Ratisbon

Ratisbon (Regensbtjrg), a city of Bavaria, and capital of the Upper Palatinate, stands on the right bank of the Danube, opposite the mouth of the Regen, 53 miles S.E. of Nuremberg. As a Celtic settlement it existed before Roman times, was erected into a bishopric in the 8th century, and became a free imperial city about 1200. A period of great commercial prosperity followed, bat this had died oat before the Thirty Years' War, in which it suffered severely. It was annexed by Bavaria in 1810. The cathedral, founded in 1275, is a fine example of pure Gothic style, and the Schotten-kirche, dating from the 12th century, is a curious Romanesque building. Imperial Diets were frequently held here, and the Ambassadors' Street still contains the houses of representatives. The principal manufactures are iron and steel goods, pencils, pottery, and parquet floors. There is a considerable trade in local produce, and boat building flourishes.