Portal:Germany/Did you know/Archive

This is the archive of Did you know facts, presented until the end of 2010 in the "Did you know" box on Portal:Germany. Most, but not all of them were also on Template:Did you know on Wikipedia's Main page.

For articles with DYK facts in 2011 see Wikipedia:WikiProject Germany/DYK 2011.

2010 edit

December edit

... that Bach has a choir of trombones double the choir in his cantata Sehet, welch eine Liebe hat uns der Vater erzeiget, BWV 64, for the Third Day of Christmas?
... that Gardiner considers Bach the "best writer of dramatic declamation ... since Monteverdi" for the dialogue in his cantata for the Second Day of Christmas, Selig ist der Mann, BWV 57?

... that the first cantata Bach composed for Christmas Day in Leipzig was in 1724 the chorale cantata Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ, BWV 91, based on Martin Luther's hymn for Christmas Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ (pictured)?

... that Harz granite was used in memorials at the concentration camps of Buchenwald, Ravensbrück and Sachsenhausen, as well as the Soviet War Memorial (pictured) in Berlin's Tiergarten?
... that Bach first performed his cantata for Advent, Bereitet die Wege, bereitet die Bahn! BWV 132, on 22 December 1715 in the Schlosskirche Weimar?
... that the church St. Bonifatius was built in Wiesbaden in Gothic Revival style, after a first building had collapsed?
... that composer Rudi Spring accompanied Salome Kammer in songs and chansons at the Rheingau Musik Festival?
... that performance of Bach's cantata Wachet! betet! betet! wachet!, for the Second Sunday of Advent in Weimar, was not acceptable in Leipzig during Advent?
... that three composers, flutist Jens Josef, cellist Graham Waterhouse and pianist Rudi Spring, each set a Christmas carol for their trio concert at the Gasteig?
... that Diethard Hellmann reconstructed the music of the lost Bach cantata for the Third Sunday in Advent, Ärgre dich, o Seele, nicht, BWV 186a?

November edit

... that Bach wrote in Weimar the opening chorus of his cantata for the First Sunday of Advent Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland, BWV 61, as a French overture?
... that the Roman Villa Borg in Saarland, Germany, has recently been almost fully reconstructed, a century after its discovery?
... that Wolfgang Schäfer, who succeeded Helmuth Rilling as professor of choral conducting for the Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts, is also part of the musical comedy trio BosArt?
... that the solo parts of Joseph Haydn's oratorio Die Schöpfung were performed by Elisabeth Scholl, Daniel Sans and Andreas Pruys in the Basilika of Schloss Johannisberg?
... that Gabriel Dessauer conducted in Wiesbaden the premiere of Max Reger's Hebbel Requiem in the organ version of Max Beckschäfer?
... that after Armin Maiwald produced an award-winning children's film depicting his own childhood experience in the grim aftermath of WWII in Germany, he said he never wanted to see the film again?

... that two conductors shared performances of Verdi's Messa da Requiem in St. Martin, Idstein?
... that Bach's chorale cantata Du Friedefürst, Herr Jesu Christ, BWV 116 contains a vocal trio, rare in his cantatas?
... that the German architect Johannes Krahn designed the Bienenkorbhaus (Beehive House) in Frankfurt and St. Martin in Idstein?
... that in Bach's St John Passion in the Philharmonie Luxembourg, Christoph Prégardien was the Evangelist and Andreas Pruys sang the words of Christ?
... that the vocal quartet of Monika Frimmer, Christa Bonhoff, Dantes Diwiak, and Peter Kooy recorded the Augsburger Tafel-Confect ("Augsburg Table Confectionary") of Valentin Rathgeber and Johann Caspar Seyfert?
... that Bach used the first movement of his Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 as a Sinfonia for his cantata Falsche Welt, dir trau ich nicht, BWV 52?

... that the Berlin Airlift Monument (pictured) in Platz der Luftbrücke, Berlin, has an exact counterpart reaching towards it at Frankfurt Airport and a smaller replica at Celle Air Base?
... that soprano Christiane Kohl appeared at the Bayreuth Festival as the Rhinemaiden Woglinde in both Das Rheingold and Götterdämmerung?
... that the Piccolo Quintet, composed by Graham Waterhouse, was performed in a lecture concert of the first Sergiu Celibidache Festival in Munich?

October edit

... that Bach combined in both his cantata Ich armer Mensch, ich Sündenknecht, BWV 55, and his St Matthew Passion the words Erbarme Dich with the same chorale?
... that Bach assigned two opposing voices to one singer in his cantata Ich glaube, lieber Herr, hilf meinem Unglauben, BWV 109, for the 21st Sunday after Trinity?
... that Robert Levin reconstructed for the Bach Cantata Pilgrimage missing parts of Ach! ich sehe, itzt, da ich zur Hochzeit gehe, BWV 162?
... that in Bach's cantata for the 19th Sunday after Trinity, Ich elender Mensch, wer wird mich erlösen, BWV 48, a trumpet plays a chorale in canon with two oboes?
... that Barbara Scherler of the Deutsche Oper Berlin recorded Bach's Alles nur nach Gottes Willen, BWV 72 with Fritz Werner's Heinrich-Schütz-Chor Heilbronn?
... that tenor Werner Güra recorded with Harnoncourt and the Arnold Schoenberg Chor at the Musikverein, Bach's cantata Wir danken dir, Gott, wir danken dir, BWV 29?
... that bass-baritone Stephen Varcoe recorded Bach cantatas with the Monteverdi Choir, including Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, BWV 140?
... that Bach scored a sopranino recorder to illustrate the morning star in the opening chorus of his cantata Herr Christ, der einge Gottessohn, BWV 96?
... that mezzo-soprano Petra Noskaiová recorded alto parts with La Petite Bande in Bach cantatas such as Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen, BWV 12?
... that the six movements of a Missa of Bach, a short mass consisting of Kyrie and Gloria, are parodies of his cantata music?

September edit

... that Bach used four movements of his church cantata Es wartet alles auf dich, BWV 187 for his Missa in G minor, BWV 235?
... that Bach scored an alto aria for two oboes d'amore and oboe da caccia in his cantata Bringet dem Herrn Ehre seines Namens, BWV 148 for the 17th Sunday after Trinity?
... that music of the Baroque composer Fortunato Chelleri on Don Quixote was recorded by organist Kalevi Kiviniemi on the Las Piñas Bamboo Organ?
... that contralto Sonia Prina performed the title role of Antonio Vivaldi's 1727 opera Orlando furioso at the Frankfurt Opera, staged as a rocker?
... that Bach's cantata for the 15th Sunday after Trinity 1723, Warum betrübst du dich, mein Herz, BWV 138, was criticized by Philipp Spitta and Albert Schweitzer?
... that Plön Castle was once an elite Nazi school bearing the name of Ernst Röhm?
... that the international Reger-Chor celebrated its 25th anniversary, singing music of Bach, Van Nuffel, Ryelandt, and Reger's Hebbel-Requiem in Wiesbaden and Bruges?
... that although most of the bridges of the Dresden–Görlitz railway were destroyed near the end of World War II, the line was usable once again by late 1945?
... that soprano Gerlinde Sämann performed with La Petite Bande Bach's cantata for the 14th Sunday after Trinity, Wer Dank opfert, der preiset mich, BWV 17?

August edit

... that Ignace Michiels of St. Salvator's Cathedral has been the organist for the German-Flemish Reger-Chor in works such as Reger's Requiem?
... that in 1725 Bach composed a cantata text written by Salomon Franck in Weimar, Ihr, die ihr euch von Christo nennet, BWV 164, for the 13th Sunday after Trinity?
... that the Dortmunder Philharmoniker, the orchestra of the city of Dortmund, Germany, for opera and concert, founded in 1887, recorded its first CD in 2010?
... that the Opernhaus Dortmund was opened in 1966 with Der Rosenkavalier, performed in Dortmund first in 1911?
... that baritone Günter Reich recorded the part of Moses in Schoenberg's opera Moses und Aron with both Michael Gielen and Pierre Boulez?
... that soprano June Card appeared as Freia and Gutrune in Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen, conducted by Michael Gielen and staged by Ruth Berghaus at the Frankfurt Opera?

