Gotha is the fifth largest city in the Free State of Thuringia
and the district town of the Gotha district. From 1640 to 1825 Gotha
was the capital of the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg and from 1826
the capital and residence of the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. In
1820 the German insurance industry was founded in the city with
Gothaer Versicherung. The Socialist Workers' Party of Germany (SAP)
was founded in Gotha Tivoli in 1875 and later renamed the SPD. The
city was a center of the German publishing industry, so the Justus
Perthes publishing house, founded in 1785, mainly produced
cartographic publications (maps, atlases, wall maps, etc.).
In the past, the medium-sized town of Gotha was rivaling Weimar, the
other center of the Ernestine dynasty. While Weimar became the
artistic center, Gotha became its scientific counterpart, as
evidenced by the Natural History Museum and the Gotha Observatory
today. The baroque Friedenstein Castle dominates the cityscape. It
was the residence of the dukes of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg until 1825,
and from then until 1918 those of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.
A
larger company from Gotha was the Gothaer Waggonfabrik, which mainly
produced trams and airplanes. In Gotha today the Gotha tram or the
Thuringian Forest Railway is one of the last cross-country trams in
Germany (to Waltershausen and Tabarz).
Gotha is the seat of
the Thuringian University of Applied Sciences for Public
Administration; two of the three departments are located at this
location.
The Ekhof Theater is located in the west wing of Friedenstein Castle
and is the oldest completely preserved castle theater in the world with
original Baroque stage machinery.
The Gothaer Stadttheater, a
classical theater building designed by Karl Friedrich Schinkel and
projected by Gustav Eberhard, was located on the eastern edge of the
city center on Theaterplatz (since 1991 Ekhof-Platz). The building
burned down in 1945 as a result of the war. The ruins were blown up in
1958, although the theater could have been rebuilt. Until the spring of
2011, a memorial stone from the old town association commemorated the
venue at the former location.
Events take place all year round in
the Gothaer Kulturhaus. Today's culture house was originally built as a
cinema and opened in 1940 with the operetta film "Rosen aus Tirol". Used
as a cinema until 1972, a one-year conversion phase followed. With a new
boiler house, stage building, theater café and modernized interior, it
was reopened in 1973 as a district culture house. Ten years later it was
given the name "Johannes R. Becher". It has been known as the Gothaer
Kulturhaus since 1990. The existing theater stage with revolving stage
and the modern sound and lighting technology enable performances of all
kinds. The house with its 785 seats is a venue for opera, operetta,
musicals, concerts, plays and shows. With its wood paneling, the hall
offers an intimate atmosphere and very good acoustics. The culture house
is a guest theater, but offers organizers the possibility of renting.
Since 2017, the association "art der stadt" has had a permanent venue in
the Kulturhaus with the "fundament".
The newly built Cineplex
cinema with seven halls has been in the city of Gotha since October
2014.
Tivoli
Foundation Schloss Friedenstein Gotha
Museum of Nature
Gotha
historical Museum
Castle Museum
Ducal Museum Gotha
Gotha's landmark is the largest early Baroque feudal building in
Germany, Friedenstein Castle with the oldest English garden on the
European continent and the walk-in casemates. The Orangery, which also
housed the city library from 1950 to 2014 (since March 2014 in the
Winter Palace), with the Friedrichsthal Palace, the Winter Palace, the
Prince's Palace and the Ducal Museum (from 1951 to 2010 Museum of
Nature) are located in the Palace Park.
From the castle you can
walk along the historical pavement on the north side of the castle hill,
along the water feature, to the historic old town and meet the market
square surrounded by numerous well-preserved department stores and
patrician houses with the representative old town hall.
In the
17th century, the medieval city fortifications were replaced by
fortifications that were later removed. There is now a ring road that
separates the old town from the suburbs. Due to modern construction,
hardly any traces of the rectangular medieval road network have been
preserved on the western edge, while the eastern part of the old town
has been largely preserved. The Straße am Brühl leads to the
Maria-Magdalena-Hospital. On the main market with the Rothen Löwen you
can already see the town church of St. Margarethen on the Neumarkt. The
second large church in Gotha is the Gothic Augustinian church with
baroque furnishings, in which Martin Luther preached several times. The
oldest Augustinian monastery in Thuringia is attached to the church.
In the 19th century, Gotha, as the residence and place of origin of
Prince Albert, received generous urban development funding. Numerous
castle-like administration buildings, the Gothaer and Reinhardsbrunner
train stations and the racecourse in Boxberg bear witness to this. For
the Gotha bourgeoisie, Bahnhofstrasse became the first address for their
villas.
The former ducal Saxon Court Theater in Gotha and later
Gotha City Theater, built on Ekhofplatz in 1839 on the basis of
Schinkel's designs, burned down shortly before the city was taken by
American troops in World War II. Under the SED regime, the
often-promised reconstruction was delayed until the building fabric
could only be demolished. The former Volkshaus zum Mohren, located in
the neighboring former Mohrenvorstadt, housed Goethe and Napoléon, among
others, and was the founding site of the USPD in 1917. However, it was
demolished in 2007 in favor of future traffic planning in this part of
the city against the resistance of the population.
The former
Tivoli restaurant southwest of the old town was the founding house of
the immediate predecessor of the SPD and has been renovated. It houses
an exhibition.
North of the old town is the founding site of the
German Shooting Federation with the listed Schützenhof and the cemetery
with the oldest crematorium in Europe. Gotha has a large number of
listed industrial buildings from the Wilhelminian period.
The
Thuringian Forest Railway takes you to the horse racing track on the
Boxberg and on to Waltershausen, Schnepfenthal, Reinhardsbrunn,
Friedrichroda and Tabarz.
The Arnoldi Tower, handed over to the
city by the Arnoldi family against the obligation to maintain it, stood
on the Krahnberg near Gotha for almost 150 years. It was demolished in
1972 during the GDR era. As a popular excursion destination, it offered
a view of the Thuringian Forest. A stele has commemorated the location
since 2003. The best-known member of the Arnoldi family was
Ernst-Wilhelm Arnoldi. Not far from the former Arnoldi Tower, the Gotha
Citizens' Tower was inaugurated on the Galberg at Inselsbergblick in
June 2009. It was built by committed citizens with the help of
donations. The 35 m high lookout tower on the almost 400 m high mountain
towers above the forest, offers an excellent view over the Gothaer Land
and can be visited around the clock free of charge.
The listed
buildings are included in the list of cultural monuments in Gotha.
The Gotha Castle Park is located in the middle of the city and
surrounds the mighty Friedenstein Castle. It is the oldest English
landscape garden on mainland Europe. The basic features of the park are
still the same as they were 200 years ago. A later addition is the fir
garden from the second half of the 19th century. The rose garden,
created in the early 1930s, was removed in 2011 and now only exists in
name.
The orangery with its historical cold houses and the
greenhouse is part of the castle park, which contains a large number of
historic and important buildings and monuments. In addition to the
castle, these are B. the Friedrichsthal Palace, the exhibition hall, the
Ducal Museum, the Teeschlösschen and the Merkur Temple.
