Our cruise follows the Rhine, Main and Danube rivers in Europe. It is interesting that these rivers once formed the boundary between the Roman Empire, which would be to the West of the Rhine and South of the Danube, and barbarian territory controlled first by the Celts and then by the invading Germanic tribes.
When the Roman Empire in the West deteriorated, and the capital was moved East to Constantinople (now Istanbul), the Germanic tribes took control of the West, with Ostrogoths East Goths) taking Italy, Visigoths (West Goths) taking Spain, Frankish tribes taking Gaul (France), and Angles and Saxons taking England.
Eventually a Frankish leader named Clovis formed a kingdom in Gaul, and later a leader from a different family, Pepin, took over. His grandson, Charles (Charlemagne) was able to restore virtually all the former western Empire in 53 military campaigns. That was the beginning of the German Empire, later known as the Holy Roman Empire. He established his capital at Aux-la-Chapelle (Aachen) with his palace remaining to this day.
When Charlemagne died, his son Louis ruled, and on his death the Empire was divided among his three sons with Louis taking the eastern part that became known as Germany, Charles taking the western part that became France, and Lothair taking the middle part along with the imperial title.
What is now the Netherlands, Belgium, eastern France (Burgundy) and into North Italy was Lotharingia, the domain of Lothair. In time the Netherlands grew to become a great trading center. Cologne (from Colony) was a defensive outpost for Rome and later became a vital city in the German (Holy Roman Empire). Vienna was one of the military outposts on the Danube to protect the northern border.
The German part of Charlemagne’s empire grew to become the Holy Roman Empire, although not officially proclaimed such until the twelfth century. In 1356, a constitution was established for the Empire with the emperor being chosen by seven electors, three of which were were ecclesiastical archbishops located at Cologne, which we visit on the cruise, Trier, and Mainz. All of these archbishoprics were located on the western side of the Rhine, giving credence both to the “Roman” and “holy” name of the Empire. The four secular electors were located east of the Rhine: the elector Margrave of Brandenburg at Berlin, the elector Duke of Saxony at Wittenberg, the elector Count Palatine of the Rhine at Heidelberg, and the King of Bohemia at Prague. We shall visit Heidelberg.
Nuremberg was once the largest and one of the most important cities in Germany and in all of Medieval Europe. For its great reputation, Hitler chose it for his Nazi capital.
Bamberg became famous for its beautiful Baroque architecture, and fortunately was spared in the bombing of World War II.
Koblenz is the location of the junction of two rivers—the Rhine and the Mosel—and there, Germans erected a monument to the Emperor Wilhelm I to commemorate the establishment of the second German Empire and German reunification in 1870. By the 16th and 17th Centuries, the Empire existed in name only, and Germany consisted of many small, independent nations, until the Prussians from Brandenburg unified the nation under Count Otto von Bismarck.
Melk was a great Benedictine Abbey representative of the importance of monasticism which, during the time of weak political power in the early middle ages, provided the services required for a civilization, particularly the educational ones.
Vienna, a former military outpost for the Roman Empire, was selected as the capital for the Hapsburg Emperors who came to power in the 14th Century. They solidified their rule, and under Prince Eugene of Savoy, turned it into a great empire of its own – the Austrian Empire.
For more information on the history of both Austria and Germany, please download the following attachments:
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