MUNICH IS THE CAPITAL OF THE STATE OF BAVARIA AND THE THIRD LARGEST CITY OF GERMANY. THE CITY TAKES ITS NAME (MUNCHEN, IN GERMAN) FROM THE MEDIEVAL MONKS WHO ONCE OWNED THE LAND. IT LIES IN THE FAR SOTHERN PART OF GERMANY ON THE ISAR RIVER, ABOUT 55 KM (34 MILES) NORTH OF THE ALPS ALONG THE AUSTRIAN BORDER.
MUNICH IS FAMOUS FOR ITS MAGNIFICENT BUILDINGS, PARTICULARLY THOSE IN THE RENAISSANCE AND BOROQUE STYLES. THE MICHAELKIRCHE IS PROBABLY THE FINEST RENAISSANCE CHURCH IN GERMANY AND DATES FROM 1597. THE 15TH CENTURY GOTHIC FRAUENKIRCHE (CHURCH OF OUR LADY) LOOKS DOWN ON THE CITY FROM ITS TWO HELMET-CAPPED TOWERS AND IS THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CATHEDRAL. THE OLD TOWN WAS BUILT IN A SEMICIRCLE ON THE WEST BANK OF THE RIVER AND MOST OF MODERN MUNICH WAS BUILT AROUND IT, SPREADING ALSO TO THE EAST BANK. ON AN ISLAND IN THE RIVER IS THE DEUTSCHES MUSEUM, ONE OF THE WORLD’S GREATEST MUSEUMS OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING. THERE IS A FAMOUS COLLECTION OF GREEK AND ROMAN SCULPTURES IN THE GLYPTOTHEK, AND THE PINAKOTHEK NEAR BY CONTAINS ONE OF THE GREATEST EUROPEAN COLLECTIONS OF PAINTINGS.
MUNICH IS FAMOUS FOR ITS BEER, ITS BIER-KELLER (BEER CELLARS) ARE POPULAR MEETING PLACES. IT IS AN IMPORTANT MANUFACTURING CITY, MAKING DELICATE INSTRUMENTS, OPTICAL GOODS, ELECTRICAL MACHINERY AND CHEMICALS, WITH A FAMOUS PORCELAIN FACTORY IN THE SUBURB OF NYMPHENBURG. MUNICH IS A MAIN RAILWAY CENTRE AND IS CONNECTED BY WIDE MOTOR ROADS TO BERLIN, SALZBURG IN AUSTRIA, AND KARLSRUHE NEAR THE FRENCH FRONTIER.
BAVARIA, ALTHOUGH IN GERMANY, HAD ITS OWN KING UNTIL THE END OF WORLD WAR I, WHEN REVOLUTIONARIES OVERTHREW THE MONARCHY AND SET UP A COMMUNIST REPUBLIC. THE REPUBLIC WAS SOON SUPPRESSED BUT MUNICH THEN BECAME A CENTRE OF GERMAN REACTION (ANTI-REVOLUTION) AND HERE ADOLF HITLER LAUNCHED THE NATIONAL SOCIALIST, OR NAZI, MOVEMENT. NEARLY HALF OF MUNICH’S BUILDINGS WERE DAMAGED BY BOMBING IN WORLD WAR II BUT MANY WERE LATER RESTORED TO THEIR ORIGINAL CONDITION. THE 1972 OLYMPIC GAMES WERE HELD IN MUNICH, AS WERE THE WORLD CUP FOOTBALL FINALS IN 1974. THE POPULATION OF MUNICH IS APPROXIMATELY 1,400,000.
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