Konstanz ( , , , ), traditionally known as Constance in English, is a university city with approximately 83,000 inhabitants located at the western end of

Lake Constance Lake Constance (, ) refers to three bodies of water on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps: Upper Lake Constance (''Obersee''), Lower Lake Constance (''Untersee''), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Seerhein (). These ...

in the

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...

state of south

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. The city houses the University of Konstanz and was the residence of the Roman Catholic

Diocese of Konstanz The Prince-Bishopric of Constance () was a small ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire from the mid-12th century until its secularisation in 1802–1803. In his dual capacity as prince and as bishop, the prince-bishop also admini ...

for more than 1,200 years.

Location

The city is located in the state of

and situated at the banks of Lake Constance (''Bodensee'' in German). The river

Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...

, which starts in the

Swiss Alps The Alps, Alpine region of Switzerland, conventionally referred to as the Swiss Alps, represents a major natural feature of the country and is, along with the Swiss Plateau and the Swiss portion of the Jura Mountains, one of its three main Physica ...

, passes through Lake Constance and leaves it, considerably larger, by flowing under a bridge connecting the two parts of the city. North of the river lies the larger part of the city with residential areas, industrial estates, and the University of Konstanz; while south of the river is the old town, which houses the administrative centre and shopping facilities in addition to the ''Hochschule'' or the ''University of Applied Sciences''. Car ferries provide access across Lake Constance to Meersburg, and the ''Katamaran'' provides a shuttle service for pedestrians to

Friedrichshafen Friedrichshafen ( or ; Low Alemannic: ''Hafe'' or ''Fridrichshafe'') is a city on the northern shoreline of Lake Constance (the ''Bodensee'') in Southern Germany, near the borders of both Switzerland and Austria. It is the district capital (''K ...

. The Germany–Switzerland border runs along the southwestern and southern edge of the city, demarcating it from the Swiss town of Kreuzlingen.

Subdivisions

Konstanz is subdivided into 15 wards or districts (''Stadtteile''). The island of Mainau belonged to the ward of Litzelstetten, a separate municipality, until its incorporation into Konstanz on 1 December 1971. Konstanz Stadtteile mehrfarbig

History

The first traces of civilization in Konstanz date back to the late

Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistory, prehistoric period during which Rock (geology), stone was widely used to make stone tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years and ended b ...

. During the reign of

Augustus Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian (), was the founder of the Roman Empire, who reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in A ...

, the

Celts The Celts ( , see Names of the Celts#Pronunciation, pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples ( ) were a collection of Indo-European languages, Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancient Indo-European people, reached the apoge ...

living south of the Danube were conquered by the Romans. Around 40 AD, the first Romans settled on the site. This small town on the left bank of the Rhine was probably first called ''Drusomagus'' and belonged to the

Roman province The Roman provinces (, pl. ) were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was ruled by a Roman appointed as Roman g ...

of ''

Raetia Raetia or Rhaetia ( , ) was a province of the Roman Empire named after the Rhaetian people. It bordered on the west with the country of the Helvetii, on the east with Noricum, on the north with Vindelicia, on the south-west with Transalpine ...

''. Its later name, originally ''Constantia'', comes either from the Roman emperor

Constantius Chlorus Flavius Valerius Constantius ( – 25 July 306), also called Constantius I, was a Roman emperor from 305 to 306. He was one of the four original members of the Tetrarchy established by Diocletian, first serving as Caesar (title), ''caesar'' ...

, who fought the

Alemanni The Alemanni or Alamanni were a confederation of Germanic peoples, Germanic tribes * * * on the Upper Rhine River during the first millennium. First mentioned by Cassius Dio in the context of the campaign of Roman emperor Caracalla of 213 CE ...

in the region and built a strong fortress around 300 AD, or from his grandson

Constantius II Constantius II (; ; 7 August 317 – 3 November 361) was Roman emperor from 337 to 361. His reign saw constant warfare on the borders against the Sasanian Empire and Germanic peoples, while internally the Roman Empire went through repeated civ ...

, who visited the region in 354. The remains of the late Roman fortress ''Constantia'' were discovered in 2003. Around 585 the first bishop took up residence in Konstanz and this marked the beginning of the city's importance as a spiritual center. By the late

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, about one quarter of Konstanz's 6,000 inhabitants were exempt from taxation on account of clerical rights. Trade thrived during the Middle Ages. Konstanz owned the only bridge in the region, which crossed the Rhine, making it a strategic location in the

Duchy of Swabia The Duchy of Swabia (; ) was one of the five stem duchy, stem duchies of the medieval Kingdom of Germany, German Kingdom. It arose in the 10th century in the southwestern area that had been settled by Alemanni tribes in Late Antiquity. While th ...

