Baden-Württemberg

Baden-Württemberg (bä`dən-wûr`təmbûrg, Ger. vür`təmbĕrk'), state (1994 pop. 10,000,000), 13,803 sq mi (35,750 sq km), SW Germany. Stuttgart is the capital. It was formed in 1952 by the merger of Württemberg-Baden, Württemberg-Hohenzollern, and postwar Baden, all of which came into being after 1945. It includes the historic states of Baden and Württemberg, the former principality of Hohenzollern, and the former district of Lindau, Bavaria. The state borders on Switzerland in the south, France and the Rhineland-Palatinate in the west, Hesse in the north, and Bavaria in the east. Drained by the Rhine (which forms its border on the west), the upper Danube, and the Neckar, Baden-Württemberg includes the Black Forest in the southwest, Lake Constance in the south, and the Swabian Jura in the southeast. It is a forested and fertile land (the Rhine plain is one of the most fertile areas in Germany), but lacks valuable mineral deposits. Industries (chiefly the manufacture of electrical goods, clocks, watches, textiles, and the assembly of motor vehicles) are the main employers and are centered at Stuttgart, Mannheim, Karlsruhe, Heidelberg, Freiburg, and Ulm. Agriculture, forestry, and livestock raising are also important. One of the largest and most varied tourist areas of Germany, Baden-Württemberg has the picturesque Neckar valley, the idyllic forests and lakes of the south, and the famous spas of Baden-Baden and Wildbad. Freiburg and Heidelberg have noted universities. The history of Baden-Württemberg is the history of Baden and of Württemberg.