DESKTOP 2350 - HANOVER, GERMANY

Hanover or Hannover (Low German: Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German federal state of Lower Saxony, and its 535,061 (2017) inhabitants make it the thirteenth largest city of Germany, as well as the third-largest city of Northern Germany after Hamburg and Bremen. The city lies at the confluence of the River Leine (progression: Aller→ Weser→ North Sea) and its tributary Ihme, in the south of the North German Plain, and is the largest city of the Hannover–Braunschweig–Göttingen–Wolfsburg Metropolitan Region. It is the fifth-largest city in the Low German dialect area after Hamburg, Dortmund, Essen, and Bremen.

Before it became the capital of Lower Saxony in 1946, Hanover was the capital of the Principality of Calenberg (1636-1692), the Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg (1692-1814), the Kingdom of Hanover (1814-1866), the Province of Hanover of the Kingdom of Prussia (1868-1918), the Province of Hanover of the Free State of Prussia (1918-1946), and of the State of Hanover (1946). From 1714 to 1837, Hanover was by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, under their title of the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg (later described as the Elector of Hanover).

The city is a major crossing point of railway lines and highways (Autobahnen), connecting European main lines in both the east-west (Berlin–Ruhr area/Düsseldorf/Cologne) and north-south (Hamburg–Frankfurt/Stuttgart/Munich) directions. Hanover Airport lies north of the city, in Langenhagen, and is Germany's ninth-busiest airport. The city’s most notable institutions of higher education are the Hanover Medical School with its university hospital (Klinikum der Medizinischen Hochschule Hannover), and the University of Hanover.

The Hanover fairground, due to numerous extensions, especially for the Expo 2000, is the largest in the world. Hanover hosts annual commercial trade fairs such as the Hanover Fair and the CeBIT. The IAA Commercial Vehicles show takes place every two years. It is the world's leading trade show for transport, logistics and mobility. Every year Hanover hosts the Schützenfest Hannover, the world's largest marksmen’s festival, and the Oktoberfest Hannover.

The New Town Hall (German: Neues Rathaus) or New City Hall shown here, is a city hall and was opened on July 20, 1913, after having been under construction for 12 years. It is a magnificent, castle-like building of the era of Wilhelm II in eclectic style at the southern edge of the inner city (outside of the historic city centre of Hanover). The building is embedded in the 10 hectare Maschpark. The Old Town Hall is no longer used as the main seat of administration, but houses businesses and the registry office.

This post is part of the Our World Tuesday meme,

and also part of the Ruby Tuesday meme,

and also part of the Travel Tuesday meme,

and also part of the Wordless Wednesday meme.