Unusually for a German city, central Mannheim's streets and avenues are laid out in a grid pattern, leading to its nickname as theQuadratestadt (Square City) and the tourism slogan "Leben im Quadrat" ("Life in the[a]Square").[6] At the southern base of this system isMannheim Palace. It was the former home of thePrince-elector of the Electoral Palatinate, and now houses theUniversity of Mannheim.[7] The civic symbol of the city is theMannheim Water Tower, completed in 1886 and rising to 60 metres (200 feet) above theart nouveau areaFriedrichsplatz. Held annually, theMay Market is the largest regional consumer exhibition of Germany.[8]
Mannheim is well-known for its inventions, including theautomobile,[9][10] thebicycle,[11][10] and thetractor,[10] leading to a nickname of the "city of inventions".[12][13][14] The city is the starting and finishing point of theBertha Benz Memorial Route, which follows the tracks of the first long-distance automobile trip in history.
A brick kiln excavated in 1929 in the Seckenheim district, which operated from 74 AD to the early second century, attests to settlement in Roman times.[22]
The name of the city was first recorded asMannenheim in a legal transaction in 766, surviving in a twelfth-century copy in theCodex Laureshamensis fromLorsch Abbey.[23] The name is interpreted as "the home of Manno", a short form of aGermanic name such asHartmann orHermann.[24] Mannheim remained a village throughout the Middle Ages.
In 1606,Frederick IV, Elector Palatine started building the fortress of Friedrichsburg and the adjacent city centre with its grid of streets and avenues. On 24 January 1607, Frederick IV gave Mannheim the official status of a "city".[25]
Mannheim was mostly levelled during theThirty Years' War around 1622 by the forces ofJohan Tilly. After being rebuilt, it was again severely damaged by theFrench Army in 1689 during theNine Years' War (also called “The War of Palatinate Succession” asPhilippe I, Duke of Orléans, a younger brother ofLouis XIV made a competing claim to the electorate of the Palatinate).
Mannheim is in the Duchy of Baden and situated at the confluence of theRhine andNeckar over both of which there is a bridge of boats. This is the third town of this name having been twice burnt. The houses are large, and the streets are broad and at right angles to each other, and is one of the most airy clean towns I have seen in Germany. It was formerly fortified, but the fortifications were razed in 1806 and gardens fill their places. There is a largechâteau here belonging to the Grand Duke and a very good garden; part of the château was destroyed when the town was bombarded and has never since been repaired, the other part is occupied by theGrand Duchess, widow of thelate Grand Duke who was succeeded byhis uncle having left only three daughters. She is the sister ofEugene Beauharnais [sic; in fact, she was his second cousin]. There is a cathedral, a theatre which is considered good, an observatory, a gallery of pictures at the château, and some private collections. About two kilometres (one point two miles) below the town theRussian Army crossed the Rhine in 1813. Population 18,300.
Mannheim in 1758Historical map of Mannheim in 1880
During the eighteenth century, Mannheim was the home of the "Mannheim School" ofclassical music composers. Mannheim was said to have one of the best court orchestras in Europe under the leadership of the conductorCarlo Grua. The royal court of the Palatinate left Mannheim in 1778, asCharles Theodore had becomeElector of Bavaria and moved toMunich. Two decades later, in 1802, Mannheim was removed from the Palatinate and given to theGrand Duchy of Baden.
Infrastructure improvements included the establishment ofRhine Harbour in 1828 and the construction of thefirst Baden railway, which opened from Mannheim to Heidelberg in 1840. Influenced by the economic rise of the middle class, another golden age of Mannheim gradually began. In theMarch Revolution of 1848, the city was a centre for political and revolutionary activity.
In 1865,Friedrich Engelhorn founded theBadische Anilin- und Soda-Fabrik (Baden Aniline and Soda Factory,BASF) in Mannheim, but the factory was constructed across the Rhine in Ludwigshafen because Mannheim residents fearedair pollution from its operations. From this dye factory, BASF has developed into the largest chemical company in the world. After opening a workshop in Mannheim in 1871 and patenting engines from 1878,Karl Benz patented the first motor car in 1886. He was born inMühlburg (now part of Karlsruhe).
