Linguistically, Düsseldorf is the largest city in the German part of the Low Franconian area, dialects that are closely related to Dutch.

Düsseldorf is an international business and financial centre, renowned for its fashion and trade fairs,[8][9][10] and is headquarters to one Fortune Global 500 and two DAX companies.

[13][14] When the Roman Empire was strengthening its position throughout Europe, a few Germanic tribes clung on in marshy territory off the eastern banks of the Rhine.

Under Emperor Friedrich Barbarossa the small town of Kaiserswerth to the north of Düsseldorf became a well-fortified outpost, where soldiers kept a watchful eye on every movement on the Rhine.

14 August 1288 is one of the most important dates in the history of Düsseldorf, the day the sovereign Count Adolf VIII of Berg granted town privileges to the village on the banks of the Düssel.

Today the symbol (Der Radschläger)[citation needed] represents the story and every year the Düsseldorfers celebrate by having a cartwheeling contest.

[citation needed] Under the art-loving Johann Wilhelm II (r. 1690–1716), a vast art gallery, with a huge selection of paintings and sculptures, was housed in the Stadtschloss (city castle).

[18] During World War II, Düsseldorf was the location of a Nazi prison with several forced labour subcamps,[19] five subcamps of the Buchenwald concentration camp for mostly Polish and Soviet prisoners, but also French, Dutch, Belgian, Czech, Italian, Yugoslav,[20] and a camp for Sinti and Romani people (see Romani Holocaust).

The United States 97th Infantry Division easily captured the city on 18 April 1945,[23] after the local German Resistance group launched Aktion Rheinland.

The lowest point is at the far northern end in Wittlaer borough where the Schwarzbach enters the Rhine, with an average elevation of 28 metres (92 ft).

The most recent city council election was held on 13 September 2020, and the results were as follows: Düsseldorf has become one of the top telecommunications centres in Germany.

A number of affiliates of foreign agencies deserve mention as well, such as Ogilvy & Mather, Dentsu, Hakuhodo, TBWA, and DDB.

Renowned filmmaking companies, such as Germany's biggest cinema enterprise, the Riech Group, and TV channels such as WDR and QVC are located in Düsseldorf.

There is a long-distance train station served by regional and national services, which is linked to the airport by the SkyTrain, an automatic people mover.

Elector Jan Wellem and his wife Anna Maria Luisa de' Medici of Tuscany, were patrons of Düsseldorf's first significant cultural activities in the 17th and 18th centuries.

[64] The founder, Mathias Schumacher, allowed the beer to mature in cool conditions in wooden casks for longer than normal, and laid the foundation for the modern alt – amber coloured and lagered.

Each (except Brauerei Kürzer) produces a special, secret, seasonal "Sticke" version in small quantities, though the names vary: Schlüssel spells it "Stike", without the "c", while Schumacher calls its special beer "Latzenbier", meaning "slat beer", possibly because the kegs from which it was poured had been stored on raised shelves.

[68] Düsseldorf has been home to a number of influential music artists and bands, particularly in the electronic and krautrock genres, with Kraftwerk being the most prominent example.

conceived the motorik beat, Harmonia dreamed up ambient, Die Krupps expanded the idea of industrial, and where those brilliant mensch-maschines Kraftwerk, declared: 'We are the robots'.

The city's best-known contribution to the culture of modern popular music is the influential avant-garde electronic band Kraftwerk.

Whether the story is about the marriage of Jan Wellem and Anna Maria Luisa de' Medici or the wedding of Margravine Jakobea of Baden and Johann Wilhelm is debatable.

In the beginning the lads shouted "för eene Penning schlage ich das Rad" (a cartwheel for a penny).

The fountain was designed by Alfred Zschorsch in 1954 and donated by Heimatverein Düsseldorfer Jonges, which is a club devoted to the maintenance of local and regional traditions.

[citation needed] The tradition has been kept alive by the Alde Düsseldorfer Bürgergesellschaft von 1920 e. V., a society founded in 1920, which organized the first cartwheeler competition on 17 October 1937.

This Christmas festival is responsible for a large portion of tourism every year as many people from nearby areas come to the city to drink mulled wine and hot chocolate and watch craftsmen blow glass and create art.

Traditional meals in the region are Rheinischer Sauerbraten (a beef roast and sometimes horse marinated for a few days in vinegar and spices served with gravy and raisins) and Heaven and Earth (Himmel und Äd; black pudding with stewed apples mixed with mashed potatoes).

In winter the people like to eat Muscheln Rheinischer Art (Rhenish-style mussels) as well as Reibekuchen (fried potato pancake served with apple sauce).

Düsseldorf is known for its strong Dijon-like mustard served in a traditional pot called "Mostertpöttche", which was immortalised in a still life by Vincent van Gogh in 1884.

Düsseldorf, with the third largest Japanese community in Europe, not only provides a wide range of cuisine but also has a solid foundation of authentic Asian food in the city.

[81] The Förderpreis für Literatur der Landeshauptstadt Düsseldorf is given once a year to artists and groups, especially to the areas of poetry, writing, review and translation.