In the
southern part of the castle park there is a small and a large park pond.
On the burial island in the Great Park Pond are u. a. the last three
dukes of the House of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg - Ernst II, August and
Friedrich IV - as well as the last Duchess of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg,
Karoline Amalie, are buried.
In the western part of the park
there has been a memorial stone for the 95th Infantry Regiment since
1991, which existed from 1907 to 1945. Motto on the inscription:
"fideliter et constanter" (faithful and constant).
The Tierpark
Gotha is a six-hectare zoological garden at the foot of the small
Seeberg.
The Mönchspark in the district of Gotha-Siebleben with a
romantic hunting lodge, old trees and ponds is a hidden gem that is
unknown to many visitors.
The green areas of Krahnberg and
Seeberg, which extend into the city area, are very popular with the
population as local recreation areas.
The parks that are under
monument protection can be found in the list of cultural monuments in
Gotha.
The best-known football club is FSV Wacker 03 Gotha. The team is
currently playing in the state division. The Oettinger Rockets Gotha
basketball team has been playing in the ProA (second national basketball
league) since winning the 2012 final of the ProB league. The 1st men's
team of Volleyball Club Gotha has played in the 2nd Bundesliga South
since the 2006/07 season and in the 1st Bundesliga since the 2010/11
season. The club's first women's team played in the 2005/06 season in
the 2nd Bundesliga South and in the 2006/07 season in the regional
league.
The Gothaer indoor swimming pool (♁Lage) called Stadt-Bad
was built between 1907 and 1909 according to plans by Stadtbaurat
Wilhelm Goette in late Art Nouveau style. It was reopened in 2014 after
thorough renovation, at the same time as the modern extension with a 25
m pool.
Since July 5, 1925, Gotha has also had an outdoor pool in
the south of the city (♁Lage), which was dug and built by the members of
the workers' swimming club at their own expense.
In 2021, the
city applied to host a four-day program for an international delegation
to the Special Olympics World Summer Games 2023 in Berlin. In 2022 she
was selected to host Special Olympics Somalia. This made it part of the
largest municipal inclusion project in the history of the Federal
Republic with more than 200 host towns.
The most important festival in the city is the Gothardusfest, which
is celebrated on the first weekend in May and is dedicated to the city's
patron saint, St. Gotthard. The festival continues a medieval tradition,
which is already documented in 1442 in a Schützenordnung. The festival
lasts three days with a variety of events such as markets and concerts.
For example, at the beginning of the festival on a Friday, there will be
a large firework display at the orangery and the water feature on the
main market will be put back into operation after a winter break. On the
following day, a parade traditionally takes place, where clubs from
Gotha and the surrounding area present themselves to the public. The
"main protagonists" of the Gothardus festival are Saint Gothardus and
Landgrave Balthasar, who are portrayed by Gotha citizens.
The
second major city festival is the Baroque Festival. Since 2001, on the
last weekend in August, the glorious epoch of the late Baroque has been
revived in the historical setting of Friedenstein Castle and the
Orangery: around 200 amateur actors slip into costumes for two days, the
actor of Duke Friedrich III. von Sachsen-Gotha-Altenburg and his court
attend guard parades, hold audiences, undertake excursions into the city
and stroll through the Orangery Garden.
From June to August, the
Ekhof Festival with scenic performances and concerts takes place in the
Ekhof Theater at Friedenstein Castle.
Every year in September
blacksmiths and metal designers meet in the middle of the old town for
the International Metal Designers Meeting "Gotha glows". At the same
time, the autumn market takes place in the city center with a medieval
flair. The forging results of the metal designers are auctioned off
every year for a good cause.
On the third weekend of Advent, the
Orangery Christmas Market takes place in the Orangery. Above all,
traditional and regional handicrafts are presented behind the laurel
house, the cultural program of the two days is primarily aimed at
families and children.
From 1997 to 2008 the alternative
Christian festival Freakstock took place on the Boxberg south of Gotha.
In 2009, the Gotha authors Andreas M. Cramer and Ralph-Uwe Heinz
made the Gotha Winter Palace the alleged place of origin of the Dinner
for One in their stage play Dar Neunzschsde Gebordsdaach oder Dinner auf
Goth'sch. Since then, the adaptation of the sketch classic has been
performed in Gotha dialect on New Year's Eve at the Kulturhaus. In it,
Duchess Sophie Karoline Amalie von Sachsen-Gotha-Altenburg celebrates
her birthday in the Winter Palace with her deceased friends, all of whom
were famous Gotha personalities: publisher Justus Perthes, entrepreneur
Ernst-Wilhelm Arnoldi, Colonel Maximilian Franz Karl Ritter von Gadolla
and historian Johann Georg August Galletti. Her servant Schlud stumbles
over a polar bear skin called Knut. The text is peppered with numerous
local allusions, and the food and drinks are really gothic or typically
Thuringian, e.g. there is Gotano vermouth, Aromatique, Thuringian
dumplings and Gothaer Kranz (a local cake specialty). According to the
Goth'sch novel Dinner for One, the story of the Duchess' strange
birthday ritual in 1845 is said to have come to Britain via Sophie
Karoline Amalie's grandson Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, where
it happened to be passed on by playwright Lauri Wylie in the 1930s
rediscovered and adapted for the stage.
Since 2008, the city of
Gotha has been awarding the Hannah-Höch award every year on November
1st, which honors the artistic work of women in Gotha. The award
commemorates the Gotha-born artist Hannah Höch. Honored are artists of
all genres as well as women interested in art and culture who were born
in Gotha or lived there and have a close connection to the city.
In 1905, the Gotha confectioner Albert Maasberg patented the Gotha
wreath, which varied the recipe of the well-known Frankfurt wreath. In
contrast to the light Frankfurt original, the dark Gotha counterpart
mixes the buttercream with chocolate. The cake specialty filled with
this cream is finally covered with chocolate buttercream and sprinkled
with toasted and chopped almonds. The original Gotha wreath also lacks
the decorative cherries that characterize the Frankfurt wreath.
Gotano is a vermouth that was produced in the city until 2009 (most
recently by Thüringer Weinkellereien Gotha GmbH) and was the
best-selling vermouth in East Germany. The name Gotha-Wermut, developed
in 1962, first became Gothano and then Gotano at the end of the 1960s.
Since 2010, however, the traditional spirit has been produced in
Stadtilm and only has the trade name in common with its city of origin.
Gotha Children's Choir
Thuringia Philharmonic Gotha-Eisenach
Fanfare and Show Orchestra Gotha
Handbell Choir Gotha
High rope
group siblings wisdom
Music School Louis Spohr
TonArt music
schools Gotha
Children's theater TINY
Theater ensemble Art der
Stadt e. V
Gotha Gospel Choir
A variant of Central Thuringian, known by the locals as Goth'sch, is
spoken in the city. It is characterized by a mostly leisurely and
slightly "singing" tone. The vowels are preferably stretched and spoken
darkly, and the soft consonants are used primarily. Countless phonetic
changes, shortening and lengthening of syllables serve the flow of
speech.
