Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The Koblenz railway station is just far enough away from the meeting of the
Moselle and Rhine Rivers and the city's major tourist attractions to cause a “walk
or ride” decision. If you decide to ride into the city center, the tourist office can help
you hail a cab or provide you with the city's bus schedule and fare information. If
you are planning to stay in Koblenz, tourist-office staff can make hotel reservations
at no charge. Be sure to pick up a map and the brochure
Koblenz … Tour of The
Town's Heritage
before setting out.
Just as there is a subtle difference between Rhine and Moselle wines, so is there
a difference between the scenic beauty of the two great rivers from which the wines
take their names. At the rivers' confluence you will be able to enjoy both. Koblenz
claims that it offers more than 2,000 years of history to its visitors—and all within
the span of a few hours. The historical background of this city, in the very center
of Germany's Rhineland, makes this no idle boast as its claim to Germany's most
beautiful corner.
The area around Koblenz was settled originally by the Celts. Julius Caesar, di-
viding and conquering as he went, arrived with his legions and established domain
along the Rhine's western banks. Roman tranquility thrived until the fifth century,
when Rome's power weakened and the Franks took over.
Napoleon's memorable campaign against the Russians was inscribed on
St.
Castor's fountain
in the city during 1812. In 1814 the tables were turned when
the Russians captured the town and added a postscript, seen and approved, be-
neath the original inscription. At the
Deutsches Eck,
a monument erected at the
confluence of the Rhine and the Moselle in 1897, the statue of the German em-
peror Wilhelm I was toppled into the Rhine by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
in 1945. The base of the monument was made as a memorial to German unity in
1953 by President Theodor Heuss. Since September 1993, Wilhelm I is back—in
mini-model form on top of the monument.
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