Editing Erfurt (section)

== History ==
{{see also|Timeline of Erfurt}}

=== Prehistory and antiquity ===
To the west of Erfurt in Frienstedt existed, in the AD era, a big [[Germanic peoples|Germanic]] village, which was found during the construction of a highway. Where they also discovered the oldest Germanic word ever discovered in Central Germany written in [[Runes|runic script]] was found on a comb from a sacrificial shaft the word: "kaba". From [[Ancient Rome|Roman Times]], however, they found 200 coins dating back to the third century, plus 150 Roman ceramic fragments and more than 200 [[Fibula (brooch)|fibulae]]. Also 11 inhumation graves of the Haßleben-Leuna group, which is an archeological cultural group.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Schmidt |first1=Christoph |title=Der mitteldeutsche Fundplatz Frienstedt |url=https://zbsa.eu/der-mitteldeutsche-fundplatz-frienstedt/ |website=Zentrum für Baltische und Skandinavische Archäologie (ZBSA) — Zentrum für Baltische und Skandinavische Archäologie |access-date=9 May 2024 |language=de-DE |date=10 June 2021}}</ref>

The [[Melchendorf]] dig in the southern city part showed a settlement from the [[Neolithic period]].{{Refn|group=note|As with the case of an [[Anthropomorphism#Examples in prehistory|anthropomorhic]] figurine excavated in Erfurt, some researchers including Olaf Höckmann<ref>{{cite journal |last=Höckmann |first=Olaf |title=Menschliche Darstellungen in der bandkeramischen Kultur |trans-title=Human representations in the band ceramic culture |language=de |journal=Jb. RGZM |volume=12 |pages=1–34 |year=1965}}</ref> indicated those were intentionally broken, since Neolithic figurines in human figure were found in fragment in high ratio among excavations in central Europe.<ref>{{cite web |title=Gestures from artefacts within domestic rituals in the Neolithic: different attitudes to certain types of cult objects |first=Eszter |last=Bánffy |url=https://semioticon.com/virtuals/archaeology/banffycork.pdf |page=2 |access-date=2017-09-28 |author-link=Eszter Bánffy |website=semioticon.com |archive-date=9 September 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160909060539/http://www.semioticon.com/virtuals/archaeology/banffycork.pdf |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |chapter=Neolithic Eastern and Central Europe |title=The Oxford Handbook of Prehistoric Figurines |first=Eszter |last=Banffy |editor-first=Timothy |editor-last=Insoll |publisher=Oxford University Press |date=2017-04-13 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CAGpDgAAQBAJ&q=prehistoric+erfurt&pg=PT908 |page=711 |access-date=2017-09-28 |isbn=9780191663109}}</ref><ref>Table of contents is available for "The Oxford Handbook of Prehistoric Figurines" (2017) online.{{cite web |title=Table of Contents |url=http://bvbr.bib-bvb.de:8991/exlibris/aleph/a22_1/apache_media/FYHIP7H9LXV9YD8IL8EGLHBBKMQG41.pdf |access-date=2017-09-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170928060146/http://bvbr.bib-bvb.de:8991/exlibris/aleph/a22_1/apache_media/FYHIP7H9LXV9YD8IL8EGLHBBKMQG41.pdf |archive-date=28 September 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref>}} The [[Thuringii]] inhabited the Erfurt area in ''c.''&nbsp;480 and gave their name to Thuringia in ''c.''&nbsp;500.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Thuringia - Medieval, Reformation, Unification {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Thuringia/History |access-date=2024-05-10 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref>