. Its

linen Linen () is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant. Linen is very strong and absorbent, and it dries faster than cotton. Because of these properties, linen is comfortable to wear in hot weather and is valued for use in garments. Lin ...

production had made an international name for the city and it was prosperous. In 1192, Konstanz gained the status of Imperial City so it was henceforth subject only to the

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...

. In 1414 to 1418, the

Council of Constance The Council of Constance (; ) was an ecumenical council of the Catholic Church that was held from 1414 to 1418 in the Bishopric of Constance (Konstanz) in present-day Germany. This was the first time that an ecumenical council was convened in ...

took place, during which, on 6 July 1415,

Jan Hus Jan Hus (; ; 1369 – 6 July 1415), sometimes anglicized as John Hus or John Huss, and referred to in historical texts as ''Iohannes Hus'' or ''Johannes Huss'', was a Czechs, Czech theologian and philosopher who became a Church reformer and t ...

(Czech religious thinker, philosopher and reformer), who was seen as a threat to

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

by the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, was

burned at the stake Death by burning is an list of execution methods, execution, murder, or suicide method involving combustion or exposure to extreme heat. It has a long history as a form of public capital punishment, and many societies have employed it as a puni ...

. It was here that the Papal Schism was ended and

Pope Martin V Pope Martin V (; ; January/February 1369 – 20 February 1431), born Oddone Colonna, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 11 November 1417 to his death in February 1431. His election effectively ended the We ...

was elected during the only

conclave A conclave is a gathering of the College of Cardinals convened to appoint the pope of the Catholic Church. Catholics consider the pope to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and the earthly head of the Catholic Church. Concerns around ...

ever held north of the Alps. Ulrich von Richental's illustrated chronicle of the Council of Constance testifies to all the major happenings during the council as well as showing the everyday life of medieval Konstanz. The ''Konzilgebäude'' where the conclave was held can still be seen standing by the harbour. Close by stands the ''

Imperia Imperia (; or ) is a coastal city and ''comune'' in the Regions of Italy, region of Liguria, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Imperia, and historically it was capital of the ''Intemelia'' district of Liguria. Benito Mussolini create ...

'', a statue that was erected in 1993 to satirically commemorate the council. In 1460, the

Swiss Confederacy The Old Swiss Confederacy, also known as Switzerland or the Swiss Confederacy, was a loose confederation of independent small states (, German or ), initially within the Holy Roman Empire. It is the precursor of the modern state of Switzerlan ...

conquered

Thurgau Thurgau (; ; ; ), anglicized as Thurgovia, and formally as the Canton of Thurgau, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of five districts. Its capital is Frauenfeld. Thurgau is part of Eastern Switzerland. I ...

, Konstanz's natural

hinterland Hinterland is a German word meaning the 'land behind' a city, a port, or similar. Its use in English was first documented by the geographer George Chisholm in his ''Handbook of Commercial Geography'' (1888). Originally the term was associated wi ...

. Konstanz then made an attempt to get admitted to the Swiss Confederacy, but the forest cantons voted against its entry, fearing overbearing city states; Konstanz then joined the Swabian League instead. In the

Swabian War The Swabian War of 1499 ( (spelling depending on dialect), called or ("Swiss War") in Germany and ("War of the Engadin" in Austria) was the last major armed conflict between the Old Swiss Confederacy and the House of Habsburg. What had begun ...

of 1499, Konstanz lost its last privileges over Thurgau to the Confederation. The

Protestant Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and ...

took hold in Konstanz in the 1520s, headed by Ambrosius Blarer. Soon the city declared itself officially

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

, pictures were removed from the churches, and the bishop temporarily moved to Meersburg, a small town across the lake. The city first followed the Tetrapolitan Confession, and then the

Augsburg Confession The Augsburg Confession (), also known as the Augustan Confession or the Augustana from its Latin name, ''Confessio Augustana'', is the primary confession of faith of the Lutheranism, Lutheran Church and one of the most important documents of th ...

