History Of Kaiserslautern Germany
Kaiserslautern has a population of approx. 100,000 inhabitants and some 48,000 additional American citizens due to the large military bases in the region.
It is located in the south of the German state Rhineland-
Palatinate.
Kaiserslautern is located a few kilometers from Ramstein Air Base, which is the seat of US Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) Headquarters, the Allied Air Forces Central Europe (AIRCENT) and the 86th Airlift Wing.
Americans stationed here call it lovely K-Town. The American military presence has decreased substantially in recent years, with consequent economic effects to the area.
The area around Kaiserslautern Germany is settled since the Jungsteinzeit (volume ceramic(s) time, 6./5. Millenium B.C.). Also Roman settlement is provable.
Around 830, the "mansion Luthra" was mentioned in Lor realm-arable for the first time documentary. After 1152, emperor Friedrich I called Barbarossa let establish a Palatine here. In 1276, king Rudolf von Habsburg granted municipal rights to the village Lautern.
In the Thirty Years War, the city was bloodily occupied several times. In the Palatinic Succession War in 1688, and afterwards in the Spanish Succession War in 1703, the city was occupied by Frenchmen. Residence and castle were blown up.
After the Napoleon Wars, Kaiserslautern became French in 1801. After the wars of liberation in 1816, Kaiserslautern became Bavarian. In the revolution of 1849, a "provisional government" resided in the fruit hall, that proclaimed the independence of Palatinate from Bavaria.
After First World War until 1930, the city stood under French administration again. The National Socialist time started in 1933, whereby in 1938, its synagog has been town off. By several large-scale attacks in World War 2 in 1944 and 1945, the city was destroyed to a great extent. Finally, the city was taken by the Americans on March 20th, 1945, which terminated the war for Kaiserslautern.
The area with Ramstein became the largest US-American garrison outside the USA. The industry raised first (1966: Settlement of Opel), while since the 80's, the industry went into a crisis (1981: Bankruptcy of the comb yarn spinning mill, dismissals at Pfaff and Opel, etc.). Further problems result from the reduction of the American and the departure of the French garrison.
Today, by conversion projects of the country, the city sees itself supported on the way to a "Science and IT city." Successful projects have been developed in order to create a future for today's children.
"And what about tourism, Marcus?" you might ask.
All right, here we go... 
The city hall is the tallest building in Kaiserslautern. It contains a coffee shop on the top floor, which features good views of the city and the surrounding countryside. In the city itself, there are some ruins of a 12th century with a castle of the emperor Barbarossa.
Kaiserslautern's large botanic gardens feature a Japanese-style garden. Another amusing part is the Waschmühle (wash mill), which is an enormous 160 meter public swimming pool. It is considered as one of the largest in Europe. The pedestrianized streets near St-Martins-Platz contain many restaurants and bars and is a major focus of the town's nightlife.
The town is also home to the Soccer team 1. FC Kaiserslautern
Phew! That was quite a bit, wasn't it? But that's not all Kaiserslautern has to offer. There's a very beautiful stadium...
Warmly,
