MITTELFRANKEN - Geography and history
Before it was incorporated into Bavaria in the early nineteenth century, Central Franconia was politically fragmented. The main power factors were the imperial towns such as Nuremberg, the margravate of Ansbach-Bayreuth, etc.
The landscape of Central Franconia is characterised by the terraced relief of the Franconian Stufenland. In the south and east, the landscape is dominated by the dry, flat upland areas of the Jura with their karst-like features. The limestone slabs that are quarried in and around Solnhofen have excellent lithographic properties.
The western part of Central Franconia consists of barren landscapes formed during the Keuper period. The lack of large-scale industry here has prevented the growth of major towns, the exception being Ansbach, the administrative centre of the region.
The region is divided up administratively into five kreisfreie Städte (Ansbach, Erlangen - home to Bavaria's second largest university - Fürth, Nuremberg and Schwabach), seven rural districts and 205 municipalities.
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