... that Cecilia Bartoli sang the title role of Bellini's Norma for the first time in concert in the Konzerthaus Dortmund (pictured)?
... that Bach scored a tenor aria for oboe da caccia, recorder and bassoon in his cantata Lobe den Herrn, meine Seele, BWV 69a, for the twelfth Sunday after Trinity?
... that today, the 80th birthday of Walter Fink is celebrated at the Rheingau Musik Festival with compositions of Kirchner, Lachenmann, Rihm, Widmann and Hosokawa?
... that Bach used the music of the opening chorus of his Siehe zu, daß deine Gottesfurcht nicht Heuchelei sei, BWV 179, a cantata written for the eleventh Sunday after Trinity, in two masses?
... that it took until 2010 for Franz Schreker's opera Die Gezeichneten, premiered in 1918 in Frankfurt, to appear in the Western Hemisphere as The Stigmatized?
... that in 2008 Naji Hakim composed variations for oboe and organ on Philipp Nicolai's chorale Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern, published in 1599?
... that Erna Berger sang the title role of Bedřich Smetana's The Bartered Bride in a 1955 recording with Wilhelm Schüchter and the Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie?
... that Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau sang in the Bach cantata Herr, deine Augen sehen nach dem Glauben, BWV 102 for the tenth Sunday after Trinity, with conductor Benjamin Britten?
... that the Comet Hale-Bopp inspired Graham Waterhouse to compose Hale Bopp for string orchestra, which ends with a boy soprano singing How Brightly Shines the Morning Star?
... that Andris Nelsons conducted Bartok's Viola Concerto and Mahler's Fifth Symphony in the final concert with his Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie in Herford?
... that Bach had an excellent flauto traverso player at hand for Was frag ich nach der Welt, BWV 94, the cantata for the ninth Sunday after Trinity of 1724?

July edit

... that the chamber choir RIAS Kammerchor performed Monteverdi's Vespro della Beata Vergine, 400 years after its premiere, at the Rheingau Musik Festival?
... that György Ligeti dedicated his Hamburg Concerto to German hornplayer Marie Luise Neunecker, who premiered it in Hamburg with the Asko Ensemble?
... that Bach may have reused earlier music for his cantata Erforsche mich, Gott, und erfahre mein Herz, BWV 136 for the eighth Sunday after Trinity of 1723?
... that German classical tenor Marcus Ullmann has taken part in the recording of all Lieder of Franz Schubert, more than 700, set to the poetry of over 115 writers?
... that countertenor Patrick Van Goethem has taken part in the project Dieterich Buxtehude – Opera Omnia to record the complete works of Baroque composer Dieterich Buxtehude?
... that the Requiem of Max Reger is a musical setting not of the Latin Requiem, but of a poem Requiem written by the dramatist Friedrich Hebbel?
... that Bach composed in Leipzig his cantata Ärgre dich, o Seele, nicht, BWV 186, for the seventh Sunday after Trinity expanding his cantata written in Weimar for Advent?
... that editor Willi Eichler's 1932 Urgent Call for Unity to thwart the Nazi Party's rise to power was signed by 33 leading German intellectuals including Albert Einstein, Erich Kästner and Käthe Kollwitz?
... that Bach composed Die Zeit, die Tag und Jahre macht, BWV 134a in 1719 as a congratulatory cantata for the court of Anhalt-Köthen?
... that Camilla Tilling was the soprano soloist in Mahler's Resurrection Symphony in the opening concert of the Rheingau Musik Festival 2010, conducted by Paavo Järvi?
... that Bach's solo cantata for alto Vergnügte Ruh, beliebte Seelenlust, BWV 170 for the sixth Sunday after Trinity, was recorded by Maureen Forrester, Andreas Scholl and Julia Hamari?
... that the a cappella ensemble amarcord, five former members of the Thomanerchor, won the CARA award "Best classical album" again in 2010, for Rastlose Liebe (Restless Love)?
... that Bach arranged the central duet of his chorale cantata Wer nur den lieben Gott läßt walten, BWV 93, written for the fifth Sunday after Trinity, as one of his Schübler Chorales?
... that soprano Ursula Buckel recorded the cantata Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben, BWV 147, which Bach had written for the feast of the Visitation always celebrated on 2 July?

June edit

... that soprano Siri Thornhill performed a Bach cantata for the fourth Sunday after Trinity, Ich ruf zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ, BWV 177, at the Rheingau Musik Festival in the Eibingen Abbey?
... that soprano Edith Selig recorded the early Bach cantata Ich hatte viel Bekümmernis, BWV 21, performed in Weimar in 1714 on the third Sunday after Trinity?
... that Jan Kobow sang the tenor part of Bach's chorale cantata Ach Gott, vom Himmel sieh darein, BWV 2, written for the second Sunday after Trinity of 1724, with Philippe Herreweghe?
... that the baritone Andreas Schmidt created the part of Ryuji in Hans Werner Henze's opera Das verratene Meer in 1990 at the Deutsche Oper Berlin?
... that Hans Litten so rattled Adolf Hitler on the witness stand that, years later, Hitler told Prince Wilhelm of Prussia that even he would be sent to a concentration camp if he supported Litten?
... that Ingeborg Reichelt performed the soprano part of the Bach cantata Brich dem Hungrigen dein Brot, BWV 39, written for the first Sunday after Trinity of 1726?
... that the opera Didone abbandonata (Dido Abandoned) of Domenico Sarro, successful in 1724, was revived by harpsichordist, conductor and musicologist Ludger Rémy?
... that seifertite, one of the densest polymorphs of silica, is named after Friedrich Seifert and has only been found in meteorites?

May edit

... that bass Franz Kelch sang the role of Seneca in the first recording of Monteverdi's opera L'incoronazione di Poppea with Walter Goehr and the Tonhalle Orchester Zürich?
... that Nazi concentration camps relied on a hierarchical prisoner functionary system to both run the day-to-day camp operations and keep the prisoners divided and dependent?
... that soprano Dorothee Mields sang solo and tutti in five cantatas composed for Pentecost by the prolific Gottfried Heinrich Stölzel, a contemporary of Bach?
... that soprano Adele Stolte recorded the Bach cantata for Pentecost Erschallet, ihr Lieder, erklinget, ihr Saiten! BWV 172 with the Thomanerchor conducted by Erhard Mauersberger?
... that conductor Fritz Werner and trumpeter Maurice André collaborated on choral works of Bach and on music of Werner himself?
... that the tenor Kurt Huber sang the Evangelist in Bach's Ascension Oratorio Lobet Gott in seinen Reichen, BWV 11, composed for the feast of the Ascension of 275 years ago?
... that bass singer Jakob Stämpfli appears on the recording of the reconstructed secular Bach cantata Entfliehet, verschwindet, entweichet, ihr Sorgen, BWV 249a, also called Shepherd cantata?
... that since 1969 more than 600 works of contemporary chamber music have been premiered at the festival Wittener Tage für neue Kammermusik in the Ruhrgebiet, the European Capital of Culture for 2010?

... that the island of Schwanenwerder in Berlin, Germany, houses a column (pictured) from the former Tuileries Palace?

April edit

... that the flute arrangement of the trio composition Gestural Variations was premiered in Munich by the composer, Graham Waterhouse, and two other composers?
... that Georg Christoph Biller is the Thomaskantor, the conductor of the Thomanerchor in Leipzig, the 16th successor of Johann Sebastian Bach in this position?
... that baritone Wolfgang Schöne premiered the role of the tomcat "Tom, Minette's lover" in the opera Die englische Katze of Hans Werner Henze at the Schwetzingen Festival?
... that Adalbert Kraus performed the tenor part in Bach's Easter Oratorio Kommt, eilet und laufet (Come, hasten and run)?
... that mezzo-soprano Claudia Eder sang the parts of the Muse and Nicklausse in Offenbach's The Tales of Hoffmann on a recording with Plácido Domingo as Hoffmann?
... that Heinz Hennig founded the Knabenchor Hannover in 1950 and conducted the boys' choir until 2001?
... that tenor Kurt Equiluz was the Evangelist in the first recording of Bach's St John Passion on period instruments with the Concentus Musicus Wien, Vienna?
... that Andreas Karasiak recorded Bach's St Matthew Passion, scored for double chorus, with two boys choirs, Knabenchor Hannover and Thomanerchor?
... that Bach marked to repeat the opening chorus of cantata Erschallet, ihr Lieder, erklinget, ihr Saiten! BWV 172 after the final chorale?
... that communist activist Franz Jacob organized one of the largest resistance groups in Germany during World War II?
... that Max van Egmond recorded the bass arias of Bach's St Matthew Passion with Claudio Abbado and the words of Jesus with Gustav Leonhardt?

