The first time Dortmund is mentioned in official documents is around 882 as Throtmanni.

After it is destroyed by a fire, the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I (Barbarossa) has the town rebuilt in 1152 and resides here (among other places) for two years.

It becomes an Imperial Free City in 1220.

Throughout the thirteenth to fourteenth centuries, it is the "chief city" of the Rhine, Westphalia, the Netherlands Circle of the Hanseatic League.

After 1320, the city appears in writing as "Dorpmunde".

The 1661 earthquake causes the Reinoldikirche to collapse.

It is part of Grand Duchy of Berg between 1806 and 1813 before passing to Prussian rule.