BREMEN, one of the three free cities of Germany, is situated on the Weser, about 50 m. from its mouth. Pop. '75, 102,177, nearly all Protestants. B. is divided into the old and the new town—the former on the right, the latter on the left side of the river, which is spanned by four bridges. The ramparts and bastions round the old town have been leveled, and formed into public promenades, which are laid out with excellent taste. Among the principal buildings, the cathedral (built about 1160), the Gothic town-hall (begun about 1405), with its famouswine-cellar, said to contain hock of the vintage of 1624, the exchange, the museum, the post•office, and the observatory of Dr. Olbers, from which he discovered the planets Pallas and Vesta, are remarkable. The position of 13. makes it the emporium of Brunswick, Hesse, and other countries through which the Weser flows. Besides its excellent water communication, it is connected by railways with the whole of western and central Germany. 13. is an exceedingly thriv ing place, its trade having more than doubled within the last teti years. Large vessels stop at Bremerhaven, where there is a spacious harbor constructed, about 38 m. below B., with which it is connected by electric telegraph. Vessels not drawing more than 7 ft. of water can come up to the town itself. B. carries on an extensive commerce with the United States of America, the West Indies, Africa, the East Indies, China", and Australia. Its great foreign trade, however, is with the United States, from which alone, in 1870, it imported produce of the estimated value of 30,000,000 dollars, export ing in return goods to the value of 17,500,000 dollars. With the exception of Hamburg, no continental port ships so many emigrants to the United States as 13., through its main port at Bremerhaven. The total number of vessels arriving at B. in 1874 was 3407, and the number departing, 3243. The number of ships belonging to the port
in 1875 was 226, 'with an aggregate burden of 176,115 tons. In 1873, the value of the imports amounted to £26,20,500, exports to £20,381,900, a very great increase as eom pared with the year 1858, when the imports were valued at 28,237,000, and the exports at about £8,000,000. The chief imports are tobacco, coffee, sugar, cotton, rice, skins,'dye woods, wines, timber, hemp, etc. The exports consists of woolen goods, linens, glass, rags, wool, hemp, hides, oil-cake, wooden toys, etc. Large quantities of tobacco are re-exported. B. has manufactures of woolens and cottons, cigars, paper, and starch, and extensive ship-building yards, breweries, distilleries, and sugar-refineries. The cigar and sugar manufactures have of late declined, the former on account of the increase of duty. In 1S72, it is said that 2500 hands were engaged in making cigars. It has steam communication with New York, and Hull, Havana, the n. coast of auth America, etc.
B. first became of historical note in the 8th c., when it was erected into a bishopric by Charlemagne. It soon attained considerable commercial importance, and became one of the principal cities of the Hanseatic league (q.v.). Having frequently suffered at the hands of the French, it was, in 1810, incorporated with that empire; but it recovered its independence in 1813, and by the congress of Vienna was admitted, in 1815, as one of the Hanse towns, into the Germanic confederation. In 1867, it became a member of the North German confederation, and now it forms part of the German empire. The area of its territory is about 100 sq.m.; pop., including the town of B. (1875), 141,848. The government is intrusted to a senate of 18 members, two of whom are chosen burgo masters, and to a municipal council of 150 burgesses.