Editing Dresden (section)

==History==
{{For timeline}}

{{Quote box |width=25em |align=right |title_bg=#B0C4DE
|title=Timeline of Dresden <br><small>Historical affiliations</small>
|fontsize=80% |quote={{flagicon image|Generieke vlag van Vlaanderen.svg}} [[Margravate of Meissen]], 1319–1423<br>
{{flagicon image|Flag of Electoral Saxony.svg}} [[Electorate of Saxony]], 1423–1806<br>
{{flagicon image|Flag of Saxony.svg}} [[Kingdom of Saxony]], 1806–1848<br>
{{flagicon image|Flag of Germany.svg}} [[German Empire (1848–1849)|German Empire]], 1848–1849<br>
{{flagicon image|Flag of Saxony.svg}} [[Kingdom of Saxony]], 1849–1918<br>
{{flagicon image|Flag of Germany (1867–1918).svg}} [[North German Confederation]] ([[Kingdom of Saxony]]), 1867–1871<br>
{{flagicon image|Flag of Germany (1867–1918).svg}} [[German Empire]] ([[Kingdom of Saxony]]), 1867–1918<br>
{{flagicon image|Flag of Germany (3-2 aspect ratio).svg}} [[Weimar Republic]] ([[Free State of Saxony]]), 1918–1933<br>
{{flagicon image|Flag of Germany (1935–1945).svg}} [[Nazi Germany]], 1933–1945<br/>
{{flagicon image|Flag of the Soviet Union (1924–1955).svg}} [[Soviet occupation zone of Germany]], 1945–1949<br>
{{flagicon image|Flag of East Germany.svg}} [[East Germany]], 1949–1990<br>
{{flag|Germany}} ([[Free State of Saxony]]), 1990–present
}}

[[File:Cortège des Princes.jpg|thumb|The [[Fürstenzug]]—the Saxon sovereigns depicted in [[Meissen porcelain]]]]

Although Dresden is a relatively recent city that grew from a [[Polabian Slavs|Slavic]] village after [[Germans]] came to dominate the area,<ref name="dresden.de-2">{{cite web|url=http://www.dresden.de/en/02/07/01/c_01.php|title=City of Dresden – Prehistoric times|website=dresden.de|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070819200908/http://www.dresden.de/en/02/07/01/c_01.php|archive-date=19 August 2007}}. Retrieved 24 April 2007.</ref> the area had been settled in the [[Neolithic]] era by [[Linear Pottery culture]] tribes c. [[8th millennium BC|7500 BC]].<ref>Rengert Elburg: [https://www.academia.edu/1160390/Man-animal_relationships_in_the_Early_Neolithic_of_Dresden_Saxony_Germany_ Man-animal relationships in the Early Neolithic of Dresden (Saxony, Germany)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150102022744/http://www.academia.edu/1160390/Man-animal_relationships_in_the_Early_Neolithic_of_Dresden_Saxony_Germany_ |date=2 January 2015 }}</ref> Dresden's founding and early growth is associated with the [[Ostsiedlung|eastward expansion of Germanic peoples]],<ref name="dresden.de-2"/> mining in the nearby [[Ore Mountains]], and the establishment of the [[Margraviate of Meissen]]. Its name comes from [[Sorbian languages|Sorbian]] ''Drježdźany'' (current Upper Sorbian form), meaning "people of the forest", from [[Proto-Slavic language|Proto-Slavic]] ''*dręzga'' ("woods, blowdowns").<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://starlingdb.org/cgi-bin/response.cgi?basename=%5Cdata%5Cie%5Cvasmer&text_word=%D0%B4%D1%80%D1%8F%D0%B7%D0%B3|title=Vasmer's dictionary : Query result|website=starlingdb.org|accessdate=4 April 2023}}</ref> Dresden later evolved into the capital of [[Saxony]].

===Early history===
[[File:Smac Neolithikum 122.jpg|thumb|[[Stroke-ornamented ware culture]] settlement with [[Neolithic circular enclosures in Central Europe|circular enclosures]] in the area of today's Dresden, 4700 BC]]
[[File:dresden 1521.jpg|thumb|Dresden in 1521]]

