The rivalry between Cologne and Düsseldorf, two major cities in the Rhineland, Germany, 40 kilometres (25 mi) apart on the Rhine, is now mostly on a sporting and cultural level, but based on historical and economic factors. Cologne was a Roman colony, and later a Free Imperial City, while Düsseldorf, a small medieval settlement, is now the capital of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
History
Battle of Worringen
The root of the enmity between the two cities is commonly cited as the Battle of Worringen on 5 June 1288, which, however, is to be regarded as "legend". At this battle, part of the War of the Limburg Succession, Siegfried von Westerburg, then Archbishop of Cologne, lost to John I, Duke of Brabant. Among others, Count Adolf von Berg, the citizens of Cologne and an army of peasants from the Bergisches fought on the side of the Brabant duke. There may also have been some inhabitants of the village in the estuary of the Düssel, but this is not considered certain. While Cologne was already a large medieval city with over 20,000 inhabitants and, as an original Roman foundation, more than 1200 years old, Düsseldorf was a smaller settlement in the County of Berg with an estimated 200 to 400 inhabitants. The inhabitants of the two unequal towns did not fight against each other in this battle, as is often depicted, but side by side.
Both places benefited from the outcome of the battle: after the defeat of the archbishop, Cologne no longer belonged to his archbishopric, and the archbishop himself could only enter the city for religious acts. Duke Adolf of Berg granted Düsseldorf city rights on 14 August 1288, though not out of "gratitude", as is rumoured. The ruler had recognised the village's strategic location on a flood-free headland with the Rhine forming a natural safeguard on the western border, seeing the city as a bulwark against the still archiepiscopal and at the time considerably larger Neuss situated on the other side of the river.
Middle Ages and Early Modern Times
In the 13th century, Cologne was the "undisputed metropolis of Germany" with trade relations to many European countries, and with a size "of around 20,000–25,000 inhabitants, it was at the top of all German cities". After the relics of the Magi arrived in the city in 1164, for which a magnificent cathedral was built from 1248, Cologne also developed into an important pilgrimage city. In 1475, Cologne was elevated to the status of a Free Imperial City. In 1499, Johann Koelhoff the Younger formulated the city's self-image at that time in his chronicle:Cöllen eÿn Kroÿn - Boven allen steden schoÿn (Cologne a crown - Above all cities beautiful).
One of the main reasons for the city's strong economic position was the so-called Stapelrecht (right to stack), which was granted to the people of Cologne in 1259 by Archbishop Konrad von Hochstaden. This right stipulated that goods shipped on the Rhine first had to be "stacked" (reloaded and stored) in Cologne, and that the people of Cologne had a right of first refusal. This stacking right was extended over the centuries, both territorially and in terms of the number of goods. Spatially, the right reached an extension of about 70 to 80 kilometres (43 to 50 mi) down the Rhine and 30 kilometres (19 mi) up the Rhine in the 18th century. Düsseldorf's economy was also affected by this situation.
In general, however, the future belonged to the cities on the Rhine, as the transport of goods on the river increased in the 14th century. Duke Wilhelm of Berg (1348-1408) recognised the signs of the times and began to expand and enlarge Düsseldorf, so that the city had 1500 to 2000 inhabitants in the 16th century. He had a new building erected for the Lambertus Church, endowed the associated monastery with relics to make the city attractive as a place of pilgrimage, completed the fortification of a stone wall and had the castle extended as a seat of power. His financial mainstay was the right granted to him by the king to levy the Bergisch Rhine toll, a privilege which he finally successfully enforced against opposition from Cologne. Under Wilhelm's descendants, however, Düsseldorf's development came to a standstill.
In the 16th century, Cologne lost its economic supremacy, as the city, surrounded by a ring of fortifications and without a hinterland, clung to old trade structures with which it was less and less able to assert itself against the strengthening territorial lords. Cologne was "largely concerned with defending what had been achieved and managing what existed, rather than focusing on innovation and progress". A debt accumulated in times of war and crisis, and the religious intolerance of the people of Cologne proved to be an obstacle to trade: "Holy Cologne" (et hillije Kölle) was the only imperial city that adhered to the Catholic faith. This intolerance forced Protestant citizens—such as nine wealthy merchant families in 1714—to move across the Rhine into Bergisch territory, which included Düsseldorf, where they established flourishing factories and trading houses. A widely visible symbol of the economic decline was the cathedral crane on the unfinished Cologne Cathedral, on which no further construction had been carried out since the 1530s for lack of money. According to travelogues, the houses in Cologne at this time were in very poor condition, and the proportion of poor people in the population was comparatively high.
Düsseldorf, on the other hand, from 1614 after interruptions once again the residential city of the Dukes of Jülich-Berg, developed during these years: "As a city politically, economically, militarily and socially dependent on the prince and concentrated on court and princely administration, Düsseldorf offered a completely different picture than Cologne." Under Johann Wilhelm II (called Jan Wellem) and his wife Anna Maria from the Italian Medici family, Düsseldorf had a golden age, as the prince, residing as Elector in Düsseldorf Palace from 1690, further enlarged and expanded the city and increased his court, which attracted more nobles to the city. Jan Wellem also developed the city's infrastructure by having streets paved and lit and by promoting the establishment of postal and shipping lines as well as factories. The electoral couple built a picture gallery, promoted the settlement of renowned artists and, from 1694, had an opera house built from their own funds——including Anna Maria's dowry of 400,000 Reichsthaler.