After the dialect in Gotha was not publicly cultivated
for decades and was mostly viewed pejoratively, it has experienced a
renaissance since the end of the 1990s. Their increasing perception as a
heritage of cultural and historical importance is expressed, among other
things, in the fact that the Little Dictionary of Goth'sch (1998), the
Little Gothic Snipe Dictionary (2001) and the Goodschn Saachn (Die
Gothaer Sagen, 2005) meanwhile contain only three books available on the
subject of dialect. The first popular scientific treatise on the
linguistic-historical origin of the dialect appeared in 2003.
A
Gothic dialect version of the New Year's Eve classic Dinner for One has
existed since 2009, and since 2010 the actors of the two fictitious
Gotha originals Hänser & Schluder have offered city and pub tours
exclusively in dialect.
The people of Gotha mostly refer to
themselves as Goth'sche (pronounced: Goodsche). For long-established
residents who feel very connected to their hometown as well as its
history and dialect, the term (real) goth'scher Lappenhöger (pronounced:
echder goodscher Labbmhööcher) is common - almost as an increase.
Newcomers (gothic: Biegeschwammde, from “washed in”), on the other hand,
can never become real gothic rags despite all attempts at assimilation.
The original nickname is derived from the street Hoher Sand, popularly
known as Lappenhög (Hög = hill, small mountain), where poor people used
to live.
Until the turn of the 19th to the 20th century, the
Gothaer in Thuringia were also generally known as Goth'sche Hahne. Today
this old nickname is out of use and all but forgotten.
Old oak tree on the Boxberg with a chest circumference of 6.40 m (2016).
Moses department store, Erfurter Str. 5, 99867 Gotha. Tel: (0)3621 22310. Open: Mon-Fri 9am-7pm, Sat 9am-4pm.
By plane
The nearest airport is Erfurt – Weimar Airport (IATA:
ERF) , about 20km to the east; albeit with only a few charter
connections. The nearest airports with scheduled flights are Frankfurt
Airport (IATA: FRA) and Leipzig Halle Airport (IATA: LEJ), both of which
are easily accessible by train.
By train
Gotha station is
served by local and long-distance Deutsche Bahn trains. Another traffic
stop on the route to Leinefelde is Gotha-Ost.
By bus
Gotha is
approached by long-distance buses. The Gotha long-distance bus stop is
located on Neubauerstrasse, not far from the train station.
There
is a dense bus network in Gotha and the surrounding area, see:
VMT-Thuringia
On the street
Gotha can be reached from the east
and west via the A4. From the Symbol: AS 42 Gotha it is only 5km to the
city center.
Gotha is on the B7 Eisenach - Erfurt and on the B247
Bad Langensalza - Ohrdruf.
Most of the city's sights are within easy walking distance, and the old town is a pedestrian zone anyway. The tourist destinations in the outskirts are easy to explore by bike. As usual, there is a taxi rank at the train station, and there is also a tram station from where you can get to the old town in a few minutes.
Cheap
1 Aroma "CoffeeShop & Salad Bar", Hauptmarkt 4-5, 99867
Gotha. Tel.: +49 (0)3621 882945. Open: Mon - Wed, Fri 9am - 7pm, Thu 9am
- 8pm, Sat 10am - 6pm.
2 Berggarten, Berggartenweg 50, 99867 Gotha.
Tel.: +49 (0)3621 744475, email: essen-und-trinken@berggarten-gotha.de.
Medium
3 Romantic Restaurant, Friedenstein Castle, 99867 Gotha.
Tel.: +49 (0)3621 403612, fax: +49 (0)3621 403613, e-mail:
a-groeschner@t-online.de. Open: Tue – Sat 11 a.m. – 10 p.m., Sun 11 a.m.
– 5 p.m., closed on Mondays.
4 Lantica Trattoria", Buttermarkt 5,
99867 Gotha. Tel.: +49 (0)3621 238893, email: info@trattoria-gotha.de.
Italian restaurant. Open: Tue – Sat 11 a.m. – 11.30 p.m., Sun + public
holidays 12.00 – 23.30, closed on Mondays.
5 Restaurant Delpi,
Oststrasse 51, 99867 Gotha. Tel: +49 (0)3621 401964. Greek restaurant.
Open: Mon, Wed, Thu 5 p.m. – 11 p.m., Fri, Sat, Sun + public holidays
11.30 a.m. – 2.30 p.m. + 5 p.m. – 11 p.m., Tuesday is closed.
6
Restaurant Dionysos, Ernst-Thälmann-Strasse 9, 99867 Gotha/Uelleben.
Phone: +49 (0)3621 755922, email: info@dionysos-gotha.de. Greek
restaurant. Open: Mon – Fri 5 p.m. – 11 p.m., Sat, Sun + public holidays
11.30 a.m. – 2.30 p.m. + 5 p.m. – 11 p.m.
7 Restaurant Brauhaus
Valentino, Brühl 7, 99867 Gotha. Tel.: +49 (0)3621 226441, fax: +49
(0)3621 733373, e-mail: info@valentino-brauhaus.de. Italian restaurant.
8 Restaurant Bellini, Am Hauptmarkt 3, 99867 Gotha. Phone: +49 (0)3621
512594, fax: +49 (0)3621 7396586, e-mail: bellini-gotha@t-online.de.
Italian restaurant. Open: Mon – Sun 9.00 a.m. – 12.00 a.m.
9
Restaurant community building, Goldbacher settlement 44, 99867 Gotha.
Tel.: +49 (0)3621 854409, fax: +49 (0)3621 223269, e-mail:
info@restaurant-g-haus.de. Restaurant with attached beer garden. Open:
Wed – Fri 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. + from 5 p.m., Sat + Sun from 11 a.m.
non-stop, Mon + Tue are days of rest.
Upscale
10 Restaurant
Weinschanke, Gartenstr. 28, 99867 Gotha. Phone: +49 (0)3621 301009,
email: semmann@gmx.de. Open: Tue – Sat 11.30 a.m. – 2.30 p.m. + from 6
p.m., Sun 11.30 a.m. – 2.30 p.m., closed on Mondays.
11 Old
Observatory, Florschützstr. 10, 99867 Gotha. Phone: +49 (0)3621 72390,
fax: +49 (0)3621 723939, e-mail: alte-sternwarte@gmx.de. In addition to
the restaurant, the house also includes a beer garden and a hotel
(single room from €73, double room from €96). Open: Mon – Sat 11:30 a.m.
– 10:00 p.m., Sun 11:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
1 Blue Pearl, Cosmarstrasse 26, 99867 Gotha. Phone: +49 (0)3621
700904, Email: Hasim.Karatay@Alice-dsl.net. Dance bar with changing
events such as B. disco, party and others.
