Colditz () is a small town in the district of

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

, in

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. It is best known for

Colditz Castle Colditz Castle (or ''Schloss Colditz'' in German) is a Renaissance architecture, Renaissance castle in the town of Colditz near Leipzig, Dresden and Chemnitz in the States of Germany, state of Saxony in Germany. The castle is between the towns o ...

, the site of the

Oflag IV-C Oflag IV-C, generally known as Colditz Castle, was a prominent German Army prisoner-of-war camp for captured Allied officers during World War II. Located in Colditz, Saxony, the camp operated within the medieval Colditz Castle, which overlooks th ...

POW camp A prisoner-of-war camp (often abbreviated as POW camp) is a site for the containment of enemy fighters captured as prisoners of war by a belligerent power in time of war. There are significant differences among POW camps, internment camps, an ...

for officers in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Geography

Colditz is situated in the

Leipzig Bay The Leipzig BayDickinson (1964), p. 29.Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

. The town centre is located on the banks of

Zwickau Mulde The Zwickauer Mulde () is a river in Saxony, Germany. It is the left tributary of the Mulde and in length. The source of the river is in the Ore Mountains, near Schöneck, in the Vogtlandkreis. It runs northeast to Aue, then northwest to Z ...

river, south of its confluence with the Freiberg Mulde. The municipality had a population of 8,374 in 2020. The town Colditz consists of Colditz proper and the ''Ortsteile'' (divisions) Bockwitz, Collmen, Commichau, Erlbach, Erlln, Hausdorf, Hohnbach, Kaltenborn, Koltzschen, Lastau, Leisenau, Maaschwitz, Meuselwitz, Möseln, Podelwitz, Raschütz, Schönbach, Sermuth, Skoplau, Tanndorf, Terpitzsch, Zollwitz,

Zschadraß Zschadraß is a village and a former municipality in the Leipzig (district), Leipzig district in Saxony, Germany. Since 1 January 2011, it is part of the town Colditz. The first record of a

burgward A burgward or castellanyArnold, Benjamin (1991). ''Princes and territories in medieval Germany'', Cambridge University Press, Cambridge and New York, p. 165. . was a form of settlement used for the organisation of the Marca Geronis, northeastern ma ...

on the Mulde river, called ''Cholidistcha'', dates to the year 1046, when Emperor Henry III dedicated it to his consort

Agnes of Poitou Agnes of Poitou ( – 14 December 1077) was the queen of Germany from 1043 and empress of the Holy Roman Empire from 1046 until 1056 as the wife of Emperor Henry III. From 1056 to 1061, she ruled the Holy Roman Empire as regent during the ...

. The name is possibly of

Slavic Slavic, Slav or Slavonic may refer to: Peoples * Slavic peoples, an ethno-linguistic group living in Europe and Asia ** East Slavic peoples, eastern group of Slavic peoples ** South Slavic peoples, southern group of Slavic peoples ** West Slav ...

origin. In 1083, Henry's son and successor Henry IV recommended that his follower Count

Wiprecht of Groitzsch Wiprecht (or Wigbert) of Groitzsch (died 22 May 1124) was the Margrave of Meissen and the Saxon Ostmark from 1123 until his death. He was born to a noble family of the Altmark, the son of Wiprecht of Balsamgau and Sigena of Leinungen. After his fa ...

build a castle on the cliff above the river. From 1158, under the rule of Emperor

Frederick Barbarossa Frederick Barbarossa (December 1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I (; ), was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death in 1190. He was elected King of Germany in Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 and crowned in Aachen on 9 March 115 ...

, the fortress became the residence of the noble House of Colditz, a dynasty of ''

ministeriales The ''ministeriales'' (singular: ''ministerialis'') were a legally unfree but socially elite class of knights, administrators, and officials in the High Middle Ages in the Holy Roman Empire, drawn from a mix of servile origins, free commoners, and ...

'' in the Imperial

Pleissnerland Pleissnerland, Pleissenland or the Imperial Territory of Pleissenland (; ) was a '' Reichsgut'' of the Holy Roman Empire, which meant that it was directly possessed by the respective elected King of the Romans or Emperor. It was named for the Plei� ...

territory. In the 12th century, merchant houses were built around a marketplace below the castle and St. Nicholas' Church was built. In 1265, the Colditz citizens were granted

town privileges Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the traditio ...

by the ruler. In 1243, the former Imperial estates were pledged to the Wettin margrave Henry III of Meissen. His grandson, Margrave

Frederick I of Meissen Frederick I, called the Brave or the Bitten (German: ''Friedrich der Freidige'' or ''Friedrich der Gebissene''; 1257 – 16 November 1323) was Margrave of Meissen and Landgrave of Thuringia. Life Born in Eisenach, Frederick was the son of Albert ...

