History of Strasbourg remained neutral during the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648), and retained its status as a Free Imperial City. However, the city was later annexed by Louis XIV of France to extend the borders of his kingdom. Louis' advisors believed that, as long as Strasbourg remained independent, it would endanger the King's newly annexed territories in Alsace, and, that to defend these large rural lands effectively, a garrison had to be placed in towns such as Strasbourg. Indeed, the bridge over the Rhine at Strasbourg had been used repeatedly by Imperial (Holy Roman Empire) forces, and three times during the Franco-Dutch War
Strasbourg-Ortenau Eurodistrict took place on 4 February 2010. Roland Ries was elected as the Council's first president. The Eurodistrict is served by several cross-border transportation companies: Ortenau S-Bahn (railway), TER Alsace (railway), Compagnie des Transports Strasbourgeois (tramway and buses). Strasbourg-Ortenau Eurodistrict The Eurodistrict Strasbourg-Ortenau is a Franco-German eurodistrict, a cross-border administrative entity ("European Grouping for Territorial Cooperation") sharing common institutions, established on 17 October 2005 and definitely functional since 4 February 2010. The district is formed by the Eurométropole de Strasbourg (centred on the city of Strasbourg) and 3 other urban communities (of Rhinau, Erstein and Benfeld) in the Grand Est region