TheSchütte-Lanz company, founded by Karl Lanz and Johann Schütte in 1909, built 22 airships. The company's main competitor was theZeppelin works.
WhenWorld War I broke out in 1914, Mannheim's industrial plants played a key role in Germany's war economy. This contributed to the fact that, on 27 May 1915, Ludwigshafen was the world's first civilian settlement behind the battle lines to be bombed from the air. French aircraft attacked the BASF plants, thereby killing twelve people. The precedent was set for this attack by Germany's repeated air raids against British civilian populations throughout southeastern Britain during the first half of 1915.
When Germany lost the war in 1918, according to the peace terms, the left bank of the Rhine was occupied by French troops. The French occupation lasted until 1930, and some of Ludwigshafen's most elegant houses were erected for the officers of the French garrison.
After theFirst World War, the Heinrich Lanz Company built the Bulldog, an advanced tractor, powered by heavy oil. As a result of the invention of the pre-combustion chamber byProsper L'Orange,Benz & Cie. developed the world's first compact diesel-powered car at its motor works in Mannheim in 1923. In 1922, theGrosskraftwerk Mannheim (Mannheim large power station) was opened. By 1930, the city, along with its sister city of Ludwigshafen, which had developed out of the old Mannheim Rheinschanze, had a population of 385,000.
In late March 1945, the Allied ground advance into Germany reached Mannheim, which was potentially well-defended by German forces. However, the German forces abandoned the city and theU.S. 44th Infantry Division entered unopposed on 29 March 1945.[29] There was later a large American military occupation presence in the Mannheim area with up to 10 barracks. The first one was closed in 2007 and the last in 2013 (seeUnited States military installations below).
After the war, large portions of the city required rebuilding. TheMannheim Palace and thewater tower (Wasserturm) were reconstructed, whilst theNational Theatre was replaced in a new location. At the old location, there is now a park with a monument toFriedrich Schiller. The housing shortage led to the development of many new residential areas.
In 1975, theBundesgartenschau (Federal horticulture show) was celebrated in theLuisen and Herzogenried parks. A number of pieces of infrastructure were developed for the show: thetelecommunications tower and a second bridge across the Rhine (theKurt Schumacher Bridge) were built, the pedestrian zone in the city centre was established, the new Rosengarten conference centre was opened and theAerobus was installed as a temporary transport system.
Mannheim skyline viewed from Heidelberg
A number of major projects were completed in the 1980s and 1990s: a planetarium, an extension to the art gallery, the Reiß Museum, the Stadthaus, newMay Market grounds, a synagogue, a mosque, theState Museum for Technology and Work, theCarl-Benz stadium and the Fahrlach tunnel were opened.
Mannheim has lost many industrial jobs where previously the city was economically dominated by manufacturing. The city previously tried to prevent the establishment of service providers by designating some locations as industrial areas. A prime example of the current trend is the construction of the Victoria Tower (Victoria-Turm) in 2001, one of the tallest buildings in the city, on railway land.
