175 years ago, courageous citizens and visionary parliamentarians fought for the basis of our present constitution and democracy. Frankfurt was an important center of the revolution in Germany. As of now, the Frankfurt History App offers three geo-based tours to the original sites of the revolution in Frankfurt's urban space in its new thematic extension "Revolution 1848/49: Parliament and Barricades".
Ina Hartwig, Head of Department for Culture and Science, emphasized at the presentation of the app extension: "The Frankfurt History App opens up completely new digital access to the historical traces of our city. It invites users to discover Frankfurt's history and stories in today's urban space and to actively navigate through this formative chapter of Frankfurt's history."
The Frankfurt History App has been presenting digital city history since November 2022. The first topic layer "Frankfurt and National Socialism" was developed and published in cooperation with the Frankfurt Historical Museum. Now, the new app extension "Revolution 1848/49" highlights the sites of the revolution in Frankfurt, including the meeting places of the National Assembly and the sites of the Frankfurt September Uprising of 1848. The tours are based on the exhibition "Auf die Barrikaden! Paulskirchenparlament und Revolution 1848/49 in Frankfurt".
The three revolutionary routes, which lead to a total of 12 to 15 stations in the area of downtown Frankfurt, were developed by Markus Häfner and Thomas Bauer at the Institute for Urban History. The tours are available in German, English and Plain Language and include texts by Eva Keller. The app extension was published by the Institute of City History in cooperation with the Frankfurt Historical Museum and funded by the Department of Culture and Science.
The first tour, "Schauplätze der Revolution", starts at Römerberg and leads to 15 locations in the city center where the revolution of 1848 and the activities of the National Assembly can be experienced. It highlights the role Frankfurt played in the debates as the meeting place of the National Assembly, and the discussions and disputes about the future of the existing city-state of Frankfurt alongside the Paulskirche as the central location.
The second tour takes participants virtually to the locales and "meeting places of the parliamentary groups"where not only feasting and drinking took place, but also Germany's political future was negotiated. In the process, the formation of factions in the National Assembly, the various political stances of the deputies, as well as splits and reformations, especially during the September crisis of 1848 and the cross-party merger of the factions in February 1849 in search of a small-German or large-German solution, are made comprehensible.
The third tour "Three Days in September 1848" leads to the sites of the riots, barricade fights and the murder of deputies. The serious crisis into which the National Assembly was plunged by the Schleswig-Holstein conflict over the membership of the duchies in Germany led to bloody street battles with over 50 dead and the murder of two deputies. These events of the Frankfurt Revolution surrounding the meeting of the National Assembly, some of which are less well known, are made tangible in today's urban space.
"The Frankfurt History App is designed to be participatory and to be continuously expanded," emphasized Jan Gerchow, director of the History Museum, looking to the future: "More topics are already in the pipeline, including about 50 locations in the Old Town with illustrations by Frankfurt painter Carl Theodor Reiffenstein (1820-1893), based on our exhibition last winter. Frankfurt offers a wealth of historical content that can be presented in a location-based manner."
The Frankfurt History App with the new extension "Revolution 1848/49" is available for free download. It is available at apps.apple.com/en/app/frankfurt-history/id6444184003 or play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=en.frankfurt.history.
Information about the Frankfurt History app:
With the Frankfurt History app, users can move around the city and discover historical places near them via GPS, which are backed up with information and personal stories in text, videos and images. Curated tours guide users specifically through the city on various topics.
The Frankfurt History App was launched in November 2022 with the topic "Frankfurt and National Socialism", developed by the Historical Museum Frankfurt and technically implemented by the association berlinHistory. "Revolution 1848/49: Parliament and Barricades" is the second historical theme area, conceived by the Institute for Urban History. Further thematic fields and tours are already in preparation. The app is ad-free and free of charge.
