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Augsburg is a city in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany approximately 50km west of the capital city of Munich. It is the third largest and third oldest city in Bavaria. The city was founded in 15 BC by Drusus and Tiberius as Augusta Vindelicorum, on the orders of their stepfather Emperor Augustus. The name means "Augusta of the Vindelici". The city became the capital of the Roman province of Raetia in 120 AD. Augsburg has direct access to the majority of the Alpine passes. It became a very important intersection for European connections running north-south and east-west, which would later become vital trade routes in the Middle Ages. In the 5th century, Augsburg was sacked by the Huns, again in the 8th century by Charlemagne, and in the 11th century by Welf I of Bavaria.

On March 9, 1276 the city was granted the status of a Free Imperial City. From then until 1803, Augsburg was independent from its former overlord, the Prince-Bishop of Augsburg. However, frictions remained consistent between the city-state and the prince-bishops, especially after Augsburg became Protestant. Augsburg is the birthplace of the Reformation from Martin Luther. Augsburg produced a large number of woven goods, textiles, and cloths. The banking families, the Fuggers and the Welsers, were from Augsburg. In 1516, the Fugger family had donated the Fuggerei part of the city to be developed for low-income families. In 1530, the Augsburg Confession was presented to the Holy Roman Emperor at the Diet of Augsburg. In 1555, after the Peace of Augsburg, a mixed Catholic-Protestant council presided over the city’s population. The Peace of Augsburg ensured the rights of religious minorities in imperial cities were legally protected.

In 1618, the Thirty Years War began, which disrupted the religious peace within the city of Augsburg. The Holy Roman Emperor issued the Edict of Restitution in 1629 which restored the legal situation of 1552 and diminished the rights of Protestant citizens yet again. In April 1632, the edict was rescinded when the Swedish army captured Augsburg. In the winter of 1634/35 thousands of Swedish soldiers died from hunger, disease, and exhaustion, but refused to surrender. The Thirty Years War ended in 1648. In 1686, Emperor Leopold I formed the League of Augsburg, which consisted of Austria, Bavaria, Brandenburg, England, the Holy Roman Empire, the Palatinate of the Rhine, Portugal, Savoy, Saxony, Spain, Sweden, and the United Provinces. The League fought in the Nine Years’ War to defend the Palatinate from France. Augsburg’s wealth grew exponentially during the 15th and 16th centuries and attracted artists from all over Europe. It quickly became a centre for musicians, playwrights, composers, painters, and sculptors. The Final Recess (Reichsdeputationshauptschluss) in 1803 annexed almost all 51 Free Imperial Cities, including Augburg. In 1806, when the Holy Roman Empire was dissolved, Napoleon encouraged his German allies to retain the title over smaller territories and Augsburg lost its independence. It was annexed to the Kingdom of Bavaria. In 1817, Augburg became an administrative capital of the Oberdonaukreis. Then in 1837, it became the administrative capital for the district Swabia and Neuburg.

During World War II, Augsburg was extremely important for the German forces due to its strategic location. A subcamp of the Dachau concentration camp was located outside Augsburg and supplied approximately 1,300 forced labourers to local military-related industry. The Reichswehr Infanterie Regiment 19 was stationed in Augsburg and became the base unit for the Wehrmacht Infanterie Regiment 40, a subsection of the Wehrmacht Infanterie Division 27. The Infanterie Regiment 40 remained in the city until April 28, 1945 when they surrendered to the United States Army. Augsburg was bombed three times during the war.

More information is available in the folder entitled “Bavaria”.