Gräfenthal () is a town in the district of

Saalfeld-Rudolstadt Saalfeld-Rudolstadt is a ''Kreis'' (district) in the south of Thuringia, Germany. Neighboring districts are (from the north clockwise) the districts Weimarer Land, Saale-Holzland, Saale-Orla, the district Kronach in Bavaria, and the districts Sonn ...

in Thuringia, Germany.

Geography

Gräfenthal is located in the southern

Thüringer Schiefergebirge The Thuringian Highland, Thuringian Highlands or Thuringian-Vogtlandian Slate MountainsKohl, Horst; Marcinek, Joachim and Nitz, Bernhard (1986). ''Geography of the German Democratic Republic'', VEB Hermann Haack, Gotha, p. 7 ff. . (german: Thüring ...

, a low mountain range south-eastern of the better known Thuringian Forest. Mountains in this region rise up to 800 meters above sea level and are usually wooded with spruce trees. 20 km north-eastern of Gräfenthal lies district town Saalfeld. Neighboring municipalities (clockwise, starting northwards) are:

Reichmannsdorf Reichmannsdorf is a village and a former municipality in the district Saalfeld-Rudolstadt, in Thuringia, Germany. Since 1 January 2019, it is part of the town Saalfeld. Before, it belonged to the municipal association Lichtetal am Rennsteig, which ...

, Probstzella, Ludwigsstadt, Tettau, Oberland am Rennsteig, Piesau, Lichte, Schmiedefeld Gräfenthal has 8 subdivisions: *Buchbach *Creunitz *Gebersdorf *Gräfenthal *Großneundorf *Lichtenhain *Lippelsdorf *Sommersdorf

History

In 1288 the town was first mentioned. It was for much of its early history under various Ernestine princelings.

Number of inhabitants

* 1994: 3.146 * 1997: 3.036 * 2000: 2.913 * 2003: 2.808 * 2006: 2.692 * 2009: 2.499 * 2012: 2.150 * 2014: 2.056

Pictures

Buildings

*Castle Wespenstein *Grenz- und Heimatmuseum Gräfenthal *Town church, with restored

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...

mural paintings. *Railway viaduct

Economy and infrastructure

Erstwhile mining and the location at the route for commerce between Nuremberg and Leipzig were important economical factors. Mainly iron,

slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...

and

alum An alum () is a type of chemical compound, usually a hydrated double salt, double sulfate salt (chemistry), salt of aluminium with the general chemical formula, formula , where is a valence (chemistry), monovalent cation such as potassium or a ...

had been mined. During the 20th century Gräfenthal was well known for its porcelain products. From the formerly three manufactories only one is still in existence. Today a plastics factory is the main employer. Gräfenthal lies on the road between

Neuhaus am Rennweg Neuhaus am Rennweg is a town in the district of Sonneberg, in Thuringia, Germany. It is situated in the Thuringian Forest, 17 km north of Sonneberg, and 22 km southwest of Saalfeld. The former municipalities Lichte and Piesau wer ...

and Probstzella. Further roads lead to surrounding municipalities. The town used to be connected to the railway-system up until the line section between Sonneberg and Probstzella became disused due to lacking profitability.

Sons and daughters of the town

* Reinhard Höhn (1904-2000), state and administrative lawyer in the

Period of National Socialism Period may refer to: Common uses * Era, a length or span of time * Full stop (or period), a punctuation mark Arts, entertainment, and media * Period (music), a concept in musical composition * Periodic sentence (or rhetorical period), a concept ...

Helmut Lipfert Helmut Lipfert (6 August 1916 – 10 August 1990) was a German Luftwaffe fighter ace and recipient of Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. Lipfert ranks as the world's thirteenth fighter ace. Lipfert was credited with 203 victori ...

(1916-1990), Luftwaffe officer in World War II * Christian Paschold (born 1949), sculptor, artist

References

Saalfeld-Rudolstadt Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen {{SaalfeldRudolstadt-geo-stub