Baden-Württemberg

I

Introduction

Baden-Württemberg, state in south-western Germany, bounded on the north by the states of Hesse and Bavaria, on the east by Bavaria, on the south by Switzerland, and on the west by the state of Rhineland-Palatinate and by France. The state has an area of 35,752 sq km (13,804 sq mi).

II

Physical Geography

After Bavaria and Lower Saxony, Baden-Württemberg is the third largest of all German states. Geographically, it is divided into three main regions: the Black Forest in the south-west (further subdivided into northern, central, and south areas), Bodensee-Oberschwaben in the south-east, and Neckarland-Schwaben to the north (further subdivided into six smaller regions, including Neckar-Hohenlohe-Schwäbischer Wald; Kraichgau-Stromberg; the Stuttgart region; Neckartal-Odenwald-Kurpfalz; Liebliches Taubertal; and Schwäbische Alb). Within Baden-Württemberg are several forested mountainous regions, including the Black Forest itself (with the hilly Kaiserstuhl region), with the state’s highest elevation, the Feldberg (1,493 m/4,898 ft), in the south; the Swabian Forest; the Schwäbische Alb; and the Odenwald. Cutting through these uplands are the Rhine, Neckar, and Danube rivers and their tributaries. Lake Constance (Bodensee), the largest inland body of water in western Europe, lies on the southern border of the state.

About a quarter of all land in Baden-Württemberg is protected. There are 7 nature parks in the state as well as 945 nature conservation areas; 1,509 zones of outstanding natural beauty; and about 6,000 natural land monuments. The Protection of Nature Act, regularly amended, came into force in 1976.

III

Population

The state has a population of 10,693,000 (2004 estimate), with estimated population density of 292 persons per sq km (755 persons per sq mi) in 2004. About 1.3 million inhabitants of the state are not German, with sizeable Turkish and Italian minorities as well as refugees from the former Yugoslavia. Baden-Württemberg is highly urbanized. Stuttgart is the state’s capital and largest city (population, 2005 estimate, 583,900). Other important cities and towns are Baden-Baden (2005, 52,700); Constance (2005 estimate, 78,500); Esslingen (2005 estimate, 90,000); Freiburg (2005 estimate, 205,100); Friedrichshafen (2005 estimate, 57,200); Heidelberg (2005 estimate, 140,300); Heilbronn (2005 estimate, 119,300); Karlsruhe (2005 estimate, 278,600); Ludwigsburg (2005, 497,800); Mannheim (2005 estimate, 306,700); Pforzheim, (2005 estimate, 117,200); Reutlingen (2005 estimate, 110,700); Tübingen (2005 estimate, 81,300); and Ulm (2005 estimate, 117,200).

IV

Education and Culture

Baden-Württemberg has more institutions of higher education than any other German state; it is also one of the world’s leading research regions, with more than 130 research and development institutions. It is home to nine universities, including the University of Heidelberg (the oldest in the country); the University of Tübingen; and universities in Constance, Freiburg, Hohenheim, Karlsruhe, Mannheim, Stuttgart, and Ulm. There are also private universities in Stuttgart and Bruchsal. Baden-Württemberg has 27 technical universities, 6 teacher-training colleges, 9 vocational academies, and 9 art colleges, as well as several technical colleges. The State Library and State Archive are in Stuttgart, and the German Folksong Archive has its headquarters in Freiburg.

The state has more than 1,000 museums, which include the State Museum of Folk Art in Stuttgart, State Galleries in Baden-Baden, Karlsruhe, and Mannheim, the Museum of New Art in Freiburg, and the Lake Constance Natural Museum and Hus Museum in Constance. More than 150 film and theatre festivals take place in the state annually. Notable institutions include the Stuttgart Ballet, the International Bach Academy, also based in the capital, the German Literature Archive in Marbach, and the Centre for Arts and Media in Karlsruhe. Two UNESCO-designated World Heritage Sites are within the state: a 12th-century monastic complex at Maulbronn (inscribed in 1993) and the island of Reichenau on Lake Constance (inscribed in 2000). Numerous Gothic and Baroque churches as well as civic buildings and castles and palaces are popular sightseeing attractions. Many notable German writers, scientists, and philosophers were either born in or associated with the state, including Johannes Kepler, Friedrich von Schiller, Friedrich Hölderlin, G. W. F. Hegel, Friedrich Wilhelm Schelling, Albert Einstein, Martin Heidegger, and Hermann Hesse.