=== Middle Ages ===
[[File:Schedel erfurt.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Erfurt, woodcut from the ''[[Nuremberg Chronicle]]'', 1493.]]
[[File:Alte Synagoge Erfurt.JPG|thumb|upright=1.2|[[Old Synagogue (Erfurt)|Old Synagogue]], the oldest in Europe (1094).]]
[[File:Collegium Maius Erfurt.JPG|thumb|upright=1.2|''Collegium maius'' building of the old [[University of Erfurt]] (1392)]]
The town is first mentioned in 742 under the name of "Erphesfurt": in that year, [[Saint Boniface]] wrote to [[Pope Zachary]] to inform him that he had established three [[diocese]]s in central Germany, one of them "in a place called Erphesfurt, which for a long time has been inhabited by pagan natives." All three dioceses (the other two were [[Würzburg]] and [[Büraburg]]) were confirmed by Zachary the next year, though in 755 Erfurt was brought into the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Mainz|diocese of Mainz]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Heinemeyer |first=Karl |title=Bonifatius: Heidenopfer, Christuskreuz, Eichenkult |year=2004 |publisher=Stadtverwaltung Erfurt |pages=73–87 |editor=Hardy Eidam |editor2=Marina Moritz |editor3=Gerd-Rainer Riedel |editor4=Kai-Uwe Schierz |language=de |chapter=Bonifatius in Mitteldeutschland}}</ref> That the place was populous already is borne out by archeological evidence, which includes 23 graves and six horse burials from the sixth and seventh centuries.<ref>{{cite book |last=Schmidt |first=Christoph G. |title=Bonifatius: Heidenopfer, Christuskreuz, Eichenkult |year=2004 |publisher=Stadtverwaltung Erfurt |pages=39–56 |editor=Hardy Eidam |editor2=Marina Moritz |editor3=Gerd-Rainer Riedel |editor4=Kai-Uwe Schierz |language=de |chapter=Im Machtbereich der Merowinger: Politische und gesellschaftliche Strukturen in Thüringen vom 6. bis 8. Jahrhundert}}</ref>

Throughout the [[Middle Ages]], Erfurt was an important trading town because of its location, near a [[ford (river)|ford]] across the Gera river. Together with the other five Thuringian [[woad]] towns of [[Gotha (town)|Gotha]], [[Bad Tennstedt|Tennstedt]], [[Arnstadt]] and [[Bad Langensalza|Langensalza]] it was the centre of the German woad trade, which made those cities very wealthy. Erfurt was the junction of important trade routes: the [[Via Regia]] was one of the most used east–west roads between France and Russia (via [[Frankfurt]], Erfurt, [[Leipzig]] and [[Wrocław]]) and another route in the north–south direction was the connection between the [[Baltic Sea]] ports (e. g. [[Lübeck]]) and the potent upper Italian city-states like [[Republic of Venice|Venice]] and [[Milan]].

During the tenth and eleventh centuries both the [[Holy Roman Emperor|Emperor]] and the [[Electorate of Mainz]] held some privileges in Erfurt. The German kings had an important monastery on Petersberg hill and the Archbishops of Mainz collected taxes from the people. Around 1100, some people became free citizens by paying the annual "{{lang|de|Freizins}}" (liberation tax), which marks a first step in becoming an independent city. During the 12th century, as a sign of more and more independence, the citizens built a city wall around Erfurt (in the area of today's {{lang|de|Juri-Gagarin-Ring}}). After 1200, independence was fulfilled and a city council was founded in 1217; the town hall was built in 1275. In the following decades, the council bought a city-owned territory around Erfurt which consisted at its height of nearly 100 villages and castles and even another small town ([[Sömmerda]]). Erfurt became an important regional power between the [[Landgraviate of Thuringia]] around, the Electorate of Mainz to the west and the [[Electorate of Saxony]] to the east. Between 1306 and 1481, Erfurt was allied with the two other major Thuringian cities ([[Mühlhausen]] and [[Nordhausen, Thuringia|Nordhausen]]) in the Thuringian City Alliance and the three cities joined the [[Hanseatic League]] together in 1430. A peak in economic development was reached in the 15th century, when the city had a population of 20,000 making it one of the largest in Germany. Between 1432 and 1446, a second and higher city wall was established. In 1483, a first city fortress was built on Cyriaksburg hill in the southwestern part of the town.