2 S'Limerick Irish Pub,
Buttermarkt 4, 99867 Gotha. Phone: +49 (0)3621 3528014, email:
info@limerick-gotha.de. Open: Mon – Sun 5 p.m. – 1 a.m.
3 The
Londoner, Alter Schlachthof (Parkstrasse 15), 99867 Gotha. Tel.: +49
(0)3621 3518030, e-mail: info@thelondoner.de. Pub with regular various
events such as concerts, dance evenings, family celebrations or cabaret.
Open: Tue – Sat from 6 p.m.
Cheap
1 The Little Neighbor, Weimarer Strasse 16, 99867 Gotha.
Phone: +49 (0)3621 400795, email: info@derkleinenachbar.de. Feature:
pension. Price: Single room from €44, double room from €65 (€32.50 per
person).
2 Pension Suzette, Bebelstrasse 8, 99867 Gotha. Tel.: +49
(0)3621 856755, fax: +49 (0)3621 7386605, e-mail:
Pension@cafe-suzette.de. Feature: pension. Price: Single room with
breakfast from €33; Double room with breakfast from €28 per person.
3
Pension Gaa, Kleine Fahnenstr. 6, 99867 Gotha. Phone: +49 (0)3621
755890, fax: +49 (0)3621 756057, e-mail: pension-gaa-gotha@web.de.
Feature: pension. Price: SR from €25.
4 Pension Regina, Schwabhäuser
Str. 4, 99867 Gotha. Phone: +49 (0)3621 408020, fax: +49 (0)3621 408069,
e-mail: regina-in-gotha@t-online.de. Feature: pension. Price: Single
room from €36, double room from €59.
Medium
5 Hotel am
Krahnberg, Eisenacher Str. 95, 99867 Gotha. Phone: +49 (0)3621 705657,
fax: +49 (0)3621 705658, e-mail: info@hotel-am-krahnberg.de. Price:
Single room from €49, double room from €65.
6 Hotel Schützenberg,
Schützenberg 6, 99867 Gotha. Tel.: +49 (0)3621 27506, Fax: +49 (0)3621
27539, E-Mail: info@hotel-schuetzenberg.de Feature: ★★★★. Price: Single
room from €53, double room from €62 (each plus breakfast).
Upscale
7 Altstadthotel-Athos, Pfortenwallgasse 1, 99867 Gotha. Tel.:
+49 (0)3621 2959394, Fax: +49 (0)3621 29596. Open: Restaurant Mon – Sat
5.30 p.m. – 11 p.m., Sun 11.30 a.m. – 2.30 p.m. + 5.30 p.m. Reception
service times: Mon – Fri 5 a.m. – 2 a.m., Sat + Sun 5 a.m. – 4 a.m.,
earliest check-in 12 p.m., latest check-out 11 a.m.
8 Quality Hotel
am Tierpark, Ohrdrufer Strasse 2b, 99867 Gotha. Phone: +49 (0)3621 7170,
fax: +49 (0)3621 717500, e-mail: info@quality-hotel-gotha.de. Price:
Single room from €67, double room from €87.
Helios Klinikum Gotha, Heliosstrasse 1. Tel.: (0)3621 220 162. Open: Emergency room staffed 24/7.
Due to the availability of fertile soils and supra-regional traffic routes, the area of what would later become Gotha and the surrounding area were populated early on. During construction work on a bypass road, rich finds were found in the districts of Boilstädt and Sundhausen. The earliest findings come from settlement remains of the Neolithic linear ceramics (5500 BC), while other settlement remains were assigned to the early Bronze Age. Further findings point to burial mounds from the late Bronze Age (approx. 1000 BC) and traces of settlement from the Iron Age (approx. 500 BC). The most important finds come from the early Middle Ages (around 600 AD) from the time of the Merovingians. The burial place of a warrior of the Thuringian-Franconian upper class from the 6th century is of particular importance. The “Herr von Boilstädt”, as the archaeologists called him because of the proximity of the site to Boilstädt, was buried with rich grave goods that are unique in Germany.
Gotha was first
mentioned in a document issued on October 25, 775 in Düren. With
her, Charlemagne gave the Hersfeld Monastery, among other things,
the tithe of the lands, forests and meadows of Villa Gothaha (= good
water). The relationship to Hersfeld may also have been the reason
for the takeover of the city saint St. Gothardus (see coat of arms),
a former abbot of Hersfeld and later bishop of Hildesheim. An older
settlement can be assumed, however. The area of Gotha has been
settled for a long time, archaeologically proven.
According
to the legend of The Goths, which was already known in the 16th
century as the city's founder, Gotha owes both its foundation and
its name to the Goths.
Around the year 510 warriors of the
Ostrogoth king Theodoric the Great are said to have come to
Thuringia when his niece Amalaberga married the King of the
Thuringians, Herminafried. Those Ostrogoths are said to have settled
below today's Schlossberg and given the settlement the name Gota.
This founding legend is still reflected today in the design of the
Renaissance town hall portal: As the (Christian) symbols of lamb and
lindworm were once attributed to the Goths, the reliefs of these two
animals were attached to the portal in 1574.
Gotha developed as a central market town and stage station at an
intersection of Via Regia or Hohen Straße (west-east direction), and
a connection from Mühlhausen via Bad Langensalza to a transition
over the Thuringian Forest near Oberhof (north-south direction) .
In a deed of donation dated May 18, 874, the current districts
of Gothas Unsolteyleba (Uelleben), Kintileba (Kindleben) and the
nearby community of Bufileba (Bufleben) along with 114 other places
in Thuringia are mentioned as the Fulda Abbey. Archbishop Liubert zu
Mainz and Abbot Sigehard zu Fulda asserted the right to raise the
tithe for themselves. The dispute over this was decided by King
Ludwig the German (840–876) at the court of Ingelheim in favor of
the Fulda Abbey.
The planned urban layout, which is still
recognizable today, was created under the Ludowingers. The city
received Eisenach town charter around the middle of the 12th century
under Landgrave Ludwig II. In 1180/89 Gotha was first mentioned as a
city in a document from the Landgrave. It became one of the main
landgraves' mints. In 1207 the first devastating city fire broke
out. In 1223 the Mariae Magdalenae Hospital in Brühl was founded as
the oldest charitable institution in the city by Landgrave Ludwig IV
and his wife Elisabeth of Thuringia. the later Saint Elizabeth. In
1247 the rule of the state passed from the Thuringian landgraves to
the Wettins.
Gotha developed under the protection of
Grimmenstein Castle, a constantly strengthened Wettin castle and its
own city fortifications, which were built up from walls, city gates,
towers, earthworks and ditches. The municipal military organization
of the guilds produced the first rifle regulations around 1442,
which also regulates the training and arming of the vigilante group.