Around the late 12th century, a [[Sorbs|Sorbian]] settlement called ''Drežďany''<ref name="Fritz Löffler">Fritz Löffler, ''Das alte Dresden'', Leipzig 1982, p.20</ref> (meaning either "woods" or "lowland forest-dweller"<ref>[[Ernst Eichler (Linguist)|Ernst Eichler]] und [[Hans Walther (Onomastiker)|Hans Walther]]: ''Sachsen. Alle Städtenamen und deren Geschichte.'' Faber und Faber Verlag, Leipzig 2007, {{ISBN|978-3-86730-038-4}}, S.&nbsp;54 f.</ref>) had developed on the southern bank. Another settlement existed on the northern bank, but its Slavic name is unknown. It was known as ''Antiqua Dresdin'' by 1350, and later as Altendresden,<ref name="Fritz Löffler"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dresden.de/media/pdf/infoblaetter/historie_altendresden.pdf?PHPSESSID=3b1a560f5b42d55b28790331bf486b97|title=Geschichtlicher Hintergrund des Jubiläums – 600 Jahre Stadtrecht Altendresden|language=de|website=dresden.de|access-date=25 May 2007|archive-date=13 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160313054253/http://www.dresden.de/media/pdf/infoblaetter/historie_altendresden.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> both literally "old Dresden". [[Dietrich, Margrave of Meissen]], chose Dresden as his interim residence in 1206, as documented in a record calling the place "Civitas Dresdene".

After 1270, Dresden became the capital of the margraviate. It was given to [[:de:Friedrich Clem|Friedrich Clem]] after the death of [[Henry III, Margrave of Meissen|Henry the Illustrious]] in 1288. It was taken by the [[Margraviate of Brandenburg]] in 1316 and was restored to the [[House of Wettin|Wettin]] dynasty after the death of [[Waldemar, Margrave of Brandenburg-Stendal|Valdemar the Great]] in 1319. From 1485, it was the seat of the dukes of [[Duchy of Saxony|Saxony]], and from 1547 the [[Prince-elector|electors]] as well.

===Early modern age===
[[File:ZwingerZurVermählungFriedrichAugustII.jpg|thumb|[[Zwinger (Dresden)|Zwinger]], 1719, [[wedding reception]] of [[Augustus III of Poland]] and [[Maria Josepha of Austria]]]]

The [[Rulers of Saxony|Elector]] and ruler of Saxony Frederick Augustus I became King [[Augustus II the Strong]] of [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth|Poland]] in 1697. He gathered many of the best musicians,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://earlymusicworld.com/id16.html|title=Dresden in the Time of Zelenka and Hasse|website=earlymusicworld.com|language=en|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110710163436/http://earlymusicworld.com/id16.html|archive-date=10 July 2011|access-date=26 May 2007}}</ref> architects and painters from all over Europe to Dresden.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sachsen-tourismus.de/pl/regiony/regiony-i-miasta/drezno/|title=Drezno|language=pl|url-status=dead|access-date=20 September 2019|archive-date=28 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160328155417/http://www.sachsen-tourismus.de/pl/regiony/regiony-i-miasta/drezno/}}</ref> His reign marked the beginning of Dresden's emergence as a leading European city for technology and art. During the reign of Kings Augustus II the Strong and [[Augustus III of Poland]] most of the city's [[Baroque architecture|baroque]] landmarks were built. These include the [[Zwinger (Dresden)|Zwinger Royal Palace]], the [[Japanisches Palais|Japanese Palace]], the [[Taschenbergpalais]], the [[Pillnitz Castle]] and the two landmark churches: the Catholic [[Dresden Cathedral|Hofkirche]] and the Lutheran [[Dresden Frauenkirche|Frauenkirche]]. In addition, significant art collections and museums were founded. Notable examples include the [[Dresden Porcelain Collection]], the [[Kupferstich-Kabinett, Dresden|Collection of Prints, Drawings and Photographs]], the [[Grünes Gewölbe]] and the [[Mathematisch-Physikalischer Salon]]. Strengthening ties with Poland, postal routes to [[Poznań]], [[Toruń]] and [[Warsaw]] were established under Augustus II the Strong.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pocztowokurierski.pl/uslugi-pocztowe/szkice-z-historii-poczty/art,13,polska-poczta-w-dobie-saskiej-panowanie-augusta-ii-mocnego.html|title=Polska Poczta w dobie saskiej – panowanie Augusta II Mocnego|author=Rafał Zgorzelski|language=pl|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160531022507/http://www.pocztowokurierski.pl/uslugi-pocztowe/szkice-z-historii-poczty/art,13,polska-poczta-w-dobie-saskiej-panowanie-augusta-ii-mocnego.html|access-date=22 November 2023|archive-date=31 May 2016}}</ref>

