Essen is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of 579,432 makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and Dortmund, as well as the ninth-largest city of Germany. Essen lies in the larger Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Region and is part of the cultural area of Rhineland. Because of its central location in the Ruhr, Essen is often regarded as the Ruhr's "secret capital". Two rivers flow through the city: in the north, the Emscher, the Ruhr area's central river, and in the south, the Ruhr River, which is dammed in Essen to form the Lake Baldeney (Baldeneysee) and Lake Kettwig reservoirs. The central and northern boroughs of Essen historically belong to the Low German (Westphalian) language area, and the south of the city to the Low Franconian (Bergish) area.
Essen Hauptbahnhof is a railway station in the city of Essen in western Germany. It is situated south of the old town centre, next to the A 40 motorway. It was opened in 1862 by the Bergisch-Märkische Eisenbahn. However, the station was not the first in Essen: as the station called Essen on the Köln-Mindener Eisenbahn was opened in 1847.
Essen Abbey was a community of secular canonesses for women of high nobility that formed the nucleus of modern-day Essen, Germany. It was founded about 845 by the Saxon Altfrid, later Bishop of Hildesheim and saint, near a royal estate called Astnidhi, which later gave its name to the religious house and to the town. The first abbess was Altfrid's kinswoman, Gerswit.
Franz Dinnendahl, built the first steam engine in the Ruhr District in Essen in 1803.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
The following is a timeline of the history of the German city of Leipzig.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Cologne, Germany.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Munich, Germany.
The following is a timeline of the history of Düsseldorf, Germany.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Bremen, Germany.
The Essen Cathedral Treasury is one of the most significant collections of religious artworks in Germany. A great number of items of treasure are accessible to the public in the treasury chamber of Essen Minster. The cathedral chapter manages the treasury chamber, not as a museum as in some places, but as the place in which liturgical implements and objects are kept, which continued to be used to this day in the service of God, so far as their conservation requirements allow.
The Cross of Mathilde is an Ottonian processional cross in the crux gemmata style which has been in Essen in Germany since it was made in the 11th century. It is named after Abbess Mathilde who is depicted as the donor on a cloisonné enamel plaque on the cross's stem. It was made between about 1000, when Mathilde was abbess, and 1058, when Abbess Theophanu died; both were princesses of the Ottonian dynasty. It may have been completed in stages, and the corpus, the body of the crucified Christ, may be a still later replacement. The cross, which is also called the "second cross of Mathilde", forms part of a group along with the Cross of Otto and Mathilde or "first cross of Mathilde" from late in the preceding century, a third cross, sometimes called the Senkschmelz Cross, and the Cross of Theophanu from her period as abbess. All were made for Essen Abbey, now Essen Cathedral, and are kept in Essen Cathedral Treasury, where this cross is inventory number 4.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Münster, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Dortmund, Germany.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Duisburg, Germany.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Magdeburg, Germany.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Kassel, Germany.
Kennedyplatz is a plaza in the German city of Essen. It was laid out on a previously densely-built site which had been destroyed in the Second World War. Today, the area serves as an inner-city event space.
Gerd Otto Lichtenhahn was a German architect and member of the Association of German Architects (BDA).