After Jan Wellem's death in 1716, there was a brief economic slump in Düsseldorf, however, the city recovered from it under Prince Karl Theodor (1724-1799): "In contrast to Cologne, where every innovation met with strong resistance from the bourgeoisie organised in the Gaffeln [guilds of craftsmen] and only a few progressive merchants advocated reforms, in Düsseldorf enlightened government politicians promoted liberal economic development."
In 1786, the Düsseldorf producer of mostert (hot mustard), Johann Cornelius Bergrath, contradicted an advertisement in the Kölnischer Stadtboten that real "true Düsseldorfer Mostert [...]" can be bought in Cologne's Schildergasse and pointed out how to recognise "the genuine unadulterated Düsseldorfer Mostard". Incidentally, his Düsseldorf mustard factory was later located in the house "Stadt Köln". Eau de Cologne, on the other hand, was also produced in Düsseldorf without protest, by the Düsseldorf line of the Farina family.
Napoleon and Prussia
In 1794, the troops of revolutionary France occupied Cologne; they occupied Düsseldorf the following year. While Cologne, like the entire left bank of the Rhine, became part of France, Düsseldorf remained occupied until 1801. In 1806, it became the capital of the new Grand Duchy of Berg under Napoleon's brother-in-law, Joachim Murat. From 1798, the Rhine formed a customs border, so that producers from the right bank of the Rhine were deprived of markets on the left bank, while the entire French area was open to the people of Cologne for duty-free trade. Cologne's Stapelrecht (right to stack goods) remained in place to secure the income from it for the now French city. However, the strict guild order, which had shaped Cologne's economy and society for centuries, was abolished.
From 2 November 1811, Emperor Napoleon stayed in Düsseldorf for three days. He was given a festive welcome with military honours and a replica of the Arc de Triomphe. For his state visit, Jägerhof Palace had been prepared as the imperial residence. Napoleon's minister Pierre-Louis Roederer wrote to his wife that the festivities in Düsseldorf had been the most glamorous of the Emperor's state trip and described the city as Little Paris. From Düsseldorf, Napoleon travelled on to Cologne, where he is reported to have said: "Go to Düsseldorf and learn there how to receive an emperor." The reason for this (unverified) statement is said to have been the people of Cologne were having problems getting together enough men for the guard of honour to receive him. However, the Düsseldorfers' hopes that the French state would reduce the burden of customs and taxes after this visit were unfulfilled. Moreover, 90 per cent of the Düsseldorf men recruited for Napoleon's army fell in the wars he fought.
However, Napoleon's visit had positive effects on Düsseldorf in terms of urban development. A few days after his visit, the emperor issued the so-called "Beautification Decree", on the basis of which the demolition of the city fortifications, begun in 1801, received new impetus. Its transformation into elegant promenades, including today's Königsallee, and the extension of the Hofgarten to the banks of the Rhine were carried out. While spacious streets and gardens were laid out in Düsseldorf, Cologne remained in the "stranglehold" of the fortifications, which were extended even further and permanently hindered urban development. "Cologne rested within itself, and here, due to the narrowness [...] everything was a little more neighbourly [...]. Düsseldorf offered [...] with its avenues, parks, gardens and luxury the outward appearance of a residential and garden city."
After the reorganisation of Europe at the Congress of Vienna, both cities were annexed to the Kingdom of Prussia in 1815, and from 1822 belonged to the newly created Rhine Province. The seat of the state provincial administration became Koblenz, and the university came to Bonn. In 1819, the Düsseldorf Academy of Arts was re-founded. An important artistic movement of the 19th century was the Düsseldorf School of Painting, which enriched the city's cultural life, giving it the status of an international centre of art. In 1820, Prince Frederick of Prussia became commander of the 20th Division in Düsseldorf and settled with his family in Jägerhof Palace. The garrison and court life of the following years were reminiscent of earlier times as a royal seat, and Prince Friedrich and his wife Luise promoted the social and cultural life of the city. In 1824, the Provincial Diet also took up residence in Düsseldorf. All this, according to historian Horst A. Wessel, meant an "unexpected setback" for Cologne: "Köln erhielt […] keinen Vorrang, nicht einmal eine hervorgehobene Stellung unter den preußischen Städten", (in English: "Cologne received [...] no precedence, not even a prominent position among the Prussian cities.") This feeling of disadvantage was hardly counteracted by the fact that the Prussian state and its ruling dynasty—supported by a broadly felt romantic reflection on historical roots and the Middle Ages—financially supported the further construction of Cologne Cathedral. Düsseldorf citizens also collected donations for the cathedral, whose completion because of rediscovered medieval façade outlines was perceived as a national task.