In the year 1184, Erfurt was the location of a notable accident called the ''[[Erfurter Latrinensturz]]'' ('Erfurt latrine fall'). King [[Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor|Henry VI]] held council in a building of the [[Erfurt Cathedral]] to negotiate peace between two of his vassals, Archbishop Konrad I of Mainz and Landgrave Ludwig III of [[Thuringia]]. The amassed weight of all the gathered men proved too heavy for the floor to bear, which collapsed. According to contemporary accounts, dozens of people fell to their death into the [[latrine]] pit below. Ludwig III, Konrad I and Henry VI survived the affair.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.genealogie-mittelalter.de/ludowinger_landgrafen_von_thueringen/chronik_zu_erfurt.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101004181057/http://www.genealogie-mittelalter.de/ludowinger_landgrafen_von_thueringen/chronik_zu_erfurt.html |url-status=dead |title=Chronicle of Erfurt |website=Web Archive |archive-date=2010-10-04}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.thefortweekly.com/issues/issue-1/curio-1-the-erfurter-latrinensturz/ |title=Curio #1: The Erfurter Latrinensturz – The Fortweekly |language=en-US |access-date=2019-09-04 |archive-date=3 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190903042810/http://www.thefortweekly.com/issues/issue-1/curio-1-the-erfurter-latrinensturz/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

The Jewish community of Erfurt was founded in the 11th century. Together with the Jewish communities in [[Mainz]], [[Worms, Germany|Worms]] and [[Speyer]], it became one of the most influential in Germany. The [[Old Synagogue (Erfurt)|Old Synagogue]] is still extant and is a museum today, as is the [[mikveh]] at Gera river near {{lang|de|Krämerbrücke}}.<ref name="mikveh">Archeologists Discover Medieval Jewish Bath in Erfurt, 12.04.2007, Deutsche Welle, [http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2440473,00.html] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070713002201/http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2440473,00.html|date=13 July 2007}}</ref> In 1349, during the wave of [[Black Death Jewish persecutions]] across Europe, the Jews of Erfurt were rounded up, with [[Erfurt massacre (1349)|more than 100 killed]] and the rest driven from the city. Before the persecution, a wealthy Jewish merchant buried his property in the basement of his house. In 1998, this treasure was found during construction works. The [[Erfurt Treasure]] with various gold and silver objects is shown in the exhibition in the synagogue today.<ref name="AID">{{cite journal |last=Stürzebecher |first=Maria |title=Zwei Schätze: Zeugnisse jüdischer Kultur in Erfurt |journal=Archäologie in Deutschland |issue=3/2014 |pages=32–35 |publisher=WGB |location=Darmstadt |date=June–July 2014 |language=de |issn=0176-8522}}</ref> Only a few years after 1349, the Jews moved back to Erfurt and founded a second community, which was disbanded by the city council in 1454.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-05-01 |title=Jewish Community |url=https://juedisches-leben.erfurt.de/jl/en/middle-ages/jcommunity/index.html |access-date=2024-05-13 |website=Jüdisches Leben |language=en}}</ref> Because of their exceptional testimony to the life of a medieval Jewish community, the Jewish sites in Erfurt were inscribed on the [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage List]] in 2023.<ref name = "unesco">{{cite web |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1656 |title=Jewish-Medieval Heritage of Erfurt |website=UNESCO World Heritage Convention |publisher=UNESCO |access-date=3 December 2023 |archive-date=20 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230920122841/https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1656 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1379,<ref name="ReferenceA">{{cite web |url=https://www.uni-erfurt.de/en/university-of-erfurt/portrait/history-and-buildings/ |title=History and Buildings |access-date=31 January 2016 |archive-date=31 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170731033906/https://www.uni-erfurt.de/en/university-of-erfurt/portrait/history-and-buildings/ |url-status=dead}}</ref> the [[University of Erfurt]] was founded. Together with the [[University of Cologne]] it was one of the first city-owned universities in Germany, while they were usually owned by the ''{{lang|de|[[Territorial lord|Landesherren]]}}''. Some buildings of this old university are extant or restored in the "Latin Quarter" in the northern city centre (like {{lang|la|Collegium Maius}}, student dorms "{{lang|de|Georgenburse}}" and others, the hospital and the church of the university). The university quickly became a hotspot of German cultural life in [[Renaissance humanism]] with scholars like [[Ulrich von Hutten]], [[Helius Eobanus Hessus]] and [[Justus Jonas]].{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

