Hesse
Hessen
After this guide, you will know where Hesse is, which city is its capital, what its coat of arms and flag look like, how the state is divided locally and how it is governed.
Location and capital
Germany has 16 states (Bundesland), and each state has its own government. Hesse lies in the centre of Germany.
The city that is the state capital (Landeshauptstadt) is the seat of the state government. The capital of Hesse is Wiesbaden.
Coat of arms and flag
Hesse has its own coat of arms (Wappen) and its own state flag (Landesflagge). The coat of arms is a shield with a lion whose body has horizontal stripes, and a crown sits on top of the shield. In the question, the coat of arms of Hesse is picture 1.
The state flag has two colours, red and white (rot-weiß).
Districts and local elections
A state is divided into districts (Landkreis) and some independent cities. Each district contains several municipalities (Gemeinde). Municipalities are the smallest units of local government.
For example, Main-Taunus-Kreis is a district in Hesse.
In local elections (Kommunalwahl) in Hesse, people aged 18 and over may vote. Each state sets this age in its own law.
State parliament, government and ministries
Each state has a state parliament (Landtag). Its members are elected by the people, and the parliament makes the laws of the state. In Hesse, the state parliament election (Landtagswahl) takes place every five years.
The head of the state government is called the minister-president (Ministerpräsident). The Landtag elects this person. A minister-president is not a mayor, because a mayor leads only one city or municipality.
The state government has several ministries. For example:
- Minister of Justice (Justizminister): responsible for the courts and the state's legal system.
- Minister of Finance (Finanzminister): responsible for the state budget.
- Minister of the Interior (Innenminister): responsible for the police and public safety in the state.
To learn about political topics in Hesse, you can go to the State Agency for Civic Education (Landeszentrale für politische Bildung). It is a state agency and gives neutral information.