The first bird shooting in front of the Brühler Tor was mentioned in
1478, and the best crossbowman was awarded a rifle chain by the city
council. For a long time, the woad trade was the basis of a certain
prosperity, until the 16th century there were more than 300 villages
in the area around Gotha, Erfurt and Arnstadt that cultivated this
woad plant. Woolen cloth production and finishing, as well as the
manufacture of shoes and leather goods, can be named as the focus of
the craft trades. In the 16th century, gunsmiths, blacksmiths,
nails, coppersmiths and locksmiths, sword sweepers, needlers and
plumbers had developed in the city with their own guilds, and in the
leather trade there are now specialists in saddlers, belters,
baggers, bag makers, belters and the tanners.
The water supply was a major obstacle to further urban development. The few natural springs in the urban area and the urban wells were only partially sufficient, so the Leinakanal was created in 1369 under Landgrave Balthasar of Thuringia. This still existing technical monument of the city's water supply led over twelve kilometers of water from the edge of the Thuringian Forest to the city, as there were no natural rivers in Gotha. According to a preserved town order from the 14th century, a fountain master had to be chosen in every street in Gotha to be responsible for keeping the hydraulic structures clean and repairing them.
After a first Reformation sermon in 1522, immediately after
the Gothaer Pfaffensturm in August 1524, Friedrich Myconius, a
friend of Martin Luther, was appointed as a Protestant preacher at
the Marienkirche in Gotha, who was responsible for the consolidation
of the Protestant faith and the organization of the communities in
and around Gotha worked.
In 1526, Landgrave Philipp von
Hessen and Elector Johann von Sachsen in Gotha reached an agreement
that later led to the Schmalkaldic Confederation. In 1545 a city
fire destroyed almost half of the residential buildings. There was
further destruction during the siege of the city and the castle in
1566 and 1567 by imperial troops under the orders of the Elector
August of Saxony. Duke Johann Friedrich II wanted to regain the lost
electoral dignity and allied himself with the knight Grumbach, who
was under imperial ban, against the emperor. The imperial troops
finally won. The strong fortress Grimmenstein was razed during the
Grumbach trade.
Elector August, who carried out the execution
of the empire commissioned by the emperor, had a thaler struck on
the capture of Gotha (1567) with a demonstratively large Kurschild,
which propagated his victory on the front inscription and summarized
the capture of Gotha in the inscription on the back.
In the 17th century Gotha became
the residence of the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha under the Protestant Duke
Ernst the Pious (since 1826 in personal union with Saxe-Coburg). The
dukes of Saxe-Gotha created an exemplary state in terms of
administration, economy and finance. Compulsory schooling for girls
and boys and the Gotha school method of the pedagogue Andreas Reyher
as the first school regulations were introduced, and scientific
collections began. The Hoftheater (Ekhof Theater in honor of its
co-founder Conrad Ekhof) was built into a ballroom of the palace
and, as the first stage with a permanent ensemble, influenced the
development of German theater for a long time.
In 1663 a fire
devastated over 300 houses in the historic old town, including in
the Mönchelsstrasse / Querstrasse construction site in the south of
Neumarkt. Timbers here have been dated to 1490.
Around 1740
an anti-Prussian newspaper in French, the Gazette de Gotha, was
published in Gotha, supported by the court and in particular by the
Duchess Luise Dorothea von Sachsen-Meiningen. Although it was only
known locally, it attracted the displeasure of the Prussian royal
house of Frederick II. In December 1744, the Prussian war counselor
Backhoff Freiherr von Echt tried in vain for a truthful
representation of the events of the Second Silesian War in the
Gazette de Gotha.
The various interests of the dukes
established Gotha's reputation as a city of natural sciences and the
arts. Porcelain was already being produced in Gotha in 1757, making
the porcelain factory one of the oldest in Europe.
Renowned
scientists and artists came to the court through Gotha's reputation.
The castle fortifications were lifted under Ernst II of
Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. A park based on the English model was created.
The Duke financed a modern observatory from private funds, which,
according to his will, should be preserved as his only memorial. In
1785 the geographical publishing house Justus Perthes was founded,
in which the Gothaer Adelskalender (Der Gotha) appeared from 1785 to
1944. Ernst-Wilhelm Arnoldi founded the modern mutual insurance
through the Gothaer Feuerversicherungsbank in 1820 (today: Gothaer
Allgemeine Versicherung AG in Cologne) and the life insurance bank
in 1827 (today: Gothaer Lebensversicherung AG in Cologne). The
Gothaer Group in Cologne emerged from them. Thus Gotha can be seen
as the place of origin of today's German insurance industry.
In 1847 it was connected to the railway network and the Gotha train station was built. Duke Ernst II of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha consistently represented the Prussian unification policy. He gained popularity as an advocate or protector of singers, gymnasts, riflemen, hunters and student fraternities. In 1849 the post-parliament took place in Gotha. Out of liberal conviction, a progressive constitution was approved and proclaimed, which enabled “all-German” congresses such as the establishment of the German Rifle Federation in 1861 or the union of the workers 'parties of Ferdinand Lassalle and August Bebel to form the Socialist Workers' Party of Germany, later the SPD. On the basis of the education law of Duke Ernst II of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, August Köhler established the first training center for teachers and kindergarten teachers. Köhler founded the German Froebel Association for Thuringia in 1863, from which the General Froebel Association emerged in 1872 and the German Froebel Association a year later. All dealt with the teachings of the German "original pedagogue" Friedrich Froebel. The first German crematorium was built in Gotha in 1878.
Favored by the good traffic conditions, the city developed
into an important location for mechanical engineering, the printing
industry and the processing of agricultural raw materials. Aviation
was recognized as a rapidly developing branch very early on
(Fliegerstadt Gotha). In 1910 an airfield with airship hangars and a
military airfield was built near Gotha on the southern slope of the
Kleiner Seeberg. Before the First World War, the company began
manufacturing aircraft. With a Gotha dove, a replica of the Rumpler
construction, Karl Caspar crossed the English Channel to Dover in
1914 and dropped the first bomb to fall on the English mainland. The
bombers known as Gothas carried out the first air raids on a large
city (London) in World War I from 1917. After the defeat in World
War I and the abdication of the Duke as part of the November
Revolution, there was political radicalization that led to armed
fighting in 1920 (Kapp Putsch) and 1923 (Reich execution). Gotha was
the center of the fighting between left and conservative forces in
Thuringia as early as 1918 and also in the following years as the
state capital of the Free State of Saxony-Gotha. It was one of the
few cities in Thuringia where bloody battles broke out at the time.
When the rearmament began, aircraft production in the Gotha wagon
factory was resumed. In addition, Kampfgeschwader 253 "General
Wever", later renamed Kampfgeschwader 4, was set up for the
Luftwaffe.
As part of a comprehensive regional reform, the
district of Gotha was created in 1922, while the city of Gotha
itself remained independent.
