Originally a small settlement, Kiel was granted city rights in 1242. Over the centuries, it developed as an important port and trading hub, particularly due to its strategic location on the Kieler Förde inlet. Kiel became part of theDuchy of Holstein, the northernmost state of theHoly Roman Empire. From 1773 to 1864, it was ruled inpersonal union by the king ofDenmark. In 1864, after theSecond Schleswig War, the city was incorporated into theKingdom of Prussia. During the 20th century, Kiel played a significant role in bothWorld War I andWorld War II, with its naval significance andshipbuilding industry. Following World War II, it became part ofWest Germany and later the unified Germany.
Kiel is one of Germany's major maritime centres, known for a variety of internationalsailing events, including the annualKiel Week, which is the biggest sailing event in the world. Kiel is also known for theKiel Mutiny, when sailors refused orders to prepare to engage the British Navy in the last weeks ofWorld War I, sparking theGerman Revolution, which led to the abdication of theKaiser and the formation of theWeimar Republic. The Olympic sailing competitions of the1936 and the1972 Summer Olympics were held in theBay of Kiel.[5]
The city of Kiel was founded in 1233 asHolstenstadt tom Kyle by CountAdolf IV of Holstein, and grantedLübeck city rights in 1242 by Adolf's eldest son,John I of Schauenburg. As a part of Holstein, Kiel belonged to theHoly Roman Empire and was situated only a few kilometres south of theDanish border.[6]
Kiel in the 16th century
The capital of the county (later duchy) ofHolstein, Kiel was a member of theHanseatic League from 1284 until it was expelled in 1518 for harbouringpirates. TheKieler Umschlag (trade fair), first held in 1431, became the central market for goods and money in the Duchy of Holstein. It began to declinec. 1850 and ceased in 1900.
Schleswig-Holstein with Kiel Fjord at the Baltic Coast
From 1773 to 1864, the town belonged to the king ofDenmark. However, because the king ruled Holstein as a fief of theHoly Roman Empire only through apersonal union, the town was not incorporated as part of Denmark proper. Even though the empire was abolished in 1806, the Danish king continued to rule Kiel only through his position as Duke of Holstein, which became a member of theGerman Confederation in 1815. WhenSchleswig and Holstein rebelled against Denmark in 1848 (theFirst Schleswig War), Kiel became the capital of Schleswig-Holstein until the Danish victory in 1850.[7]
Because of its new role as Germany's main naval base, Kiel very quickly increased in size in the following years, from 18,770 in 1864 to about 200,000 in 1910. Much of the old town centre and other surroundings were levelled and redeveloped to provide for the growing city. TheKiel tramway network, opened in 1881, had been enlarged to 10 lines, with a total route length of 40 km (25 mi), before the end of theFirst World War.[citation needed]
Kiel was the site of thesailors' mutiny which led to theGerman Revolution in late 1918. Just before the end of the First World War, the German fleet stationed at Kiel was ordered to sail out for a last great battle with theRoyal Navy. The sailors, who thought of it as a suicide mission which would have no effect on the outcome of the war, decided they had nothing to lose and refused to obey orders. They took over Kiel and then spread out to other north German ports, sparking the revolution which led to the abolition of the monarchy and the creation of theWeimar Republic.[8]
Double-postcard panorama of Kiel from across the Kiel Fjord, 1902
TheGerman cruiserAdmiral Scheer capsized in the docks at Kiel after being hit in an RAF raid on the night of 9/10 April 1945.Kiel Harbour, an Admiralty chart of 1971
During theSecond World War, Kiel remained one of the major naval bases and shipbuilding centres of the German Reich. There was also aslavelabour camp for the local industry.[9] Owing to its status as a naval port and production site for submarines, Kiel was heavily bombed by theAllies during this period. The bombing destroyed more than 80% of the remaining old town, 72% of the central residential areas, and 83% of the industrial areas.[10] During the RAF bombing of 23/24 July 1944, Luftwaffe fighters tried to intercept the spoof (i.e. decoy) force instead of the main force attacking Kiel,[11] and there was no water for three days; trains and buses did not run for eight days and there was no gas available for cooking for three weeks.[12]
There were several bombing raids of the port area during the period 20 February – 20 April 1945 which successfully eliminated manyU-boats, and the few large warships (cruisersHipper,Scheer, andKöln) still afloat at that time. It and its port, and the canal were seized by a BritishT-Force led by MajorTony Hibbert on 5 May 1945.[13][14][15]
Like other heavily bombed German cities, the city was rebuilt after the war. In 1946, Kiel was named the seat of government forSchleswig-Holstein, and it officially became the state's capital in 1952.[citation needed]
Today, Kiel is once again an important maritime centre of Germany, with high-tech shipbuilding,submarine construction and one of the world's largest ocean research centers, the GEOMAR. In 2006, Kiel was one of the founding cities of the originalEuropean Green Capital Award.[16]
Kiel has anoceanic climate (Köppen:Cfb;Trewartha:Dolk). Located on the Baltic Sea coast, the temperature fluctuates less than inland, with warm winters and cool summers throughout the year. The average temperature ranges from 2 °C (36 °F) in winter to 17 °C (63 °F) in summer. Days with a temperature above 30 °C (86 °F) are rare, with an average of only 2.8 days per year.[17]
The Kiel weather station has recorded the following extreme values:[18]
Highest Temperature 36.5 °C (97.7 °F) on20 July 2022.
