Germany: Bonn Says Ja To Berlin

Bonn Says Ja To Berlin

Everyone knows the jokes about Bonn: it is the Bundesdorf, the federal village, with the same population as a Chicago cemetery and half the animation. For 42 years, pending unification, it has been only the "provisional capital." The treaty that reunited the country last year named Berlin the capital.

But that did not settle the matter. A heated nationwide argument broke out about actually moving the government and its ministries from the somnolent little town on the Rhine -- whose only other major industry is a candy factory -- to the metropolis 375 miles farther east. In last week's deciding debate...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!