Cologne was the most important city of northwestern Germany, the seat of an elector-archbishop, and an important trading post for goods from all over Europe. Around 1500, it had a population of around 40,000, and was the largest German-speaking city. During the Reformation, it was the only northern free city that remained Catholic.
Source: City view of Cologne. Woodcut, colorized.
Liber chronicarum, Nuremberg
1493.
bpk-Bildagentur, image number 00026482. For rights inquiries,
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bpk / Félicien Faillet