Bavaria

Bavaria (German Bayern), state in southeastern Germany, bounded on the north by the states of Thüringen and Saxony (Sachsen), on the northeast by the Czech Republic, on the southeast and south by Austria, and on the west by the states of Baden-Württemberg and Hessen. Munich is the capital and largest city. Other important cities are Nürnberg, Augsburg, and Regensburg. Bavaria is the largest state of Germany. It is drained by the Main River in the northwest and by the Danube River and two of its tributaries, the Inn and Isar rivers, in the southern and central regions. North of the Danube the land is a rolling upland. Along the border with the Czech Republic is the Bavarian Forest, which reaches an elevation of 1,460 m (4,780 ft). South of the Danube the land is a rising upland cut by numerous river valleys. In the extreme southern part of the state are the Bavarian Alps, the highest mountains in Germany. Area, 70,548 sq km (27,239 sq mi); population 12,423,000 (2004 estimate).

The population, which is largely Roman Catholic, is engaged mainly in agriculture, manufacturing, and services. The chief crops are grains (wheat in the south, rye in the north), sugar beets, potatoes, hops, and grapes and other fruits. Cattle, hogs, and horses are raised, and dairying is carried on in the foothills of the Bavarian Alps. The forests yield a variety of wood products. Lignite, granite, iron ore, and salt are mined. Bavaria has extensive hydroelectric power, a key factor in its industrial growth. Industry is concentrated in Munich, one of the main transportation centers in Germany, and in Nürnberg and Augsburg. In addition to the brewing of world-famous beer, industries include the production of glass and ceramics, machinery, textiles and paper, and optical and scientific equipment. Bavaria is noted for many monasteries and baroque churches, picturesque castles, and universities, and tourism is important to the state's economy.

Under the 1946 constitution, Bavaria has a cabinet government headed by a minister-president and responsible to a popularly elected diet (legislature). The state is divided into seven administrative districts.

Bavaria was conquered by the Romans in the 1st century bc and resettled by Germanic tribes in the 5th and 6th centuries. It became a possession of Charlemagne in 787 and was ruled by the Carolingian dynasty until the 10th century. In 1180 it passed to the Bavarian family of Wittelsbach. During the Reformation Bavaria remained staunchly Roman Catholic and was consequently ravaged by Protestant forces during the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648). The fertile soil and strategic position of the region made it a highly prized possession, and it was frequently invaded by foreign armies in the 17th and 18th centuries.

During the Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815), Bavaria was made a kingdom by Napoleon. In the 19th century, Bavaria tended to support Austria against Prussia. After being defeated with Austria in the Seven Weeks' War (1866), however, Bavaria sided with Prussia and in 1871 joined the new German Empire. After World War I (1914-1918) a Communist-led group belonging to the Independent Socialist party seized power, but troops of the central government assisted by Bavarian volunteers crushed the rebellion. In the 1920s Bavaria was able to retain a large degree of autonomy, which it lost in the 1930s with the rise of Adolf Hitler. Munich became the headquarters of the National Socialist (Nazi) party during the Hitler regime.

After World War II (1939-1945) Bavaria was included in the United States Zone of Occupation. A new constitution was drawn up in 1946, and in 1949 Bavaria became a constituent state of West Germany. In 1990, West and East Germany united and became the Federal Republic of Germany.