Frankfurt, on the River Main in the German state of Hesse, has been settled since ancient times; Roman soldiers had a post on the hill where the cathedral stands, and later a Frankish royal estate was established there. The city is first mentioned in documents from Charlemagne's time, when a church council met there, under the name Franconofurd, meaning ford of the Franks. In the Middle Ages it became a free imperial city, where kings of the Holy Roman Empire were elected and later crowned, and a major trade fair city. It was the birthplace of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, and in 1848 it hosted the first German national parliament. Today it is a financial centre, home to the European Central Bank and a major airport.
Before and after
- 81 CEConstruction of Colosseum
- 82 CEConstruction of Arch of Titus
- from 85 CE to 700 CEOrigins of Vindolanda
- 1st centuryOrigins of House of the Virgin Mary
- 1st centuryOrigins of Frankfurt
- from 100 CE to 1200Ghana Empire
- from c. 100 CE to 700 CEMoche culture
- from 1st century to 7th centuryNazca culture
- c. 100sConstruction of Trajan's Forum
More in Civilizations & archaeology
- from 31st century BCE to 14th century BCEConstruction of Stonehenge
- 13th century BCEAncient Celts
- 600 BCEFounding of Milan
- 80 CEThe Colosseum is inaugurated
- from 285 CE to 1453Byzantine Empire
- 25 March 421 CEFounding of Venice
The era
This moment belongs to the Ancient civilizations (3,200 BCE to 500 CE), writing, cities and empires.