In 1726, there was a riot for two days after a Protestant clergyman was killed by a soldier who had recently converted from Catholicism.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Hl4vDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT366|title=A Magnificent Faith: Art and Identity in Lutheran German|last=Heal|first=Bridget|isbn=9780192522405|date=4 August 2017|publisher=Oxford University Press |access-date=19 February 2019|archive-date=17 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200717010202/https://books.google.com/books?id=Hl4vDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT366|url-status=live}}</ref> In 1745, the [[Treaty of Dresden]] between Prussia, Saxony, and Austria ended the [[Second Silesian War]]. Only a few years later, Dresden suffered heavy destruction in the [[Seven Years' War]] (1756–1763), following its capture by Prussian forces, its subsequent re-capture, and a failed [[Siege of Dresden|Prussian siege]] in 1760. [[Friedrich Schiller]] completed his ''[[Ode to Joy]]'' (the literary base of the [[European anthem]]) in Dresden in 1785.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.friedrich-schiller-archiv.de/briefe-schillers/an-georg-goeschen/schiller-an-georg-goeschen-29-november-1785/ |title=Schiller an Georg Göschen, 29. November 1785 |website=Friedrich Schiller Archiv |date=20 August 2013 |language=de |trans-title=Schiller to Georg Göschen, 29 November 1785 |access-date=10 May 2020 |archive-date=3 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803115920/https://www.friedrich-schiller-archiv.de/briefe-schillers/an-georg-goeschen/schiller-an-georg-goeschen-29-november-1785/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1793, preparations for the Polish [[Kościuszko Uprising]] started in the city by [[Tadeusz Kościuszko]] in response to the [[Second Partition of Poland]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://dzieje.pl/aktualnosci/rocznica-insurekcji-kosciuszkowskiej|title=Insurekcja Kościuszkowska - ostatnia próba ratowania Rzeczpospolitej|website=Dzieje.pl|access-date=22 November 2023|language=pl}}</ref>

===19th and early 20th century===
[[File:Brodowski Napoleon Elbe.jpg|thumb|''[[Napoleon]] Crossing the [[Elbe]]'' by [[Józef Brodowski the Younger|Józef Brodowski]] (1895)]]

In 1806, Dresden became the capital of the [[Kingdom of Saxony]] established by [[Napoleon]]. During the [[Napoleonic Wars]] the French Emperor made it a [[Headquarters|base of operations]], winning there the [[Battle of Dresden]] on 27 August 1813. As a result of the [[Congress of Vienna]], the Kingdom of Saxony became part of the [[German Confederation]] in 1815. Following the Polish uprisings of [[November Uprising|1831]], [[Greater Poland uprising (1848)|1848]] and [[January Uprising|1863]] many Poles fled to Dresden, including the artistic and political elite, such as composer [[Frédéric Chopin]], war hero [[Józef Bem]] and writer [[Adam Mickiewicz]].<ref name=ams>{{cite magazine|last=Sadowski|first=Aleksander Marek|year=2022|title=Sachsen und Polen – Tausend Jahre Nachbarschaft / Polska i Saksonia – tysiąc lat sąsiedztwa|magazine=Polonus|language=de,pl|location=Ostritz|issue=5|page=39|issn=2701-6285}}</ref> Mickiewicz wrote one of his greatest works, [[Dziady (poem)|''Dziady'', Part III]], there.<ref name=ams/> Dresden itself was a centre of the [[German revolutions of 1848–49|German Revolutions]] in 1848–1849 with the [[May Uprising in Dresden|May Uprising]], which cost human lives and damaged the historic town of Dresden.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dresdner Maiaufstand |url=https://www.demokratie-geschichte.de/karte/2397 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231018140919/https://www.demokratie-geschichte.de/karte/2397 |archive-date=2023-10-18 |access-date=2024-01-22 |website=AG Orte der Demokratiegeschichte |language=de}}</ref> The uprising forced [[Frederick Augustus II of Saxony]] to flee from Dresden, but he soon after regained control over the city with the help of Prussia. In 1852, the population of Dresden grew to 100,000 inhabitants, making it one of the biggest cities within the German Confederation.

As the capital of the Kingdom of Saxony, Dresden became part of the newly founded [[German Empire]] in 1871. In the following years, the city became a major centre of economy, including motor car production, food processing, banking and the manufacture of [[medical equipment]]. In the early 20th century, Dresden was particularly well known for its camera works and its cigarette factories. During [[World War I]], the city did not suffer any war damage, but lost many of its inhabitants. Between 1918 and 1934, Dresden was the capital of the first Free State of Saxony as well as a cultural and economic centre of the [[Weimar Republic]]. The city was also a centre of European [[modern art]] until 1933.

[[File:Dresdner_Maiaufstand.jpg|thumb|[[May Uprising in Dresden]], 1849]]

====Military history====
[[File:Dresden photochrom2.jpg|thumb|right|Image of Dresden during the 1890s, before extensive World War II destruction. Landmarks include [[Dresden Frauenkirche]], [[Augustus Bridge]], and [[Katholische Hofkirche]].]]

