Halle is located on the Saale River and serves as an important site in the production and harvesting of salt. Production began during the Bronze Age and was centered on 4 fracture springs spewing forth a briny solution. The water was boiled off to recover the salt, a precious commodity at the time and was referred to as “white gold.” Fracture springs are formed by fissures, faults or joints in the earth’s surface.
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Köln had been a free city within the Holy Roman Empire, but this status was lost in 1801; the city had been occupied by Napoleon since 1794. The Treaty of Lunéville ceded all territories west of the Rhine, including Köln, from the Holy Roman Empire to France. Köln became part of the French Department of Roer and was returned to the control of a German administration following Napoleon’s final defeat in 1814.
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The annual gathering for München’s Oktoberfest has made it the world’s most widely attended “Volksfest” or People’s Fair in the world. Oktoberfest began as a celebration of marriage when Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria took Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen as his bride on October 12, 1810. The tradition continues and has grown into a two week celebration with millions of participants world-wide.
