Rudolstadt is a town in the German

federal state A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government ( federalism). In a federation, the self-gover ...

Thuringia Thuringia (; german: Thüringen ), officially the Free State of Thuringia ( ), is a state of central Germany, covering , the sixth smallest of the sixteen German states. It has a population of about 2.1 million. Erfurt is the capital and lar ...

, with the Thuringian Forest to the southwest, and to

Jena Jena () is a German city and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 inhabitants, while the city itself has a po ...

and

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in Central Germany between Erfurt in the west and Jena in the east, approximately southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together with the neighbouri ...

to the north. The former capital of

Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt was a small historic state in present-day Thuringia, Germany, with its capital at Rudolstadt. History Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt was established in 1599 in the course of a resettlement of Schwarzburg dynasty lands. Since ...

, the town is built along the River

Saale The Saale (), also known as the Saxon Saale (german: Sächsische Saale) and Thuringian Saale (german: Thüringische Saale), is a river in Germany and a left-bank tributary of the Elbe. It is not to be confused with the smaller Franconian Saal ...

inside a wide valley surrounded by woods. Rudolstadt was founded in 776 and has had

municipal law Municipal law is the national, domestic, or internal law of a sovereign state and is defined in opposition to international law. Municipal law includes many levels of law: not only national law but also state, provincial, territorial, regional, ...

since 1326. The town's landmark is the Castle

Heidecksburg Heidecksburg is a Baroque palace in Rudolstadt, Thuringia, and served as the residence of the princes to Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt was a small historic state in present-day Thuringia, Germany, with its capital at Ru ...

which is enthroned on a hill above the old town. The former municipality

Remda-Teichel Remda-Teichel is a town and a former municipality in the district of Saalfeld-Rudolstadt, in Thuringia, Germany. It is situated 15 km northwest of Saalfeld, and 28 km southeast of Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital and largest cit ...

was merged into Rudolstadt in January 2019. Rudolstadt was once well known because of the Anchor Stone Blocks of the Toy Company Richter and

porcelain Porcelain () is a ceramic material made by heating substances, generally including materials such as kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to other types of pottery, arises main ...

factories, beginning with the establishment of the

Volkstedt porcelain Volkstedt porcelain manufactory sited in Rudolstadt, Thuringia, Germany, was the earliest porcelain manufactory in Thuringia. It was in business as Aelteste Volkstedter Porzellanmanufaktur, the "Oldest Volkstedt Porcelain Manufactory", which was ...

manufacture in 1762.

History

Early history

There is archeological evidence of a

hill fort A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post-Roma ...

on the Weinberg in Oberpreilipp from the time of the late Urnfield culture and the early

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly ...

. A

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foo ...

settlement followed the Germanic one and the affiliation with the Duchy of Thuringia. From the 6th century onwards, archeological records suggest Slavic settlement in the area. The first documented mention of the place-name was in 776 as ''Rudolfestat'' (Rudolf's settlement) as a gift from

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first E ...

to Hersfeld Abbey

Historical population

Number of Inhabitants ''(from 1960 as of 31 December, unless otherwise indicated)'': : Data since 1994: Thuringian Statistical Office ¹ 29 October
² 31 August

Culture

Rudolstadt hosts Germany's biggest folk, roots, and world music festival, TFF Rudolstadt (Tanz&FolkFest), taking place annually on the first full July weekend. Rudolstadt is twinned with Letterkenny, Co. Donegal,

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

. Since 2012 Rudolstadt hosts Getting tough race (German wiki), Europe's hardest obstacle race. The main sights of Rudolstadt on OpenstreetMap.

Economy

The headquarters of the

EPC Group EPC Group is a German engineering and construction company. It builds large industrial plants and infrastructure projects around the world. The history of the family business goes back to the 19th century and in the present form, it exists sinc ...

, a global

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...

and

construction Construction is a general term meaning the art and science to form objects, systems, or organizations,"Construction" def. 1.a. 1.b. and 1.c. ''Oxford English Dictionary'' Second Edition on CD-ROM (v. 4.0) Oxford University Press 2009 and ...

company, are in Rudolstadt. File:Richtersche Villa.jpg, The so-called "Richtersche Villa" (Richters Mansion). File:Rathaus Rudolstadt.jpg, Rudolstadt Town Hall File:Bobo 2006.jpg, Bobo 2006 File:CFK Schwarza VEB Logo.svg, Chemical Industry of East Germany

Notable people

Princess Anna Sophie of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt Princess Anna Sophie of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (9 September 1700 – 11 December 1780) was a Princess of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt. She was the daughter of Louis Frederick I, Prince of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (15 October 1667 – 24 June 1718) and ...

, grandmother of

King Leopold I * nl, Leopold Joris Christiaan Frederik * en, Leopold George Christian Frederick , image = NICAISE Leopold ANV.jpg , caption = Portrait by Nicaise de Keyser, 1856 , reign = 21 July 1831 – , predecessor = Erasme Loui ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

, great-grandmother to Albert, Prince Consort of the United Kingdom * Christian Nikolaus Eberlein (1720–1788), historical painter * Traugott Maximilian Eberwein, German composer, worked here as the composer in residence for the Rudolstadt theatre *

Philipp Heinrich Erlebach Philipp Heinrich Erlebach (25 July 1657 – 17 April 1714) was a German Baroque composer, a prolific writer of church music and secular music. Much of his work is lost due to a fire. Life Erlebach was born in Esens, Lower Saxony, the son of Jo ...

, German composer and choirmaster in Rudolstadt *

Hans Fallada Hans Fallada (; born Rudolf Wilhelm Friedrich Ditzen; 21 July 18935 February 1947) was a German writer of the first half of the 20th century. Some of his better known novels include '' Little Man, What Now?'' (1932) and '' Every Man Dies Alone'' ...

, German writer. He went to school in Rudolstadt, it was here that he killed his friend Hans Dietrich von Necker in a duel *

Ahasverus Fritsch Ahasverus Fritsch (16 December 1629 – 24 August 1701) was a German jurist, poet and hymn writer of the Baroque era. Fritsch was born in Mücheln as a son of the mayor. In 1631, the family was forced to flee when the city was burned down. Later ...

, German poet and composer * Simone Lange, German politician (SPD) * Franz Liszt, Hungarian composer worked here as the composer in residence for the Rudolstadt theatre * Niccolò Paganini, Italian composer, worked here as the composer in residence for the Rudolstadt theatre * Charlotte von Lengefeld (1766–1826), wife of Schiller * Richard Wagner, German composer, worked here as the composer in residence for the Rudolstadt theatre

References

External links

* {{Authority control 776 establishments Populated places established in the 8th century Saalfeld-Rudolstadt Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt Towns in Thuringia