A hundred years ago, Germany was divided into many small states. In one of these states, Prussia, the chancellor or chief minister to the king, was Otto Von Bismarck. A strong and ruthless man, Bismarck built Prussia into the strongest of all German states and made its army feared throughout Europe. When the states were gathered into one empire in …

A hundred years ago, Germany was divided into many small states, or countries. In one of these states, Prussia, the chancellor, or chief minister to the king, was Otto von Bismarck. A strong and ruthless man, Bismarck made Prussia the strongest of all German states and its army feared throughout Europe. When the states were gathered into one empire in …

Art Cologne is an art fair held annually in Cologne, Germany. It is Germany’s leading art fair and was established in 1967. It bills itself as the ‘world’s oldest art fair’ although the 57th Street Art Fair was founded in 1948, almost two decades earlier. For six days each year, the fair brings together a large number of leading dealers …

Prague Spring refers to the period of liberalisation in Czechoslovakia from January 5, 1968 to August 21, 1968 under the leadership of Alexander Dubcek who controlled the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. In April 1968, agricultural and industrial reforms were instituted, a new constitution with a guarantee of civil rights and greater freedom of press was introduced with the announcement of …

The Maginot Line was built between 1930 and 1940, and named after French minister of defence Andre Maginot. It was built to prevent attacks from Germany, after learning a hard lesson from World War I. The Maginot Line was a line of concrete fortification, consisting of tank obstacles, artillery casemates, machine gun posts and other defence establishments, like a complex …

Freimarkt means free fair. It was first held on October 16, 1035, in Bremen, Germany. It is the biggest festival in Northern Germany, with more than four million visitors each year. It is celebrated for 17 days in the last two weeks of October. The area covers approximately 100,000 sqm on two areas: the ‘Kleiner Freimarkt’ (Small Free Fair) on …

The Garden City of Falkenberg is a housing estate in Berlin, Germany designed and built by German architect and town planner Bruno Taut (1880-1938). In the complex, Taut applied the garden city concept he learnt from England. The most striking aspect of this architecture is its use of colour: each part of a building bears a contrasting colour with respect …

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart — Perhaps the greatest musical genius who ever lived, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg, Austria, Jan. 27, 1756, the son of Leopold Mozart, concertmaster at the archiepiscopal court, and his wife, Anna Maria Pertl. Leopold Mozart was a successful composer and violinist, whose famous treatise on violin playing (Versuch einer grundlichen Violinschule) was first printed …

Walter Samuel — Walter Adrián Luján Samuel (born Walter Adrián Luján; 23 March 1978) is an Argentine footballer who plays for Basel in the Swiss Super League. Samuel has been regarded as one of football’s toughest defenders, with teammate and Inter captain Javier Zanetti referring to him as the “hardest player” he has played with. Gifted with natural power and …

Walter Gropius — Walter Adolph Georg Gropius (18 May 1883 – 5 July 1969) was a German architect and founder of the Bauhaus School, who, along with Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Le Corbusier and Frank Lloyd Wright, is widely regarded as one of the pioneering masters of modern architecture. Walter Gropius, born in Berlin, was the third child of …