Hannover - situated at a critical road and river junction in Northern Germany, connecting the maritime cities of the Hanseatic League with overland routes to the Low Countries and the eastern German states - remains a critical center of commerce and intermediate industry in the Reich. Oil, rubber, and chemical factories dot the horizon over a city known for its patronage of intellectual pursuits and higher research - with its past linkages to the German Jewish community and Great Britain consigned to the dustbin of history.