Aachen, also known as Bad Aachen is a spa town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Sometimes in English, the city is referred to as Aix-la-Chapelle. Aachen was a favoured residence of Charlemagne, and later the place of coronation of the German kings. Geographically, Aachen is the westernmost city of Germany, located along its borders with Belgium and the Netherlands, 61 km west-southwest of Cologne.It is located within a former coal-mining region, and this fact was important in its economic history.[3] RWTH Aachen University, one of Germany's Universities of Excellence, is located in the city.Aachen's predominant economic focus is on science, engineering, information technology and related sectors. In 2009, Aachen was ranked 8th among cities in Germany for innovation.Aachen Cathedral was erected on the orders of Charlemagne in AD 796 and was, on completion, the largest cathedral north of the Alps. It was modelled after the Basilica of San Vitale, in Ravenna, Italy,and was built by Odo of Metz.On his death, Charlemagne's remains were interred in the cathedral and can be seen there to this day. The cathedral was extended several times in later ages, turning it into a curious and unique mixture of building styles. For 600 years, from 936 to 1531, Aachen Cathedral was the church of coronation for 30 German kings and 12 queens. The church built by Charlemagne is still the main attraction of the city.In addition to holding the remains of its founder, it became the burial place of his successor Otto III. Aachen Cathedral has been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.The city hall, dated from 1330,lies between two central places, the Markt and the Katschhof. The coronation hall is on the first floor of the building. Inside you can find five frescoes by the Aachen artist Alfred Rethel which show legendary scenes from the life of Charlemagne, as well as Charlemagne's signature. It also contains the hall of the emperors.The Grashaus, a late medieval house at the Fisch Markt, is one of the oldest non-religious buildings in downtown Aachen. It hosts the city archive. The Grashaus was the former city hall before the present building took over this function.The Elisenbrunnen is one of the most famous sights of Aachen. It is a neo-classical hall covering one of the city's famous fountains. It is just a minute away from the cathedral. Just a few steps in south-eastern direction lies the 19th-century theatre.Also of note are two remaining city gates, the Ponttor, one half-mile northwest of the cathedral, and the Kleinmarschiertor, close to the central railway station. There are also a few parts of both medieval city walls left, most of them integrated into more recent buildings, but some others still visible. There are even five towers left, some of which are used for housing.St. Michael's Church, Aachen was built as a church of the Aachen Jesuit Collegium in 1628. It is attributed to the Rhine mannerism and a sample of a local Renaissance-architecture. The rich façade remained unfinished until 1891 when the historistic architect Peter Friedrich Peters added to it. The church is a Greek Orthodox church today, but the building is used also for concerts because of its good acoustics.
The Jewish synagogue in Aachen which was destroyed at the Night of Broken Glass on 9 November 1938, was reinaugurated on 18 May 1995.One of the contributors for the reconstructions of the synagogue was Jürgen Linden, the Lord Mayor of Aachen from 1989 to 2009. On 30 March 2011, it was reported that a swastika was spray-painted on a wall of the synagogue at Aachen, as an anti-Semitic act.
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