Schmalkalden, Thuringia, Germany

History

🇩🇪 Schmalkalden is a town in the Schmalkalden-Meiningen district, in the south-west of the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is on the southern slope of the Thuringian Forest at the Schmalkalde river, a tributary to the Werra.

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History First mentioned in an 874 deed, Smalcalta in the Frankish duchy of Thuringia received town privileges about 1180. When Landgrave Henry Raspe of Thuringia died without issue in 1247, it passed to the House of Henneberg-Schleusingen, while the major part of the landgraviate fell to the House of Wettin in Meissen. To secure their acquisition the Counts of Henneberg allied with the Landgraviate of Hesse, including the conclusion of an inheritance treaty. In 1360, together with Landgrave Henry II of Hesse they paid off Frederick V, Burgrave of Nuremberg, son of Elisabeth of Henneberg.

In 1531 the town hall of Schmalkalden was the site of the establishment of the Schmalkaldic League by Protestant princes under the lead of Landgrave Philip I of Hesse, in order to protect religious and political interests within their domains. In 1537 the Smalcald Articles were drawn up by Martin Luther, Philipp Melanchthon and other reformers.

When the Counts of Henneberg became extinct in 1583, their share was inherited by William IV, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel. William made the town a residence and had Wilhelmsburg Castle erected, finished in 1590. The Lordship of Schmalkalden remained an exclave of Hesse, from 1868 on it was part of the Prussian province of Hesse-Nassau until it was incorporated into the Province of Saxony in 1944 and in 1945 became part of the State of Thuringia.

The town sustained heavy bomb damage in World War II. From 1949 on, with Thuringia, it formed part of East Germany. After reunification it attained its present political configuration. In July 2018 the former municipality of Springstille was merged into Schmalkalden.

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Europe/Berlin/Thuringia 
<b>Europe/Berlin/Thuringia</b>
Image: Adobe Stock Edler von Rabenstein #233720128

Schmalkalden has a population of over 19,978 people. Schmalkalden also forms part of the wider Schmalkalden-Meiningen district which has a population of over 124,241 people. It is also a part of the larger Thuringia State. Schmalkalden is situated 26 km north of Meiningen.

Twin Towns, Sister Cities Schmalkalden has links with:

🇫🇷 Fontaine, France 🇫🇷 Fontaine-Vercors, France 🇵🇱 Kościan, Poland 🇧🇬 Montana, Bulgaria 🇩🇪 Recklinghausen, Germany
Text Atribution: Wikipedia Text under CC-BY-SA license

Antipodal to Schmalkalden is: -169.545,-50.723

Locations Near: Schmalkalden 10.4549,50.7234

🇩🇪 Meiningen 10.417,50.55 d: 19.5  

🇩🇪 Bad Salzungen 10.233,50.8 d: 17.8  

🇩🇪 Suhl 10.692,50.612 d: 20.8  

🇩🇪 Eisenach 10.319,50.98 d: 30  

🇩🇪 Gotha 10.697,50.948 d: 30.3  

🇩🇪 Ilmenau 10.92,50.685 d: 33.1  

🇩🇪 Mühlhausen 10.465,51.206 d: 53.6  

🇩🇪 Arnstadt 10.933,50.833 d: 35.8  

🇩🇪 Erfurt 11.023,50.978 d: 48.9  

🇩🇪 Erfurt-Stotternheim 11.033,50.983 d: 49.8  

Antipodal to: Schmalkalden -169.545,-50.723

🇹🇴 Nuku'alofa -175.216,-21.136 d: 16688  

🇦🇸 Pago Pago -170.701,-14.279 d: 15961.3  

🇼🇸 Apia -171.76,-13.833 d: 15908.2  

🇵🇫 Papeete -149.566,-17.537 d: 15921.4  

🇺🇸 Hilo -155.089,19.725 d: 12054.4  

🇺🇸 Maui -156.446,20.72 d: 11967.7  

🇺🇸 Maui County -156.617,20.868 d: 11954.1  

🇺🇸 Wailuku -156.505,20.894 d: 11949.5  

🇺🇸 Kahului -156.466,20.891 d: 11949.1  

🇺🇸 Honolulu -157.85,21.3 d: 11924.6  

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