March edit

... that Dieter Dorn staged the world premiere of the opera L'Upupa und der Triumph der Sohnesliebe of Hans Werner Henze at the Salzburg Festival in 2003?
... that Pina Bausch and conductor Thomas Hengelbrock staged Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice in Paris and the ancient theater in Epidaurus?
... that soprano Annette Dasch appeared as Elettra in Mozart's Idomeneo at the reopening of the Cuvilliés Theatre, where that opera had been premiered in 1781?
... that conductor Helmuth Rilling, Gächinger Kantorei and Bach-Collegium Stuttgart finished the first complete recording of Bach's cantatas and oratorios on the composer's 300th birthday, 21 March 1985?
... that Johann Sebastian Bach wrote around 200 cantatas in German but only one, Gloria in excelsis Deo, BWV 191, in Latin?
... that singers Anne Sofie von Otter and Christian Gerhaher recorded music written in the concentration camp of Terezín by artists such as Ilse Weber, Hans Krása, Pavel Haas and Viktor Ullmann?

February edit

... that the Rosenmontag parade of the Mainz carnival (pictured) had been filmed since 1910?
... that the concert venues of the Rheingau Musik Festival include Eberbach Abbey, Schloss Johannisberg and Lorch?

January edit

... that within ten years bass singer Klaus Mertens recorded all vocal works of Johann Sebastian Bach with the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir?

2009 edit

... that Polar 3, the first German airplane to reach the South Pole in December 1984, was shot down by Polisario Front rebels over Western Sahara on its way home in February 1985?

September edit

... that the Hankensbüttel Otter Centre won first prize in the German Ministry of Transport Regions of the Future competition in 2000?
... that 20th-century composers including Kagel, Ligeti, and Xenakis wrote music for cellist Siegfried Palm?
... that a joint Nazi-Soviet military parade in Brest-Litovsk (pictured) was held on September 22, 1939, to display the power of the newly formed Soviet-Nazi pact to the whole world?
... that when Friedrich Giesel discovered actinium independently from André-Louis Debierne, he wanted to call it "emanium"?
... that the Punch of the Hamburg Police has educated children in road traffic safety since 1948?

August edit

... that as the SS struggled to keep up sorting the valuables plundered from prisoners at Auschwitz, Karl Möckel stated that fifteen to twenty suitcases of them were sent to the WVHA quarterly?
... that the theme of pederasty in the 1977 German film Die Konsequenz was so controversial that one regional broadcaster refused to relay the transmission signal?
... that the only survivor of the 1944 killing of 10 civilians ordered by Josef Scheungraber testified against him at his war crimes trial, where Scheungraber received a life sentence in August 2009?

June edit

... that in 1844 Friedrich Gottlob Keller (from Krippen, Germany) invented the wood-grinding machine for papermaking, being first to successfully produce paper from a wood pulp?

April edit

... that in 1935, the uniform of the national-conservative Bismarckjugend was banned in Germany?

February edit

... that the Wild Rugby Academy, formed in 2007, aims to enable Germany to participate in the 2015 Rugby World Cup?
... that the architecture firm of Sauerbruch Hutton designed the Museum Brandhorst in Munich?
... that the Soviet Union provided a site in northern Russia for the secret Nazi German naval base Basis Nord as a part of a broader bilateral relation which included strategic and commercial agreements?
... that Franz Anton Bustelli, who worked at Nymphenburg near Munich, is widely regarded as the finest modeller of porcelain in the Rococo style?
... that in the aftermath of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany signed three economic agreements: in 1939, in 1940 and in 1941?
... that, when the München RFC played the Bad Tölz US Army in June 1978, it was the first game of rugby union played in Munich in almost 50 years?
... that Nazi Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels warned that their boycott of Jewish businesses (pictured) "will be resumed... until German Jewry has been annihilated", if the Anti-Nazi Boycott of 1933 was not ended?
... that DSV 78/08 Ricklingen, the oldest rugby union club in Germany, was formed under the leadership of 15 year old Ferdinand-Wilhelm Fricke in 1878?

January edit

... that microbiologist Hans Knöll defended the historic center of Jena, which was threatened by the construction of the Jen-Tower?
... that German rugby club SC 1880 Frankfurt adopted a red and black strip after a set of friendlies in 1894 against the English club Blackheath F.C., who also played in those colours?
... that the German rock group Tokio Hotel has released six singles and an album in English?
... that German football manager Horst Buhtz led both Dortmund and Nuremberg to the Bundesliga promotion playoffs, but was dismissed each time before the matches took place?
... that World War I flying ace Friedrich Ritter von Röth was posthumously granted a lifetime pension by the Kingdom of Bavaria?
... that East German Olympic bronze medalist Wilfried Hartung was once married to two-time Olympic silver medalist Gabriele Wetzko?
... that Paul Verner fled Nazi Germany and fought as a volunteer in the International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War?

2008 edit

December edit

... that in 1965, East German politician Albert Norden (pictured) accused 1,900 politicians and other prominent personalities in West Germany of having worked for the Nazi regime?
... that Matthias Dolderer finished second at the 2008 World Aerobatics Cup's "Unlimited" Category in the Czech Republic and in doing so he qualified for the 2009 Red Bull Air Race?

Older edit

... that after Nazi Germany's annexation of Austria in 1938, the parliamentarians of the German Christian Social People's Party in Czechoslovakia joined the Sudeten German Party?
... that East German politician Erich Mückenberger (pictured) led four district organizations of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany during his political career?
... that tenor Albert Reiss sang in 1,070 performances at the Metropolitan Opera?
... that Johanna Wokalek portrayed Red Army Faction terrorist Gudrun Ensslin in the Golden Globe-nominated film The Baader Meinhof Complex?
... that Matthias Dolderer finished second at the 2008 World Aerobatics Cup's "Unlimited" Category in the Czech Republic and in doing so he qualified for the 2009 Red Bull Air Race?
... that the sculpture Berlin (pictured), created as a testament to East and West Berlin being close yet separate, was commissioned for the city's 750th anniversary?
... that the Nazi German Reich Office for Economic Expansion got the nickname Office for the Expansion of IG Farben, because its head Carl Krauch was also the chairman of that company?
... that the German submarine U-558 sank ships as far north as Ireland and as far south as Trinidad during World War II?
... that the Central Commission of German Trade Unions organized 75 percent of unionized German workers in Czechoslovakia in 1921?
... that Kunz von Kaufungen kidnapped Frederick II, Elector of Saxony's two sons, Ernest and Albert, just four years after he commanded Frederick II's forces during the Saxon Fratricidal War?
... that Ilse Stanley (pictured), a German Jewish actress, secured the release of 412 prisoners in Nazi Germany between 1936 and 1938?
... that even though they were five points ahead of 1. FC Saarbrücken, SV Alsenborn were not promoted to the higher level 2nd Bundesliga Süd, due to their financial position?
... that in The Stages of Life (pictured), German painter Caspar David Friedrich depicted his son holding a Swedish flag because Friedrich considered himself half-Swedish?
... that by Christmas Eve 1942, the German 17th Panzer Division had only eight tanks and one anti-tank gun left after its failed attempt to break through to Stalingrad?
... that Operation Steel Box moved 100,000 American chemical weapons from Clausen, West Germany, to Johnston Atoll in the South Pacific Ocean?