During the National Socialist
era, some Gotha residents also resisted the regime. The socialist
editor of the Thuringian People's Newspaper, Otto Geithner, was
arrested by the Nazis and interned in the Buchenwald concentration
camp, but experienced liberation. Otto-Geithner-Strasse was named
after him. The Protestant pastor Werner Sylten worked in the office
of the Confessing Church at Gartenstrasse 29, who organized help for
Jewish Christians. He was murdered in the "euthanasia" institution
in Hartheim (Austria). Werner-Sylten-Strasse is a reminder of him. A
memorial for the victims of fascism has stood in the rose garden
below the castle since 1969 and was demolished in 2011. A new
memorial with the inscription "Honoring memory of the anti-fascist
resistance and the victims of the Nazi regime 1933 - 1945" was built
in 2012 at the Gotha main cemetery and inaugurated on August 31,
2012 at its new location. During the pogrom night of 1938, the Gotha
synagogue was set on fire by the SA. A memorial at the former
location on Moßlerstrasse has been commemorating them since 1988.
Between 1934 and 1943 207 men and 475 women were victims of forced
sterilization. From September 1939 to April 1945, 6,778 forced
laborers and prisoners of war from the countries occupied by Germany
had to do forced labor, mainly in Gotha armaments factories (e.g.
Gothaer wagon factory). 215 victims of forced labor are buried in
the main cemetery. A memorial stone commemorates them.
Air raids in February, August and November 1944, as well as in
February, March and April 3, 1945 caused considerable damage to the
city. The Margarethenkirche was badly hit (in 1952 the exterior was
rebuilt in its old form, the interior was greatly changed). The
state theater burned down (the preserved surrounding walls were
removed in 1958). The Gotha Orangery was partially destroyed. The
neoclassical station hall from 1848 was destroyed and later rebuilt
in a simplified manner. A number of destroyed valuable town houses
were not rebuilt. Lighter damage suffered, among others: the
Augustinerkirche, the Friedrichskirche, Schloss Friedenstein (only
the main portal badly damaged), Schloss Friedrichsthal, Orangery,
Park Temple and House Königsaal (Brühl). This damage was repaired
relatively soon after the end of the war. Overall, Gotha was
destroyed to five percent.
When American units approached at
the end of the Second World War on April 4, 1945, an offer of
surrender by the city commandant Josef Ritter von Gadolla prevented
further serious destruction of the city and unnecessary losses. Von
Gadolla was legally shot for this act the following day in Weimar.
The city was initially occupied by American troops for three months
before it was occupied by Soviet troops in accordance with the
decisions of the Yalta Conference in early July 1945 and Gotha
became part of the Soviet occupation zone.
On April 7, 1946, under pressure from the Soviet occupation
forces, the KPD and SPD in Thuringia were united to form the SED in
Gotha. The monument to Infantry Regiment No. 95, erected in 1927,
was demolished.
After the administrative reform in the GDR,
Gotha was a district town in the Erfurt district. After dismantling
and reconstruction, the city's profile as an industrial city (in
particular vehicle construction, printing (especially cartography),
rubber industry, food) was retained.
Gotha was involved in
the unrest in the GDR on June 17, 1953 and in the days after. So
there was a strike in VEB Lowa-Waggonbau. Preparations for a
demonstration in the city were prevented by SED agitators. The
strike at the same plant on June 18 was carried out with political
demands: the overthrow of the GDR government and free elections. On
that day only the Soviet Army was able to prevent demonstrations
from developing into the city by declaring a state of emergency. The
following night "provocateurs" were arrested. On June 19, striking
workers continued to demand the release of those arrested. Security
organs prevented the plant from leaving for the city under threat of
the use of firearms. VP sub-lieutenant Günter Schwarzer from Gotha
was executed on June 19 for refusing to take action against the
strikers.
The tradition as a non-university education center
of supraregional importance for the entire GDR could be continued
(technical schools for finance, transport technology, construction,
engineering teachers, kindergarten teachers and nurses).
The
museums (castle, regional and natural history museums), the state
and research library, archives and important sights have been
preserved or have been reopened. However, hundreds of works of art
were lost under the American occupation and in 1946 the entire
remainder of the Gotha art collections, the coin cabinet and the
ducal library were transferred to the USSR as looted goods. The main
part of the library (over 90%), the coin cabinet and most of the
works of art returned from the Soviet Union in 1958. In December
1979, the art theft of Gotha, a theft of five paintings from the
exhibition in Friedenstein Castle, was the most serious art theft in
the history of the GDR.
At times, with a population of around
60,000, including students, an all-time high was reached.
Since the post-war period, there have been major losses of
historical buildings in Gotha, especially in the late GDR period.
This included the demolition of the quarter west of the market
square, including the Bürgeraue, as well as most of the houses on
Moßler- and Große-Fahnen-Straße.
The turning point in Gotha was actively brought about by Friday
demonstrations based on prayers for peace. The first demonstration
took place on Friday, October 27, 1989. The highlights were the
peaceful occupation of the District Directorate of State Security on
Dec. 4, 1989 and Willy Brandt's appearance on January 27, 1990 on
the main market in front of thousands of listeners.
After
German reunification in 1990, representative buildings such as the
castle, winter palace, town hall, churches, water art and the Grand
Ducal Museum were repaired. Many residential buildings could also be
renovated with the new options. On the other hand, empty buildings
increasingly fell into disrepair, including those that were listed.
In 2014, an entire row of houses on the Brühl was demolished,
including four houses from the 16th to 18th centuries, a Renaissance
building and the oldest house in Gotha.
In 2020 Gotha was
awarded the honorary title of “Reformation City of Europe” by the
Community of Evangelical Churches in Europe.
As part of the regional reform in Thuringia, the municipalities of Boilstädt and Uelleben were incorporated on July 1, 1994. The formerly independent villages Siebleben and Sundhausen were incorporated in 1922 and 1974 respectively.
From the late 1860s to 1910, Gotha's population doubled due to
economic development due to high industrialization in Germany. The First
World War resulted in a slump of around ten percent, which, however, was
balanced out again by 1919.
After the end of the Second World
War, around 12,000 resettlers and evacuees stayed in the city. This led
to a further increase in the population. In 1975, the population reached
its all-time high of almost 60,000. In the 1970s, an increase to 70,000
inhabitants by the year 2000 was forecast. However, the population
stagnated at the end of the 1980s at between 57,000 and 58,000.
With the fall of the Wall and German reunification, there was a rapid
loss of population. This can be attributed to the high birth deficit of
the years after the reunification and a negative migration balance. The
move at the beginning of the 1990s was largely related to the
surrounding communities of Gotha, in which extensive residential areas
developed. Evidence of this is the increase in population in the
district of Gotha over the same period. At the end of the 1990s and
around the turn of the millennium, however, emigration to the old
federal states increased for economic reasons. In 1997 the number had
dropped to less than 50,000 inhabitants, and this mark has not been
reached since (as of 2019).
In the years from 2005, the negative
migration balance of the city of Gotha was continuously reduced, so that
immigration and emigration were now almost balanced. With the 2011
census, the population register was cleaned up, which reduced the number
of inhabitants by more than 1,000 people. From 2012, however,
immigration to the city will exceed the birth deficit, which initially
leads to stabilization and currently to growth in the number of
inhabitants.
