Kiel

Kiel, city in north Germany, a port on an arm of the Baltic Sea in Schleswig-Holstein at the eastern entrance of the Nord-Ostsee (or Kiel) Canal. The city has been a major port since the 10th century thanks to its excellent harbour, which is a tideless fiord. The chief industries, aside from fishing, shipbuilding, and naval maintenance, are the manufacture of soap, food products, machinery, and woollen goods. The city has a university and is a popular centre for pleasure craft. In 1284 Kiel became a member of the Hanseatic League. In 1773 it came under Danish rule, and in 1866, as part of Schleswig-Holstein, it passed to the control of Prussia. In World War I the city was the headquarters of the German Imperial Fleet, and in World War II its naval base was heavily bombed by the Allies. Population (1990 estimate) 244,800.