=== Early modern period ===
[[File:Erfurt-1650-Merian.jpg|thumb|left|Erfurt in 1650.]]
[[File:Luftbild Statthalterei.jpg|thumb|''{{lang|de|[[:de:Kurmainzische Statthalterei|Kurmainzische Statthalterei]]}}'', seat of the governors of Erfurt (at front).]]
[[File:Erfurt (German States) 1645 10 Ducat (Portugaloser).jpg|thumb|Christina, Queen of Sweden, depicted on a 1645 Erfurt 10 ducat coin.{{refn|group=note|Between 1631 and 1648, during the Thirty Years' War, Erfurt was occupied by Swedish forces,<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tXSrLbIEDBMC |pages=490–491 |title=Standard Catalog of World Gold Coins 1601 – present |edition=6 |publisher=Krause |isbn=978-1-4402-0424-1 |editor-last=Cuhaj |editor-first=George S. |year=2009a }}{{Dead link|date=January 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> thus the [[effigy]] of Queen Christina appears on the 1645 Erfurt 10 [[Ducat]] (Portugaloser). There are seven gold coins known to exist bearing the effigy of Queen Christina: a unique 1649 five ducat,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Friedberg |first1=Arthur |last2=Friedberg |first2=Ira |year=2009 |title=Gold Coins of the World: From Ancient Times to the Present |pages=688–89 |publisher=The Coin & Currency Institute |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TlnoMdZu40UC |edition=8 |isbn=978-0-87184-308-1}}</ref> and six 1645 10 ducat specimen.<ref>{{Citation |title=Kunker Rarities Auction |url=http://news.coinupdate.com/kunker-auctions-preview-1573 |access-date=1 March 2015 |archive-date=23 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230123113043/http://news.coinupdate.com/kunker-auctions-preview-1573/ |url-status=live }}</ref>}}]]
In 1501 [[Martin Luther]] (1483–1546) moved to Erfurt and began his studies at the university. After 1505, he lived at [[St. Augustine's Monastery (Erfurt)|St. Augustine's Monastery]] as a friar. In 1507 he was ordained as a priest in Erfurt Cathedral. He moved permanently to [[Wittenberg]] in 1511. Erfurt was an early adopter of the [[Protestant Reformation]], in 1521.<ref>Metaxas, Eric (2017) ''Martin Luther: The Man Who Rediscovered God and Changed the World'', New York: Viking Press.</ref>

In 1530, the city became one of the first in Europe to be officially bi-confessional with the [[Hammelburg]] Treaty. It kept that status through all the following centuries. The later 16th and the 17th century brought a slow economic decline of Erfurt. Trade shrank, the population was falling and the university lost its influence. The city's independence was endangered. In 1664, the city and surrounding area were brought under the dominion of the [[Electorate of Mainz]] and the city lost its independence. The Electorate built a huge fortress on Petersberg hill between 1665 and 1726 to control the city and instituted a governor to rule Erfurt.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

In 1682 and 1683 Erfurt experienced the worst [[Black Death|plague]] years in its history. In 1683 more than half of the population died because of the deadly disease.<ref>{{cite book | last=Kohn | first=G.C. | title=Encyclopedia of Plague and Pestilence: From Ancient Times to the Present | publisher=Facts On File, Incorporated | series=Facts on File Library of World History | year=2007 | isbn=978-1-4381-2923-5 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tzRwRmb09rgC&pg=PA143 | access-date=2024-09-08 | page=143}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | title=The Journal of Hellenic Studies | publisher=Council of the Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies | year=1916 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qEw906pmz6EC&pg=PA153 | access-date=2024-09-08 | page=153}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last=Aikin | first=J.P. | title=A Ruler's Consort in Early Modern Germany: Aemilia Juliana of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt | publisher=Taylor & Francis | series=Women and Gender in the Early Modern World | year=2016 | isbn=978-1-317-18684-7 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V8WlDQAAQBAJ&pg=PT131 | access-date=2024-09-08 | page=131}}</ref>

