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Speyer (inhabited place) |
Coordinates: |
| Lat: 49 19 47 N degrees minutes |
Lat: 49.3297 decimal degrees |
| Long: 008 25 40 E degrees minutes |
Long: 8.4278 decimal degrees |
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Note: The German river port of Speyer is situated on the east bank of the Rhine river some 22 miles north of Karlsruhe. A major Celtic settlement in ancient times, by 100 BCE it had become a Roman military outpost. It was sacked by Huns around 450 CE. In the 7th century it was rebuilt and made an episcopal see. Powerful bishops ruled it until 1294 when it became a free city of the Holy Roman Empire, having already become a major trading center by the 11th century. A protest in 1529 against the loss of certain concessions made by the Roman Catholic Church to the Lutherans brought the word "Protestant" into use. French troops destroyed the city in 1689 in the War of the Grand Alliance. It was absorbed by France in 1797, passed to Bavaria in 1815, and became the capital of the Bavarian Palatinate from 1816 to 1945. Surviving historic structures include an 11th-century Romanesque cathedral, the old town gate with a 13th-century gate tower, the underground Jews' bath built 1104, and the Baroque Trinity Church of 1701-1717. Speyer has a diverse range of industries, including oil refining, the manufacture of building materials, and brewing. The calculated population for 2005 was 50,608. |
Names: |
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| Speyer (preferred,C,V)
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| Spires (C,O)
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| Augusta Nementum (H,V)
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| Civitas Nemetum (H,V)
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............ | ancient name |
| Spira (H,V)
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............ | medieval name |
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Hierarchical Position: |
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Speyer (inhabited place) (P) |
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Place Types: |
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| inhabited place (preferred, C) |
............ |
was Celtic settlement, then Roman |
| city (C) |
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| industrial center (C) |
............ |
produces building materials, aircraft, electrical equipment, wood products, textiles, footwear, chemicals, beer & wine |
| cultural center (C) |
............ |
noted for medieval architecture & museum of pre-Roman & Roman artifacts |
| episcopal see (C) |
............ |
granted major secular powers under Otto I in 10th cen.; famed for Romanesque imperial cathedral, rebuilt after fire of 1159 |
| publishing center (C) |
............ |
noted as early center of printing |
| capital (H) |
............ |
of Rhenish Palatinate, until 1945 |
| political center (H) |
............ |
especially 11th-16th cen., site of several diets including Diet of Speyer of 1529, where Lutheran princes protested Charles V |
| religious center (H) |
............ |
especially noted for preaching of Bernard of Clairvaux in Second Crusade in 1146 |
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Sources and Contributors: |
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