St. Nikolai, Kiel

Kiel (German: [kiːl] (listen)) is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021). Kiel lies approximately 90 kilometres (56 mi) north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the Jutland peninsula on the southwestern shore of the Baltic Sea, Kiel has become one of Germany's major maritime centres, known for a variety of international sailing events, including the annual Kiel Week, which is the biggest sailing event in the world. Kiel is also known for the Kiel Mutiny, when sailors refused to board their vessels in protest against Germany's further participation in World War I, resulting in the abdication of the Kaiser and the formation of the Weimar Republic. The Olympic sailing competitions of the 1936 and the 1972 Summer Olympics were held in the Bay of Kiel.Kiel has also been one of the traditional homes of the German Navy's Baltic fleet, and continues to be a major high-tech shipbuilding centre. Located in Kiel is the GEOMAR – Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel at the University of Kiel. Kiel is an important sea transport hub, thanks to its location on the Kiel Fjord (Kieler Förde) and the busiest artificial waterway in the world, Kiel Canal (Nord-Ostsee-Kanal). A number of passenger ferries to Sweden, Norway, Lithuania and other countries operate from here. Moreover, today Port of Kiel is a popular destination for cruise ships touring the Baltic Sea. Kiel's recorded history began in the 13th century. Before then, in the eighth century, it was a Danish village. Until 1864 it was administered by Denmark in personal union. In 1866 the city was annexed by Prussia and in 1871 it became part of Germany. Kiel was one of the founding cities of the original European Green Capital Award in 2006. In 2005 Kiel's GDP per capita was €35,618, which is well above Germany's national average, and 159% of the European Union's average.

The Kiel tramway network (German: Straßenbahnnetz Kiel) once formed part of the public transport system in Kiel, now in the federal state of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Opened in 1881, the network lasted until 1985. Kiel tramway was the last tram system in Schleswig-Holstein.

Kiel Maritime Museum (German - Schifffahrtsmuseum Kiel) is a museum in the German city of Kiel. It was established in 1978 in what had been the fish-auction hall in the Sartorikai area of the city. It shows the maritime history of Kiel. In front of the museum is the lantern of the Alexander von Humboldt lightship, and docked nearby are the rescue boat Hindenburg, the fireboat Kiel, the passenger ship Stadt Kiel, and the buoy tender Bussard, all now museum ships.

Kiel Castle (German: Kieler Schloss) in Kiel in the north German state of Schleswig-Holstein was one of the secondary residences of the Gottorf dukes. The castle exhibited a very varied architectural history and in the more recent architectural period became one of the most important secular buildings in Schleswig-Holstein. The castle burned down during the Second World War and its ruins were largely carried away and replaced by a new building.

The Port of Kiel (German: Kieler Hafen) is a significant port for passenger and cargo shipping located in Kiel, Germany. It occupies the inner part of the Baltic Sea inlet Kieler Förde and includes the approach to the locks at the eastern end of Kiel Canal.

The Kieler Nachrichten (literally "Kiel News") or KN is the only German-language newspaper published in Kiel, Germany. It is published by "Kieler Zeitung Verlags und Druckerei KG-GmbH & Co.", a subdivision of Axel Springer AG which owns 24.5 percent of the company. The newspaper's office is located at Asmus-Bremer-Platz between Holstenstraße and the Kiel city hall. The KN was first published on 3 April 1946, with the permission of the British in occupied Germany after World War II. The newspaper later considered itself a successor to the Kieler Zeitung (founded 1864) and the Kieler Neueste Nachrichten (founded 1894). In Rötger Feldmann's comic Werner, the KN is known as the Kieler Nachtwächter ("Kiel Night Watchman").

Theater Kiel is a theatre company in Kiel, the capital of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is jointly funded by the city and the state. The company produces opera, musical, ballet, plays, and theatre for youth and children, in three different buildings: the Opernhaus (completed in 1907), the Schauspielhaus, and the Theater im Werftpark.

Opernhaus Kiel (Kiel Opera House) is the major venue for opera, ballet, and orchestral performances in Kiel, and home to Theater Kiel. It is a Grade II listed building.

The Zoological Museum of Kiel University is a zoological museum in Kiel, Germany. It was founded by naturalist Karl Möbius, and architect Martin Gropius designed the building. The exhibitions display systematics, evolution, tropical and German fauna, butterfly ecology and history of zoology in Kiel. The museum is part of the University of Kiel.

The University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein (German: Universitätsklinikum Schleswig-Holstein, abbreviated as UKSH) is a university hospital, located in Kiel and Lübeck in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. Its aim is to ensure medical care in Schleswig-Holstein.

The Kunsthalle zu Kiel is an art museum in the German city of Kiel. With 2,000 m2 of display space, it is the largest museum in the city. It is north of the city centre on Düsternbrooker Weg. It has a lecture hall, a small cafe and a sculpture garden.

The Hörn Bridge (German: Hörnbrücke) is a folding bridge in the city of Kiel in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. The bridge spans the end of the Kiel Fjord (called Hörn) and was designed by Gerkan, Marg and Partners.