History

54 B.C.: The Romans conquer Gaul
– 9th century: the kingdom of "Lotharingia" is created by the treaties of Verdun (843) and Meersen (870)

999: emperor Otto III bestows the diocese of Metz with the castle Sarabruca, the royal court of Völklingen and with the forests of Warndt and Quierschied.

Late middle ages: amongst others, the territories embodied in the crest of Saarland emerged, namely the county Saarbrücken in the centre of the region, the principality of Trier, reaching into today’s Saarland, and the duchies of Lorraine and Palatinate-Zweibrücken.

1575: Earl Philipp of Nassau-Saarbrücken introduces
reformation.

1680 – 1697: France creates a Saar-province as
part of its reunion-policy.

1793 – 1815: In 1793, French revolutionary troops put an end to the reign of the princes and occupy the left bank of the Rhine.

From 1815 on: The area constituting Saarland today is distributed between Prussia, Bavaria, Oldenburg and Saxony-Coburg-Saalfeld.

1870/71: Battle of Spichern and annexation of Alsace-Lorraine by the German Reich.

1920: The treaty of Versailles assigns the Saar mining area to France, while the adjoining workers’ housing area appending to them is put under the rule of a League of Nations government commission.

13 January 1935: The referendum foreseen in the Treaty of Versailles leads to a 90 percent vote for reintegration of Saarland into the German Reich, then under national socialist rule.

1940 – 1945: After Hitler’s campaign in France, the Département Moselle is integrated into the district of Westmark, together with Saarland and Palatinate.

1947: Economically, Saarland becomes part of France and is granted limited self-rule.

23 October 1955: With 67.7 percent of the votes cast, the population of Saarland votes against the European Statute agreed upon by France and the Federal Republic of Germany.

23 October 1955: Prime Minister Johannes Hoffmann, who advocated autonomy and Europeanization of the Saar region, resigns. Until 10 January 1956, Prime Minister Heinrich Welsch is head of an interim government organising new elections.

1 January 1957: Political reintegration: Saarland becomes the 10th Land of the Federal Republic of Germany; economic reintegration follows on 6 July 1959.

10 January 1956 – 23 April 1959: Hubert Ney (Christian Democrats) becomes Prime Minister; after his resignation, Egon Reinert (Christian Democrats) takes over government business until he dies in a road accident.

1959 to 1979: Prime Minister Franz-Josef Röder (Christian Democrats) is in charge of Saarland. During his term of office, legislation, economy, society and politics of the country are adapted to the political system of the Federal Republic of Germany. Also, infrastructure is expanded and modernized. In the mid-sixties, however, a structural crisis of the mining industry occurs. In the seventies, structural change is initiated, marked by the establishment of the Ford-works in Saarlouis.

1979 – 1985: Franz-Josef-Röder dies and Werner Zeyer (Christian Democrats) becomes Prime Minister. In the early eighties, the crisis in the steel industry reaches its first climax. A socially acceptable restructuring programme is initiated.

1985 – 1999: A social-democrat government under Prime Minister Oskar Lafontaine takes over. Reinhard Klimmt becomes Prime Minister in 1998. The profitable core of the mining industry survives. The establishment of renowned research institutions fosters economic development. In 1995, Saarland is granted a partial debt relief by the German
Federal Government.

1999: In the elections for Saarland’s parliament, the Christian Democrats achieve the absolute majority and Peter Müller is elected Prime Minister. By promoting innovative technologies, structural change is accelerated. Saarland becomes the first German Federal State to introduce the eight-year-cycle at grammar schools. In 2003, the German Institute for Economy elects Saarland as the most dynamic German Federal State in 2003, since it has developed better than the federal average regarding all economic parameters.

2004: Peter Müller is re-elected as Prime Minister, after the Christian Democrats again gain absolute majority of all the votes.