Cambridge with view of St. John's College (picture: Iain Lewis/ www.visitcambridge.org)

Portrait of Cambridge

The twinning agreement with Cambridge, the capital of the county of Cambridgeshire, was signed in 1965. Cambridge is Heidelberg’s second longest-standing twin city. The close links with this venerable university city in England date back to 1957, when representatives of the City of Cambridge visited Heidelberg at the instigation of the Foreign Ministry. In 1959 a delegation from Heidelberg made a return visit to Cambridge. These early years were accompanied by the rapid commencement of youth exchange between the two cities.

There are many parallels between Cambridge and Heidelberg: Both cities have very old universities whose institutes are spread around the old quarters, shaping the character of their respective cities. The University of Cambridge may not be the oldest in England (Oxford being a little older), but it is one of the best known universities in the United Kingdom. In spite of its romantic medieval character, Cambridge today is a modern city, with all the corresponding service sectors. Like Heidelberg, it is home to many high-tech and biotech companies. The close ties between Heidelberg und Cambridge can be seen in the numerous official contacts, the lively exchange of school and university students, and also in the exchange of experiences in various fields. In addition, there has been a traditional “Heidelberg Christmas Market” in Cambridge since 2009.

Map of Great Britain marking Cambridge
The Gibbs Building in Cambridge (picture: www.visitcambridge.org)
Punting tour along St. John's College (picture: Iain Lewis/ www.visitcambridge.org)
Cambridge with view of St. John's College (picture: Iain Lewis/ www.visitcambridge.org)
King's College Chapel and the Screen (picture: Iain Lewis/ www.visitcambridge.org)
Cambridge market (picture: www.visitcambridge.org)
Great St. Mary's Church (picture: Tom Catchesides/ www.visitcambridge.org)
King's College Chapel (picture: www.visitcambridge.org)

Facts and figures

Twinned with Heidelberg	1.	since 1965
Location	2.	Located on the River Cam approx. 80 km north of London, in fertile agricultural land at the edge of East Anglia at the so called "Fens" (marshland).
Population	3.	151.832 (last update: 2014)
Time difference	4.	CET minus 1 hour
Currency	5.	Pound sterling
Official language	6.	English
University/ students	7.	The University of Cambridge was found in 1209 and embodies about 19.660 students. Also there is one of four mainquarters of the Anglia Ruskin University (ARU), which is called Sience Centre. Overall there are 31.500 students at the ARU.
Key industries	8.	Services, high technology
Noteworthy	9.	The University of Cambridge has 31 colleges, where students live and study. They influence the history and sight of the city. Three of the 31 colleges only accept women.
Sister cities	10.	Heidelberg and Szeged (Hungary) are siter cities of Cambridge.

Key milestones in the twinning

1957	First contact between Cambridge and Heidelberg
1965	Exchange of the twinning documents in Cambridge (July 8, 1965)
1981	First international youth exchange with Cambridge through Heidelberg’s association of youth organizations
1982	Foundation of the society of friends “Freundeskreises Heidelberg-Cambridge e.V.” in Heidelberg
1988	Award of the European Community’s "Flag of Honor" to the organizers of the exchange between Cambridge and Heidelberg for successfully bringing citizens together
1994	“A Future for Mostar” (workshop): European cooperation between the cities of Cambridge, Montpellier and Heidelberg
1996	Visit of a delegation from Cambridge to attend the 800th anniversary celebrations of the City of Heidelberg
2001	An official delegation from Heidelberg attends the celebrations to mark the 800th anniversary of the City of Cambridge
2005	40th anniversary of the twinning of Cambridge and Heidelberg
2007	A four-person delegation from Cambridge led by the mayor visits the “Heidelberger Herbst” festival
2010	A five-person delegation led by Lord Mayor Dr. Eckart Würzner visits Cambridge to mark the 45th anniversary of the twinning and the closing ceremonies of the 800th anniversary of the University of Cambridge.
2010	Visit of a delegation from Cambridge led by Mayor Sheila Stuart to mark the 45th anniversary of the twinning
2015	50th anniversary of the twinning of Cambridge and Heidelberg: Mayor Robert Dryden visits Heidelberg with a 4-person delegation
2015	Visit of a five-person delegation to Cambridge led by Mayor Dr. Joachim Gerner to attend the “Big Weekend” in Cambridge marking the 50th anniversary of the twinning

Visit by mayor Ridgeon and city director Swift from Cambridge in October 1957 (picture: Hans Speck)
Visit in Cambridge in 1967 (picture: Hans Speck)
Reception of the delegation from Cambridge by mayor Reinhold Zundel in 1975 (picture: Alfred Dammer)
Celebration of peace in 1995 (picture: Stadt Heidelberg)
Visit in Cambridge (picture: Akademie für Ältere)
Employees of the Cities of Cambridge und Heidelberg exchanging ideas in 2005 (picture: Stadt Heidelberg)
Delegation from Cambridge visiting the castle (picture: Hans Speck)
Delegation from Cambridge visiting the fire brigade of Heidelberg in 2009. (picture: Stadt Heidelberg)
Concert on the occasion of the visit from Cambridge in 2009 (picture: Stadtjugendring)
Festive evening on the occasion of the visit from Cambridge in 2009 (picture: Stadt Heidelberg)

More info

City of Cambridge
Main focus of cooperation