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Just 15 miles north of Roth, Nuremberg is a city of half a million with a rich and checkered history that starts with great Gothic and Romanesque churches, builds on the genius of artists like Albrecht Durer, and survives the dark clouds of its Nazi past.

A modest trading center in 1050, Nuremberg became a free town in the Holy Roman Empire in the 13th century. In the 15th and 16th centuries, Nuremberg became a center for artists, craftsmen and intellectuals and was a thriving center of commerce.

In the 20th century, Nuremberg became a key city of Hitler's rise to power and was the site of the infamous 1933 Nazi rallies.

Today, it's a peaceful tourist Mecca filled with elegant churches, fine art and vibrant markets, galleries and a thriving concert scene.

Photo gallery by Timothy Carlson