. However, in 1548 Emperor Charles V imposed the

Imperial Ban The imperial ban () was a form of outlawry in the Holy Roman Empire. At different times, it could be declared by the Holy Roman Emperor, by the Imperial Diet, or by courts like the League of the Holy Court (''Vehmgericht'') or the '' Reichskammerg ...

on Konstanz and it had to surrender to Habsburg Austria which had suddenly attacked. Thus Konstanz lost its status as an imperial city. The new Habsburg rulers were eager to re-Catholicise the town and in 1604 a Jesuit College was opened. Its accompanying theatre, built in 1610, is the oldest theatre in Germany still performing regularly. The city became part of the

Grand Duchy of Baden The Grand Duchy of Baden () was a German polity on the east bank of the Rhine. It originally existed as a sovereign state from 1806 to 1871 and later as part of the German Empire until 1918. The duchy's 12th-century origins were as a Margravia ...

in 1806. In 1821, the

Bishopric of Constance The Prince-Bishopric of Constance () was a small Hochstift, ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire from the mid-12th century until its German Mediatisation, secularisation in 1802–1803. In his dual capacity as prince and as bisho ...

was dissolved and became part of the Archdiocese of Freiburg. Konstanz became part of the

German Empire The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...

in 1871 during the

unification of Germany The unification of Germany (, ) was a process of building the first nation-state for Germans with federalism, federal features based on the concept of Lesser Germany (one without Habsburgs' multi-ethnic Austria or its German-speaking part). I ...

. After

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

it was included within the

Republic of Baden The Republic of Baden () was a German state during the Weimar Republic. It was formed as the successor to the Grand Duchy of Baden during the German revolution of 1918–1919 and formally dissolved in 1945. Today it is part of the federal state ...

. On 22 October 1940, 110 of the last Jewish residents were deported to

Gurs internment camp Gurs internment camp (, ) was an internment camp and prisoner of war camp constructed in 1939 in Gurs, a site in southwestern France, not far from Pau. The camp was originally set up by the French government after the fall of Catalonia at t ...

in France. Most of those who were still alive in August 1942 were murdered in either Sobibór or

Auschwitz Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschw ...

. Because it almost lies within

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

, directly adjacent to the Swiss border, Konstanz was not bombed by the Allied Forces during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. After the war, Konstanz was included first in South Baden and then in the new state of

. The ''Altstadt'' (Old Town), which is large considering the small size of modern Konstanz, has many old buildings and twisting alleys. The city skyline is dominated by Konstanz Cathedral, several other churches and three towers left over from the city wall, one of which marks the place of the former medieval bridge over the

. The University of Konstanz was established close to the town in 1966. It houses a library with approximately two million books, all freely accessible 24 hours a day, as well as a

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. is ...

(the Botanischer Garten der Universität Konstanz). Especially since 2007, the university, being one of the nine German universities most successful in the

German Universities Excellence Initiative The Excellence Initiative of the German Council of Science and Humanities and the German Research Foundation (DFG) aims to promote cutting-edge research and to create outstanding conditions for young scholars at universities, to deepen coopera ...

, has gained considerable reputation as a so-called "elite university". Konstanz was the birthplace of Count

Ferdinand von Zeppelin Graf, Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin (; 8 July 1838 – 8 March 1917) was a General (Germany), German general and later inventor of the Zeppelin rigid airships. His name became synonymous with airships and dominated long-distance flight until the ...

, constructor of the famous

Zeppelin A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Ferdinand von Zeppelin () who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874Eckener 1938, pp. 155� ...

airship An airship, dirigible balloon or dirigible is a type of aerostat (lighter-than-air) aircraft that can navigate through the air flying powered aircraft, under its own power. Aerostats use buoyancy from a lifting gas that is less dense than the ...

s. In the late 2010s, Konstanz has become a popular destination for ''Einkaufstourismus'', or cross-border shopping by Swiss due to lower prices on basic items in Germany, a favorable

exchange rate In finance, an exchange rate is the rate at which one currency will be exchanged for another currency. Currencies are most commonly national currencies, but may be sub-national as in the case of Hong Kong or supra-national as in the case of ...

between the

Swiss franc The Swiss franc, or simply the franc, is the currency and legal tender of Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It is also legal tender in the Italian exclave of Campione d'Italia which is surrounded by Swiss territory. The Swiss National Bank (SNB) iss ...

and the

euro The euro (currency symbol, symbol: euro sign, €; ISO 4217, currency code: EUR) is the official currency of 20 of the Member state of the European Union, member states of the European Union. This group of states is officially known as the ...

, and a generous German VAT refund for non-

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 Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

residents. Retail chains such as H&M and dm have built large new stores near the town's central square to cater to this trade, and some Konstanz residents feel the city is losing its historic character in the process; many of them avoid the area on Saturdays. This has led to friction with officials from Kreuzlingen as their city has seen no economic benefit from this trade, and they have been requesting that their national government bring up the issue of the VAT refund with Germany. Subsequently, Germany has introduced a minimum spend amount of €50.01 per receipt for the German VAT to be refunded. Customs clearance centres are conveniently located near shopping centres.

