Bonn

Bonn (bŏn, Ger. bôn), city (1994 pop. 296,860), former capital of West Germany, North Rhine–Westphalia, W Germany, on the Rhine River. It functioned as the provisional seat of government of reunited Germany until 1999, when most of government moved to Berlin; some government functions remain in Bonn. The city's manufactures include light-metal products, ceramics, office equipment, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals. After the departure of the national government, Bonn made strides in becoming an information-technology center.

Bonn was founded in the 1st cent. A.D. as the Roman garrison of Castra Bonnensia. It was devastated by the Normans in the 9th cent. and later became the residence (1238–1794) of the electors of Cologne and the scene of the coronations of Frederick the Handsome (1314) and Charles IV (1346) as kings of the Romans. During the Palatinate Succession War (1689), Bonn was destroyed by Elector Frederick III of Brandenburg. It was rebuilt, largely in the baroque style. Bonn was occupied (1794) and later annexed (1798–1814) by France. In 1815, it passed to Prussia. In 1948–49, delegates from the parts of Germany occupied by France, Great Britain, and the United States met in Bonn and drafted a constitution for the Federal Republic of Germany. In 1949, Bonn was made West Germany's capital.

Bonn is the seat of a famous university, whose main building formerly was the electoral palace (built 1697–1725). The city has a noteworthy church (11th–13th cent.). The Bonn Art Museum and the Federal Art and Exhibition Center both opened in 1992. There is a museum of Rhenish culture, and Beethoven's birthplace is also a museum.

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Bonn

City (pop., 2002 est: city, 306,000; metro. area, 878,700), Germany. Located on the Rhine River south of Cologne, it was, until 1990, the capital of West Germany. An old settlement that predated the coming of the Romans, its name was continued in Castra Bonnensia, a 1st-century Roman fortress. By the 9th century it had become the Frankish town of Bonnburg. It grew from the 13th century, becoming capital of the Electorate of Cologne. In 1815 Bonn was awarded to Prussia by the Congress of Vienna, and by the late 19th century it was a fashionable residential town. It was bombed heavily in World War II; its postwar redevelopment was accelerated when in 1949 it was chosen as West Germany's capital. With Germany's reunification in 1990, the national capital was moved to Berlin. Bonn was the birthplace of Ludwig van Beethoven.

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Bonn

a city in W Germany, in North Rhine-Westphalia on the Rhine: the former capital (1949--90) of West Germany; university (1786). Pop.: 311 052 (2003 est.)