Victoria Turm Mannheim at the marshalling yard at night
The 400th anniversary of the city was in 2006, sinceFrederick IV, Elector Palatine laid the foundations of Mannheim citadel on 17 March 1606. Mannheim instead celebrated its 400th anniversary with a series of cultural and other events throughout 2007. In preparation for the anniversary, some urban activities were implemented, beginning in 2000: the building of theSAP Arena with access to the city's new eastern ring road, the rehabilitation of the pedestrian zone in Breite Straße, the arsenal and the palace, the complete transformation of the old fairground, and the new Schafweide tram line. The concept of the anniversary of the city was for a diverse range of events rather than a single central event.[31]
In 2023, Mannheim again hosted theBundesgartenschau 2023 (Federal Garden Show); after first hosting in 1975.[32]
On 31 May 2024, amass stabbing took place at acounter-jihadBPE rally in the market square. A police officer was killed and six others, including guest speaker Michael Stürzenberger, were injured. The suspect confessed to havingIslamist motivations behind the attack, which was meant to be an assassination attempt on Stürzenberger for hiscriticism of Islam.[33]
On 3 March 2025, acar was intentionally driven into a crowd at Paradeplatz. Two pedestrians were killed and 14 were injured. The suspect, who had a history of mental health issues, as well as previous convictions for assault and hate speech, refused to give motivations for the attack.[34]
Mannheim features atemperateoceanic climate (Köppen:Cfb,Trewartha:Dobk).[35]The city is located in Germany's warmest summer region, the "Rhine shift". The highest recorded temperature was 39.8 °C (104 °F) on 7 August 2015.
In comparison to other regions of Germany, Mannheim has a higher humidity in summer, causing a higher heat index. Snow is rare, even in the cold months. Precipitation occurs mostly during afternoon thunderstorms during warmer weather (average days with thunderstorms annually is 40–50). The climate in this area has mild differences between highs and lows, and there is adequate rainfall year-round. The city is one of the warmest inGermany inwinter.
Population size may be affected by changes in administrative divisions.
Mannheim, with a population of 315,000, is the 2nd largest city inBaden-Württemberg. Its location near theRhine andNeckar rivers spurred Mannheim's industrialization and transition into a major city in the early 19th century. The city was heavily damaged during WWII but soon regained prominence as an industrial centre, causing rapid population growth in the 1950s. Many motor, electronic and power plant companies came to Mannheim and other cities in the Rhine-Neckar Region, includingLudwigshafen andHeidelberg. The population of Mannheim started to decline in the 1980s but began to rebound in the 2010s, partially due to its largeuniversity population.
The following list shows the most significant groups of foreigners in the city of Mannheim by nationalities.[39] In total 44.7% of all Mannheim inhabitants are of foreign descent. The Neckarstadt-West district has the biggest foreign population with 68.9%, while the Wallstadt district has the smallest with 23.1%. A large proportion of the immigrants are from the Balkans and European countries.
The distribution of Mannheim's population by religious affiliation (as of December 31, 2020) isRoman Catholic 25.4%,Protestant 20.0%, and other/none 54.6%.[40]
Recently, smaller stages have opened, such as the Oststadt-Theater, the TIG7 (Theater im Quadrat G7), the Theater Oliv, the Freilichtbühne, the Theater31, the Theater ImPuls, the Theater Felina-Areal, the Mannheimer Puppenspiele, the Kleinkunstbühne Klapsmühl', Schatzkistl, andzeitraumexit.
Adler Mannheim (formerly MERC, Mannheimer Eis- und Rollsport-Club) is anice hockey team that plays in the professionalDeutsche Eishockey Liga. They have won the German championship a total of eight times (7 times the Deutsche Eishockey Liga and once the formerBundesliga).[42]
The city is home to theMannheim Tornados, the oldest operational baseball and softball club in Germany. The Tornados play in the first division of theBaseball Bundesliga and have won the championship 11 times, more than any other club.[43]
In 2003, theAmerican football clubRhein-Neckar Bandits was founded. They play in the first German Football League (also known as GFL1). As of 2018, between 500 and 900 people watch each game.[44]
Official sign ofBertha Benz Memorial Route, commemorating the world's first long-distance journey by automobile from Mannheim to Pforzheim in 1888 104 km (65 mi)
TheUniversity of Mannheim is one of Germany's younger universities. Although founded in 1967, it has its origins in thePalatine Academy of Sciences, established in 1763, and the former Handelshochschule (Commercial College), founded in 1907. Situated inMannheim Palace, it is Germany's leading university in the fields of business and economics and attracts students from around the world. Described byDie Zeit as the 'Harvard of Germany',[57] it is seen as the training grounds of German business leaders. Just under 12,000 students were enrolled at the end of 2024.[58]
Dependents of U.S. military personnel attended Mannheim Elementary School until it closed in June 2012.[59] In the 1980s the school had 2,200 students.[60]
The mayor is the head of the city council and chairman of the council, being selected by direct suffrage for a term of eight years. The current mayor isChristian Specht [de] from theChristian Democratic Union (CDU).