Climate

Its location in south-west Germany gives Konstanz a degraded oceanic climate (

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

: ''Cfb'') with warm and humid summers (moderated by the lake) as well as cold and snowy winters.

Main sights

* Archaeological Museum * ''

'', a 9 m-tall sculpture * Jan Hus Museum * Konstanz Cathedral * ''Konzil'' edifice, dating to the 15th century * Niederburg (Lower Castle) * Petershausen Abbey * Remains of a Roman fortress, near the Cathedral * ''Schnetztor'', fortified gate of the former city walls Konstanz was also home to a large

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

, destroyed by the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

government in 1938.

Twin towns – sister cities

Konstanz is twinned with: *

Fontainebleau Fontainebleau ( , , ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Functional area (France), metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southeast of the Kilometre zero#France, centre of Paris. Fontainebleau is a Subprefectures in Franc ...

, France (1960) *

Richmond upon Thames The London Borough of Richmond upon Thames () in south-west Greater London, London, England, forms part of Outer London and is the only London boroughs, London borough on both sides of the River Thames. It was created in 1965 when three smaller ...

, England, United Kingdom (1983) *

Tábor Tábor (; ) is a town in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 34,000 inhabitants, making it the second most populated town in the region. The town was founded by the Hussites in 1420. The historic town centre is well pres ...

, Czech Republic (1984) * Lodi, Italy (1986) *

Suzhou Suzhou is a major prefecture-level city in southern Jiangsu province, China. As part of the Yangtze Delta megalopolis, it is a major economic center and focal point of trade and commerce. Founded in 514 BC, Suzhou rapidly grew in size by the ...

, China (2007)

Transport

Konstanz station is the eastern terminus of the High Rhine Railway line, running westwards to , with connections to all parts of Germany and the

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

cities of

Schaffhausen Schaffhausen (; ; ; ; ), historically known in English as Shaffhouse, is a list of towns in Switzerland, town with historic roots, a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in northern Switzerland, and the capital of the canton of Schaffh ...

and

Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...

. There are three other stations in Konstanz along this line: , and . In addition, Konstanz station is linked via two connectors (in both directions) to the Lake Line, which runs along the Swiss shore of Lake Constance and the

High Rhine High Rhine (, ; kilometres 0 to 167 of the Rhine) is the section of the Rhine between Lake Constance () and the city of Basel, flowing in a general east-to-west direction and forming mostly the Germany–Switzerland border. It is the first of fo ...

. It is indirectly also linked to the Wil–Kreuzlingen railway line to , with connections to long-distance trains in Switzerland. Services are provided by the

Deutsche Bahn AG (, ; abbreviated as DB or DB AG ) is the national railway company of Germany, and a state-owned enterprise under the control of the German government. Headquartered in the Bahntower in Berlin, it is a joint-stock company ( AG). DB was fou ...

and also the

Swiss Federal Railways Swiss Federal Railways (, SBB; , CFF; , FFS) is the national railway company of Switzerland. The company was founded in 1902 and is headquartered in Bern. It used to be a State-owned enterprise, government institution, but since 1999 it has be ...

and its subsidiaries Thurbo and SBB GmbH. The nearest

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial Aviation, air transport. They usually consist of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surf ...

is at

, which can be reached by a fast

ferry A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...

service on the lake, which also connects Konstanz to other lakeside towns. The airport mainly hosts domestic flights, but flights to

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

and

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

are available. The nearest international airports are in

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

, in

, and

Zurich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...

, which has a direct train from Konstanz. Bus services within the city are provided by Stadtwerke Konstanz

GmbH (; ) is a type of Juridical person, legal entity in German-speaking countries. It is equivalent to a (Sàrl) in the Romandy, French-speaking region of Switzerland and to a (Sagl) in the Ticino, Italian-speaking region of Switzerland. It is a ...

