The University of Duisburg-Essen is a public university in Duisburg and Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and a member of the newly founded University Alliance Metropolis Ruhr. It was founded in 1654 and re-established on 1 January 2003 as a merger of the Gerhard Mercator University of Duisburg and the University of Essen. Until 1994 the name of the Gerhard Mercator University was Comprehensive University of Duisburg.