According to abbreviationfinder, Frankfurt is a city in Hesse, in the sub-Main level, with (2019) 763 400 residents, the largest city in Hesse.
Educational institutions include the university and the Senckenberg research institute (the largest German research museum), libraries (including the German library) and numerous museums. As Goethe’s birthplace, Frankfurt is home to the Goethe House with the Goethe Museum. Also worth seeing are the Gothic cathedral, the Paulskirche (18th / 19th century) and the Römer, which was built as a town hall from medieval patrician houses. The “high-rise skyline” with the Commerzbank Tower (259 m) as the highest skyscraper in Germany is famous.
As a hub for Central European rail and air traffic (Frankfurt Airport, by far the largest German airport), as well as being connected to waterways and motorways, Frankfurt has an extremely favorable traffic situation. Economically, it is one of the most important German cities with a diverse industry and important trade fairs (largest book fair in the world, international automobile exhibition). As a banking and stock exchange center, it is the first in Germany (including the headquarters of the Deutsche Bundesbank and the European Central Bank).
History
Frankfurt, originally a Roman settlement, was often the site of the German king’s election from the 12th century (established in 1356); The emperors were crowned here from 1562 to 1806. From 13./14. In the 19th century, the city developed into a supraregional trading and exhibition center. In 1848/49 it was the venue for the Frankfurt National Assembly.
Attractions
The Carolingian Palatinate (today the »Archaeological Garden« in front of the cathedral tower; 2013-16 integrated into the »Stadthaus am Markt«) is the starting point for medieval urban development. Of the city fortifications, among other things, remained. the Eschenheimer tower (built 1400-28 to replace a tower from 1346) received.
Sacred buildings, partly rebuilt after the war destruction in 1943/44, are among others. the “cathedral” of St. Bartholomew (around 1250–1369, on previous buildings) with its west tower (“parish tower”, begun in 1415 by M. Gerthener); Sankt Leonhard (begun in 1219, rebuilt in the 15th / 16th centuries); Saint Nikolai (consecrated in 1290, remodeled in the 15th century); Church of Our Lady (consecrated in 1344, redesigned in the 15th century); Katharinenkirche (1678; 14 stained glass windows by Charles Crodel) and Westend Synagogue (originally built in 1910; restored from 1988–94). The nave of the former Carmelite monastery (13th-16th century) and the Annenkapelle form with the new building by J. P. Kleihues (Opened in 1989) the architectural ensemble of the Archaeological Museum Frankfurt. The cycle of frescoes by J. Ratgeb (1514–17) in the Gothic cloister was preserved.
The Roman, which has been restored in its façade, was built as a town hall from various patrician houses (around 1405) and is the town’s landmark; nearby is the stone house (1464).
Across from the Römer, a row of houses was rebuilt based on the historical buildings from 1981–83. In January 2012 the foundation stone was laid for the reconstruction of the winding old town, which had been destroyed by bombing in 1943 and 1944. The Technical Town Hall built on this site in the 1970s was demolished. As part of the “Dom-Römer-Projekt”, 35 new buildings were built on a 7000 m 2 area between the Römer and the cathedral by 2018, some as reconstructions of historical buildings, others as new buildings under strict conditions.
The Schirn Kunsthalle (1984–86) is located between the Römer and the cathedral. The Paulskirche was built 1789–1833 (restored 1987/88; in the foyer a monumental mural by J. Grützke “The procession of the people’s representatives”, 1987–90). On the Sachsenhausen side of the Main is the Teutonic Order Commander, the church was consecrated in 1309 (1747–51, facing facade), 1709–15 the commander’s building was built; The Icon Museum (opened in 1990) is located in the former refectory (remodeled by O. M. Ungers). The Hauptwache, a building from 1729–30, is located on the former parade ground.
Among the buildings from the founding years are the Alte Oper (1873–80, reconstruction completed in 1981), the Neue Börse (1874–79), the main train station (1882–88) and the Gesellschaftshaus im Palmengarten (1869–70, 1929 remodeling by E. May and Martin Elsaesser). At the beginning of the 20th century the buildings of the Adlerwerke (1906–12), Cassella AG (1913), the technical administration building of Hoechst AG (1920–24) by P. Behrens, a building in the style of Expressionism, as well as the wholesale market hall (1926–28) by Elsaesser, a building in the New Objectivity style.
