Germany: History of Kiel

On Monday I got five postcards: three from Germany, one from Russia and one from Japan.

One of the cards from Germany is the Chronicle card of Kiel. Kiel was founded in 1242 as city with Lübeck law and remained a member of the Hanseatic League until 1518. In 1490 it became a part of Holstein-Gottorp. After Schleswig was lost to Denmark Kiel became the residence of the remaining territory. In 1773 the city became part of Denmark. In 1848 the citizen tried to become again a part of Germany, but in 1852 Kiel was invaded by Danish forces. In 1863 German forces regained the control over Kiel. In 1865 Kiel was declared as a Prussian naval base and in 1871 it became a naval base of the German Empire. The first Kiel Week took place in 1882 and between 1886 and 1895 the Kiel Canal was built. In 1918 the Kiel Mutiny led to the end of the monarchy in Germany. The city was badly damaged in World War II, but was rebuilt in a modern way. Today is Kiel an important port on the Baltic Sea and since 1949 it is the capital of Schleswig-Holstein.

Stamp:
Lighthouse (from set of two) (issued 03-07-2014)
with an advertising postmark of the Kiel Week

Thank You very much Katja!