... that German entrepreneur, race driver and yacht skipper Udo Schütz won the 1000 km Nürburgring in 1967, the Targa Florio in 1969, and the Admiral's Cup in 1993?
... that Schloss Vollrads (pictured) claims to be the oldest winery of Germany?
... that the meaning of "Der Pleier", the pseudonym of the 13th-century author of the romance Garel, is unknown, though it might refer metaphorically to glassblowing?
... that Albrecht Dürer's Great Piece of Turf (pictured) shows plants such as cocksfoot, creeping bent and hound's-tongue?
... that Nazi Germany used thousands of Polish laborers to build infrastructure for their invasion of the Soviet Union?
... that The Mass Psychology of Fascism, a book written by Wilhelm Reich in 1933, blamed sexual repression for the rise of fascism?
... that the Neoclassical style Embassy of Germany in Saint Petersburg (pictured), whilst reviled by the Saint Petersburg artistic community, was admired by Adolf Hitler?
... that the meaning of "Der Pleier", the pseudonym of the 13th-century author of the romance Garel, is unknown, though it might refer metaphorically to glassblowing?
... that no football team in Berlin was declared the winner of the Berlin Cup in 1969 because the penalty shootout was not yet introduced and the finalists were unable to schedule a re-match after a draw?
... that the Division of Altenburg in Saxony led to a war between two brothers in 1446 known as the Bruderkrieg, or Saxon Brother War?
... that the SS-physician Alfred Trzebinski, who was involved in the homicide of 20 children at the former school Bullenhuser Damm, was executed by hanging in 1946?`
... that Renaissance woodcuts by Hans Wechtlin (example pictured) cover both the chivalric ideal of war and graphic details of war wounds?
... that the 1943 German Donbas Operations led to the destruction of 52 Soviet divisions, and the recapture of the cities of Kharkov and Belgorod from the Red Army?
... that Germany helped India establish the Indian Institute of Technology Madras and their bilateral trade is expected to reach €30 billion by 2010?
... that after the standardisation of the German Shepherd Dog, other herding dogs in Germany became known as Old German Shepherd Dogs which is now the name given to a rare modern breed?
... that virologist Harald zur Hausen is recipient of both the Gairdner Foundation International Award and the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2008?
... that a medallion awarded by the city of Hamburg to honor "those—both Jewish and non-Jewish—who have contributed to Jewish life in Germany" is named for the Jewish First Mayor Herbert Weichmann?
... that Hannikel (pictured), today a character of the Swabian-Alemannic carnival, was an 18th-century robber and murderer in Württemberg, Southern Germany?
... that the first mass transport to Auschwitz concentration camp consisted of 728 Polish political prisoners from Tarnów prison?
... that Henry Jolles, who had played Schubert's complete piano music in Heidelberg in 1928, escaped Nazi persecution in 1942 by fleeing from France to Brazil with the assistance of American Varian Fry?
... that during World War II, the SS-run Haidari concentration camp near Athens was so infamous that it became known as the "Bastille of Greece"?
... that more than 100,000 Heinkel Tourist scooters were sold despite being heavier and more expensive than Vespas and Lambrettas?
... that the largest surviving painting by 15th-century Gothic artist Master Francke is an altarpiece dedicated to Saint Thomas of Canterbury?
... that the works of German artist Erich Buchholz were labeled "degenerate" by the Nazis, and only after the end of WWII his work became appreciated?
... that Erich Walter Sternberg was the first of a wave of professional musicians to flee Germany for Palestine prior to World War II?
... that Udo Zimmermann's opera, Die weisse Rose tells the story of Hans and Sophie Scholl, a brother and sister who were guillotined by the Nazis for leading a non-violent resistance group?
... that the town of Kalisz was almost completely destroyed during WWI by German forces pursuing the Schrecklichkeit policy?
... that in February 1943, German General Hubert Lanz plotted to arrest Hitler during a visit to his headquarters?
... that the 1961 German film The Miracle of Father Malachia was finished only seven hours before its premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival?
... that the Nazi operation Gross Aktion resulted in the destruction of the Jewish population of Warsaw?
... that the German Renaissance Little Masters specialized in very small engravings (example pictured), often treated erotically?
... that despite jointly murdering at least 1,000 inmates at Auschwitz, former SS-Unterscharführer Oswald Kaduk earned the nickname "Papa Kaduk" among patients at the hospital he worked at after the war?
... that in 2008, the German Federation of Internal Medicine awarded its highest honor to Hans Joachim Sewering, a former Nazi?
... that German biologist Hubert Markl, who received the Bundesverdienstkreuz in 1992, was President of the Max Planck Society from 1996 to 2002?
... that the FC Büsingen, a German football club formed in 1924, had a nut tree in its playing field penalty area until 1927, when it was cut down?
... that delay certificates issued by railway companies in Japan and Germany to passengers for tardy trains are considered valid reasons by superiors for reporting late to school or work?
... that the Pomeranian Goose (specimen pictured) was developed by Northern German farmers centuries ago, but only officially recognized as a breed in 1912?
... that the Ingolstadt-Kralupy-Litvínov pipeline does not start in Ingolstadt and does not run to Kralupy and Litvínov?
... that Brühl, a single street in Leipzig, accounted for one-third of the world trade of furs in the 1920s?
... that Max von Stephanitz, creator of the German Shepherd dog breed (specimen pictured), also founded the Verein für Deutsche Schäferhunde?
... that SC Jülich 1910, record winner of the now defunct German amateur football championship, was the feature of a German television documentary?
... that Das Königsprojekt was the first of three science fiction novels written by the German author Carl Amery?
... that Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry was founded as Deutsche Forschungsanstalt für Psychiatrie by King Ludwig III of Bavaria in 1917?
... that after winning a bronze medal at the 1997 World Championships in Athletics, German shot putter Stephanie Storp began playing basketball?
... that the Phylax Society, the first German Shepherd Dog club, disbanded because members could not agree whether the dogs should be bred for working or appearance?
... that Horand von Grafrath (pictured with owner) is credited with being the first German Shepherd Dog?
... that the Battle of Annaberg in 1921 was the largest battle of the Silesian Uprisings?
... that 52 ships of the German High Seas Fleet were successfully scuttled in Scapa Flow in 1919, but many were later salvaged?
... that according to Franz Oppenheimer's (pictured) book The State, the purpose of the political state is to establish and enforce class divisions between conquerors and the dominated?
... that Felix Mendelssohn (pictured) walked out in disgust in the middle of the 1827 premiere of his opera Die Hochzeit des Camacho, and cancelled the remaining performances?
... that the 1932 Southern German football championship final between Eintracht Frankfurt and Bayern Munich was halted seven minutes before the end due to Bayern supporters invading the pitch?
... that Reinhard von Werneck gave Munich's Englischer Garten much of its current form by almost doubling its area and by creating a new lake, the Kleinhesseloher See?
... that the sinking of the SS Königin Luise (pictured) was the first German naval loss of the First World War?
... that the Nuremberg Transport Museum originally opened as a royal Bavarian railway museum in 1899 and is now the oldest railway museum in Germany?
... that the German Mine Sweeping Administration, a naval mine sweeping organisation made up of former members of the Kriegsmarine of Nazi Germany, was under command of the Royal Navy?
... that the Vorwerk is the only breed of chicken to share its name with a brand of household appliance?
... that chemist and science policy-maker Rudolf Mentzel, head of the German Research Foundation in the 1930s and later VP of the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute, was also an SS Brigadier?
... that German bryologist Franz Stephani was the author of "one of the most notorious publications in bryology"?
... that the day after Nazi Germany declared war on the U.S., Adolf Hitler announced the extermination of the Jewish race to party leaders in a private meeting in the Reich Chancellery (pictured)?
... that Rupprecht Gerngroß is considered to be the leader of the only successful putsch against Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany?
... that Karl Wahl, the leader of the Nazi Gau Schwaben, was the only Bavarian Gauleiter without a university degree?
... that Hamburg's Rotherbaum quarter is the site of the Am Rothenbaum tennis stadium?
... that the Anif declaration, issued by the Bavarian King Ludwig III (pictured) on 12 November 1918, ended the 738-year rule of the House of Wittelsbach over Bavaria?
... that the Nazi leader Theodor Habicht was briefly involved with the communists after World War I before joining the Nazi Party in 1926?
... that the Franconian derby between 1. FC Nuremberg and SpVgg Greuther Fürth is the most played football match in Germany with over 250 games between the two sides?