occupied Colditz Castle in 1309. The whole lordship was finally incorporated into the

Margravate of Meissen The Margravate or Margraviate of Meissen () was a medieval principality in the area of the modern German state of Saxony. It originally was a frontier march of the Holy Roman Empire, created out of the vast ''Marca Geronis'' ( Saxon Eastern March ...

by 1404. Merged into the

Electorate of Saxony The Electorate of Saxony, also known as Electoral Saxony ( or ), was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire from 1356 to 1806 initially centred on Wittenberg that came to include areas around the cities of Dresden, Leipzig and Chemnitz. It was a ...

from 1423, Colditz was held by Elector

Ernest Ernest is a given name derived from the Germanic languages, Germanic word ''ernst'', meaning "serious", often shortened to Ernie. Notable people and fictional characters with the name include: People *Archduke Ernest of Austria (1553–1595), ...

upon the 1485

Treaty of Leipzig The Treaty of Leipzig or Partition of Leipzig (German ''Leipziger Teilung'') was signed on 11 November 1485 between Elector Ernest of Saxony and his younger brother Albert III, the sons of Elector Frederick II of Saxony from the House of Wettin. ...

. In 1504, the local baker accidentally set Colditz on fire, and the city hall, church, castle and a large part of the town went up in flames. In 1506, reconstruction began and new buildings were raised around the rear castle courtyard. After the defeat of Elector

John Frederick I of Saxony John Frederick I (, 30 June 1503 – 3 March 1554), called the Magnanimous (), was the Elector of Saxony (1532–1547) until he was deprived of this title in the Capitulation of Wittenberg by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. He was leading the Sch ...

in the

Schmalkaldic War The Schmalkaldic War (; July 1546May 1547) was fought within the territories of the Holy Roman Empire between the allied forces of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and Maurice, Duke of Saxony against the Lutheran Schmalkaldic League, with the forc ...

of 1546–47, the town passed to his cousin Maurice. His descendants continued to rebuild Colditz Castle as a hunting lodge. From 1602 to 1622, it served as the residence of Dowager Electress

Sophie Sophie is a feminine given name, another version of Sophia, from the Greek word for "wisdom". People with the name Born in the Middle Ages * Sophie, Countess of Bar (c. 1004 or 1018–1093), sovereign Countess of Bar and lady of Mousson * Soph ...

, widow of Elector

Christian I Christian I ''(Christiern I)'' (February 1426 – 21 May 1481) was a German noble and Scandinavian monarch under the Kalmar Union. He was king of Denmark (1448–1481), Norway (1450–1481) and Sweden (1457–1464). From 1460 to 1481, he ...

. In the 17th century, the cloth and linen manufacture developed. In the 18th century, clay from the Colditz area started to be used in the

Meissen porcelain Meissen porcelain or Meissen china was the first Europe, European hard-paste porcelain. Early experiments were done in 1708 by Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus. After his death that October, Johann Friedrich Böttger continued von Tschirnhaus's ...

factory that was established in 1710 by Elector

Augustus the Strong Augustus II the Strong (12 May 1670 – 1 February 1733), was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1697 to 1706 and from 1709 until his death in 1733. He belonged to the Albertine branch of the ...

. In 1804 a ceramics factory was established in Colditz by Thomsberger & Hermann. In the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

era, Colditz Castle was temporarily used as a

concentration camp A concentration camp is a prison or other facility used for the internment of political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or ethnic minority groups, on the grounds of national security, or for exploitati ...

by the SA and as a ''

Reichsarbeitsdienst The Reich Labour Service (''Reichsarbeitsdienst''; RAD) was a major paramilitary organization established in Nazi Germany as an agency to help mitigate the effects of unemployment on the Economy of Nazi Germany, German economy, militarise the wo ...

'' camp. During the Second World War, the town did not suffer any damage. In 1940, the town became the headquarters of the German military district

Wehrkreis IV The military districts, also known in some English-language publications by their German name as Wehrkreise (singular: ''Wehrkreis''), were administrative territorial units in Nazi Germany before and during World War II. The task of military dist ...

for personnel guarding an ''

Oflag An Oflag (from ) was a type of prisoner of war camp for Officer (armed forces), officers which the German Army (Wehrmacht), German Army established in World War I in accordance with the requirements of the Hague Conventions (1899 and 1907), 1899 ...