The first skyscraper in Frankfurt is the former Mouson soap factory (1923–26, today Künstlerhaus), an important example of brick expressionism; In the style of functionalism, H. Poelzig built the administration building of I. G. Farbenindustrie AG (today the university) from 1928–31. The pioneering buildings between the two world wars include the various housing estates of May (Römerstadt, 1927/28, Praunheim settlement, 1926–30) and the Hellerhof settlement by M. Stam (1929–31). Examples of modern church building include the Frauenfriedenskirche in Bockenheim by J. Herkomer (1927-29) and Sankt Michael im Nordend by R. Schwarz (1953/54).
Today’s “skyline” of Frankfurt is characterized by numerous high-rise buildings of banks and administrations: among others. Double towers of DekaBank (1979–84), office tower of the Deutsche Genossenschaftsbank (1990–93), “Trianon” tower of Deutsche Bank (1993), main tower of Landesbank Hessen-Thuringia (2000), twin towers “Gallileo”, the former headquarters of Dresdner Bank (1999–2003), new building for the European Central Bank (ECB; 2010–14, opening in 2015). The tallest office tower in the city is the Commerzbank headquarters by N. Foster (1994–97; 258.7 m high, with an antenna almost 300 m high). The tallest building in the city is the telecommunications tower (1976–78) at 331 m.
The former training center of Deutsche Olivetti (1969–72, E. Eiermann) is one of the expressive buildings in the Frankfurt-Niederrad office district. On the exhibition grounds, Ungers broke new ground with exhibition hall 9 and the »Galleria« (1980–83) as well as the »Torhaus« (1983–85). H. Jahn added another striking building in 1985–91 with the »Messeturm« high-rise office building (256.5 m high). He also built the City Entrance Hall and Exhibition Hall 1 (completed in 1989). The Carré Mainzer Landstrasse by BRT (Bothe, Richter, Teherani; 2001–03), on the rear side of the Alte Oper, the »Frankfurter Welle« by JSK (1997–2001), a concave-convex swaying slab of office building, set new accents in the inner city area. and the “Palais Quartier” (overall architectural planning: KSP Jürgen Engel Architekten), which includes the remains and reconstructed parts of the Palais Thurn und Taxis (1727–41), which was destroyed in the Second World War; The first sub-project was the “MyZeil” shopping center (architect Massimiliano Fuksas) opened in 2009.
The “Museumsufer” emerged from the debate about postmodernism in the 1980s, and its concept assumed the role of a model for further new museum plans in Germany. The following museums are lined up on the Schaumainkai: Museum of old plastic (Liebieghaus; since 1909, in a former villa), Städel Museum – Städelsches Kunstinstitut and Städtische Galerie (1874–78, by Oskar Sommer; 1988–91, extension by G. Peichl), German Architecture Museum (DAM; 1981–84, by Ungers, including a former villa), German Film Museum (1982–84, by Bofinger & Partner in a former villa), Museum for Communication Frankfurt (1990, new building by G. Behnisch), Weltkulturen Museum, Museum Angewandte Kunst (1979–85, from R. Meier, including the classicist Villa Metzler). – In the wider urban area: Jewish Museum (opened in 1988, in the classicist Rothschild Palace and its neighboring building), Museum Judengasse (opened in 1992), Museum of Modern Art (opened in 1991, by H. Hollein); on the Großer Hirschgraben the Frankfurt Goethe House – Free German Hochstift (with Goethe Museum), Senckenberg Nature Museum, History Museum (in the Saalhof and since 2017 in the large new museum building completed in 2015). The construction of the German Romantic Museum is planned in the direct vicinity of the Goethe House.
Significant changes in the cityscape resulted in new developments started in the late 1990s as well as redesigns of areas bordering the core city area, including since 1999 the area at Frankfurt’s Westhafen according to a master plan by the architects Schneider + Schumacher, an ensemble of office complexes and residential quarters (including the same the “Westhafen Pier”, consisting of five interconnected by bridges office buildings with shed roof, as well as a new gateway to the core city of the 100 m high “Westhafentower,” both in 2003 completed, the projects “waterfront living” after a design by O. Steidle and the “Mainside residential houses” by Braun + Voigt, also completed in 2003). Erected on the Deutschherrenufer H. Kollhoff created the »Main Plaza« (1998–2002), an 88 m high high-rise tower crowned by 84 golden battlements with luxury apartments. The urbanization of the area along Hanauer Landstrasse with the former Ostgüterbahnhof (numerous residential and commercial buildings, among which the 130,000 m 2 “Stadtwerk” complex by architects KSP Engel and Zimmermann with offices, lofts, shops and restaurants stands out; 2004 completed). The new headquarters of the European Central Bank was built here by 2014, including the listed wholesale market hall (the competition for this was won by Coop Himmelb (l) au, 2004). The opening ceremony on March 18, 2015 was attended by z. Sometimes violent demonstrations overshadowed.
