Freiburg im Breisgau
Freiburg im Breisgau | |
|---|---|
City | |
| Country | Germany |
| State | Baden-Württemberg |
| Region | Breisgau |
| Chartered | 1120 |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
Freiburg im Breisgau is a city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It lies in the Breisgau region at the western edge of the Black Forest, where the Dreisam flows toward the Upper Rhine valley. The city is known as an old university city and as one of the main urban centres of southwestern Germany.
Geography
[edit | edit source]Freiburg im Breisgau is located in southwestern Germany near the Rhine valley and the Black Forest. The city stands on the Dreisam and forms part of the historic Breisgau region. Its position places it near the German borders with France and Switzerland.
The surrounding area includes the western slopes of the Black Forest and the warmer lowland zone of the Upper Rhine region. Freiburg has long served as a regional centre for transport, education, commerce, and access to the Black Forest.
History
[edit | edit source]Freiburg was founded and chartered in 1120 by the dukes of Zähringen as a free market town. It later passed through the rule of the counts of Freiburg and the Habsburgs before becoming part of Baden in the early 19th century.
The University of Freiburg was founded in 1457. The university made Freiburg an important academic centre in southwestern Germany. The city was also shaped by trade, church institutions, and its position between the Rhine valley and the Black Forest.
Freiburg was damaged during the Second World War and was later rebuilt. In the post-war period it remained part of the Federal Republic of Germany and developed as a regional university and administrative city in Baden-Württemberg.
Relation to Paul Pecker
[edit | edit source]Paul Pecker was born in Freiburg im Breisgau on 9 April 1939. He later left southern Germany after a bank robbery and moved to Romania in the late 1960s. His son, Peter Pecker, was born in Colacu in 1978.