Munich Travel Guide — Things to Do, Food & Hotels
capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany
About Munich
—Ernest Hemingway When the last Ice Age retreated 12,000 years ago, it dumped gravel and silt across this area, leaving a heath that was well-drained and suitable for grazing, but not particularly fertile. Munich like other German cities has been settled from prehistory, but by convention the "founding date" is taken as the first documentary mention. That came in 1158 in a document signed in Augsburg, at a time when Munich was just a bridge over the Isar controlled by monks - hence the monk on the city coat of arms. Henry the Lion built a rival bridge so the highway became re-aligned and the town grew rapidly. In 1175 Munich was awarded city status and built its first defensive walls. But Henry fell out with the ruling Staufer dynasty, whereupon Otto I Wittelsbach became Duke of Bavaria (h
Munich Travel Guide Sections
Our comprehensive guide covers 15 sections including: