Once the capital of Germany

Recent archaeological findings revealed that the first settlements date back as far as 1000 BC. Bamberg was first mentioned in 902 in a chronicle written by Regino von Prüm. In 973, Emperor Otto II. gave Bamberg to the Bavarian duke, Heinrich der Zänker. His son, who was later to become Heinrich II. (1002 - 1024), built Bamberg's first cathedral on the site of a former fortress. This cathedral became the centre of the bishopric formed in 1007. For a short period, Henrich II. proclaimed Bamberg the capital of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation.
Bamberg's present-day cathedral was consecrated in 1237. With the founding of the Benedictine monastery St. Michael (1015) and the collegiate churches St. Stephan (1020), St. Gangolf (1058) and St. Jakob (1071), he city became a popular centre within the Empire. Bamberg was generously endowed with estates which stretched as far as Carinthia and Northern Italy as well as with valuable manuscripts and liturgical robes. It also hosted the "summit meeting" between Emperor Heinrich II. and Pope Benedikt VIII. ,and by 1020, Bamberg had become equal in rank to the older bishoprics.
The cathedral burial of the city's founder Heinrich II. and his consort Kunigunde and the appointment to Pope of the Bamberg bishop, Suidger (Clemens II.) enhanced the town's standing. For centuries, the city's bishops continued to play an important role within the Empire as chancellors or vice chancellors.
Bamberg's political and clerical rise was soon followed by the rapid growth of trade and commerce. As early as 1062 Bamberg's businessmen could be seen at major markets and in 1163 were granted significant trading privileges. After Mainz, Bamberg was the second city to introduce book printing (1460).

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