The port of Hamburg is the third-largest port in Europe after the Port of Rotterdam and the Port of Antwerp and it is among the twenty largest in the world. Hamburg is a major transport hub in Northern Germany and is one of the most affluent cities in Europe. In total there are more than , enterprises. The city is a major tourist destination both for domestic and overseas visitors, receiving about 7.
Hamburg is located on the southern point of the Jutland Peninsula , directly between Continental Europe to its south, Scandinavia to its north, the North Sea to its west, and the Baltic Sea to its east. Hamburg is located on the River Elbe at its confluence with the Alster and Bille. The neighbourhoods of Neuenfelde , Cranz , Francop and Finkenwerder are part of the Altes Land region old land , the biggest contiguous fruit-producing region in Central Europe.
The neighbourhood of Neugraben-Fischbek has Hamburg's highest elevation, the Hasselbrack at Hamburg has an oceanic climate Cfb. Hamburg's climate is influenced by its proximity to the coast and marine air masses that originate over the Atlantic Ocean. Nearby wetlands also enjoy a maritime temperate climate. Snowfall is rare, generally occurring once or twice a year. The warmest months in Hamburg are June, July, and August, with high temperatures of The coldest are December, January, and February, with low temperatures of The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.
But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD The castle was built on rocky terrain in a marsh between the River Alster and the River Elbe as a defence against Slavic incursion. The castle was named Hammaburg , burg meaning castle or fort. The origin of the Hamma term remains uncertain, [ 9 ] as does the exact location of the castle.
In , Hamburg was designated the seat of a Roman Catholic bishopric , whose first bishop, Ansgar , became known as the Apostle of the North. Two years later, Hamburg was united with Bremen as the bishopric of Hamburg-Bremen. Hamburg was destroyed and occupied several times. In , a fleet of Viking ships sailed up the River Elbe and destroyed Hamburg which, at that time, was a town of around inhabitants. Valdemar II of Denmark raided and occupied Hamburg in and in In , about a quarter of the inner city was destroyed in the "Great Fire".