Warmest Minimum 22.1 °C (71.8 °F) on 1 August 1994.
Coldest Maximum −15.4 °C (4.3 °F) on 12 February 1940.
Lowest Temperature −24.8 °C (−12.6 °F) on 13 February 1940.[19]
Highest Daily Precipitation 104.2 mm (4.10 in) on 27 August 1989.
Wettest Month 252.0 mm (9.92 in) in August 2011.
Wettest Year 964.4 mm (37.97 in) in 2002.
Driest Year 454.4 mm (17.89 in) in 1959.
Longest annual sunshine: 2,115.3 hours in 1959.
Shortest annual sunshine: 1,299.4 hours in 1987.
Climate data for Kiel (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1940–present[a])
^Temperature data for Kiel have been recorded since 1940. The weather station data used from 1 January 1940 to 15 October 1988 came fromKiel-Kronshagen, and temperature data from 1 January 1974 to the present are fromKiel-Holtenau.
Image showing the population density of Kiel by district. Data from 2010.
Kiel has about 40 districts, but there is no standard division. The districts are traditionally grouped into 30 boroughs (Stadtteile).[21] Another, more recent structure summarizes the districts in 18 political districts (Ortsteile).[22] The city has 25 electoral districts.
The biggest districts, by population, are Wik (20,100), Gaarden-Ost (19,200) and Mettenhof (19,900).[23] Gaarden, located at the southern end of the fjord, is a traditional working-class district that used to be home to mainly shipyard workers. Mettenhof is a large housing estate (satellite town) that was built in the 1960s and 1970s on the western outskirts of the city. The city districts of Düsternbrook, Schreventeich, Ravensberg and Blücherplatz, north of the city centre, are popular places to live with many 19th century buildings, villas and tree-lined streets. The government offices, ministries and parliament of the state ofSchleswig-Holstein are also mainly based in these neighbourhoods, particularly Düsternbrook.
In contrast to the heavy bomb damage inflicted on the central parts of the city during theSecond World War, most of the residential areas were not severely damaged. Hence, Kiel's more modern-style inner city and Kiel's more historic/elaborate residential areas stand in architectural contrast to one another.There are plans for large-scale improvement and building efforts for the inner city, providing better pavements, better access to and view of the waterfront, and a generally more attractive feel to the place. These plans, most notably the "Kleiner Kiel Kanal", a restoration of a historic canal that was filled in to make place for road infrastructure, are to be implemented in the next few years.[24][needs update]
The oldest building in the city is the 13th centuryChurch of St. Nicholas, which has a sculpture byErnst Barlach in front of it calledGeistkämpfer.
Kiel isSchleswig-Holstein's largest city, and therefore Kiel's shopping district is a major attraction, and will see further improvement and renovation efforts in the upcoming years. Kiel's Holstenstraße (Holsten Street) is one of the longest shopping streets in Germany. TheRathaus (Town Hall), which was built in 1911, has an operatingpaternoster lift and the design of its tower was based on one inVenice. The square in front of it is bordered by a lake and theOpernhaus Kiel (Kiel Opera House). There are also a number of lakes and parks in the city centre, such as Schrevenpark. There are twobotanical gardens, theOld Botanical Garden and theBotanischer Garten der Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel (or New Botanical Garden).
As Kiel is situated near the sea, the beaches to the north of Kiel, such asStrande, Kiel-Schilksee,Möltenort andLaboe, are also popular places to visit in spring and summer.
Kiel Week, also known in English as the Kiel Regatta, is the largest sailing event in the world and takes place every year in the last full week in June. Many thousands of boats and ships of all kinds and eras take part in the parade. Kiel Week is also a festival,Volksfest and fair as well as a maritime event. There are a number of yachting and sailing clubs in picturesque settings.
Kiel also features a number of museums, including zoological, geological, historical, fine art, industrial and military museums. Notable is the Stadt- und Schifffahrtsmuseum Warleberger Hof (City and Maritime Museum), which belongs to the associationMuseen am Meer. In addition to preserving architecture from the 16th century and historic rooms with painted stucco ceilings, it displays urban and cultural exhibits of the 19th and 20th centuries.[25] Particularly intriguing is the history of the carnival in Kiel.[25]
Kiel has a population of 250,412.[29] In 1946, when Kiel became the capital ofSchleswig-Holstein, its population was about 214,000. Kiel is Germany's largest coastal city and its only state capital located on the sea. In the 1950s Kiel, with its marine port, attracted members of the navy. Kiel had its highest peak of population in 1973 at 273,000. The population declined since then. Many people moved away from this city and Kiel became very poor and had a big problems with unemployed people at that time. Kiel is now a city with universities and active marine stations which attracts many young students and marines to Kiel.
The City Council is the municipal representative body of Kiel. Its composition is determined by citizens in elections held every five years.
