Munich (in German, München) was born 850 years ago, when Henry the Lion--the Duke of Bavaria and Saxony--was on a development binge that led to the creation of Munich, Lübeck, Brunswick, and several other cities. In 1504, Munich become the capital of Bavaria; and by the mid-19th Century, it was a major city with an archbishop, a university, an opera house, palaces, and the other trappings that might be expected of a kingdom's royal seat.