During the foundation of the German Empire in 1871, a large military facility called [[Albertstadt]] was built.<ref>Rüdiger Nern, Erich Sachße, Bert Wawrzinek. ''Die Dresdner Albertstadt''. Dresden, 1994; ''Albertstadt&nbsp;– sämtliche Militärbauten in Dresden''. Dresden, 1880</ref> It had a capacity of up to 20,000 [[Soldier|military personnel]] at the beginning of the [[First World War]]. The garrison saw only limited use between 1918 and 1934, but was then reactivated in preparation for the [[Second World War]].

Its usefulness was limited by attacks on [[Bombing of Dresden in World War II|13–15 February]] and 17 April 1945, the former of which destroyed large areas of the city. However, the garrison itself was not specifically targeted.<ref name="Air Force Historical Studies Office">{{cite web|url=http://www.airforcehistory.hq.af.mil/PopTopics/dresden.htm|title=Historical Analysis of the 14–15 February 1945 Bombings of Dresden|publisher=[[United States Air Force|Air Force Historical Studies Office]]|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100817084455/http://www.airforcehistory.hq.af.mil/PopTopics/dresden.htm|archive-date=17 August 2010}} including a list of all bombings on the railway network (especially towards Bohemia).</ref><ref>Bergander, Götz. ''Dresden im Luftkrieg'': Vorgeschichte-Zerstörung-Folgen, p. 251 ff. Verlag Böhlau 1994, {{ISBN|3-412-10193-1}}</ref> Soldiers had been deployed as late as March 1945 in the Albertstadt garrison.

The Albertstadt garrison became the headquarters of the [[Soviet 1st Guards Tank Army]] in the [[Group of Soviet Forces in Germany]] after the war. Apart from the [[German Army|German army]] officers' school (''Offizierschule des Heeres''), there have been no more [[military unit]]s in Dresden since the army merger during German reunification, and the withdrawal of Soviet forces in 1992. Nowadays, the Bundeswehr operates the [[Militärhistorisches Museum der Bundeswehr|Military History Museum]] of the Federal Republic of Germany in the former Albertstadt garrison.

===Nazi era, Second World War===
[[File:Fotothek df ps 0000010 Blick vom Rathausturm.jpg|thumb|right|The ruins of Dresden in 1945. Facing south from the town hall (''Rathaus'') tower. Statue ''Güte'' (''Good'' or ''Kindness'') by August Schreitmüller, 1908–1910.]]

Two book burnings were organised in the city in 1933, one by the [[Sturmabteilung|SA]] on Wettiner Platz, the second one by [[German Student Union]] at the [[Bismarck tower|Bismarck Column]] on Räcknitzhöhe.<ref>[https://tu-dresden.de/gsw/phil/ige/das-institut/news/gedenken-10-mai?set_language=en TU Dresden reflects on its history: Critical campus tour to commemorate the book burning 90 years ago]</ref>

During the Nazi era from 1933 to 1945, the Jewish community of Dresden was reduced from over 6,000 (7,100 people were persecuted as Jews) to 41, mostly as a result of emigration, but later also deportation and murder.<ref>{{cite web|title=Names of Jewish victims of National Socialism in Dresden between 1933 and 1945|website=Stiftung Sächsische Gedenkstätten|url=https://en.stsg.de/cms/names-jewish-victims-dresden-1933-1945|access-date=20 July 2015|quote=Nearly two thirds of the Dresden Jews succeeded to emigrate before the extermination apparatus started to work.|archive-date=16 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150416025207/https://en.stsg.de/cms/names-jewish-victims-dresden-1933-1945|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Dresden|website=Jewish Virtual Library|url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0006_0_05398.html|access-date=20 July 2015|archive-date=26 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151126063618/https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0006_0_05398.html|url-status=live}}</ref> One of the survivors was [[Victor Klemperer]] with his non-Jewish wife, who believed that the bombing saved their lives.

