With a population of just over one million, and its capital of Saarbrücken attracting less international acclaim than other more robust German cities, Saarland may have never been on your radar before. But its state election this Sunday is viewed by some as being the first test of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s strength ahead of the national election in September. Will the “Schulz effect” of the sudden popularity of her main rival, Martin Schulz, hit? We give you a bit of background on the state. Saarland has a long history with neighbouring France The region’s first inhabitants up to the Middle Ages were Celts and Germanic Franks, and it was often inhabited by German-speakers. But today’s Saarland also was long influenced by the French, especially after it became a French province in 1684. The area known as “Saar” would go back and forth under French or some other rule for years to come after that, until Napoleon Bonaparte’s defeat in 1815 when most of it was ceded to Prussia. It’s largest modern-day border is still with France, with Luxembourg also to its west. France and the French language are still quite important to the region, and the state government in 2014… Read full this story
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