Neuss

Neuss, city, North Rhine–Westphalia Land (state), western Germany. It lies on the west bank of the Rhine, opposite Düsseldorf. Founded about 12 bc as a Roman fortress (the Novaesium of Tacitus), it was captured by the Franks and renamed Niusa. It received its charter in 1187–90. As the chief town of the northern part of the archbishopric of Cologne, it was unsuccessfully besieged by Charles the Bold in 1474–75. It was sacked by Alessandro Farnese in 1586 and passed to Prussia in 1816. The city suffered significant damage during World War II. Today Neuss is an important rail junction, port, grain market, and industrial centre. Its harbour is accessible to inland river traffic and small oceangoing ships. The city’s manufactures include machinery, paper, electrical and metal products, and processed foods. The church of St. Quirinus (1209), with its Baroque dome (1741), and the town hall (1634–38), both damaged in World War II, have been restored. The 13th-century Obertor (a massive gatehouse, part of the medieval fortifications) houses the Clemens-Sels Museum, and the Zeughaus (arsenal, 1639) is now a concert hall. Pop. (2003 est.) 152,050.