In Erfurt, [[witch-hunt]]s are known to have taken place from 1526 to 1705. Trial records are incomplete. Twenty people were involved in witch trials, and at least eight people died.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

During the late 18th century, Erfurt saw another cultural peak. Governor [[Karl Theodor Anton Maria von Dalberg]] had close relations with [[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe]], [[Friedrich Schiller]], [[Johann Gottfried Herder]], [[Christoph Martin Wieland]] and [[Wilhelm von Humboldt]], who often visited him at his court in Erfurt.{{cn|date=March 2025}}

=== Erfurt during the Napoleonic Wars ===
{{main|Principality of Erfurt}}
[[File:Die Napoleonshöhe im Steiger bei Erfurt von NH Dornheim.jpg|thumb|''{{lang|de|Die Napoleonshöhe im Steiger bei Erfurt}}'', painted by {{Interlanguage link multi|Nikolaus Dornheim|de|3=Nikolaus Christian Heinrich Dornheim}} in 1812. Inaugurated in March 1811 to celebrate [[Napoleon]]'s birthday, this [[Greek Revival architecture|Greek-style]] [[temple]] with grotto, flowerbeds and fountain in the ''{{lang|de|Stiegerwald}}'' was burned in November 1813 and completely destroyed by Erfurters and their [[War of the Sixth Coalition|besiegers]] in 1814.]]
Erfurt became part of the [[Kingdom of Prussia]] in 1802, to compensate for territories Prussia lost to France on the [[Left Bank of the Rhine]].<ref name="Reichsdeputationshauptschluss documentArchive.de">{{Cite web |title=Hauptschluß der ausserordentlichen Reichsdeputation |publisher=documentArchiv.de |url=http://www.documentarchiv.de/nzjh/rdhs1803.html |date=25 February 1803 |access-date=17 January 2016 |language=de |archive-date=4 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230204205532/http://www.documentarchiv.de/nzjh/rdhs1803.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Reichsdeputationshauptschluss Wikisource">{{ws|The full text of [[:de:s:Hauptschluß der außerordentlichen Reichsdeputation vom 25. Februar 1803|Hauptschluß der außerordentlichen Reichsdeputation vom 25. Februar 1803]] at German Wikisource}}</ref> In the [[Capitulation of Erfurt]], the city, its 12,000 Prussian and Saxon defenders under [[William I of the Netherlands|William VI, Prince of Orange-Nassau]], 65 artillery pieces, and the [[Petersberg Citadel]] and Cyriaksburg Citadel [[:de:Zitadelle Cyriaksburg|Cyriaksburg]], were handed over to the French on 16 October 1806.<ref name="Petre 1907/1993">{{cite book |author=Francis Loraine Petre |title=Napoleon's Conquest of Prussia 1806 |publisher=[[Lionel Leventhal]] |year=1993 |orig-year=First published 1907 |isbn=1-85367-145-2 |pages=194–95 |author-link=Francis Loraine Petre}}</ref> At the time of the capitulation, [[Joachim Murat]], [[Marshal of France]], had about 16,000 troops near Erfurt.<ref name="Smith 1998">{{cite book |author=Digby Smith |title=The Napoleonic Wars Data Book |publisher=Greenhill |year=1998 |isbn=1-85367-276-9 |page=226 |author-link=Digby Smith}}</ref> With the attachment of the [[Saxe-Weimar]] territory of [[Blankenhain]], the city became part of the [[First French Empire]] in 1806 as the [[Principality of Erfurt]], directly subordinate to Napoleon as an "imperial state domain" ({{langx|fr|domaine réservé à l'empereur}}), separate from the [[Confederation of the Rhine]], which the surrounding [[Thuringia]]n states had joined.<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1806–1814">{{cite web |url=http://www.erfurt.de/ef/de/erleben/entdecken/geschichte/chronik/111885.html |title=1806–1814: Erfurt unter französischer Besetzung |date=22 January 2013 |trans-title=1806–1814: Erfurt under French occupation |publisher=Erfurt Stadtverwaltung [Erfurt city administration] |language=de |access-date=2 January 2016 |archive-date=25 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220925043753/https://www.erfurt.de/ef/de/erleben/entdecken/geschichte/chronik/111885.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Erfurt was administered by a civilian and military Senate<ref name="Fürstenkongress">{{cite web |url=http://www.erfurter-fuerstenkongress-1808.de/historie.htm |title=Kurzer historischer Überblick |trans-title=Brief historical overview |work=Napoleon's Fürstenkongress Erfurt |publisher=Euratibor |language=de |access-date=2 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304080322/http://www.erfurter-fuerstenkongress-1808.de/historie.htm |archive-date=4 March 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref> (''{{lang|de|Finanz- und Domänenkammer Erfurt}}'')<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1806–1814"/> under a French governor, based in the {{lang|de|[[:de:Kurmainzische Statthalterei|Kurmainzische Statthalterei]]}}, previously the seat of the city's governor under the Electorate.<ref name="Fürstenkongress"/> Napoleon first visited the principality on 23 July 1807, inspecting the citadels and fortifications.<ref name="Fürstenkongress"/> In 1808, the [[Congress of Erfurt]] was held with [[Napoleon]] and [[Alexander I of Russia]] visiting the city.<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1806–1814"/><ref>{{Cite web |title=Erfurt 1808. The Emperor honours German literature |url=https://www.napoleon.org/en/history-of-the-two-empires/articles/erfurt-1808-the-emperor-honours-german-literature/ |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=napoleon.org |language=en-US}}</ref>