... that the SS Carsbreck survived being torpedoed by Heinrich Liebe's U-38 in 1940, but was sunk by Reinhard Suhren's U-564 in 1941?
... that the Eberswalde Hoard (pictured), a collection of 81 gold objects weighing 2.59 kilograms (5.7 lb), is an important find from the European Bronze Age?
... that a German Empire was first proclaimed on 28 March 1849 with the so-called Paulskirchenverfassung, or Constitution of the German Empire?
... that the German Reichsflotte Navy was founded on 14 June 1848, and that it fought only in the Battle of Heligoland on 4 June against Denmark?
... that the first public anti-smoking campaign in modern history was launched in Nazi Germany?
... that in its last completed season in 1943–44, out of twelve clubs in the Gauliga Pommern, five belonged to the German Luftwaffe (Air Force), one to the Kriegsmarine (Navy) and one to the Heer (Army)?
... that Mevlüde Genç, a Turk living in Germany who had lost five of her family members to Neo-Nazi violence in the Solingen arson attack of 1993, went on to advocate tolerance between Turks and Germans?
... that German chemist Albert Niemann was the first person to isolate cocaine in 1859?
... that the Cosmographia (pictured) by Sebastian Münster from 1544 is the earliest German description of the world?
... that the Academic Gymnasium Danzig, along with similar schools in Elbląg and Toruń, transformed Royal Prussia into a center of classical studies in the 16th century?
... that the neo-Nazi politician and member of the Bundestag Fritz Rössler, who resembled Adolf Hitler, had a habit of attending parliament drunk?
... that the 850-foot (260 m) Commerzbank Tower is the tallest building in Frankfurt, Germany, and in the entire European Union?
... that the World War II fighter ace Franz Barten is credited for shooting down a total of 55 enemy aircraft?
... the British MI6 tried to hire the Austrian-German physicist Josef Schintlmeister as a spy in the Soviet Union, where he had worked for ten years?
... that the 1945 loss of German U-boat U-864 during Operation Caesar, a secret mission to deliver technology to Japan, is the only known incident of one submerged submarine sinking another?
... that the game between FC Bayern Munich and 1860 Munich on 23 April 1945 in the Gauliga Bayern, ending 3–2, was the last official football game played in Nazi Germany?
... that the Gauliga was a German football league system introduced by the Nazis after they took over the country in 1933?
... that Friedrich Guggenberger's U-81 sank the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal (pictured) with a single torpedo?
... that Heinrich Barbl, an SS-Rottenführer, helped install piping for the gas chambers at Sobibór extermination camp?
... that HNoMS Honningsvåg was a German fishing trawler captured in the Norwegian Campaign and served the Royal Norwegian Navy throughout World War II?
... that Mathilde Ludendorff, a leader in the German Völkisch movement, claimed astrology was part of a Jewish effort to enslave the Germans?
... that U-boat commander Heinrich Bleichrodt refused to wear his Knight's Cross until his subordinate, Reinhard Suhren received one as well?
... that the German author Heinrich Böll's humorous short story Anekdote zur Senkung der Arbeitsmoral was written for a May Day broadcast on the Norddeutscher Rundfunk?
... that after competing for many years on a world-class level in the 400 metres hurdles, German athlete Heike Meißner tried competing in the 800 metres?
...that Siegfried Kasche, the Third Reich's ambassador to Croatia from 1941 to 1945, was tried for "complicity in deportations and murders" by a Yugoslav court and executed in June 1947?
...that despite winning the 1989 World Indoor Championships, West German 400 metres sprinter Helga Arendt failed to reach the final round at the European Championships one year later?
...that Fritz Schilgen was the final torchbearer (pictured) for the first Olympic torch relay at the 1936 Summer Games?
..that Emmy Noether was called "the most significant creative mathematical genius thus far produced since the higher education of women began" by Albert Einstein?
...that Carl Hans Lody was the first German spy to be executed in the United Kingdom during World War I?
...that East German sprinter Sabine Günther won three gold medals in 4 x 100 metres relay at three different European Championships?
...that East German athlete Henry Lauterbach competed on an international level in both high jump and long jump?
...that the asymmetrical monoplane BV 141 (pictured) is one of many military aircraft designed by Richard Vogt?
...that Abraham Esau was the head of the physics section of the Reich Research Council, Nazi Germany's centralized planning institution for almost all basic and applied research?
...that the SS Assyrian started life as a German merchant ship in the First World War and ended it as British merchant in the Second World War?
...that Princess Margaret of Prussia had her jewels stolen by American soldiers in the aftermath of World War II?
...that Karl Schnibbe was one of a group of three Hamburg teenagers (pictured) arrested by the Gestapo in Nazi Germany during World War II for distributing anti-Hitler pamphlets?
...that the utility of heavy water as a moderator in a nuclear reactor was demonstrated by Klara Döpel and her husband Robert in the 1940s?
...that physicist Siegfried Flügge collaborated with Fritz Houtermans, Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker, and others in an effort to create an atomic weapon for Nazi Germany?
...that Dauer Sportwagen converted Porsche 962C racing cars (example pictured) into street-legal road cars, then converted them back into race cars in order to exploit a rulebook loophole and win the 1994 24 Hours of Le Mans?
...that Germany still held 1.2 million Russian prisoners of war (pictured) in December 1918, nine months after the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk obliged it to release them?
...that over 90% of Lithuanian Jews perished in the first few months of Operation Barbarossa in the Holocaust in Lithuania?
...that Max Noether, called "one of the greatest mathematicians of the nineteenth century", learned advanced mathematics mostly through self-study?
...that Nazi Germany's animal protection laws were the first in the world to place the wolf under protection?
...that Operation Himmler was a Nazi Germany false flag operation, intended to create an appearance that the German invasion of Poland was a defensive war provoked by a Polish attack on Germany?
...that Söflingen Abbey in Ulm, Baden-Württemberg is the oldest nunnery of the Order of Poor Ladies in Germany?
...that Heinz Guderian (pictured) and Adolf Hitler had heated arguments while planning for Operation Solstice, one of the major German offensive operations on the Eastern Front during WWII?
...that Adam Franz Lennig organized the first Katholikentag in Mainz in 1848?
...that Adolf Hitler never thought much of the Columbus Globe for State and Industry Leaders despite its iconic status in the U.S.?
...that the Reichstag dome was originally designed as a cylinder by its architect Norman Foster?
...that the 12th-century abbess Hildegard of Bingen published Scivias (illustration pictured) to share her religious visions?
...that the biggest tax investigation in modern Germany currently targets hundreds of individuals for possible tax evasion by moving assets to Liechtenstein?
...that Sparrenberg Castle in Bielefeld, Germany, was built before 1250 by the counts of Ravensberg?
...that the Port of Mainz was an important war harbour for the Roman fleet from which Roman ships patrolled the Rhine?
...that Hans Thomsen, the German Chargé d'Affaires in Washington, D.C. immediately prior to World War II, directed an effort to influence the foreign policy platform of the 1940 Republican National Convention?
...that architect Otto Königsberger illustrated his uncle Max Born's popular physics book?
...that about 12 million people were forced laborers in Nazi Germany during World War II, and less than 2 million received direct compensation after the war?
...that the first post-war survey of sympathy for Nazism in Germany was conducted in 1947 by the Allensbach Institute?
...that 3–5.5 million OST-Arbeiters (badge pictured), slave laborers from Eastern Europe, worked in Nazi Germany during WWII?
...that the German four-mast sailing ship Herzogin Cecilie (pictured), under Finnish flag after 1920, won the "grain race" from Australia around Cape Horn to Europe four times from 1926 to 1936?
...that Unsinkable Sam was a ship's cat of both the Kriegsmarine and Royal Navy during the Second World War who survived the sinking of all three ships on which he served?
...that Son Goku, a German rock band, is named after the protagonist of the anime series Dragon Ball Z?
...that Helmut Dähne holds the official motorcycle lap record on the 20.8 km (12.9 mi) long Nordschleife track in Germany since 1988?
...that St. Elizabeth's Church (pictured), constructed in memory of a Russian princess, is the only Russian Orthodox church in Wiesbaden, Germany?
...that the German Renaissance castle Schloss Brenz now regularly hosts concerts?
...that Böttcherstrasse in Bremen, Germany, is an unusual ensemble of expressionist architecture?
...that the Frauenfriedenskirche at Frankfurt am Main is an expressionist church, decorated with monumental mosaics?
... that Hermann Göring's chief art looter, Bruno Lohse, controlled a secret vault of looted paintings, discovered in Zurich in May 2007?
