Bonn

This article is about the city in Germany. For other uses, see Bonn (disambiguation).

Bonn
Federal city
Bonn skyline
Bonn skyline
Altes Rathaus (Bonn)
Townhall
Beethoven House
Beethoven House
Bonn Minster
Bonn Minster
Post Tower
Post Tower
Electoral Palace, Bonn
Electoral Palace
Flag of Bonn
Flag
Coat of arms of Bonn
Coat of arms
Bonn within North Rhine-Westphalia
Bonn is located in Germany
Bonn
Bonn
Bonn is located in North Rhine-Westphalia
Bonn
Bonn
Coordinates: 50°44′N 7°6′E / 50.733°N 7.100°E / 50.733; 7.100
CountryGermany
StateNorth Rhine-Westphalia
Admin. regionCologne
DistrictUrban district
Founded1st century BC
Government
 • Lord mayor (2020–25) Katja Dörner[1] (Greens)
 • Governing partiesGreens / SPD / Left / Volt
Area
 • Total
141.06 km2 (54.46 sq mi)
Elevation
60 m (200 ft)
Population
 (2023-12-31)[2]
 • Total
335,789
 • Density2,400/km2 (6,200/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes
53111–53229
Dialling codes0228
Vehicle registrationBN
Websitebonn.de

Bonn (German pronunciation: [bɔn] ⓘ) is a federal city in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, located on the banks of the Rhine. It has a population of over 300,000. About 24 km (15 mi) south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr region, Germany's largest metropolitan area and the second biggest metropolitan region by GDP in the European Union, with over 11 million inhabitants. The city served as the capital of West Germany from its formation in 1949 until 1990 and as the capital of reunited Germany from 1990 until 1999 when the seat of government was moved back to Berlin. Bonn is the birthplace of Germany's present day constitution, the Basic Law.

Founded in the 1st century BC as an Ubii and then Roman settlement in the province Germania Inferior, Bonn is one of Germany's oldest cities. It was the capital city of the Electorate of Cologne from 1597 to 1794, residence of the Archbishops and Prince-electors of Cologne. From 1949 to 1990, Bonn was the capital of West Germany. The era when Bonn served as the capital of West Germany is referred to by historians as the Bonn Republic.[3]

Due to a political compromise (Berlin-Bonn Act) following the reunification, the German federal government maintains a substantial presence in Bonn. Roughly a third of all ministerial jobs are located in Bonn as of 2019,[4] and the city is considered a second, unofficial, capital of the country.[5] Bonn is the secondary seat of the President, the Chancellor, and the Bundesrat, and the primary seat of six federal government ministries and twenty federal authorities. The title of Federal City (German: Bundesstadt) reflects its important political status within Germany.[6]

The global headquarters of Deutsche Post DHL and Deutsche Telekom, both DAX-listed corporations, are in Bonn. The city is home to the University of Bonn and a total of 20 United Nations institutions, the highest number in all of Germany.[7] These institutions include the headquarters for Secretariat of the UN Framework Convention Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Secretariat of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), and the UN Volunteers programme.[8] Birthplace of composer Ludwig van Beethoven, a center of Rhenish carnival, and its geography by the Middle Rhine make it an important tourist destination.

  1. ^ Wahlergebnisse in NRW Kommunalwahlen 2020, Land Nordrhein-Westfalen, accessed 19 June 2021.
  2. ^ "Bevölkerung der Gemeinden Nordrhein-Westfalens am 31. Dezember 2023 – Fortschreibung des Bevölkerungsstandes auf Basis des Zensus vom 9. Mai 2011" (in German). Landesbetrieb Information und Technik NRW. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
  3. ^ Anthony James Nicholls (1997). The Bonn Republic: West German Democracy, 1945–1990. Longman. ISBN 9780582492318 – via Google Books.
  4. ^ tagesschau.de. "Bonn-Berlin-Gesetz: Dieselbe Prozedur wie jedes Jahr". tagesschau.de (in German). Retrieved 26 April 2019.
  5. ^ Cowell, Alan (23 June 2011). "In Germany's Capitals, Cold War Memories and Imperial Ghosts". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022.
  6. ^ Bundestag, Deutscher. "Deutscher Bundestag: Berlin-Debatte / Antrag Vollendung der Einheit Deutschlands, Drucksache 12/815". webarchiv.bundestag.de (in German). Retrieved 19 February 2017.
  7. ^ Amt, Auswärtiges. "Übersicht: Die Vereinten Nationen (VN) in Deutschland". Auswärtiges Amt (in German). Retrieved 6 February 2020.
  8. ^ "UNBonn.org".