Rhineland-Palatinate : Germany

In the middle of Europe. The state of Rhineland-Palatinate was formed after World War II, on 30 August 1946, by the French military government. Traditional structures were not taken into account; instead parts of Germany were merged that had never before belonged together: parts of the Prussian Rhine provinces, the territory of Hesse on the left bank of the Rhine, and the strongly Bavarian-influenced Palatinate. These regions have become closely knit over time, however, and Rhineland-Platinate has acquired its own identity.

Rhineland-Palatinate has profited greatly from its geographical location. The extensive modernized network of autobahns and federal highways, the convenient rail connections between the cities of Mainz, Kaisers-lautern, Trier, Ludwigshafen and Koblenz, the major waterways Rhine and Mosel, as well as the state’s proximity to three economically powerful centers - the Rhine-Main, Rhine-Neckar and Rhine-Ruhr regions -have created optimal framework conditions for the development of Rhineland-Palatinate into one of Germany’s most dynamic regions.