The [[Semper Synagogue]] was destroyed in November 1938 on [[Kristallnacht]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Image of Kristallnacht, 9th November 1938 - smashing windows, Dresden's Semper Synagogue |url=https://www.bridgemanimages.com/en/noartistknown/kristallnacht-9th-november-1938-smashing-windows-dresden-s-semper-synagogue-is-destroyed/footage/asset/1274772 |access-date=2024-01-22 |website=Bridgeman Images |language=en}}</ref>

During the [[German invasion of Poland]] at the start of [[World War II]], in September 1939, the [[Gestapo]] carried out mass arrests of local [[Polish people|Polish]] activists.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Cygański|first=Mirosław|year=1984|title=Hitlerowskie prześladowania przywódców i aktywu Związków Polaków w Niemczech w latach 1939–1945|journal=Przegląd Zachodni|language=pl|issue=4|page=54}}</ref> Other non-Jews were also targeted, and over 1,300 people were executed by the Nazis at the Münchner Platz, a courthouse in Dresden, including labour leaders, undesirables, resistance fighters and anyone caught listening to foreign radio broadcasts.<ref>{{cite web |title = Victims of the National Socialist judiciary {{!}} Gedenkstätte Münchner Platz Dresden {{!}} Stiftung Sächsische Gedenkstätten |url=https://en.stsg.de/cms/node/775|website=en.stsg.de|access-date=20 July 2015|archive-date=16 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150416025426/https://en.stsg.de/cms/node/775|url-status=live}}</ref> The bombing stopped prisoners who were busy digging a large hole into which an additional 4,000 prisoners were to be disposed of.<ref>{{cite web |title=Dresden WW2 bombing raids killed 25,000 people – but it WASN'T a war crime|url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/dresden-ww2-bombing-raids-killed-5159536|access-date=20 July 2015|first=John|last=Nichol|website=[[Daily Mirror]]|date=13 February 2015|archive-date=23 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180623112955/https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/dresden-ww2-bombing-raids-killed-5159536|url-status=live}}</ref>

During the war, Dresden was the location of several [[Forced labour under German rule during World War II|forced labour]] subcamps of the [[Stalag IV-A]] [[German prisoner-of-war camps in World War II|prisoner-of-war camp]] for [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] POWs,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Megargee|first1=Geoffrey P.|last2=Overmans|first2=Rüdiger|last3=Vogt|first3=Wolfgang|year=2022|title=The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Encyclopedia of Camps and Ghettos 1933–1945. Volume IV|publisher=Indiana University Press, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum|page=413|isbn=978-0-253-06089-1}}</ref> and seven [[List of subcamps of Flossenbürg|subcamps]] of the [[Flossenbürg concentration camp]], in which some 3,600 men, women and children were imprisoned, mostly [[Nazi crimes against the Polish nation|Polish]], Jewish and Russian.<ref name=gf>{{cite web|url=https://www.gedenkstaette-flossenbuerg.de/en/history/subcamps|title=Subcamps|website=KZ-Gedenkstätte Flossenbürg|access-date=22 November 2023}}</ref> In April 1945, most surviving prisoners were sent on [[Death marches during the Holocaust|death marches]] to various destinations in Saxony and [[Occupation of Czechoslovakia (1938–1945)|German-occupied Czechoslovakia]], whereas some women were probably murdered and some managed to escape.<ref name=gf/>

Dresden in the 20th century was a major communications hub and manufacturing centre with 127 factories and major workshops and was designated by the German military as a defensive strongpoint, with which to hinder the Soviet advance.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/dresden-ww2-bombing-raids-killed-5159536 |title = Dresden WW2 bombing raids killed 25,000 people – but it WASN'T a war crime |last=Nichol|first=John|date=13 February 2015|website=mirror|access-date=20 September 2019|archive-date=13 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150413040408/http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/dresden-ww2-bombing-raids-killed-5159536|url-status=live}}</ref> Being the capital of the German state of [[Saxony]], Dresden not only had garrisons but a whole ''military borough'', the ''Albertstadt''.<ref>{{cite book|url=http://www.afhso.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-110208-030.pdf|title=Historical Analysis of the 14–15 February 1945 Bombings of Dresden|last=Angell|first=Joseph W.|publisher=USAF Historical Division Research Studies Institute, [[Air University (United States Air Force)|Air University]], hq.af.mil|year=1953|edition=1962|oclc=878696404|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130218171142/http://www.afhso.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-110208-030.pdf|archive-date=18 February 2013}}: Cites "Interpretation Report No. K. 4171, Dresden, 22 March 1945", Supporting Document No. 3.</ref> This military complex, named after [[Saxon]] King Albert, was not specifically targeted in the [[Bombing of Dresden in World War II|bombing of Dresden]].

During the final months of the Second World War, Dresden harboured some 600,000 refugees, with a total population of {{Nowrap|1.2 million}}. Dresden was attacked seven times between 1944 and 1945, and was [[Soviet occupation zone of Germany|occupied by the Red Army after the German capitulation]].

