frankfurt is on the main river. the city's name means "ford of the franks" - a ford is a place in a river where it is so shallow that you can walk through it, and the franks were a germanic people which existed in the first millennium. so, this was a place where travellers could cross the river without a boat. the frankish kings built a palace and a church here. over the centuries, this group of buildings grew to be a big city which was famous for international trade and fairs, like today. frankfurt was one of the most important cities of the holy roman empire, and its emperors were crowned here. in the 19th century, frankfurt was the capital of the german confederation which was founded after the holy roman empire fell apart. during the revolution of 1848, the first freely elected german parliament worked in frankfurt.