History of the Ruhr History of the Ruhr The actual boundaries of the Ruhr vary slightly depending on the source, but a good working definition is to define the Lippe and Ruhr as its northern and southern boundaries respectively, the Rhine as its western boundary, and the town of Hamm as the eastern limit. In the Middle Ages, local power was vested primarily in the counts ("Grafen") of Berg, Mark and Cleves. The left bank of the Rhine was held by the Archbishop of Cologne. The Hellweg was an important trade route crossing the region from Duisburg to Dortmund and beyond as far as
Ruhr Question themselves how to deal with the economic and technological potential of the Rhine and Ruhr. When the French were deliberating the future of Germany, the Ruhr Question was their top priority. The industrialized area of the Rhine and Ruhr, highly stylized in Nazi propaganda as the "armory of the empire", represented for France at the end of World War II far more than merely an Industrial region. Rather, the Ruhr was "a symbol of German Power and a source of French humiliation". As early as February 5th, 1945, France's provisional head of government Charles de Gaulle broadcast a speech introducing