Dresden architecture and numerous world-renowned museums and art collections, Dresden has been called "Elbflorenz" (Florence of the Elbe). The incorporation of neighbouring rural communities over the past 60 years has made Dresden the twelfth largest urban district by area in Germany after Berlin, Hamburg and Cologne. The nearest German cities are Chemnitz to the southwest, Leipzig to the northwest and Berlin to the north. Prague, Czech Republic is about to the south and to the east is the Polish city of Wrocław. Dresden is one of the greenest cities in all of Europe, with 63% of the city being green areas
Accession of Hamburg to the German Customs Union (Zollverein) to the wishes of all concerned. The Hamburg Senate, like others, had to give up essential parts of its state independence, but this was necessary to achieve an agreement. The Burgerschaft ratified the constitution on 15 May 15, 1867 and it came into force on 1 July 1, 1867, founding the North German Federation. Although Hamburg joined the North German Federation, it remained outside the Customs Union. The federation's constitution included special arrangements for Hamburg and the other Hanseatic cities: Article 34: The Hanseatic cities of Lübeck, Bremen and Hamburg with appropriate districts for this purpose or their surrounding area,