Weimar

Weimar is a city in Germany. It is located at 50° 58 min 6 s north / 11° 18 min 6 s east, in the Bundesland of Thuringia (German: Thüringen), close to the Thüringer Wald to the south, shortly to the northeast of Erfurt, and approximately fifty miles (75 kilometers) southwest of Halle and Leipzig. Its current population is approximately 62,000. The oldest record of the city dates to the year 899.

History

Weimar is one of the great cultural sites of Europe, since it was the home to such luminaries as Bach, Goethe, Schiller, and Herder. It has been a site of pilgrimage for the German intelligentsia since Goethe first moved to Weimar in the late 18th century. The tombs of Goethe, Schiller, and Nietzsche may be found in the city, as may the archives of Goethe and Schiller.

Related Topics:
Cultural - Bach - Goethe - Schiller - Herder - 18th century - Nietzsche

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The period in German history from 1919-1933 is commonly referred to as the Weimar Republic, as the Republic's constitution was drafted here while the capital, Berlin, with its streets rioting after the 1918 revolution, was considered too dangerous for the National Assembly to convene.

Related Topics:
German history - 1919 - 1933 - Weimar Republic - Constitution - Berlin - Riot - 1918

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Weimar was the center of the Bauhaus movement. The city houses art galleries, museums, the German national theatre, and the Bauhaus University, which attracts students specializing in Media and Design, Architechture, and Music from all over Germany. During World War II, there was a concentration camp near Weimar, at Buchenwald, a little wood that Goethe had loved to frequent only 8 kilometers from the city center. More than 55,000 prisoners entered the gates bearing the mottos "Jedem das Seine" and "Recht oder Unrecht - Mein Vaterland" -- "to each his due" and "right or wrong, my fatherland". Visitors today can view areas used for shelter, medical experimentation, cremation, and labor. A somber, disturbing experience, yet one that must be endured.

Related Topics:
Bauhaus - Art - Theatre - Bauhaus University - World War II - Concentration camp - Buchenwald

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From 1949 to 1990 Weimar belonged to the German Democratic Republic.

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UNESCO selected the city as cultural capital of Europe ("Kulturstadt Europas") for 1999.

Related Topics:
UNESCO - 1999

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On September 3, 2004, a fire broke out at the Duchess Anna Amalia Library. The library contains a 13,000-volume-strong collection of Goethe's masterpiece Faust, in addition to a music collection of the Duchess. An authentic Lutheran Bible from 1534 was saved from the fire. The damage toll measures into the millions of dollars. The number of books in this historic library exceeded 1,000,000, of which 40,000 to 50,000 were destroyed. The library belongs to the UNESCO world heritage, and is one of the oldest public libraries in Europe. The fire, with its destruction of much historical literature, amounts to a huge cultural loss for Germany, Europe, and indeed the world. A number of books were shock-frozen in the city of Leipzig to save them from rotting.

Related Topics:
September 3 - 2004 - Fire - Duchess Anna Amalia Library - Faust - Music - Duchess - Lutheran - Bible - 1534 - UNESCO - Literature

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A visit to Weimar would not be complete without a tour of Goethe's home or gardenhouse, a stroll through the picturesque and expansive Park an der Ilm, a sampling of Thüringian Bratwurst from the local vendors at the Markt Platz, or a taste of any of the many decadent (and cheap) ice cream flavors that line the main scenic street, Schillerstrasse.

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