'' POW camp for officers, when Oflag IV-C was established in the castle. It became widely known after the war, for both its notable inmates (''Prominente''), such as

Giles Romilly Giles Samuel Bertram Romilly (19 September 1916 – 2 August 1967) was a British communist journalist, Second World War POW, brother of Esmond Romilly, and nephew of Winston Churchill through his wife Clementine Churchill. Biography Romilly ...

or George Lascelles, and several escape attempts. On 14April 1945, the U.S. Army entered the town and freed the prisoners. However, under agreements signed at the

Yalta Conference The Yalta Conference (), held 4–11 February 1945, was the World War II meeting of the heads of government of the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union to discuss the postwar reorganization of Germany and Europe. The three sta ...

, the Americans withdrew and were replaced by

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

occupation forces late in June 1945. As a result, Colditz and the entire state of Saxony became part of

East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

. In 1958, the publicly owned porcelain factory was established. It produced a major part of the dishes used by

Mitropa Mitropa was a catering company best known for having managed sleeping car, sleeping and dining cars of different German railways for most of the 20th century. Founded in 1916, the name "Mitropa" is an abbreviation of ''Mitteleuropa'' (German la ...

, as evident by the manufacturer's logo "cp". Both the porcelain and chamotte industries went into decline after 1990. Since

German reunification German reunification () was the process of re-establishing Germany as a single sovereign state, which began on 9 November 1989 and culminated on 3 October 1990 with the dissolution of the East Germany, German Democratic Republic and the int ...

in 1990, efforts have been made to increase visits by tourists. The castle was restored and has become a much visited museum. The great flood of August 2002 as well as the flood of 2013 caused some damage to the old town, but it has since been restored.

Sights

* St. Nicholas Church – Originally built in the middle of the 12th century. * Old Marketplace – ''Markt'', the houses at #13 and #21 were built around 1600. * Lower Market #3 – ''Untermarkt 3'' – a Gothic house with steep gabled roof with date 1564. *

Johann David Köhler Johann David Köhler (18 January 1684 – 10 March 1755) was a German historian. His academic focuses were on Roman coins as historical artifacts, ancient weapons, and genealogy. Köhler also served as university librarian at Altdorf and contr ...

house – the grandfather of information science and a grandfather of library science was born here 16 January 1684.

Transport

The nearest airports are Leipzig-Altenburg Airport (26 km) and

Leipzig/Halle Airport Leipzig/Halle Airport is an international airport located in Schkeuditz, Saxony, Germany, and serves both Leipzig, Saxony, and Halle, Saxony-Anhalt. It is a state-owned enterprise and allows 24 hour take off and landing for cargo flights. In ...

(52 km). Traffic on the section of the Glauchau-Großbothen railway line, which ran through Colditz, ceased in 2000. Public transport is provided by buses, with services to

Grimma Grimma (; , ) is a town in Saxony, Central Germany, on the left bank of the Mulde, southeast of Leipzig. Founded in 1170, it is part of the Leipzig district. Location The town is in northern Saxony, southeast of Leipzig and south of Wurz ...

Leisnig Leisnig (, ) is a small town in the district of Mittelsachsen, in the free state of Saxony in Germany, 50 kilometers southeast of Leipzig. History A settlement in this location was first mentioned in 1046. The town features Mildenstein Castle ...

Hartha Hartha is a town in the district of Mittelsachsen, in Saxony, Germany. It is situated 11 km west of Döbeln, and 12 km north of Mittweida. Personalities * Carl Grünberg (1847–1906), woven goods manufacturer in Hartha and politici ...

Rochlitz Rochlitz (; , ) is a major district town (Große Kreisstadt) in the district of Mittelsachsen, in Saxony, Germany. Rochlitz is the head of the "municipal partnership Rochlitz" (Verwaltungsgemeinschaft Rochlitz) with its other members being the mu ...

, and Bad Lausick, as well as to several villages in the vicinity. 2016 map of bus services in the area

Wartime dramatisations

The story of the wartime prisoners at

was documented by Patrick Robert ("Pat") Reid in his books ''The Colditz Story'' and ''The Latter Days At Colditz'', and the former was used as the basis for a 1955 film directed by

Guy Hamilton Mervyn Ian Guy Hamilton (16 September 1922 – 20 April 2016) was an English film director. He directed 22 films from the 1950s to the 1980s, including four James Bond films. Early life Hamilton was born in Paris on 16 September 1922, son of ...

. In the early 1970s the BBC broadcast a series, ''

Colditz Colditz () is a small town in the district of Leipzig (district), Leipzig, in Saxony, Germany. It is best known for Colditz Castle, the site of the Oflag IV-C prisoner-of-war camp, POW camp for officers in World War II. Geography Colditz is situa ...

