Perched high on a promontory overlooking the Pétrusse and Alzette Valleys, the Grand Duchy’s capital solemnly sits like a thousand-year-old gargoyle. In 963 AD, on a rocky outcrop known as the Bock, Sigefroid, Count of Ardennes, laid the cornerstone of a fortress that would become Luxembourg City.
Springtime is a great time to be amongst the riot of wildflowers, celebrations and folk festivals nationwide. The weather from late-spring to early-autumn is also usually good for outdoors activities - so long as you don’t mind a bit of rain and battling the tourist swell. Winter is not as extreme in Luxembourg as it can be in nearby countries, so if you find yourself visiting during the colder months, you needn’t weigh yourself down with polar gear.
Luxembourg’s contribution to its defence and to NATO consists of a small army (currently consisting of around 800 people). As a landlocked country, it has no navy, and it has no air force, except for the fact that the eighteen NATO AWACS aeroplanes were registered as aircraft of Luxembourg for convenience.[14] In a joint agreement with Belgium, both countries have put forth funding for one A400M military cargo plane, now currently on order. Luxembourg still jointly maintains three NATO Boeing 707 model TCAs for cargo and training purposes based in NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen.
Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg (Luxembourgish: Groussherzogtum Lëtzebuerg, French: Grand-Duché de Luxembourg, German: Großherzogtum Luxemburg), also spelled Luxemburg, is a small landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. Luxembourg has a population of under half a million people in an area of approximately 2,586 square kilometres (999 sq mi).[1]
Luxembourg is a parliamentary representative democracy with a constitutional monarchy, ruled by a Grand Duke. It is the world’s only remaining sovereign Grand Duchy. The country has a highly developed economy, with the highest Gross Domestic Product per capita in the world (U.S. Central Intelligence Agency 2007). Its historic and strategic importance dates back to its founding as a Roman era fortress site and Frankish count’s castle site in the Early Middle Ages. It was an important bastion along the Spanish road when Spain was the principal European power influencing the whole western hemisphere and beyond in the 14th–17th centuries.
Luxembourg is a founding member of the European Union, NATO, the United Nations, Benelux, and the Western European Union, reflecting the political consensus in favour of economic, political, and military integration. The city of Luxembourg, the capital and largest city, is the seat of several institutions and agencies of the European Union.
Luxembourg lies on the cultural divide between Romance Europe and Germanic Europe, borrowing customs from each of the distinct traditions. Luxembourg is a trilingual country; French, German, and Luxembourgish are official languages. Although a secular state, Luxembourg is predominantly Roman Catholic.