In 2023, Specht ran in the election for mayor of Mannheim, in which incumbentPeter Kurz (SPD) did not contest the election, and was supported by the CDU Mannheim, theMannheimer Liste [de] and theFDP Mannheim.[61][62] In the first round of voting on June 18, 2023, he received 45.64% of the vote. On July 9, 2023, he won the second round of voting with 49.9% of the vote, ahead of SPD candidate Thorsten Riehle (48.7%) and independent candidate Uğur Çakir (1.3%).[63] Due to an objection to the election results, Specht was initially elected as appointed mayor by the city council.[64] The objection was rejected by theKarlsruhe Regional Council [de] on August 2, 2023, making Specht's election valid.[65] He took office on August 4, 2023,[66] making him the first CDU mayor in Mannheim sinceJosef Braun (1945–1948).[67]
The council has 48 seats and is elected by direct suffrage every five years. In the local elections in Baden-Württemberg, voters are allowed to take advantage ofcumulative voting andvote splitting. Since the Second World War, the SPD has received more votes than the CDU in all elections except for 1999, 2004, and 2024. In the 2019 election, the Greens received the most votes for the first time.
The most recent city council election was held on 9 June 2024, and the results were as follows:
A number ofU.S. Army Europe installations were located in and near to Mannheim during theCold War. The following locations provided services to and housed the "U.S. Army Garrison Mannheim" and other units of the U.S. Army. The U.S. Army Garrison Mannheim was formally deactivated on 31 May 2011.[68]
Funari Barracks (Mannheim-Käfertal), vacated in 2014.
Spinelli Barracks (Mannheim-Feudenheim), vacated in 2015, the home of the Army's 28th TransportationBattalion.
Sullivan Barracks (Mannheim-Käfertal): formerly the headquarters of theU.S. Army's 7th Signal Brigade and the 529th Military Police Honor Guard Company's 2nd Platoon; vacated in 2014.
Turley Barracks (Mannheim-Käfertal): in the early 1990s was home to the 181st Transportation Bn, with companies of 40th, 41st, 51st, 590th, TTP, and HHC transportation companies and also the headquarters of the NATOACE Mobile Force (Land) (AMFL).
TheBenjamin Franklin Village (Mannheim-Käfertal), housing. Also home to the Mannheim American High School and the Middle School,[69] which closed on 9 June 2011 before the last soldier and his family moved out in 2012.
The following locations were part of the "U.S. Army GarrisonHeidelberg" but were within the area of the city of Mannheim until they were vacated in 2010 and 2011:
Friedrichsfeld Service Center (Mannheim-Friedrichsfeld)
All personnel of the U.S. Army military community left Mannheim by 2015, some of them moving to Wiesbaden. With the exception of four barracks, all other barracks formerly occupied by the U.S. military had been returned to the German state for conversion to civilian use in 2011.
The city centre – designed in squares (Quadratestadt)
Reißinsel – a natural area bequeathed to the residents of Mannheim by honorary citizen Carl Reiß[72]
Reiss Engelhorn Museum – museum with four exhibition halls presenting exhibits in archaeology, world cultures, history of art and culture, photography, and history of theater and music
Maimarkt – largest regional trade fair in Germany[73]
Marktplatz (Market square) – hosts a farmers' market every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.[74] Fresh fruit, vegetables, and flowers are sold.