The following overview shows the population
according to the respective territorial status. 1818 it is an estimate,
then census results or official updates of the statistical offices or
the city administration. Before 1843, the number of inhabitants was
determined using inconsistent survey methods.
From the end of the 1860s to 1910, Gotha's population
doubled due to the economic development caused by the high level of
industrialization in Germany. The First World War resulted in a
slump of around ten percent, but this was evened out again by 1919.
After the end of the Second World War there were around 12,000
resettlers and evacuees in the city. This led to a further increase
in the population. In 1975 the population reached its historic high
of almost 60,000. In the 1970s, an increase to 70,000 inhabitants by
the year 2000 was forecast. However, the population stagnated in the
late 1980s to a value between 57,000 and 58,000.
With the
turnaround and German reunification, there was a rapid loss of
population. This can be attributed to the strong birth deficit in
the post-reunification years and a negative migration balance. The
move at the beginning of the 1990s mainly related to the surrounding
communities of Gotha, in which extensive residential areas
developed. Proof of this is the population increase in the Gotha
district over the same period. At the end of the 1990s and around
the turn of the millennium, however, emigration to the old federal
states increased for economic reasons. In 1997 the number had fallen
to below 50,000 inhabitants, this mark has not been reached since
then (as of 2019).
In the years from 2005 onwards, the
negative migration balance of the city of Gotha was continuously
reduced, so that immigration and emigration were now almost
balanced. With the 2011 census, the population registers were
cleaned up, which reduced the population by over 1,000 people. From
2012, however, immigration to the city will exceed the birth
deficit, which will initially lead to a stabilization and currently
to a growth in the population.
The following overview shows
the population figures according to the respective territorial
status. 1818 is an estimate, then census results or official updates
from the statistical offices or the city administration. Before
1843, the number of inhabitants was determined according to
inconsistent survey methods.
The city lies at the transition from the southern edge of the
Thuringian Basin to a foreland region of the Thuringian Forest,
which is known as the West Thuringian mountain and hill country.
The urban area extends between the Trügleber Höhe, the Boxberg
and the Kleiner Seeberg on an area of over 6900 hectares. The
Krahnberg in the northwest is 431.3 m above sea level. the highest
point in the urban area. The lowest point is at 269.4 m above sea
level. in the Heutal.
The city and its surrounding area between the Thuringian Forest
and its foothills in the south and the wooded ridge of the Fahner
Heights in the north are embedded in the varied landscape of the
Thuringian Basin, which is characterized by agriculture.
The
largest elevations are the Krahnberg (431 m) and the Kleine and
Große Seeberg (406 m). In the north-west and south-east they reach
up to the built-up urban area. They were reforested in the 19th
century as urban recreational areas and, together with the
Schlossberg (331 m) rising in the city center, form the natural
framework of the city.
The castle complex on the Schlossberg,
visible from afar, dominates the cityscape. The old town on the
northern slope of the Schlossberg is bordered by the floodplains of
the Wiegwasser in the west and the Wilden Graben or Flutgraben and
the Ratsrinne in the east.
The flood ditch flows through the urban area from south to north. The Rot rises in the Siebleben district, a tributary of the Apple Town. In Gotha-Nord the Wiegwasser runs through the city area. It is a small stream that takes in the water flowing down from the Krahnberg. It rises about 100 m west of the end of Werner-Sylten-Straße and is led, partly underground, to the vicinity of Hersdorfplatz, where it joins the Wilder Graben shortly after it has taken up the Leinakanal.
Neighboring communities are in the north Nessetal, in the east Friemar, Drei Gleichen and Tüttleben, in the south Emleben, Georgenthal and in the west Hörsel. All communities belong to the district of Gotha.
The current mayor, Knut Kreuch (SPD), was elected on May 7, 2006 and
re-elected in 2012 and 2018.
On the second floor of the historic
town hall, directly in front of the "Bürgersaal", a gallery refers to
the previous mayors and mayors of the city of Gotha. The gallery begins
with Carl August Hess. On December 17, 1832, he was elected mayor of the
city of Gotha by the city council and thus became the head of a
completely reorganized urban community. Only his signature is shown,
since a picture of his person is not available. Also without a portrait
is Fritz Schmidt, who became mayor on September 23, 1930 and held this
office until his escape in April 1945. Due to the historical background,
a portrait was deliberately omitted here. Since the city of Gotha was
awarded the title of "large district city" on June 30, 1994, the city
leaders have once again held the title of mayor.
Blazon: "The main shield of the coat of arms consists of two fields,
the upper field in gold, the lower field is divided four times by black
and red. At the heart of the main shield is Saint Gotthard in bishop's
regalia, sitting on the golden cathedra decorated with lions' heads and
legs. The throne rests on a white pedestal.
Over the purple chasuble
he wears the white pallium with the strip hanging over the breast, on
which four black crosses are woven. The miter placed on the bishop's
head surrounded by the halo bears liturgical attributes; in his right
hand he holds the crosier, in his left a codex, the Bible.
In the
upper field of the main shield are shown: A five-towered red mural crown
hovering over the figure of the saint and the style of the patron saint;
in three lines are the letters S. GOTE on the right, the letters HARDVS
(S. Gotehardus) on the left.”
Rail traffic
Railway lines arrive at Gotha station, which was only
provisionally rebuilt after the Second World War, from four directions:
the Thuringian Railway runs in an east-west direction, on which the ICEs
from Dresden to Frankfurt am Main (stops every two hours) and the ICs
from Gotha stop in Gotha Leipzig/Gera via Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe to
Düsseldorf. The Gotha–Leinefelde railway, on which Gotha's Ostbahnhof is
located, branches off to the north.
In addition to the ICE and IC
lines mentioned, the following regional express and regional train lines
run via Gotha station:
RE 1: Göttingen - Leinefelde - Mühlhausen -
Gotha - Erfurt - Weimar - Jena - Gößnitz - Glauchau (every two hours)
(DB Regio Southeast)
RB 20: Eisenach - Gotha - Erfurt - Weimar -
Naumburg (Saale) - Weißenfels - Leipzig Hbf (hourly) (Abellio Rail
Central Germany)
RB 53: Gotha – Bad Langensalza (every two hours) (DB
Regio Southeast)
Operations on the southbound Ohrabahn from Gotha
via Ohrdruf to Gräfenroda (there was a connection to Würzburg) were
discontinued in December 2011.
Transportation
The city and
its immediate surroundings have a tram system, which also includes the
Thuringian Forest Railway. In the city area, three tram lines serve 17
stops on a rail network about eight kilometers long and thus represent
the backbone of urban public transport. A 22 km long interurban line of
the Thuringian Forest Railway connects the city of Gotha with the cities
of Friedrichroda, Waltershausen and the municipality of Bad Tabarz at
the foot of the Thuringian mountain forest.
