The New Student's Reference Work/Württemberg

Württemberg, (vḗrt′tĕm-bẽrg), a kingdom of the German empire, is in the southern part of Germany, separated from Switzerland by Lake Constance. Its greatest length is 139 miles and its width 105, with an area of 7,534 square miles. The Black Forest is on the western border; and the Swabian Alps cross the country for 80 miles, dividing it into the valley of the Danube and the valley of the Neckar, which are the principal rivers. The climate is mild in the Neckar valley, but cold in the mountains. It is an agricultural country, with extensive orchards, gardens and vineyards; and the grains, hay and fruits are the main products. There is but little coal, but extensive peat-beds. Fire-clay, iron, salt, gypsum and tourmaline are found. In 1905 the value of the mineral products in the kingdom was 3,237,800 marks. The state railways in 1906 had a total length of 1,219 miles. There are manufactures of linen, woolen, cotton and silk goods. Beer-breweries and brandy-distilleries are numerous, and 215,500,000 bottles of beer have been used in a year in the country—125 bottles for each person. The government is a hereditary monarchy. In the empire Württemberg has four votes in the bundesrat or federal council and 17 representatives in the reichstag or congress. Education is compulsory, and there must be at least one school in every commune. Recent official reports show that there is no person in the kingdom over ten years old who cannot read and write. The educational system is completed by the University of Tübingen (q. v.), founded in 1477. Württemberg joined the German empire in 1871. The capital is Stuttgart (population 285,589). Population of Württemberg 2,435,611.