...that Tiefland, Leni Riefenstahl’s last full-feature film, made it into the Guinness Book of World Records on account of its long production time?
...that former Red Army Faction terrorist Stefan Wisniewski escaped from a reform school seven times in one year in his youth?
...that Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses on the doors of All Saints' Church, Wittenberg, Germany (pictured), in which he is also buried?
...that Vorpostenboot, the patrol boats that the Kriegsmarine used in World War II, were in fact modified fishing ships?
...that the Sturmtrupp-Pfadfinder, founded in 1926, were the first coed Scout association in German?
...that despite its northern location, the Ahr produces more red wine from grapes like Pinot noir than any other wine region in Germany?
...that the future headquarters of the European Central Bank will be located at the Frankfurt Grossmarkthalle (pictured), the former wholesale markets, an example of expressionist architecture by Martin Elsaesser?
...that the German Agricultural Society sets the assessment scale for the German wine classification system?
...that during the War of the Spanish Succession, 10,000 French soldiers attempted to take Schloss Hellenstein, a castle near Heidenheim in the Swabian Alb, but retreated without firing a shot because it was deemed too costly to attack?
...that the German 15 cm sFH 18 was the first field gun to use Rocket Assisted Projectiles?
...that Heinrich Steinhowel, a 15th-century German scholar and humanist who was physician to Eberhard, Count of Württemberg, is better known for translating Aesop's Fables into German?
...that the Zoological Garden of Hamburg built the world's largest primate house in 1915, only to see most of the monkeys starve to death during World War I and the zoo go bankrupt in 1920?
...that some members of the Nazi SS became eligible for their 25-year SS Long Service Awards well before their completion of 25 years of service?
...that the role of Osmin in the German opera The Abduction from the Seraglio was tailor-made by Mozart for Ludwig Fischer?
...that the Nobel laureate physicist Theodor W. Hänsch works at the faculty of the Max-Planck-Institute of Quantum Optics?
...that the Tierpark Hagenbeck zoo of Hamburg, Germany (pictured) was the first to use moats instead of cages to separate the animals from the public?
...that the man intensely reading in Carl Spitzweg's oil portrait The Bookworm represents the inward looking attitudes that affected Europe during the time of its creation?
...that Nationalism and Culture, the magnum opus of German anarchist Rudolf Rocker, was lauded by three Nobel Prize laureates?
...that German rock band Grobschnitt have incorporated pyrotechnics and sketch comedy into their extended performances since the mid-1970s?
...that Ernst Heinrich August de la Motte Fouqué, a Prussian general and confidant of Frederick the Great, was wounded thrice in the Battle of Landeshut, fought in 1760 during the Seven Years' War?
...that Judeopolonia was a proposed buffer state between the Russian and German Empires with a projected population of 30 million Jews, Poles, Ukrainians, Belarusians, Lithuanians, Latvians, and Baltic Germans?
...that the National Assembly (opening session pictured), Germany's legislature from 1919 to 1920, convened in Weimar to remind the World War I Allies of Germany's cultural history such as the Weimar residents Goethe and Schiller?
...that as a result of his role in the Peasants' War, the German Renaissance painter Jerg Ratgeb was executed by being torn apart by four horses?
...that the Zentrale Stelle (Central Office) was established in 1958 by the West German government to investigate war crimes committed outside Germany by Nazi forces?
...that the first major anti-nuclear demonstrations in Germany took place in 1975 in opposition to the construction of a proposed nuclear power station in Wyhl?
...that both former German Federal Minister of Labor Norbert Blüm and former Secretary of State of France Alain Vivien have been recognized with the Leipzig Human Rights Award?
...that Berlinka (pictured) was a partially constructed highway built by Nazi Germany that was intended to span the Polish Corridor from Berlin to Königsberg, Prussia?
...that after World War II, the Soviets took nearly 100 tons of uranium oxide as reparations from a facility of the company Auergesellschaft, accelerating their development of the atomic bomb by a year?
...that the German national rail strike of 2007 is the largest strike in history affecting Deutsche Bahn?
...that by providing government assistance to vineyard owners so they could replant and redesign their vineyards, the Flurbereinigung restructuring of the late 20th century had a dramatic impact on the German wine industry?
...that Anna Seidel, a German Sinologist and expert on Taoism, risked the death penalty by hiding a Jewish friend during World War II?
...that the German scientist Günter Wirths was brought to the Soviet Union after World War II, where he later was awarded a Stalin Prize for his contribution to the Soviet atomic bomb project?
...that IKB Deutsche Industriebank was the first European bank to announce substantial losses from the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis?
...that the Comoedienhaus theater (pictured), built in 1782, the first theater of performing arts in Frankfurt, Germany, played host to concerts by Mozart, Schiller and Goethe, among others?
...that the Nachtigall Battalion of the German army consisting of Ukrainian volunteers actively participated in the murder of around 4,000 Jews of Lviv in July 1941?
...that the Treaty of Reichenbach signaled both Prussia's first retreat from the policies of Frederick the Great, as well as the beginning of its decline?
...that popularity of German Minority, a party of the German minority in Poland, has been steadily declining since its establishment?
...that two male lovers of German film director Rainer Werner Fassbinder committed suicide?
...that German nuclear physicist Heinz Barwich had illegal contacts to the Soviet secret police NKVD during Nazi rule, and then spied on the Soviet Union for the West while working in East Germany?
...that Albrecht Dürer's Joachim and Anne Meeting at the Golden Gate (pictured) is one of 16 woodcuts completed between 1501 and 1511, which display the Virgin as an intermediary between the divine and the earth, yet with a range of human frailties?
...that in 1959, Barksdale Hamlett, the U.S. commandant in Berlin, threatened to forcefully prevent the East German government from flying its new flag over elevated railway stations in West Berlin?
...that Milly Witkop and her common-law husband Rudolf Rocker, both notable anarchist activists and writers, were denied admission to the United States in 1898, because they refused to get legally married?
...that in 1966, Heinz Waaske created the smallest 135 film camera made to that date, the Rollei 35?
...that the Züschen tomb and the Lohra tomb in Hesse, Germany, are prehistoric gallery graves belonging to the Late Neolithic Wartberg culture?
...that Astronomische Nachrichten, founded by H. C. Schumacher in 1821, is the world's oldest extant astronomical journal?
...that St. Trudpert's Abbey, a Benedictine monastery in Münstertal in the southern Black Forest, was plundered during the Peasants' War and destroyed by the Swedes during the Thirty Years' War?
...that the megalithic Altendorf tomb in Hesse, Germany contains bones from at least 235 individuals from the New Stone Age?
...that the 13th century Prussian Crusade commanded by Hermann Balk led to the conquest and gradual Christianization of the Old Prussians by the Teutonic Knights?
...that German physical chemist Max Volmer became head of a design bureau for the production of heavy water in the Soviet Union after the Second World War?
...that Tirpitz the pig (pictured) rescued after the sinking of the SMS Dresden became a ship's mascot on one of the cruisers that sank the Dresden?
...that Nikolaus Riehl researched the production of uranium in Nazi Germany, nuclear weapons in the Soviet Union, and the civil use of nuclear power in West Germany?
...that the German children's series Bibi Blocksberg has been criticised because it can give a negative view of politics to children?
...that Peter Adolf Thiessen, who helped develop Soviet nuclear weapons after World War II and received a Stalin Prize, first class, for his efforts, had joined the Nazi Party as soon as 1925?
...that the only remnants of Mecklenburg Castle, a medieval castle located in present-day Germany, are parts of an earthen wall?
...that Turkish-German professional boxer Hülya Şahin, the undefeated junior flyweight world champion, is the only female member of her club Universum?
...that Sophie of Schönburg-Waldenburg, born in Potsdam, Brandenburg, became Princess of Albania in March 1914 (arrival pictured), but had to leave the country just six months later because of nationalist turmoil?
...that German physicist Walter Gerlach helped prove the fact that electrons spin?
...that Fritz Bleyl was one of the four founders of Die Brücke art group in 1905, but left two years later and never exhibited again?
...that Fred Astaire, Marlon Brando and Nick Nolte were all born to German-American families in Omaha, Nebraska?
...that in late 1992, the German Ministry of the Interior banned the neo-Nazi groups German Alternative (DA), Nationalist Front (NF), German Comradeship Alliance (DKB), and the National Offensive (NO) all within a month?
...that the Wendish Crusade of 1147 was a largely unsuccessful campaign of Saxons and Danes against the Polabian Slavs concurrent to the Second Crusade?