. Additionally Konstanz and

have been connected by the two (since 2008, three)

catamaran A catamaran () (informally, a "cat") is a watercraft with two parallel hull (watercraft), hulls of equal size. The wide distance between a catamaran's hulls imparts stability through resistance to rolling and overturning; no ballast is requi ...

s ''Constance'' and ''Fridolin'' since 2005. Konstanz is also served by URh boat lines to Kreuzlingen and

World Heritage Site

It is home to one or more prehistoric pile-dwelling (or stilt house) settlements that are part of the Prehistoric Pile dwellings around the Alps

UNESCO World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

Notable people

Public service and commerce

* Ulrich Zasius (1461–1536), jurist * Ernst Vögelin (1529–1589), pioneer book printer * Wacker von Wackenfels (1550–1619), diplomat, scholar and author * Johann Friedrich Cotta (1764–1832) a publisher, industrial pioneer and politician; in 1825 he started steamboats on Lake Constance. * Johann Leonhard Hug (1765–1846) a Catholic theologian, orientalist and biblical scholar. * Guillaume Henri Dufour (1787–1875) a Swiss military officer, structural engineer and topographer. *Count

(1838–1917), a German general and inventor of the

rigid airships. * Josef Albert Amann (junior) (1866–1919), gynecologist * Conrad Grober (1872–1948), priest and archbishop, teacher and pastor in Konstanz * Friedrich Flick (1883–1972), entrepreneur and convicted Nazi war criminal * (1885–1957), countess and Benedictine nun, religious superior at the Municipal Women's Clinic Konstanz * Siegfried Adolf Handloser (1885–1954), doctor of the German Armed Forces Medical Services * (1887–1944), victim of Nazism * Werner Berger (1901–1964), SS-Oberscharführer, member of commando 99 in

Buchenwald concentration camp Buchenwald (; 'beech forest') was a German Nazi concentration camp established on Ettersberg hill near Weimar, Nazi Germany, Germany, in July 1937. It was one of the first and the largest of the concentration camps within the Altreich (pre-1938 ...

* (1911–1984), jurist *

Egon Mayer Egon Mayer (19 August 1917 – 2 March 1944) was a Luftwaffe wing commander and fighter ace of Nazi Germany during World War II. He was credited with 102 enemy aircraft shot down in over 353 combat missions. His victories were all clai ...

(1917–1944), fighter ace in the

Luftwaffe The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...

during

* Werner Maihofer (1918–2009), politician (FDP), member of Bundestag, minister of the interior (1974–1978) * Theo Sommer (1930–2022), newspaper editor at ''

Die Zeit (, ) is a German national weekly newspaper published in Hamburg in Germany. The newspaper is generally considered to be among the German newspapers of record and is known for its long and extensive articles. History The first edition of was ...

'' since 1958, rising to editor-in-chief and publisher * Berthold Keller (1927–2012), trade unionist * Rolf Böhme (1934–2019), Staatssekretär (1978–1982), mayor of Freiburg (1982–2002) * (b. 1949), jurist, Lord Mayor of Konstanz 1996–2012 * Ian Murdock (1973–2015), American software engineer, founder of the

Debian Debian () is a free and open-source software, free and open source Linux distribution, developed by the Debian Project, which was established by Ian Murdock in August 1993. Debian is one of the oldest operating systems based on the Linux kerne ...

project * Larissa Vassilian (born 1976), German-Armenian journalist Marie Ellenrieder Selbstbildnis 1819

The arts

* Tobias Pock (1609–1683), Austrian Baroque painter of Swabian descent, a pioneer of sacral art * Marie Ellenrieder (1791–1863), painter * Ida Maier-Müller (1821–1904) landscape painter and self-portraitist * (1883–1967), writer * Anne Winterer (1894–1938), photographer * François Stahly (1911–2006), French sculptor * (1920–1984), art historian and founder of Bauhaus-Archive * (born 1925), dialect author * Martin Gotthard Schneider (1930–2017), church musician, songwriter and theologian * Uli Trepte (1941–2009), musician * (born 1966), product designer

Gallery

Konstanz RoemerTurm.jpg, The late Roman fortress ''Constantia'' at the ''Münsterplatz'' Konstanz Konzil.jpg, The ''Konzilgebäude'' in Konstanz MPano 07 3.jpg, Konstanz Cathedral Konstanz Marktstätte.jpg, Konstanz ''Marktstätte'', the main square in the old town

Notes

References

External links

*
Official website
*
Konstanz: history and images at "alemannische-seiten.de"

University of Konstanz

Pictures Konstanz

Online journal about Constance

University of Applied Sciences

Photos of the Carnival (~Shrovetide, ~Mardi Grass) in Constance

Südkurier
( Südkurier) Local newspaper for Konstanz {{Authority control Towns in Baden-Württemberg Populated places on Lake Constance Populated places on the Rhine Konstanz (district) Free imperial cities Germany–Switzerland border crossings Former states and territories of Baden-Württemberg Further Austria