Since the last election on May 14, 2023, in whichAlliance 90/The Greens became the strongest party in Kiel for the first time, the city has been governed by agreen-red coalition. This coalition, formed by theGreens and theSPD, holds 25 of the 49 seats in the Kiel City Council and operates under a cooperation agreement from 2023 to 2028.[30]
The current mayor of Kiel isUlf Kämpfer of theSocial Democratic Party (SPD). Kämpfer has stated that he will not run for a third five year term.[32] His current term ends in 2026. The results of the 29 October 2019 election were as follows:
There are a number of sports venues in Kiel, most notably theWunderino Arena (formerly known as Baltic Sea Hall orOstseehalle), which is the home ground of one of the most successfulteam handball clubs in the world and multiple German champion,THW Kiel.Holstein Kiel, anassociation football club, which plays atHolstein-Stadion, played in theBundesliga in the 2024–2025 season for the first time in the club's history.
TheUniversity of Kiel (Christian-Albrechts-Universität) was founded by DukeChristian Albrecht in 1665. It is the only full university ofSchleswig-Holstein, with about 27,000 students. Partly linked to the University Kiel are other independent research facilities such as theGerman National Library of Economics – Leibniz Informationcenter for Economy, theKiel Institute for the World Economy, theGEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel and the research institute of theBundeswehr for water sound and geophysics. Besides these, there are other educational institutions such as theFachhochschule Kiel (founded in 1969) and the Muthesius School of Arts (founded in 1907). The projects Murmann School of Global Management and Economics and Multimedia Campus Kiel were ultimately unsuccessful.[clarification needed] TheWirtschaftsakademie Schleswig-Holstein offers, besides advanced training at theBerufsakademie, dual study courses for economists, business information specialists, and industrial engineers.
Noteworthy as a departmental research institute is the federal institute for dairy research, which was merged into theMax-Rubner-Institut together with other institutions in 2004. The state capital Kiel is a corporative sponsoring member of theMax Planck Society.[33]
TheARGE-SH, the oldest research institution of the republic of Germany, has its headquarters in Kiel.
There are twelvegymnasiums in Kiel, of which theKieler Gelehrtenschule, founded in 1320 as a humanistic gymnasium, is the oldest. Other secondary schools include theGymnasium Elmschenhagen and theMax-Planck-Schule with a focus on natural sciences. There are many comprehensive schools – partially with secondary schools – all over the city area, as well as private schools.
BZ am NOK (Berufsbildungszentrum am Nord-Ostsee-Kanal) is a vocational training center offering education and training in over 40 professions. It includes dual training programs, vocational schools, technical colleges, and vocational grammar schools.[34]
TheHolstenstraße is one of the longest shopping streets in Germany — Kiel is the largest city in the state ofSchleswig-Holstein.
Kiel's economy is dominated by the service sector, transport and maritime industries. Kiel is also one of the major ports of theGerman Navy, and a leading centre of German high-tech military and civil shipbuilding. Kiel is the home ofHowaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft, ashipyard founded in 1838 famed for its construction ofsubmarines. HDW built the first German submarineBrandtaucher in 1850, and is today a subsidiary ofThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, the leading German group of shipyards.
There is also an active startup scene in Kiel with startup accelerator StarterKitchen and startups likeSciEngines GmbH, Real-Eyes, myBoo, SealMedia, Cliplister, Druckpreis.DE, promotionbasis.de, Yoosello, GetAnEdge, Flowy Apps, fraguru, lokalportal, PianoMotion and ubique art.[37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45]
Kiel is home to several media companies, including a branch of theNorddeutscher Rundfunk producing one radio channel and several local programmes in Kiel, a station of theBritish Forces Broadcasting Service, the daily newspaperKieler Nachrichten and several smaller local radio channels and magazines.
Kiel is situated near an important pan-European motorway, theA7, which connects northern Europe with central and southern Europe.
The central railway station,Kiel Hauptbahnhof, has hourly trains toHamburg,Lübeck,Flensburg, andHusum. TheIntercity Express (ICE) connects Kiel withBerlin,Frankfurt,Cologne andMunich. There are 8 regional railway stations within the city proper,[46][47] which are connected with each other, the main railway station Kiel Hbf and other stations by regional trains, which can be used within the boundaries of the city with a normal bus ticket.[48]
The city's bus service is provided by local company KVG. Autokraft and Verkehrsbetriebe Kreis Plön providing regional bus service, and the Schlepp- und Fährgesellschaft Kiel provides public transport on the fjord with ferries.
The nearest international airport isHamburg Airport, which is situated approximately 90 kilometres (56 mi) to the south of Kiel. There is a shuttle bus service (KIELIUS) operating between Hamburg Airport and Kiel central railway station. There is also an airport at Lübeck.
^Jones, Mark (19 May 2016). Daniel, Ute; Gatrell, Peter; Janz, Oliver; Jones, Heather; Keene, Jennifer; Kramer, Alan; Nasson, Bill (eds.)."Kiel Mutiny".1914–1918-online. International Encyclopedia of the First World War. Freie Universität Berlin. Retrieved26 April 2024.
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