In the years 2005 to
2007 the extensive renovation of the station forecourt in Gotha took
place. With an investment volume of 12.3 million euros, the entire
station area was reorganized. The area, which until then had been
characterized by brownfield sites and decay, was completely cleared and
newly developed for traffic. The new connection point for city buses,
regional buses and trams was inaugurated in October 2007 and received an
architecture award for its design and urban planning.
road
connections
A 4 Frankfurt am Main – Dresden (connection points
Gotha-Boxberg (41a) and Gotha (42))
B 7 Erfurt - Eisenach
B 247
Mühlhausen - Ohrdruf
State roads to Waltershausen, Arnstadt,
Goldbach, Emleben and Molschleben
air traffic
Special landing
field Gotha Ost (Flugsportverein Gotha e. V.);
The nearest commercial
airport is Erfurt-Weimar Airport, about 15 km to the east.
One of the most important companies in the city was the Gothaer
Waggonfabrik, which from 1898 initially produced trams and from 1913
also airplanes. In 1989, the plant had around 2,150 employees and in
1992 900. The company then split in 1997 into Schmitz Gothaer
Fahrzeugwerke and Gothaer Fahrzeugtechnik.
Schmitz-Gotha
Fahrzeugwerke, created in 1997 by spinning off the vehicle construction
division of the former Gothaer Fahrzeugbau GmbH, is a subsidiary of
Schmitz Cargobull AG, the largest manufacturer of truck trailers in
Europe. Schmitz Cargobull has already invested more than 40 million
euros in its Gotha site in recent years. Annual production capacity is
to be increased to 18,000 vehicles in the 2008/2009 financial year. In
Gotha, Schmitz currently employs around 800 people, including temporary
workers, in the Gotha-Ost industrial park.
Gothaer
Fahrzeugtechnik is one of Gotha's largest companies. A trust company for
mobile and crawler cranes with initially 85 employees until 1997, the
company has specialized in the manufacture of crane mast tips and has
around 400 employees.
An important company is the Gothaer
Brewery, which belongs to the Oettinger Group. It is by far the largest
beer producer in Thuringia. The workforce has dropped to 220 employees.
At the end of 2022, the brewery is to be transferred to the Paulaner
Brewery Group.
In 1992, Hurth Getriebewerk Gotha emerged from the
transmission factory (GDR: VEB Getriebewerk Gotha) founded in 1924. In
1995 the company was taken over by ZF Friedrichshafen AG and renamed ZF
Gotha GmbH. From 1995 to 2011, the company belonged to the ZF Passau
GmbH division with (2009) 177 employees and produced systems for
forklifts. Since 2011, only axle drives for all-wheel drive cars and
SUVs such as the Porsche Cayenne have been assembled in Gotha. The plant
is now a business location of ZF Friedrichshafen AG and is
organizationally assigned to the Drive Technology Division in
Saarbrücken.
Avery Dennison, a manufacturer of self-adhesive
products in the Gotha-Süd commercial area, has around 160 employees.
Bystronic Maschinenbau GmbH (formerly Beyeler) has around 250
employees at its Gotha location with its competence center for press
brakes.
One of the numerous traditional companies was the
Thüringer Weinkellereien Gotha GmbH, which existed until 2009 and made
the Gotha name well-known primarily for its Gotano vermouth.
Other larger companies are C & P Stahlmöbel GmbH & Co. KG,
Spanplattenwerk Gotha GmbH, Pero AG, Durable Hunke & Jochheim GmbH & Co.
KG, Gothaplast GmbH, Weidemann-Maschinenbau GmbH Gotha and Bartsch
International GmbH.
Federal institutions:
Bundeswehr: Friedenstein barracks:
Reconnaissance battalion 13, 3rd and 4th/supply battalion 131, medical
squadron Gotha, parts of the Bundeswehr service center in Erfurt
Technical relief organization: Gotha local branch with platoon, 1st
salvage group, specialist groups for emergency supplies and emergency
repairs (FGr N), electrical supply (FGr E) and heavy transport squad (Tr
TS)
Institutions of the State of Thuringia:
Association for
Land Development and Land Reorganization (VLF) Thuringia
Accident
Insurance Thuringia
Thuringian state institute for forest, hunting
and fishing
Thuringian State Archive Gotha
Gotha Research Library
Research Center Gotha of the University of Erfurt
Thuringian finance
court
Social Court Gotha
Gotha District Court
Perthes-Forum
Gotha: The historic building of the Justus Perthes publishing house,
founded in 1785 at Justus-Perthes-Straße 3-9, was converted into the
Perthes-Forum between 2012 and 2014. The construction measures with a
volume of around 11,000 m³ (€ 18.2 million) were completed in November
2014. Step by step, the Perthes-Forum will now take on extensive depot
holdings from the Gotha Research Library, including the Perthes Gotha
Collection, as well as the depot rooms and restorers' workshops
previously housed in Friedenstein Castle, the library and the archive,
supplemented by a reading room, and the Thuringian State Archive Gotha.
Facilities of the district of Gotha:
District Office Gotha with
all associated authorities and facilities
Compulsory schooling for five to twelve year olds was introduced by
Duke Ernst the Pious in the 17th century and the founding of the Gotha
Gymnasium was completed. As a result, the duchy assumed a pioneering
role in the educational system of Germany at the time.
Today's
school landscape in Gotha is made up as follows:
7 state elementary
schools: "Brothers Grimm", Gotha-Siebleben, "Andreas Reyher", "Ludwig
Bechstein", "Erich Kästner", "Peter Andreas Hansen", "Josias Friedrich
Löffler"
3 state schools: Oststadt Gotha, "Andreas Reyher", "Conrad
Ekhof"
1 cooperative comprehensive school: "Herzog Ernst"
3 high
schools: Arnoldi School, Ernestinum, "Gustav-Freytag"
3 vocational
schools: Vocational school center Gotha-West including vocational high
school, commercial-technical vocational schools, private medical
vocational school in Gotha ("Gobi")
1 evangelical elementary school
1 Protestant regular school (This started school operations in autumn
2009.)
There is also a regional support center (“rainbow
school”), the state support center in Gotha, as well as adult education
centers and music schools.
There are 17 municipal or independent
children's facilities.
With the Thuringian University of Applied
Sciences for Public Administration, the city of Gotha has a facility for
tertiary education and is therefore a university location.
Other
schools of supra-local importance are:
State technical school for
construction, economics and transport in Gotha (the only school in
Thuringia that reports directly to the Free State and not to any school
authority)
Training center of the Thuringian tax administration Gotha
Thuringian State Surveying Office Dept. Training
The Helios Klinikum Gotha is a center for specialist care with around 350 beds. The Helios Kliniken have held shares in the hospital since 1995. In 2015, the district and the city of Ohrdruf agreed to sell their shares in the hospital GmbH to the hospital group.[64] In Gotha, the German Red Cross provides an emergency doctor and a rescue station in the city area at the clinic. In addition, the private rescue service provider rescue ambulance Gotha (formerly rescue service Schmolke) is also represented in the city.