Area of 357,022 sq km, north central Europe bordering the Baltic and North Seas, between the Netherlands and Poland.

Bordering countries are Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Switzerland.

Largest cities – Berlin (capital, population 3.43 million - Dec 2008 ), Hamburg, München (Munich), Köln (Cologne), Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Leipzig, Dresden

Main rivers are the Rhine, Elbe, Danube, Moselle.

Terrain: lowlands in the north, 2389 km of Baltic and North Sea coastline, uplands in the centre, Bavarian Alps in the south, with Zugspitze the highest peak at 2,963 m.