Weimar
Weimar, a city located within the Thuringia state is situated
on the banks of the Ilm River. An important rail junction
and industrial city, Weimar manufactures textile and paper
goods, machinery, automobiles, musical instruments, electronic
equipment, glass and footwear, among many other articles.
The city exudes a definite medieval atmosphere, with its narrow
alley ways, gabled houses and numerous architectural landmarks.
The city, founded in the 10th Century, underwent various stages
in which it was under control and rule of counts and landgraves,
until in 1485 it came into possession of the Ernestine branch
of the Wettin House. In 1547 it was named capital of the Saxony-Weimar
Duchy. In 1919 the National German Assembly convened in Weimar
and established the German Republic - and drafted a democratic
Constitution; in 1920 the city was named capital of the new
state of Thuringia. During the Second World War the German
Nazi government set up and directed one of the largest concentration
camps in Germany, Buchenwald, in Weimar; today, a memorial
stands in its place.
Some of the historic landmarks and places to see in Weimar
include a beautiful 15th Century parish church, that was rebuilt
in the 18th Century and which houses an altarpiece by Lucas
Cranach, the Elder; the Red Castle and the Green Castle from
the 16th and 18th Centuries, respectively, the ducal palace,
built under Goethe's directions, Johann
Wolfgang von Goethe's house, which operates as a museum
in his memory and is open to the public; Friedrich
von Schiller's residence and the state theatre, in which
Franz Liszt worked as orchestral director and where composer
Richard Wagner premiered
several of his dramatic works.
