Bremen (state)
Encyclopedia
The Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (German
: Freie Hansestadt Bremen, ˈbʁeːmən) is the smallest of Germany's 16 states
. A more informal name, but used in some official contexts, is Land Bremen ('State of Bremen').
, officially the 'City' (Stadtgemeinde Bremen) which is the state capital, and the city of Bremerhaven
(Stadt Bremerhaven). Both are located on the River Weser; Bremerhaven is further downstream and serves as a North Sea
harbour (the name means "Bremen's harbour"). Both cities are completely surrounded by the neighbouring State of Lower Saxony
(Niedersachsen). The two cities are the only administrative subdivisions the state has.
in 1806 the Free Imperial City
of Bremen (as of 1646, after earlier privileges of autonomy of 1186) was not mediatised but became a sovereign state officially titled Free Hanseatic City
of Bremen. Its currency was the Bremen thaler
(until 1873). In 1811 the First French Empire
annexed the city-state
. Upon the first, however only preliminary defeat of Napoléon Bonaparte, Bremen resumed its pre-1811 status as city-state in 1813. The Vienna Congress of 1815 confirmed Bremen's - as well as Frankfurt's
, Hamburg's
, and Lübeck's - independence after pressuring by Bremen's emissary, and later burgomaster
, Johann Smidt
. Bremen became one of 39 sovereign states of the German Confederation
. In 1827 the state of Bremen bought the tract of land from the Kingdom of Hanover
, where future Bremerhaven would be established. Bremen became part of the North German Confederation
in 1867 and became an autonomous component state of the new-founded German Empire
in 1871 and stayed with Germany in its following forms of government.
Bremen, which in 1935 had become a regular city at the de facto abolition of statehood of all component German states within the Third Reich, was reestablished as state in 1947. Being - at that time - actually located in the British Zone of Occupation
the Control Commission for Germany - British Element and the Office of Military Government for Germany, U.S. (OMGUS)
agreed in 1947 to constitute the cities of Bremen and then Wesermünde - in their borders altered in 1939 - as a German state
named again Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, becoming at that occasion an exclave of the American Zone of Occupation
within the British zone. In 1949 the city-state joined the then West German Federal Republic of Germany
.
(citizens' assembly), elected by the citizens in the two cities of Bremen and Bremerhaven
.
The executive is constituted by the Senate of Bremen
, elected by the Bürgerschaft. The Senate is chaired by the President of the senate (Senatspräsident), who is also one of the mayors of the city of Bremen (Bürgermeister) and is elected directly by the Bürgerschaft. The Senate selects of its members as a second mayor who serves as deputy of the president. In contrast to the Federal Chancellor of Germany or other German states, the President of the Senate has no authority to override senators on policy, which is decided upon by the senate collectively. Since 1945, the Senate has continuously been dominated by the Social Democratic Party
.
On a municipal level, the two cities in the state are administered separately:
(SPD) remained Mayor and Senate President, in an SPD-CDU grand coalition
. As promised he resigned after half of the legislative period. The Mayor and Senate President since 8 November 2005 is Jens Böhrnsen
.
were held on 13 May.
is the largest university in Bremen. Furthermore Bremen has a University of the Arts Bremen
, a University of Applied Sciences in Bremen and another one in Bremerhaven
, and more recently the Jacobs University Bremen.
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
: Freie Hansestadt Bremen, ˈbʁeːmən) is the smallest of Germany's 16 states
States of Germany
Germany is made up of sixteen which are partly sovereign constituent states of the Federal Republic of Germany. Land literally translates as "country", and constitutionally speaking, they are constituent countries...
. A more informal name, but used in some official contexts, is Land Bremen ('State of Bremen').
Geography
The state of Bremen consists of two separated enclaves: BremenBremen
The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...
, officially the 'City' (Stadtgemeinde Bremen) which is the state capital, and the city of Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven is a city at the seaport of the free city-state of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany. It forms an enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the River Weser on its eastern bank, opposite the town of Nordenham...
(Stadt Bremerhaven). Both are located on the River Weser; Bremerhaven is further downstream and serves as a North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
harbour (the name means "Bremen's harbour"). Both cities are completely surrounded by the neighbouring State of Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
(Niedersachsen). The two cities are the only administrative subdivisions the state has.
