page_title: Meiningen
section_title: Residence of the Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen
hierarchical_section_title: Meiningen / History / Residence of the Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen
context_page_description: Meiningen is a town in the southern part of the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in the region of Franconia and has a population of around 25,000. Meiningen is the capital and the largest town of the Schmalkalden-Meiningen district. From 1680 to 1920, Meiningen was the capital of the Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen.
  Meiningen is considered the cultural, judicial and financial centre of southern Thuringia and thus hosts the state theatre, justice center, state archives, bank buildings and many museums. It is economically reliant on mechanical engineering, high-tech industry and tourism. The dialect and language of the inhabitants is East Franconian.
context_section_description: Between 1680 and 1918, Meiningen was the capital of the Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen. In 1682-92, the ducal palace Schloss Elisabethenburg was built and by 1690 the Court Orchestra had been created. From 1782, the Englischer Garten, an English landscape garden was created in the town center.
  In 1813, a Russian army of 70,000 soldiers and 2,300 officers under Grand Duke Alexander in his campaign against Napoleon camped in and around Meiningen. The Tsar had his quarters in the inn Zum Braune Hirsch, which also served for the entrained Prussian Army as headquarters. In 1782, Friedrich Schiller had been a guest at the inn.
  One of the princesses of Saxe-Meiningen, Adelheid Louise Theresa Caroline Amelia von Sachsen-Meiningen, became the wife of the future King William IV of Great Britain in 1818. The Australian city of Adelaide is named for her.
  Georg II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen, who became a great patron of the theatrical art, was born in 1826. The first Meiningen Court Theatre opened in 1831. The fairy tale collector and writer Ludwig Bechstein was an archivist in Meiningen. In 1858, the town was connected by the Werra Railway to the German railway network. In September 1874, a major fire destroyed a third of the town. The reconstruction took place in Neoclassical style with the financial help of many German and Austrian cities. In the same year, the Schweinfurt–Meiningen railway opened. A new town hall was built in 1878.
  By end of the 19th century and by the beginning of the 20th century, the existence of several large banks made Meiningen an important financial centre in Germany. During these decades, the town stretched out far beyond its ancient limits. New residential areas were built, and the population grew rapidly. Many lavish buildings were built at that time. 1889, the town church was enlarged in the Gothic Revival style. A large fire destroyed the Hoftheater (court theatre) in 1908, it was rebuilt in Neoclassical style and reopened in December 1909. In 1914, the Meiningen Steam Locomotive Works was built.
caption: Meiningen Bernhardstreet in 1835
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