Gotham City

In the fictional setting of DC comics, Gotham City is a separate city, best known as the home of Batman. It is generally believed to be located on the Eastern seaboard of the United States, though its features and location have been altered at times due to the capricious nature of the writers, editors and storyline. Gotham is generally assumed to have features in common with New York City, but with more exaggerated vices.

Another fictional city in the DC universe is Metropolis, the home of Superman.

Gotham was founded in 1635 by a Swedish mercenary and was later taken over by the British. During the American Revolutionary War it was the site of a major battle and various occult rites were rumored to have been conducted within the city. Perhaps for these reasons Gotham is a dark and foreboding place rife with crime, grime, and corruption. It has maintained a thriving economy and is considered a major center of manufacturing, shipping, finance, arts (with its numerous museums, gallerys, and jewelry displays), and the production of giant novelty props.

In recent years Gotham has faced more than its fair share of difficulties. Numerous costumed maniacs have emerged, necessitating the construction of an asylum dedicated to the incarceration of the criminally insane (see Arkham Asylum). Unfortunately the asylum has rarely managed to cure or keep its various insane inmates for long. Gotham has also suffered from rampant crime, an artificially created plague, an earthquake, another plague, and, following yet another earthquake, a federal edict to cut off the city from the rest of the country. After a full year cut off from the United States, Gotham was once again recognized as a municipality, and the process of rebuilding is now well underway.