...that soon after German reunification, the Greifswald Nuclear Power Plant in the former East Germany was shut down due to conflicting technical requirements with the West?
...that the book Historia naturalis palmarum, by German botanist Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius, was described by E. J. H. Corner as "the most magnificent treatment of palms that has been produced"?
...that the German neo-Nazi party German Alternative was banned in 1992 after the group was associated with an arson attack on an asylum seekers refuge?
...that Adolf Hitler served in the 6th Bavarian Reserve Division during World War I?
...that in 1991 Heinz Barth, former Obersturmführer in the Waffen-SS, was granted a "war victim" pension while in jail for war crimes for involvement in the Oradour-sur-Glane massacre of 1944?
...that the 42nd Infantry Division, which was formed in 1912 and fought both on the Eastern and Western Fronts of World War I, was the last regular division created in the Imperial German Army?
...that according to Allied intelligence, the 27th Infantry Division was one of the very best German divisions in World War I?
...that before turning to acting, Ulrich Mühe, the star of the Academy Award-winning 2006 film The Lives of Others, was a border guard on the communist side of the Berlin Wall?
...that Paradise Camp is a documentary, explaining how Nazi officials fooled the Red Cross into believing the Jews were being well cared for?
...that Alexander Eugen Conrady abandoned his native Germany in disgust, settled in England, and there designed optical instruments used by the British in World War I?
...that German artist and cartographer Augustin Hirschvogel is the first person known to have used triangulation in surveying?
...that over 15,000 men of the battle-hardened 10th and 11th Divisions of the Imperial German Army were disbanded following World War I?
...that part of the first line of the Berlin U-Bahn was built as an elevated railway (pictured), because the City of Berlin feared that an underground railway would damage one of its new trunk sewers?
...that the first railway in Germany, the Bayerische Ludwigsbahn, was originally mostly horse-hauled because of the high cost of importing coal from Saxony?
...that the German historian Albert Brackmann argued that the Poles should be pushed farther eastwards, into the Ukraine?
...that the first shot fired by British Empire forces in World War I was targeted at the German ship Pfalz which was departing Melbourne, Australia as Britain declared war on Germany?
...that Operation Salaam was a World War II covert operation led by the aristocratic explorer László Almásy in order to insert two German spies into British-held Cairo?
...that during the Schmalkaldic War, the Imperial Duke Eric II fled from the Battle of Drakenburg (etching pictured) by swimming across the Weser River?
...that a portion of the Palatine Library returned to Heidelberg in 1816, almost two centuries after it was looted from city by the Catholic League?
...that Gabriele Kohlisch is one of only two people to ever win World Championship gold medals in bobsledding and luge?
...that the author of the term Third Reich predicted that "Germany might perish because of the Third Reich dream"?
...that Johann Christoph Altnickol, Johann Christian Kittel, and Johann Caspar Vogler were all students of Johann Sebastian Bach?
...that the Bonn–Oberkassel train ferry was one of six train ferries that commenced operations across the Rhine in Germany in the late 19th century?
...that the Kirchberg convent, built in 1237, is one of the oldest female church houses in all of central Europe?
...that the test for enrollment at Germany's Helmut Schmidt University involves not an intelligence test, but military training and troop procedures?
...that the Scientology Task Force of Hamburg, Germany reported on what it called brainwashing in Scientology's Rehabilitation Project Force?
...that the Brothers Grimm were amongst the Göttingen Seven, university teachers who protested changes to the constitution of the Kingdom of Hanover in 1837?
...that German-born Richard Lieber started the trend of American state parks having inns and charging fees for using the parks, so that citizens would appreciate them more?
...that the 200 km/h maximum speed of the Munich-Nuremberg Express makes it the only regional train in Germany fast enough to not impede ICE traffic?
...that the Hungarian Gold Train was a 1944 Nazi operated freight train that carried stolen Hungarian valuables to Berlin, but never reached its destination?
...that Nazi officer Reiner Stahel commanded the garrison of Warsaw during the uprising of 1944?
...that Flaschenhals was a micronation created in the Rhineland after the Armistice of 1918?
...that in 1843 the German missionary Hermann Mögling published the first ever newspaper in the Kannada language?
...that the congress hall on the site of the former Nazi party rally grounds in Nuremberg has been converted into a museum (entrance pictured)?
...that the Way of Human Rights in Nuremberg, Germany has a sculpture and engraving dedicated to each article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights?
...that the expulsion of Poles by Germany was contemplated in the 19th century and implemented in the 20th?
...that no two of the more than 1000 windows in the Waldspirale residential complex in Darmstadt are identical?
...that Klaus Traube worked on building the German fast breeder in Kalkar when he changed his view about nuclear power, went into opposition and was considered a security threat by the German secret service?
...that the Dehousing Paper, presented to the British War Cabinet in 1942, advocated for a strategic bombing campaign of German cities?
... that despite his commitment to historical accuracy, Albrecht Altdorfer's masterpiece The Battle of Alexander at Issus is depicted as occurring in the Alps, in 16th century costume?
...that chemist Hugo Stoltzenberg developed the poison gas used by Germany at the 1915 Second Battle of Ypres in Belgium, the first time it was used on the Western Front?
...that the prototypes for the World War II German U-boat fleet were designed by a Dutch company and built in Finland at the Crichton-Vulcan shipyard?
... that despite his commitment to historical accuracy, Albrecht Altdorfer's masterpiece The Battle of Alexander at Issus is depicted as occurring in the Alps, in 16th century costume?
...that the Master of the Playing Cards was a 15th-century German engraver and the first major master in the history of printmaking?
...that the soldiers of the Black Brunswickers dressed entirely in black and wore hats with Death's Heads on them to reflect their commander's hatred for Napoleon?
...that the bestselling 1906 erotic novel Josephine Mutzenbacher is thought to have been written by Felix Salten, the author of Bambi?
...that the SS in Nazi Germany were above civilian law, answering only to the SS-run Hauptamt SS Gericht?
...that German textile artist Gunta Stölzl was the only female "master" of the Bauhaus?
...that German physicist Max von Laue wrote Acta Crystallographica, which dealt with the absorption of x-rays under interference conditions, while in French military incarceration in 1945?
...that the Tyska kyrkan in Stockholm, Sweden, is situated in the oldest German ecclesiastical parish outside Germany?
...that German settlement in Bulgaria dates back to the 13th–14th century?
...that on March 21, 1943, Rudolf Christoph von Gersdorff (pictured) tried to kill Adolf Hitler in a suicide attack in Berlin, but failed because Hitler left earlier than expected?
...that, after a heavy bomb raid on the city of Heilbronn, raining fragments of the blast were lodged in cattle in the surrounding countryside, and that this meant days of slaughtering for veterinarians?
...that the Altdeutsche Tracht, a Renaissance-influenced fashion, was popular in Germany during the last years of the Napoleonic wars as a sign of resistance against "French fashion foolishness"?
...that the gravestone of Abraham von Franckenberg, a 17th-century mystic, is covered with as yet undeciphered mystical symbols?
...that Julius Fromm invented the latex condom in 1914 and marketed his invention under the name Fromms Act until he was forced to sell his business under Nazi rule?
...that German Luftwaffe fighter ace Walther Dahl shot down 128 enemy aircraft in the Second World War, including a USAAF B-17 that he rammed in 1944?
...that the Bienwald (satellite image pictured) is a large forested area in the southern Pfalz region of Germany, near the towns of Kandel and Wörth am Rhein?
...that German toymaker Richard Steiff's invention of a toy bear received highest honors at the 1904 Saint Louis World's Fair?
...that Walter Arthur Berendsohn, who successfully nominated Nelly Sachs and Willy Brandt for their respective Nobel Prizes, wrote Die humanistische Front, the seminal book on German exile literature?
...that Richard Strauss helped the German composer Heinz Tiessen obtain a job at the Berlin State Opera in 1917?
...that Lothar-Günther Buchheim, author of the 1973 novel Das Boot, refused to give his Expressionist paintings to a museum unless it would also display his collection of curiosities?
...that the Göttingen Academy of Sciences (pictured), founded in 1751 by King George II of Great Britain, is the second oldest of seven academies of sciences in Germany?
...that the German submarine U-777 was sunk in October 1944, less than 7 months after being launched?
