Dusseldorf

History

When the Roman Empire was strengthening its position throughout Europe, a few Germanic tribes clung in marshy territory off the eastern banks of the Rhine River.

In the 7th and 8th centuries, the odd farming or fishing settlement could be found at the point where the small river Dussel flows into the Rhine. It was from such settlements that the city of Dusseldorf grew.

The first written mention of Dusseldorf (then called Dusseldorp in the local Low Rhenish dialect) dates back to 1135. Under Emperor Friedrich Barbarossa the small town of Kaiserswerth to the north of Dusseldorf became a well-fortified outpost, where soldiers kept a watchful eye on every movement on the Rhine. Kaiserswerth eventually became a suburb of Dusseldorf in 1929.

In 1186, Dusseldorf came under the rule of the Counts of Berg. 14 August 1288 is one of the most important dates in the history of Dusseldorf. On this day the sovereign Count Adolf VIII of Berg granted the village on the banks of the Dussel town privileges. Before this, a bloody struggle for power had taken place between the Archbishop of Cologne and the count of Berg, culminating in the Battle of Worringen.

The Archbishop of Colognes forces were wiped out by the forces of the count of Berg who were supported by citizens and farmers of Cologne and Dusseldorf, paving the way for Dusseldorfs elevation to city status, which is commemorated today by a monument on the Burgplatz. The custom of turning cartwheels is credited to the children of Dusseldorf. There are variations of the origin of the cartwheeling children. Today the symbol (Der Radschlager) represents the story and every year the Dusseldorfers celebrate by having a cartwheeling contest. After this battle the relationship between the four cities deteriorated, because they were commercial rivals. It is often said that there is a kind of hostility between the citizens of Cologne and Dusseldorf. Today, it finds its expression mainly in a humorous form (especially during the Rhineland Karneval) and in sports.

A market square sprang up on the banks of the Rhine and the square was protected by city walls on all four sides. In 1380, the dukes of Berg moved their seat to the town and Dusseldorf was made regional capital of the Duchy of Berg. During the following centuries several famous landmarks were built, including the Collegiate Church of St Lambertus. In 1609, the ducal line of the United Duchies of Julich-Cleves-Berg died out, and after a virulent struggle over succession, Julich and Berg fell to the Wittelsbach Counts of Palatinate-Neuburg, who made Dusseldorf their main domicile, even after they inherited the Electorate of the Palatinate, in 1685, becoming now Prince-electors as Electors Palatine.

Under the art loving Johann Wilhelm II (r. 1690–1716), a vast art gallery with a huge selection of paintings and sculptures, were housed in the Stadtschloss (city castle). After his death, the city fell on hard times again, especially after Elector Charles Theodore inherited Bavaria and moved the electoral court to Munich. With him he took the art collection, which became part of what is now the Alte Pinakothek in Munich. Destruction and poverty struck Dusseldorf after the Napoleonic Wars. Napoleon made Berg a Grand Duchy and Dusseldorf its capital. Johann Devaranne, a leader of Solingens resistance to Napoleons conscription decrees, was executed here in 1813. After Napoleons defeat, the whole Rhineland including Berg was given to the Kingdom of Prussia in 1815. The Rhine Provinces parliament was established in Dusseldorf. By the mid-19th century, Dusseldorf enjoyed a revival thanks to the Industrial Revolution as the city boasted 100,000 inhabitants by 1882; the figure doubled in 1892. In 1920, Dusseldorf became the centre of the General Strike. On 15 April 1920, 45 delegates of the German Miners Union were murdered by the Freikorps.

The city was a target of strategic bombing during World War II, particularly during the RAF bombing campaign against the Ruhr industry in 1943 when over 700 bombers were used in a single night. Raids continued late into the war. As part of the campaign against German oil facilities, the RAF raid of 20–21 February on the Rhenania Ossag refinery in the Reisholz district of the city halted oil production there. The Allied ground advance into Germany reached Dusseldorf in mid-April 1945. The United States 97th Infantry Division easily captured the city on 18 April 1945.

In 1946, Dusseldorf was made capital of the new federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The citys reconstruction proceeded at a frantic pace and the economic transformation guided Dusseldorfs economic growth.