During their administration, the French introduced [[street light]]ing and a tax on foreign horses to pay for maintaining the [[road surface]].<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1806–1814"/> The {{lang|de|[[:de:Peterskirche (Erfurt)|Peterskirche]]}} suffered under the French occupation, with its inventory being auctioned off to other local churches – including the [[organ (music)|organ]], [[church bell|bells]] and even the [[steeple|tower]] of the {{lang|la|Corpus Christi}} chapel (''{{lang|de|Fronleichnamskapelle}}'') – and the former monastery's library being donated to the [[University of Erfurt]] (and then to the Boineburg Library when the university closed in 1816).<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1806–1814"/> Similarly the Cyriaksburg Citadel was damaged by the French, with the city-side walls being partially dismantled in the hunt for imagined treasures from the convent, workers being paid from the sale of the building materials.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=upBXAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA21 |title=Ruinen oder Taschenbuch zur Geschichte verfallener Ritterburgen und Schlößer (etc.) |trans-title=Ruins, or: A pocketbook on the history of dilapidated knights' castles |author=Gerhard Robert Walter von Coeckelberghe-Dützele |publisher=Mich. Lechner |date=1834 |page=21 |access-date=23 January 2016 |language=de |quote=''{{lang|de|Nach der unglücklichen Schlacht bei Jena und dem Rückzuge der Preußen, wurde sie durch Kapitulation den Franzosen übergeben, und erhielt anfangs eine ziemlich starke Besatzung; doch wurde sie in der Folge so von ihnen vernachläßigt, daß in einer gewissen Epoche der Marketender Sturm mit seiner Familie und ein alter Unteroffizier ihre ganze Garnison ausmachten. Damals war es, wo der Intendant Devismes und der Domainen-Direktor Gentil in der nach der Stadt zugekehrten Seite der Mauer einen Schatz suchen ließ, der noch aus den Zeiten des ehemaligen Benedektiner-Nonnenklosters hier versteckt seyn sollte, ohne zu bedenken, daß zufolge der oben angeführten, an der Mauer befindlichen Inschrift, kein Schatz von 1478 her in einer Mauer versteckt seyn konnte, die über 100 Jahre darnach erst erbaut worden war; aber die Habsucht eilte hier jeder nähern Untersuchung vor. Bei dieser Gelegenheit wurde auch die alte Burgkapelle demoliert und aus den verkauften Baumaterialien die Arbeiter bezahlt, die beim Schatzgraben hilfreiche Hand geleistet hatten.}}'' [After the unfortunate battle of Jena and the retreat of the Prussians, it was handed over by capitulation to the French, and was initially fairly strongly garrisoned; but was subsequently so neglected that at one time the whole garrison consisted of the [[wikt:sutler|sutler]] Sturm with his family and an old sergeant. At that time, Intendant {{Interlanguage link multi|Pierre Jean Louis de Vismes |lt=de Vismes|fr|Pierre Jean Louis de Vismes}} and Domain-Director Gentil searched in the city-side walls for treasure hidden since the times of the former Benedictine nunnery – without considering that an inscription located on the wall above showed that it had been built just over 100 years later, so no treasure could have been hidden there in 1478, but greed hastened this before any closer investigation. On that occasion the old chapel was demolished, and the workers who had helped dig for treasure were paid from the sale of the building materials.] |archive-date=13 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231113191817/https://books.google.com/books?id=upBXAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA21#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref><!-- ; not being properly repaired until over a decade later, under the Prussians.{{Citation needed |date=January 2016}} -- unsourced within [[:de:Zitadelle Cyriaksburg]] -->