Mannheimer Mess [de] (Mannheim Fair) – twice a year (spring & autumn), a big fair that takes place on Neuer Messplatz-square[75]
In the 2019 edition of theZukunftsatlas [de], the independent city of Mannheim ranked 35th out of 401 counties and independent cities in Germany, making it one of the places with "high future opportunities".[76]
Mannheim is among the most attractive business locations in Germany thanks to its competitive business environment and growth opportunities and is considered the economic centre of theRhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region, which is one of Germany's most important business locations.[20]
The New Economy Magazine elected Mannheim under the 20 cities that best represent the world of tomorrow, emphasizing Mannheim's positive economic and innovative environment.[20]
In addition to the only local daily newspaperMannheimer Morgen [de]; the Ludwigshafen newspaperDie Rheinpfalz, the Heidelberg newspaperRhein-Neckar-Zeitung [de] and theBild Rhein-Neckar offer a local section for Mannheim. TheWochenblatt Mannheim is also published weekly whilst theKommunal-Info Mannheim is published fortnightly. Free district newspapers are distributed in almost all parts of the city.
The Mannheim/Ludwigshafen area is surrounded by a ring of motorways connecting it toFrankfurt in the north,Karlsruhe in the south,Saarbrücken in the west andNuremberg in the east.
Mannheim Harbour is the second-largestriver port in Germany and is 1131hectares.[92] In 2016, 6.9 million tons of goods were handled on the water side.[93] Around 500 companies, with about 20,000 employees, work in the harbour.[94]
Local public transport in Mannheim includes theRheinNeckar S-Bahn, eleventram lines, and numerous bus lines operated byRhein-Neckar-Verkehr (Rhine-Neckar transport) (RNV).
TheRheinNeckar S-Bahn, established in 2003, connects most of the Rhine-Neckar area, including lines into thePalatinate,Odenwald and southernHesse. All S-Bahn lines run through Mannheim Hauptbahnhof except S5. Other S-Bahn stations are Mannheim-Rangierbahnhof, Mannheim-Seckenheim, and Mannheim-Friedrichsfeld-Süd.
The1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in)metre gauge integratedMannheim/Ludwigshafen tramway network also extends to Heidelberg. It is operated by RNV, a company that is owned by these three cities and some further municipalities in the Palatinate. RNV is the result of a merger on 1 October 2009 between the region's five former municipal transportation companies.[95] Interurban trams are operated by RNV on a triangular route between Mannheim,Heidelberg, andWeinheim which was originally established by theUpper Rhine Railway Company (Oberrheinische Eisenbahn, OEG), and the company also operates interurban trams betweenBad Dürkheim, Ludwigshafen, and Mannheim. In the 1970s a proposal to build aU-Bahn out of the Mannheim and Ludwigshafen tramways was begun, but only small sections were built due to lack of funds. The only underground station in Mannheim is the Haltestelle Dalbergstraße and U-Bahn planning has now ceased. All public transport is offered at uniform prices set by theVerkehrsverbund Rhein-Neckar (Rhine-Neckar Transport Union, VRN).
The city centre uses an address system seen nowhere else in Germany. The grid system is given addresses based on letters and numbers rather than street names. The practice dates back centuries and is a result of the original use of the city centre as a fort, with the fort's internal system being retained when the streets became public.
The codes are laid out in a systematic pattern. The historical Breite Straße passes through the centre of the grid system from north to south and divides the centre into east and west. Rows A–K are found on the west side and L–U on the east, with letters progressing alphabetically going northwards. Intersecting roads divide rows into blocks numbered from 1 to 7 based on the distance from Breite Straße. Thus, C3 is between C2 and C4 when moving west and B3 and D3 when moving north. Further, a number is given to each building: C3, 17 is block C3, building 17. House numbers begin on the south corner nearest Breite Straße and go counterclockwise for A–K and clockwise for L–U.[96]
This system causes major issues for most mapping software as each apparent street name references the four pieces of road encompassing a block. A variety of fixes have been tried, none with a high level of success. Attempts to fix the issue by giving the roads false names within the database have often failed to give accurate results, but such can still be seen on some platforms likeGoogle Maps. Finding an address in the area thus generally requires resorting to asking directions or using one of the many posted public maps.[97]
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