark, Germany, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latvia, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland and Sweden. Stena Line is a major u ...

* Color Line Military contractors * Raytheon * Rheinmetall * ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (through their subsidiary

) Engineering and industrial machinery * Heidelberger Druckmaschinen * Voith *

Vossloh Vossloh AG is a rail technology company based in Werdohl in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The SDAX-listed group has achieved sales of around €930 million in 2016 with more than 4,000 employees (as of 2017). Vossloh is a globa ...

* Caterpillar Inc. (through their subsidiary MaK) Others * LaserSoft Imaging *

Schenker AG Schenker AG is a German logistics company and a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn, the German railway company. Within DB Logistics, the logistics branch of Deutsche Bahn, Schenker is responsible for land, sea, and air transport and contract logistics. ...

* HSH Nordbank Kiel is also home to several insurances and banks, most notably the HSH Nordbank, Provinzial NordWest, Förde Sparkasse, Kieler Volksbank eG and Evangelischen Bank eG. There is also an active startup scene in Kiel with startup accelerator StarterKitchen and startups like

SciEngines GmbH SciEngines GmbH is a privately owned company founded 2007 as a spin-off of the COPACOBANA project by the Universities of Bochum and Kiel, both in Germany. The project intended to create a platform for an affordable Custom hardware attack. COPACO ...

, Real-Eyes, myBoo, SealMedia, Cliplister, Druckpreis.DE, promotionbasis.de, Yoosello, GetAnEdge, Flowy Apps, fraguru, lokalportal, PianoMotion and ubique art. Kiel is home to several media companies, including a branch of the Norddeutscher Rundfunk producing one radio channel and several local programmes in Kiel, a station of the British Forces Broadcasting Service, the daily newspaper '' Kieler Nachrichten'' and several smaller local radio channels and magazines.

Transport

Kiel is situated near an important pan-European motorway, the A7, which connects northern Europe with central and southern Europe. The central railway station,

Kiel Hauptbahnhof Kiel Hauptbahnhof is the main railway station in the northern German city of Kiel. It consists of eight rail tracks, all of which are electrified, and is a hub for train services to nearby towns such as Plön and Eckernförde. Overview With 25, ...

, has hourly trains to Hamburg, Lübeck, Flensburg, and Husum. The ''

Intercity Express The Intercity Express (commonly known as ICE ()) is a system of high-speed trains predominantly running in Germany. It also serves some destinations in Austria, Denmark (ceased in 2017 but planned to resume in 2022), France, Belgium, Switzerla ...

'' (ICE) connects Kiel with

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...

, Cologne and

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...

. There are 8 regional railway stations within the city proper, which are connected with each other, the main railway station Kiel Hbf and other stations by regional trains, which can be used within the boundaries of the city with a normal bus ticket. The city's bus service is provided by local company KVG. Autokraft and Verkehrsbetriebe Kreis Plön providing regional bus service, and the Schlepp- und Fährgesellschaft Kiel provides public transport on the fjord with ferries. The Port of Kiel is a significant port for passenger and cargo shipping from Germany to

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and S ...

, the Baltic States and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

. Passenger ferries operate to and from Gothenburg in

(

, 13 hours, daily),

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

( Color Line, 19 hours, daily), and Klaipėda in Lithuania ( DFDS Lisco, 21 hours, 6 times per week). Cargo ferries operate from and to

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

( DFDS Lisco, twice a week), and

Kaliningrad Kaliningrad ( ; rus, Калининград, p=kəlʲɪnʲɪnˈɡrat, links=y), until 1946 known as Königsberg (; rus, Кёнигсберг, Kyonigsberg, ˈkʲɵnʲɪɡzbɛrk; rus, Короле́вец, Korolevets), is the largest city and ...

(NSA, once a week). The nearest international airport is

Hamburg Airport Hamburg Airport , known in German as ''Flughafen Hamburg'', is a major international airport in Hamburg, the second-largest city in Germany. Since November 2016 the airport has been christened after the former German chancellor Helmut Schmidt. ...

, which is situated approximately to the south of Kiel. There is a shuttle bus service (''KIELIUS'') operating between Hamburg Airport and Kiel central railway station. There is also an airport at Lübeck.

Notable people

Twin towns – sister cities

Kiel is twinned with: * Aarhus, Denmark (2019) *

Antakya Antakya (), historically known as Antioch ( el, Ἀντιόχεια; hy, Անտիոք, Andiok), is the capital of Hatay Province, the southernmost province of Turkey. The city is located in a well-watered and fertile valley on the Orontes River, ...

, Turkey (2012) * Brest, France (1964) *

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...

, United Kingdom (1947) * Gdynia, Poland (1985) *

, Russia (1992) * Moshi Rural District, Tanzania (2009) * Samsun, Turkey (2010) *

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...

, USA (2017) * Sovetsk, Russia (1992) * Stralsund, Germany (1987) * Tallinn, Estonia (1986) * Vaasa, Finland (1967)

References

External links

*
Official tourism site

Official website of the association museen am meer
{{Authority control 1233 establishments in Europe Cities in Schleswig-Holstein Populated coastal places in Germany (Baltic Sea) German state capitals Members of the Hanseatic League Port cities and towns in Germany Port cities and towns of the Baltic Sea Populated places established in the 13th century