Free City of Bremen

For most of its 1,200-year history, Bremen was an independent city within the Holy Roman Empire. In the late Middle Ages, its merchant guilds were central to the Hanseatic League, a powerful trading confederation. The city fought to maintain its independence, first against the Prince-Archbishop of Bremen and later against the Swedes. In the late 19th century, Bremen was incorporated into the German Empire by Prussia, becoming a major port for emigration and colonial trade. The Norddeutscher Lloyd shipping company was founded there in 1857. Bremen lost its autonomy under the Hitler regime in the 20th century but regained it after World War II, becoming a founding state of the German Federal Republic.