==== Fire-bombing ====
{{Main|Bombing of Dresden}}
The [[Bombing of Dresden in World War II|bombing of Dresden]] by the [[Royal Air Force]] (RAF) and the [[United States Army Air Forces]] (USAAF) between 13 and 15 February 1945 was controversial. On the night of 13–14 February 1945, 773 RAF Lancaster bombers dropped 1,181.6 tons of incendiary bombs and 1,477.7 tons of high explosive bombs, targeting the rail yards at the centre of the city. The inner city of Dresden was largely destroyed.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/february/14/newsid_3549000/3549905.stm|title=1945: Thousands of bombs destroy Dresden|work=BBC News|date=14 February 1945|access-date=5 May 2009|archive-date=11 August 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100811071519/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/february/14/newsid_3549000/3549905.stm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>([http://www.raf.mod.uk/bombercommand/feb45.html RAF Bomber Command 60th Anniversary – Campaign Diary February 1945] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070607042346/http://www.raf.mod.uk/bombercommand/feb45.html|date=7 June 2007}})</ref> Widely quoted Nazi propaganda reports claimed 200,000 deaths, but the German Dresden Historians' Commission, made up of 13 prominent German historians, in an official 2010 report published after five years of research concluded that casualties numbered between 22,500 and 25,000.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/8574157.stm |title = Up to 25,000 died in Dresden's WWII bombing |publisher=BBC|date=18 March 2010}}</ref>

The destruction of Dresden allowed [[Hildebrand Gurlitt]], a major Nazi Museum director and art dealer, to hide [[Gurlitt Collection|a large collection of artwork]] worth tens of millions of dollars that had been stolen during the Nazi era, as he claimed it had been destroyed along with his house which was located in Dresden.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=How 1,280 Artworks Stolen by the Nazis were Hidden in a Munich Apartment Until 2012|url=http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2014/04/degenerate-art-cornelius-gurlitt-munich-apartment|magazine=Vanity Fair|access-date=20 July 2015|first=Alex|last=Shoumatoff|date=19 March 2014|archive-date=28 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210528133457/https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2014/04/degenerate-art-cornelius-gurlitt-munich-apartment|url-status=live}}</ref>

The Allies described the operation as the legitimate bombing of a military and industrial target.<ref name="Air Force Historical Studies Office" /> Several researchers have argued that the February attacks were [[Proportionality (law)#International law|disproportionate]]. As a result of the bombings, mostly women and children died.<ref>Addison, Paul and Crang, Jeremy A. (eds.). Firestorm: The Bombing of Dresden. Pimlico, 2006. {{ISBN|1-84413-928-X}}. Chapter 9 p.194</ref>

American author [[Kurt Vonnegut]]'s novel ''[[Slaughterhouse Five]]'' is loosely based on his first-hand experience of the raid as a [[prisoner of war]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lettersofnote.com/2009/11/slaughterhouse-five.html|title=Slaughterhouse Five|date=18 November 2009|access-date=20 September 2019|archive-date=19 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161219032831/http://www.lettersofnote.com/2009/11/slaughterhouse-five.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In remembrance of the victims, the anniversaries of the bombing of Dresden are marked with peace demonstrations, devotions and marches.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,4030017,00.html?maca=en-DKpartner_yg_infomix_en-2315-xml-mrss|title=On Dresden Anniversary, Massive Protest Against Neo-Nazi March &#124; Germany &#124; Deutsche Welle &#124; 14.02.2009|publisher=Dw-world.de|access-date=5 May 2009|archive-date=28 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210528133457/https://www.dw.com/en/on-dresden-anniversary-massive-protest-against-neo-nazi-march/a-4030017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.geh-denken.de/joomla/|title=Geh Denken&nbsp;– Startseite|publisher=Geh-denken.de|access-date=5 May 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090429005712/http://www.geh-denken.de/joomla/|archive-date=29 April 2009}}</ref>

===Post-war===
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-60015-0002, Dresden, Denkmal Martin Luther, Frauenkirche, Ruine.jpg|thumb|Statue of Protestant reformer [[Martin Luther]] in the ruins after World War II]]

Following his military service the German press photographer and photojournalist [[Richard Peter]] returned to Dresden and began to document the ruined city. Among his best known works ''Blick auf Dresden vom Rathausturm'' (''View of Dresden from the Rathaus Tower''). It has become one of the best known photographs of a ruined post-war Germany following its appearance in 1949 in his book ''Dresden, eine Kamera klagt an'' ("Dresden, a photographic accusation", {{ISBN|3-930195-03-8}}).<ref name="Jähner-2019">{{cite book |last= Jähner |first= Harald |title= Aftermath: Life in the Fallout of the Third Reich 1945–1955 |location= London |publisher= W H Allen |date= 2019 |pages= 23, 28, 29 |type= Paperback |language= EN |isbn= 9780753557877}}</ref>

When a skeleton previously used  as a model for drawing art classes was found in the ruins of the Dresden Art Academy, the photographer [[Edmund Kesting]] with the assistance of Peter posed it in a number of different locations to produce a series of haunting photographic images to give the impression that Death was wandering through the city in search of the dead.<ref name="Jähner-2019"/> Kesting subsequently published them in the book ''Dresdner Totentanz'' (''Dresden's Death Dance'').

