Strasbourg

Sister cities

• Boston
• Dresden
• Stuttgart
• Ramat Gan
• Leicester

History

The Roman camp of Argentoratum was first mentioned in 12 BC; the city of Strasbourg which grew from it celebrated its 2,000th anniversary in 1988. The fertile area in the Upper Rhine Plain between the rivers Ill and Rhine had already been populated since the Middle Paleolithic. Between 362 and 1262, Strasbourg was governed by the bishops of Strasbourg; their rule was reinforced in 873 and then more in 982. In 1262, the citizens violently rebelled against the bishop's rule (Battle of Hausbergen) and Strasbourg became a free imperial city. It became a French city in 1681, after the conquest of Alsace by the armies of Louis XIV. In 1871, after the Franco-Prussian War, the city, as part of the Imperial Territory of Alsace–Lorraine, became German again, until 1918 (end of World War I), when it reverted to France. Strasbourg was captured by the German army in June 1940 at the end of the Battle of France (World War II), and subsequently came under German control again through formal annexation into the Gau Baden-Elsaß under the Nazi Gauleiter Robert Wagner; since the liberation of the city by the 2nd French Armoured Division under General Leclerc in November 1944, it has again been a French city. In 2016, Strasbourg was promoted from capital of Alsace to capital of Grand Est. Strasbourg played an important part in the Protestant Reformation, with personalities such as John Calvin, Martin Bucer, Wolfgang Capito, Matthew and Katharina Zell, but also in other aspects of Christianity such as German mysticism, with Johannes Tauler, Pietism, with Philipp Spener, and Reverence for Life, with Albert Schweitzer. Delegates from the city took part in the Protestation at Speyer. It was also one of the first centres of the printing industry with pioneers such as Johannes Gutenberg,…

Geography

Strasbourg is situated at the eastern border of France with Germany. This border is formed by the Rhine, which also forms the eastern border of the modern city, facing across the river to the German town Kehl. The historic core of Strasbourg, however, lies on the Grande Île in the river Ill, which here flows parallel to, and roughly from, the Rhine. The natural courses of the two rivers eventually join some distance downstream of Strasbourg, although several artificial waterways now connect them within the city. The city lies in the Upper Rhine Plain, at between above sea level, with the upland areas of the Vosges Mountains some to the west and the Black Forest to the east. This section of the Rhine valley is a major axis of north–south travel, with river traffic on the Rhine itself, and major roads and railways paralleling it on both banks. The city is some east of Paris. The mouth of the Rhine lies approximately to the north, or as the river flows, whilst the head of navigation in Basel is some to the south, or by river. The climate in Strasbourg has changed over the past decades, and while it retains an oceanic climate (Cfb in the Köppen classification), it is increasingly resembling a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa), with certain continental influences. Winters are cool and variable, with short periods of very cold weather. Snow is rare, but frost is common. Summers are hot, punctuated by heat waves, and rainfall is low throughout the year despite 101 days of rain annually. Strasbourg's location in the Rhine valley, sheltered from strong winds by the Vosges and Black Forest mountains, results in poor natural ventilation, making Strasbourg one of the most atmospherically polluted cities of France. Nonetheless, the progressive disappearance of…

Most-observed species

• Great Tit

  Parus major Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  2,096
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  2,062
• Carrion Crow

  Corvus corone Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,831
• House Sparrow

  Passer domesticus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,649
• Common Chaffinch

  Fringilla coelebs Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,575
• Eurasian Blue Tit

  Cyanistes caeruleus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,573
• Common Wood-Pigeon

  Columba palumbus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,470
• Mute Swan

  Cygnus olor (J.F.Gmelin, 1789) · Aves
  1,198

Most recent

• M 3.5 — 2024-06-27
  1 km SSW of Todtmoos, Germany
• M 3.4 — 2022-10-16
  Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany
• M 4 — 2022-07-09
  2 km NNE of Grosselfingen, Germany
• M 4.1 — 2021-06-26
  2 km SE of Hœrdt, France
• M 3.1 — 2018-05-04
  2 km W of Schliengen, Germany
• M 2.7 — 2008-12-25
  1 km NNW of Blodelsheim, France