History
At the unwinding of the Holy Roman EmpireHoly Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
in 1806 the Free Imperial City
Free Imperial City
In the Holy Roman Empire, a free imperial city was a city formally ruled by the emperor only — as opposed to the majority of cities in the Empire, which were governed by one of the many princes of the Empire, such as dukes or prince-bishops...
of Bremen (as of 1646, after earlier privileges of autonomy of 1186) was not mediatised but became a sovereign state officially titled Free Hanseatic City
Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League was an economic alliance of trading cities and their merchant guilds that dominated trade along the coast of Northern Europe...
of Bremen. Its currency was the Bremen thaler
Bremen thaler
The Thaler was the currency of Bremen until 1873. It was divided into 72 Grote, each of 5 Schwaren. Until 1863, the Bremen Thaler was on a silver standard, containing 1/13½ Cologne mark of silver. After 1863, the Bremen Thaler, unlike the Vereinsthaler, went over to a gold standard and was worth 1...
(until 1873). In 1811 the First French Empire
First French Empire
The First French Empire , also known as the Greater French Empire or Napoleonic Empire, was the empire of Napoleon I of France...
annexed the city-state
City-state
A city-state is an independent or autonomous entity whose territory consists of a city which is not administered as a part of another local government.-Historical city-states:...
. Upon the first, however only preliminary defeat of Napoléon Bonaparte, Bremen resumed its pre-1811 status as city-state in 1813. The Vienna Congress of 1815 confirmed Bremen's - as well as Frankfurt's
Free City of Frankfurt
For almost five centuries, the German city of Frankfurt am Main was a city-state within two major Germanic states:*The Holy Roman Empire as the Free Imperial City of Frankfurt...
, Hamburg's
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, and Lübeck's - independence after pressuring by Bremen's emissary, and later burgomaster
Burgomaster
Burgomaster is the English form of various terms in or derived from Germanic languages for the chief magistrate or chairman of the executive council of a sub-national level of administration...
, Johann Smidt
Johann Smidt
Johann Smidt was an important Bremen politician, theologian, and founder of Bremerhaven.Smidt was a son of the Reformed preacher Johann Smidt sen., pastor at St. Stephen Church in Bremen. Smidt jun. studied theology in Jena, and was one of the founders of the Gesellschaft der freien Männer...
. Bremen became one of 39 sovereign states of the German Confederation
German Confederation
The German Confederation was the loose association of Central European states created by the Congress of Vienna in 1815 to coordinate the economies of separate German-speaking countries. It acted as a buffer between the powerful states of Austria and Prussia...
. In 1827 the state of Bremen bought the tract of land from the Kingdom of Hanover
Kingdom of Hanover
The Kingdom of Hanover was established in October 1814 by the Congress of Vienna, with the restoration of George III to his Hanoverian territories after the Napoleonic era. It succeeded the former Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg , and joined with 38 other sovereign states in the German...
, where future Bremerhaven would be established. Bremen became part of the North German Confederation
North German Confederation
The North German Confederation 1866–71, was a federation of 22 independent states of northern Germany. It was formed by a constitution accepted by the member states in 1867 and controlled military and foreign policy. It included the new Reichstag, a parliament elected by universal manhood...
in 1867 and became an autonomous component state of the new-founded German Empire
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
in 1871 and stayed with Germany in its following forms of government.
Bremen, which in 1935 had become a regular city at the de facto abolition of statehood of all component German states within the Third Reich, was reestablished as state in 1947. Being - at that time - actually located in the British Zone of Occupation
Allied Occupation Zones in Germany
The Allied powers who defeated Nazi Germany in World War II divided the country west of the Oder-Neisse line into four occupation zones for administrative purposes during 1945–49. In the closing weeks of fighting in Europe, US forces had pushed beyond the previously agreed boundaries for the...
the Control Commission for Germany - British Element and the Office of Military Government for Germany, U.S. (OMGUS)
Office of Military Government, United States
The Office of Military Government, United States was the United States military-established government created shortly after the end of hostilities in occupied Germany in World War II. Under General Lucius D...