The damage from the Allied air raids was so extensive that following the end of the Second World War, a narrow gauge light railway system was constructed to remove the debris, though being makeshift there were frequent derailments. This railway system, which had seven lines, employed 5,000 staff and 40 locomotives, all of which bore women's names. The last train remained in service until 1958, though the last official debris clearance team was only disbanded in 1977.<ref name="Jähner-2019"/>

Rather than repair them, [[German Democratic Republic]] (East Germany) authorities razed the ruins of many churches, royal buildings and palaces in the 1950s and 1960s, such as the Gothic [[Sophienkirche]], the Alberttheater and the [[Wackerbarth-Palais]] as well as many historic residential buildings. The surroundings of the once lively Prager Straße resembled a wasteland before it was rebuilt in the socialist style at the beginning of the 1960s.

However, the majority of historic buildings were saved or reconstructed. Among them were the Ständehaus (1946), the Augustusbrücke (1949), the Kreuzkirche (completed 1955), the Zwinger (completed 1963), the Catholic Court Church (completed 1965), the Semperoper (completed 1985), the Japanese Palace (completed 1987) and the two largest train stations. Some of this work dragged on for decades, often interrupted by the overall economic situation in the GDR. The ruins of the Frauenkirche were allowed to remain on Neumarkt as a memorial to the war.

While the Theater and Schloßplatz were rebuilt in accordance with the historical model in 1990, the Neumarkt remained completely undeveloped. On the other hand buildings of socialist classicism and spatial design and orientation according to socialist ideals (e.g. Kulturpalast) were built at the Altmarkt.

From 1955 to 1958, a large part of the art treasures looted by the Soviet Union was returned, which meant that from 1960 onwards many state art collections could be opened in reconstructed facilities or interim exhibitions. Important orchestras such as the Staatskapelle performed in alternative venues (for example in the Kulturpalast from 1969). Some cultural institutions were moved out of the city center (for example the state library in Albertstadt). The Outer Neustadt, which was almost undamaged during the war was threatened with demolition in the 1980s following years of neglect, but was preserved following public protests.

To house the homeless large prefabricated housing estates were built on previously undeveloped land In Prohlis and Gorbitz. Damaged housing in the Johannstadt and other areas in the city center were demolished and replaced with large apartment blocks. The villa districts in Blasewitz, Striesen, Kleinzschachwitz, Loschwitz and on the Weißen Hirsch were largely preserved.

Dresden became a major industrial centre of East Germany, with a great deal of research infrastructure. It was the centre of [[Bezirk Dresden]] (Dresden District) between 1952 and 1990. Many of the city's important historic buildings were reconstructed, including the [[Semper Opera House]] and the [[Zwinger Palace]], although the city leaders chose to rebuild large areas of the city in a "socialist modern" style, partly for economic reasons, but also to break away from the city's past as the royal capital of Saxony and a stronghold of the German bourgeoisie.

Until the end of the Cold War, the [[1st Guards Tank Army]] of the Soviet Army and the 7th Panzer Division of the National People's Army were stationed in and around Dresden. Following  reunification in 1989, the Soviet / Russian troops were withdrawn from Germany in the early 1990s and the NVA dissolved in accordance with the provisions of the [[Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany|Two-Plus-Four Treaty of 1990]].

From 1985 to 1990, the future President of Russia, [[Vladimir Putin]], was stationed in Dresden by the [[KGB]], where he worked for [[Lazar Matveev]], the senior [[KGB]] liaison officer there. On 3 October 1989 (the so-called "battle of Dresden"), a convoy of trains carrying East German refugees from [[Prague]] passed through Dresden on its way to the [[West Germany|Federal Republic of Germany]]. Local activists and residents joined in the growing [[civil disobedience]] movement spreading across the German Democratic Republic, by staging demonstrations and demanding the removal of the communist government.

===Post-reunification===
[[File:Sonnedd.jpg|thumb|The [[Frauenkirche, Dresden|Dresden Frauenkirche]], a few years after its reconsecration]]

Dresden has experienced dramatic changes since the reunification of Germany in the early 1990s. The city still bears many wounds from the [[Strategic bombing|bombing raids]] of 1945, but it has undergone significant reconstruction. Restoration of the [[Frauenkirche, Dresden|Dresden Frauenkirche]], a Lutheran church, began in 1994 and was completed in 2005, a year before Dresden's 800th anniversary; this was done with the help of privately raised funds. The gold cross on the top of the church was funded officially by "the British people and the House of Windsor". The [[urban renewal]] process, which includes the reconstruction of the area around the [[Neumarkt (Dresden)|Neumarkt square]] on which the Frauenkirche is situated, was expected to take decades, but numerous large projects were under way in the first part of the 21st century.

