Bingen, city, southwestern Germany, in Rhineland-Palatinate, on the Rhine River. It is a busy port and railroad junction, with plants engaged in wine production and the manufacture of tobacco products. In the vicinity are the Bingerloch, a famous whirlpool in the Rhine River; and the Mäuseturm (Mice Tower), in which, according to legend, Hatto I, archbishop of Mainz, was devoured by mice for wrongdoing. Before the arrival of the Romans, Bingen was a town of the Belgae, a Celtic-speaking people. The Romans fortified the community, and there, in AD70, they inflicted a severe defeat on the Gauls. In 1254 Bingen became a member of the Hanseatic League. In 1689 it was burned by the French, and from 1797 to 1814 the French ruled the city. Population (1997) 24,881.Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2001
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