Karlsruhe

Karlsruhe (German pronunciation: [ˈkaɐ̯lsˌʁuːə]; formerly Carlsruhe) is the second-largest city in the state of Baden-Württemberg, in southwest Germany, near the Franco-German border. It has a population of 296,033. Karlsruhe Palace was built in 1715, and the city is now the seat of the two highest courts in Germany: the Federal Constitutional Court and the Federal Court of Justice.

Geography

The city lies at an altitude between 100 m (on the eastern shore of the river Rhine) and 322 m (near the communications tower In the suburb of Wettersbach). Its geographical coordinates are 49°00′N 8°24′E / 49.000°N 8.400°E / 49.000; 8.400; the 49th parallel runs through the city centre. Its course is marked by a stone and painted line in the Stadtgarten (municipal park).

The city was planned with the palace tower (Schloss) at the center and 32 streets radiating out from it like the spokes of a wheel, or the ribs of a folding fan, so that one nickname for Karlsruhe in German is the "fan city" (Fächerstadt). Almost all of these streets survived until today. Because of this city layout, in metric geometry, Karlsruhe metric refers to a measure of distance that assumes travel is only possible along radial streets and along circular avenues around the centre.

German cruiser Karlsruhe

Karlsruhe was a light cruiser, the second member of the Königsberg class, and was operated between 1929 and April 1940, including service in World War II. She was operated by two German navies, the Reichsmarine and the Kriegsmarine. She had two sister ships, Königsberg and Köln. Karlsruhe was built by the Deutsche Werke shipyard in Kiel; she was laid down in July 1926, launched in August 1927, and commissioned into the Reichsmarine in November 1929. She was armed with a main battery of nine 15 cm SK C/25 guns in three triple turrets and had a top speed of 32 knots (59 km/h; 37 mph).

Like her sisters, Karlsruhe served as a training cruiser for naval cadets throughout the 1930s. During the Spanish Civil War, she joined the non-intervention patrols off the Spanish coast. She was in the process of being modernized at the outbreak of World War II in September 1939, and so she was not ready for action until April 1940, when she participated in Operation Weserübung, the invasion of Norway. She landed troops at Kristiansand, and while returning to Germany, she was attacked by the British submarine HMS Truant; two torpedoes hit the ship and caused significant damage. Unable to return to port, Karlsruhe was scuttled by one of the escorting torpedo boats.

Karlsruhe (region)

Karlsruhe is one of the four administrative regions (sing. Regierungsbezirk) of Baden-Württemberg, Germany, located in the north-west of the state. It is subdivided into the three regional associations (sing. Regionalverband): Mittlerer Oberrhein (Middle Upper Rhine), Rhein-Neckar (Rhine-Neckar) and Nordschwarzwald (Northern Black Forest).

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Coordinates: 49°00′N 8°30′E / 49.0°N 8.5°E / 49.0; 8.5