agreed in 1947 to constitute the cities of Bremen and then Wesermünde - in their borders altered in 1939 - as a German state
States of Germany
Germany is made up of sixteen which are partly sovereign constituent states of the Federal Republic of Germany. Land literally translates as "country", and constitutionally speaking, they are constituent countries...
named again Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, becoming at that occasion an exclave of the American Zone of Occupation
Allied Occupation Zones in Germany
The Allied powers who defeated Nazi Germany in World War II divided the country west of the Oder-Neisse line into four occupation zones for administrative purposes during 1945–49. In the closing weeks of fighting in Europe, US forces had pushed beyond the previously agreed boundaries for the...
within the British zone. In 1949 the city-state joined the then West German Federal Republic of Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
.
Political system
The legislature of the state of Bremen is the BürgerschaftBürgerschaft of Bremen
The Bremische Bürgerschaft is the state diet of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen. It currently consists of 83 members from five parties. The current majority is a coalition of the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance '90/The Greens, supporting Mayor and Senate president Jens Böhrnsen...
(citizens' assembly), elected by the citizens in the two cities of Bremen and Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven is a city at the seaport of the free city-state of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany. It forms an enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the River Weser on its eastern bank, opposite the town of Nordenham...
.
The executive is constituted by the Senate of Bremen
Senate of Bremen
The Senate of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen is the government of the city-state of Bremen . The senate has existed since mediæval times. The senate is headed by a President, who also holds the title of Mayor. The President's deputy also holds the title Mayor...
, elected by the Bürgerschaft. The Senate is chaired by the President of the senate (Senatspräsident), who is also one of the mayors of the city of Bremen (Bürgermeister) and is elected directly by the Bürgerschaft. The Senate selects of its members as a second mayor who serves as deputy of the president. In contrast to the Federal Chancellor of Germany or other German states, the President of the Senate has no authority to override senators on policy, which is decided upon by the senate collectively. Since 1945, the Senate has continuously been dominated by the Social Democratic Party
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
.
On a municipal level, the two cities in the state are administered separately:
- The administration of the city of Bremen is headed by the two mayors and controlled by the portion of the BürgerschaftBürgerschaft of BremenThe Bremische Bürgerschaft is the state diet of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen. It currently consists of 83 members from five parties. The current majority is a coalition of the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance '90/The Greens, supporting Mayor and Senate president Jens Böhrnsen...
elected in the city of Bremen. - BremerhavenBremerhavenBremerhaven is a city at the seaport of the free city-state of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany. It forms an enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the River Weser on its eastern bank, opposite the town of Nordenham...
, on the other hand, has a municipal assembly distinct from the state legislature and an administration under a distinct head mayor (Oberbürgermeister) and a distinct second mayor.
2003 state elections
Dr. Henning ScherfHenning Scherf
Henning Scherf is a German lawyer and politician. He was the Mayor of Bremen and President of the Senate of Bremen from 4 July 1995 to 8 November 2005....
(SPD) remained Mayor and Senate President, in an SPD-CDU grand coalition
Grand coalition
A grand coalition is an arrangement in a multi-party parliamentary system in which the two largest political parties of opposing political ideologies unite in a coalition government...
. As promised he resigned after half of the legislative period. The Mayor and Senate President since 8 November 2005 is Jens Böhrnsen
Jens Böhrnsen
Jens Böhrnsen is a German politician of the SPD. Since 2005, he has served as the President of the Senate and Mayor of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, that is, the head of government of the city-state of Bremen...
.