...that the illumination method used in modern light microscope design was invented by 27-year-old German graduate student August Köhler in 1893?
...that four artillery submarines were among many uncompleted U-boat projects planned by Nazi Germany?
...that after one group he founded was banned, the neo-Nazi leader Michael Kühnen began a policy of regularly starting up new organizations in order to confuse the authorities?
...that Sausenburg Castle in Germany was destroyed in 1678 by the army of French Marshall Creque during the Franco-Dutch War?
...that Gerhard Schröder sponsored a star for Dieter Hildebrandt on the Walk of Fame of Cabaret during his time as Chancellor of Germany ?
...that in 1263 Fürstenfeld Abbey was founded by Ludwig the Severe of Bavaria as a penance for killing his wife?
...that the Berlin Stadtbahn is built mostly as an elevated railway line with viaducts totalling eight kilometres of length, including 731 masonry viaduct arches?
...that students who finish a doctorate at the Georg-August University of Göttingen traditionally kiss the Gänseliesel (pictured), a statue in the center of Göttingen?
...that the standing army created during the Thirty Years' War by Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg, developed into the Prussian Army?
...that the German actor Heinz Rühmann was 42 years old when starring as a high school student in the 1944 film Die Feuerzangenbowle?
...that the medieval Margraviate of Brandenburg was called "the sandbox of the Holy Roman Empire"?
...that NV Ingenieurskantoor voor Scheepsbouw was a firm created by Germany in 1922 to illegally manufacture submarines?
...that Murderers Among Us was the first German post-World War II film?
...that Andreas Joseph Hofmann proclaimed the first republican state in Germany on March 18, 1793?
...that the Blohm und Voss Bv 144 was an attempt by Nazi Germany to develop an advanced commercial airliner for post-war service?
...that the German physicist Otto Laporte discovered what is known in spectroscopy as the Laporte rule?
...that St. Clement's Church in Büsum, Germany (pictured) is furnished with items looted from Pellworm by the pirate Cord Widderich?
...that the medieval pirate Cord Widderich occupied Eiderstedt and made the Pellworm church tower his base?
... that during the siege of Mainz, Goethe was a military observer and later wrote a book about it?
...that German poet and playwright Klabund was charged with treason for writing an open letter calling for the abdication of William II?
...that the Free Association of German Trade Unions was the only trade union in Germany to reject the Burgfrieden, a civil truce between the socialist movement and the German state during World War I?
...that Xanten Cathedral (interior pictured), entitled basilica minor by pope Pius XI, may be the biggest cathedral between Cologne and the North Sea?
...that the Blauhöhle, a huge cave system with more than 50m high caverns, is accessible by diving through the Blautopf, the source of the Blau?
... that count Ulrich III purchased the towns Markgröningen (1336) and Tübingen (1342) and incorporated them into the County of Württemberg?
...that Luftwaffe ace Erich Rudorffer flew more than 1000 missions during World War II, and was shot down sixteen times by enemy flak and fighters?
...that Paul Haenlein was the first to create a dirigible airship which was powered by an internal combustion engine?
...that Philipp Jenninger resigned as President of the Bundestag after his speech commemorating Kristallnacht caused a political scandal?
...that the theme of the Kyffhäuser Monument (pictured) suggests a connection between the Holy Roman Empire and the German Empire?
...that Ulrich IV, Count of Württemberg reigned the County Württemberg together with his brother Eberhard II, but wanted to divide the county between both of them?
...that Hermann Klaatsch was one of the first scientists to advocate a clear division between religion and physical anthropology?
...that Ernst Kitzinger, a historian of Byzantine art, was forced to leave Germany in 1934 and England in 1940 because he was Jewish and German respectively?
...that Russian Jewish painter Marc Chagall created the windows of the St Stephan church in Mainz as a sign of Jewish-German reconciliation?
...that the Frankfurter Judengasse was the earliest Jewish ghetto in Germany?
...that Theo Osterkamp was the first German reconnaissance pilot to fly a land-based aircraft to England during World War I?
...that in 2003, German authorities foiled a plot by a neo-Nazi group to set off a bomb at the Ohel Jakob synagogue cornerstone ceremony?
...that the gate of the ruined Palais Strousberg was built into the modern British Embassy in Berlin—the only part of it left after the Second World War, complete with the old British coat of arms?
...that the Pariser Platz in Berlin is named after the French capital in memory of Napoleon's defeat at the Battle of Leipzig in 1813?
...that the village of Mödlareuth was called "Little Berlin" because it too was divided by a wall during the Cold War?
...that the President of the Bundestag is ranked ahead of the Chancellor of Germany according to the German order of precedence?
...that Richard Stücklen was the longest serving member of the German Bundestag, winning election 11 times between 1949 and 1990?
... that Gustav Killian performed revolutionary treatments on the bronchi?
... that in 1919, the discharge of the chief of police of Berlin led to a general strike and accompanying fighting known as the Spartacist uprising, in which over 500,000 workers took part?
...that Eilhart von Oberge's German poem Tristrant, dating to the late 12th century, is the earliest complete version of the Tristan and Iseult legend in any language?
...that the German television comedy series Verstehen Sie Spaß, the German equivalent of Candid Camera, has been running non-stop since 1980?
...that funding for the Prussian Academy of Sciences was originally provided by giving it a monopoly on the sale of calendars?
...that modernization of the Ostkreuz station in Berlin, the busiest interchange station of the city's transportation system, has been proposed since 1937 and is due to start next year?
that the Deutschhaus building in Mainz was the seat of the first democratically elected parliament in Germany during the Republic of Mainz?
that DELAG is considered to be the world's oldest airline?
that the Mainz Sand Dunes are a rare example of steppe vegetation in Germany?
that the Neues Museum in Berlin, which was almost completely destroyed in World War II, is scheduled to be reopened in 2009, at which point it will house the bust of Nefertiti?
that an estimated 600 or approximately half of the originally manufactured Duesenbergs are still on the road as classic cars or "Oldtimers" and valued at about one Million dollars (US) each?
that the names for Germany in other languages have six separate roots?
that the orphanage in Düsseldorf-Düsseltal (founded in 1822) was financed in part by the sale of "original" Eau de Cologne—made of water taken from the Düssel?
that Operation Epsilon referred to a program by Allied forces at the end of World War II to determine how close the Germans had been to constructing an atomic bomb by listening to their conversations?
that the long-running German TV show Aktenzeichen XY... ungelöst is the only German television format to have entered the United States, where it is produced by Fox as America's Most Wanted?
that the Antique Temple at Sanssouci was commissioned by Frederick the Great to house his collection of antique artefacts, coins and gems?
that Wormatia Worms was one of the first football clubs to display advertising on their jerseys?
that according to legend, the money for the construction of Lübeck Cathedral came from a diamond-encrusted crucifix borne by a deer shot by Henry the Lion?
that in the late 18th century the Lilienthal Observatory was the best equipped observatory in the world?
that Bad Frankenhausen is the only one of the five German Barbarossatowns that never saw the Emperor Frederick I "Barbarossa"?
that the organ of St. Stephan's Cathedral in Passau is the largest cathedral organ in the world, with 17,774 pipes and 233 registers?
that in 1939 the Riesaer SV's Willi Arlt was the youngest ever German national team football player, at age 17?
that the moving of the Abu Simbel temple complex was done by Hochtief AG, the same company that built the Führerbunker?
that Heilbronn is nicknamed Käthchenstadt after Heinrich von Kleist's play?
that the Democratic Forum of Germans in Romania is a political party holding an absolute majority in the city council of Sibiu?
that one of the oldest buildings of the University of Potsdam was built for the Gestapo and later used by the Stasi?
that because of the way it looks Munich's Allianz Arena is nicknamed Schlauchboot (Ger. for inflatable raft)?
that the Thomaskirche in Leipzig is famous for being the place where Johann Sebastian Bach worked as cantor?

2007 edit

September edit

...that Turkish-German professional boxer Hülya Şahin, the undefeated junior flyweight world champion, is the only female member of her club Universum?

2006 edit

March edit

...that the German hip-hop crew Fünf Sterne Deluxe made their 1999 comeback with the single "Ja Ja..., deine Mudder", a German take on the dozens?
...that the Sanssouci Picture Gallery is the oldest extant museum built for a German ruler?

February edit

...that the Church of St. Elisabeth in Marburg was one of the earliest purely Gothic structures in Central Europe and served as the model for the Cologne Cathedral?