It was constructed to house the Shrine of the Three Kings and is a globally recognized landmark and one of the most visited sights and pilgrimage destinations in Europe. The cityscape is further shaped by the Twelve Romanesque churches of Cologne. Cologne is famous for Eau de Cologne , which has been produced in the city since ; "cologne" has since come to be a generic term.
Cologne , the French version of the city's name, has become standard in English as well. Cologne functioned as the capital of the Roman province of Germania Inferior and as the headquarters of the Roman military in the region until occupied by the Franks in During the Middle Ages the city flourished as being located on one of the most important major trade routes between east and western Europe including the Brabant Road , Via Regia and Publica.
Cologne was a free imperial city of the Holy Roman Empire and one of the major members of the trade union Hanseatic League. It was one of the largest European cities in medieval and renaissance times. Prior to World War II , the city had undergone occupations by the French β and the British β , and was part of Prussia beginning in The post-war rebuilding has resulted in a mixed cityscape, restoring most major historic landmarks like city gates and churches 31 of them being Romanesque.
Cologne is a major cultural center for the Rhineland ; it hosts more than 30 museums and hundreds of galleries. There are many institutions of higher education, most notably the University of Cologne , one of Europe's oldest and largest universities; [ 7 ] the Technical University of Cologne , Germany's largest university of applied sciences; and the German Sport University Cologne.
It hosts three Max Planck science institutes and is a major research hub for the aerospace industry, with the German Aerospace Center and the European Astronaut Centre headquarters. Lufthansa , Europe's largest airline, [ 8 ] [ 9 ] have their main corporate headquarters in Cologne. It also has a significant chemical and automobile industry. The Cologne Trade Fair hosts a number of trade shows.