| Party | Party List votes | Vote percentage | Total Seats | Seat percentage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Social Democratic Party Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany... (SPD) |
123,480 | 42.3% (-0,2) | 40 (-7) | 48.2% |
| Christian Democratic Union (CDU) | 86,819 | 29.8% (-7,2) | 29 (-13) | 34.9% |
| Alliance '90/The Greens Alliance '90/The Greens Alliance '90/The Greens is a green political party in Germany, formed from the merger of the German Green Party and Alliance 90 in 1993. Its leaders are Claudia Roth and Cem Özdemir... |
37,350 | 12.8% (+3,8) | 12 (+2) | 14.5% |
| Free Democratic Party Free Democratic Party (Germany) The Free Democratic Party , abbreviated to FDP, is a centre-right classical liberal political party in Germany. It is led by Philipp Rösler and currently serves as the junior coalition partner to the Union in the German federal government... (FDP) |
12,294 | 4.2% (+1,7) | 1 (+1) | 1.2% |
| German People's Union German People's Union The German People's Union is a nationalist political party in Germany. It was founded by publisher Gerhard Frey as an informal association in 1971 and established as a party in 1987. Financially, it is largely dependent on Frey.... (DVU) |
6,642 | 2.3% (-0,7) | 1 (=) | 1.2% |
| Law and Order Offensive Party Law and Order Offensive Party The Law and Order Offensive Party , short form Offensive D was a minor political party in Germany. It was founded in July 2000 by Hamburg judge Ronald Schill. It wished to call itself PRO but was forbidden from doing so after a judicial complaint by the Pro Deutsche Mitte party... |
12,876 | 4.3% (+4,3) | 0 (=) | 0.0% |
| Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS) | 4,885 | 1.7% (-1,2) | 0 (=) | 0.0% |
| All Others | 7420 | 2.6% (-0,5) | 0 (=) | 0.0% |
| Totals | 291,766 | 100.0% | 83 (-17) | 100.0% |
2007 state elections
The 2007 electionsBremen state election, 2007
State elections were held in Bremen on 13 May 2007 to elect the Bürgerschaft .After the elections, Jens Böhrnsen, the SPD prime minister, was able to pick his future coalition partner. He could either continue the grand coalition with the CDU or form a red-green coalition...
were held on 13 May.
| Party | Votes | % | +/– | Seats | +/– | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Social Democratic Party Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany... (SPD) |
36.8% | –5,5 | 33 | –7 | 39.8% | |
| Christian Democratic Union (CDU) | 25.7% | –4,1 | 23 | –6 | 27.7% | |
| Alliance '90/The Greens Alliance '90/The Greens Alliance '90/The Greens is a green political party in Germany, formed from the merger of the German Green Party and Alliance 90 in 1993. Its leaders are Claudia Roth and Cem Özdemir... |
16.4% | +3,6 | 14 | +2 | 16.9% | |
| The Left Party.PDS | 8.4% | +6,7 | 7 | +7 | 8.4% | |
| Free Democratic Party Free Democratic Party (Germany) The Free Democratic Party , abbreviated to FDP, is a centre-right classical liberal political party in Germany. It is led by Philipp Rösler and currently serves as the junior coalition partner to the Union in the German federal government... (FDP) |
6.0% | +1,8 | 5 | +4 | 6.0% | |
| German People's Union German People's Union The German People's Union is a nationalist political party in Germany. It was founded by publisher Gerhard Frey as an informal association in 1971 and established as a party in 1987. Financially, it is largely dependent on Frey.... (DVU) |
2.7% | +0,4 | 1 | ±0 | 1.2% | |
| Others | 4.0% | +1,4 | 0 | ±0 | 0.0% | |
| Totals | 100.0% | 83 | 100.0% |
Education
The University of BremenUniversity of Bremen
The University of Bremen is a university of approximately 23,500 people from 126 countries that are studying, teaching, researching, and working in Bremen, Germany...
is the largest university in Bremen. Furthermore Bremen has a University of the Arts Bremen
University of the Arts Bremen
The University of the Arts Bremen is a publicly funded university in Bremen, Germany and one of the most successful ones whose roots in music, arts and design date back to 1873...
, a University of Applied Sciences in Bremen and another one in Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven is a city at the seaport of the free city-state of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany. It forms an enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the River Weser on its eastern bank, opposite the town of Nordenham...
, and more recently the Jacobs University Bremen.
See also
- Former countries in Europe after 1815Former countries in Europe after 1815This article gives a detailed listing of all the countries, , that have existed in Europe since the Congress of Vienna in 1815 to the present day...
- Bombing of Bremen in World War IIBombing of Bremen in World War IIThe Bombing of Bremen in World War II by the Royal Air Force and the Eighth Air Force targeted strategic targets in the state of Bremen, which had heavy anti-aircraft artillery but only 35 fighter aircraft in the area. In addition to Wesermünde/Bremerhaven, targets were also in Farge and...