'', created by

Brian Degas Brian R. Degas (2 October 1935 – 3 April 2020) was an English producer and writer, merchandiser, and creative packager of ancillary rights. Early career Degas was born to English parents on 2 October 1935 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. As ...

and Gerard Glaister, with Reid as technical advisor. In 1973 the TV comedy series

The Two Ronnies ''The Two Ronnies'' is a British television comedy sketch show starring Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett. It was created by Bill Cotton and aired on BBC1 from 10 April 1971 to 25 December 1987. The usual format included sketches, solo se ...

shot a sketch "Colditz" featuring

Ronnie Corbett Ronald Balfour Corbett (4 December 1930 – 31 March 2016) was a Scottish actor, broadcaster, comedian and writer. He had a long association with Ronnie Barker in the BBC television comedy sketch show ''The Two Ronnies''. He achieved promine ...

in the role of the new detainee and

Ronnie Barker Ronald William George Barker (25 September 1929 – 3 October 2005) was an English actor, comedian and writer. He was known for roles in British comedy television series such as ''Porridge (1974 TV series), Porridge'', ''The Two Ronnies'', ...

as camp commandant. Beginning in 1973 a board game

Escape from Colditz ''Escape from Colditz'' is a board game produced by Gibsons Games of London in 1973 that simulates attempted escapes by Allied prisoners-of-war (POWs) from Oflag IV-C (better known as Colditz Castle) during World War II. Designed in part by Pat ...

was marketed by

Parker Brothers Parker Brothers (known as Parker outside of North America) was an American toy and game manufacturer which in 1991 became a brand of Hasbro. More than 1,800 games were published under the Parker Brothers name since 1883. It remained family owne ...

, followed by a computer game in 1991.

Notable people

From the city

(1684–1755), historian and numismatic * Paul Nitsche (1876–1948), psychiatrist and one of the men responsible for the medical murders during the Nazi era, executed for crimes against humanity * Ernst Bergmann (1881–1945), professor of philosophy and pedagogy and proponent of a new German national religion. * Werner Gruner (1904–1995), mechanical engineer and university lecturer *

Jürgen Schumann Jürgen Schumann (29 April 194016 October 1977) was a German commercial airline pilot and former German Air Force officer. He served as the flight captain of the Lufthansa plane ''Lufthansa Flight 181, Landshut'' during its Aircraft hijacking, hi ...

(1940–1977), pilot of the

Lufthansa Deutsche Lufthansa AG (), trading as the Lufthansa Group, is a German aviation group. Its major and founding subsidiary airline Lufthansa German Airlines, branded as Lufthansa, is the flag carrier of Germany. It ranks List of largest airlin ...

, victim of the

Red Army Faction The Red Army Faction (, ; RAF ),See the section "Name" also known as the Baader–Meinhof Group or Baader–Meinhof Gang ( ), was a West German far-left militant group founded in 1970 and active until 1998, considered a terrorist organisat ...

* Clemens Pickel (born 1961), bishop of the diocese of Saratov in Russia

Others related to the city

Christian Führer Christian (5 March 1943 – 30 June 2014) was a Protestant pastor and one of the leading figures and organisers of the 1989 Monday demonstrations in East Germany which finally led to German reunification and the end of the GDR in 1990. Life ...

(1943–2014), priest in Colditz from 1968 to 1980, an initiator of the peaceful revolution in the GDR as pastor of the Nikolaikirche in Leipzig *

Ernest, Elector of Saxony Ernest (24 March 144126 August 1486), known as Ernst in German, was Elector of Saxony from 1464 to 1486. Ernst was the founder and progenitor of the ''Ernestine line'' of Saxon princes. Biography Ernst was born in Meissen, the second son (bu ...

(1441–1486), died on 26 August 1486 near Colditz, when he fell from his horse on a ride

References

* Michael Booker, ''Collecting Colditz and Its Secrets'', page 32. * Eric J. Narveson, ''Prison Citadel'', pp. 36–37. *

Pat Reid Patrick Robert Reid, (13 November 1910 – 22 May 1990) was a British Army officer and author of history. As a British prisoner of war during the Second World War, he was held captive at Colditz Castle when it was designated Oflag IV-C. Reid wa ...

, ''Colditz: The Full Story'', pp. 124, 259–263. * Georg Martin Schädlich, ''Tales from Colditz Castle'', pp. 4–6, 27, 61, 63, 91–101. *

External links

Official website
*
Visiting information for Colditz Castle

indicate the camp was in existence from September 1939 until April 1945.
VirtualColditz.com
— Videos and photos of Colditz Castle as it is today. {{Authority control Leipzig (district)