Dresden remains a major cultural centre of historical memory, owing to the city's destruction in World War II. Each year on 13 February, the anniversary of the [[Bombing of Dresden in World War II|British and American fire-bombing raid]] that destroyed most of the city, tens of thousands of demonstrators gather to commemorate the event. Since reunification, the ceremony has taken on a more neutral and pacifist tone (after being used more politically during the [[Cold War]]). Beginning in 1999, right-wing [[Neo-Nazi]] [[White Nationalism|white nationalist]] groups have organised demonstrations in Dresden that have been among the largest of their type in the post-war [[history of Germany]]. Each year around the anniversary of the city's destruction, people convene in the memory of those who died in the fire-bombing.

The completion of the reconstructed Dresden Frauenkirche in 2005 marked the first step in rebuilding the [[Neumarkt (Dresden)|Neumarkt]] area. The areas around the square were divided into eight "quarters", with each being rebuilt as a separate project, the majority of buildings to be rebuilt either to the original structure or at least with a facade similar to the original. The quarters I, II, IV, V, VI and VIII have since been completed; quarters III and quarter VII were still partly under construction in 2020.

In 2002, torrential rains caused the [[Elbe]] to flood {{convert|9|m}} above its normal height, i.e., even higher than the old record height from 1845, damaging many landmarks (see [[2002 European floods]]). The destruction from this "millennium flood" is no longer visible, due to the speed of reconstruction.

The United Nations' cultural organization [[UNESCO]] declared the [[Dresden Elbe Valley]] to be a World Heritage Site in 2004.<ref>[https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1156 Dresden Elbe Valley] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191206155054/http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1156 |date=6 December 2019 }}, UNESCO World Heritage Register. Retrieved 27 June 2009.</ref> After being placed on the list of endangered World Heritage Sites in 2006, the city lost the title in June 2009,<ref name="Dresden loses UNESCO world heritage status Archived 29 June 2009 at the Wayback Machine">[http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,4415238,00.html Dresden loses UNESCO world heritage status] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090629055947/http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,4415238,00.html |date=29 June 2009 }}, ''[[Deutsche Welle]]'', 25 June 2009. Retrieved 27 June 2009.</ref><ref name="Connolly-2009">{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/jun/25/dresden-bridge-unesco-heritage-status|title=Bridge takes Dresden off Unesco world heritage list|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=25 June 2009|access-date=27 June 2009|first=Kate|last=Connolly|archive-date=4 March 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130304132042/http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jun/25/dresden-bridge-unesco-heritage-status|url-status=live}}</ref> due to the construction of the ''[[Waldschlößchenbrücke]]'', making it only the second ever World Heritage Site to be removed from the register.<ref name="Dresden loses UNESCO world heritage status Archived 29 June 2009 at the Wayback Machine"/><ref name="Connolly-2009"/> UNESCO stated in 2006 that the bridge would destroy the cultural landscape. The city council's legal moves, meant to prevent the bridge from being built, failed.<ref>{{in lang|de}} [http://www.focus.de/kultur/leben/weltkulturerbe_aid_50621.html Weltkulturerbe: Unesco-Titel in Gefahr] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120517215033/http://www.focus.de/kultur/leben/weltkulturerbe_aid_50621.html |date=17 May 2012 }}, ''[[Focus (German magazine)|Focus]]'', 14 March 2007; accessed 15 May 2007</ref><ref>[https://whc.unesco.org/en/news/522?svc_mode=P&g=260060136539&svc_campaign=information-200906-june&svc_partner=whc.unesco.org&estat_url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/news/522 Dresden is deleted from UNESCO's World Heritage List] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730011810/https://whc.unesco.org/en/news/522?svc_mode=P&g=260060136539&svc_campaign=information-200906-june&svc_partner=whc.unesco.org&estat_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwhc.unesco.org%2Fen%2Fnews%2F522 |date=30 July 2020 }}, ''[[UNESCO World Heritage Centre]]'', 25 June 2009. Retrieved 4 July 2009.</ref>
{{clear}}

{{wide image|Dresden-nightpanorama-dri.jpg|1000px|Modern Dresden by night}}
{{wide image|DD-canaletto-blick.jpg|1000px|Dresden by day ([[Brühl's Terrace]])}}