In 1811, to commemorate the birth of the [[Napoleon II|Prince Imperial]], a {{convert|70|ft|adj=on|abbr=off}} ceremonial [[column]] (''{{lang|de|Die Napoleonsäule}}'') of wood and plaster was erected on the [[common land|common]].<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1806–1814"/><ref name="Denkmale Erfurts">{{cite web |url=http://www.thueringer-naturbrief.de/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=97&Itemid=187&limit=1&limitstart=5 |title=Denkmale Erfurts 1806–1814 |trans-title=Monuments of Erfurt 1806–1814 |publisher=Thüringer Naturbrief |language=de |access-date=3 January 2016 |archive-date=25 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220925043753/https://www.thueringer-naturbrief.de/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=97&Itemid=187&limit=1&limitstart=5 |url-status=live }}</ref> Similarly, the ''{{lang|de|Napoleonshöhe}}'' – a [[Greek Revival architecture|Greek-style]] [[temple]] topped by a [[Winged Victory of Samothrace|winged victory]] with shield, sword and lance and containing a [[bust (sculpture)|bust]] of Napoleon sculpted by [[Friedrich Wilhelm Eugen Döll|Friedrich Döll]]<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1806–1814"/><ref name="Denkmale Erfurts"/><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PnLrCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA82 |title=Die Belagerung von Erfurt 1813–1814 |trans-title=The Siege of Erfurt 1813–1814 |author=Frank Palmowski |publisher=Sutton Verlag |date=2015 |orig-year=First published 2013 |isbn=978-3-954-00604-5 |page=82 |language=de |access-date=23 September 2020 |archive-date=13 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231113191707/https://books.google.com/books?id=PnLrCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA82#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> – was erected in the ''{{lang|de|Stiegerwald}}'' woods, including a grotto with fountain and flower beds, using a large pond (''{{lang|la|lavoratorium}}'') from the {{lang|de|Peterskirche}},<ref name="Denkmale Erfurts"/> inaugurated with ceremony on 14 August 1811 after extravagant celebrations for Napoleon's birthday,<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1806–1814"/> which were repeated in 1812 with a concert in the {{lang|de|[[Predigerkirche (Erfurt)|Predigerkirche]]}} conducted by [[Louis Spohr]].<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1806–1814"/>

With the [[War of the Sixth Coalition|Sixth Coalition]] forming after French defeat in Russia, on 24 February 1813 Napoleon ordered the Petersburg Citadel to prepare for [[siege]], visiting the city on 25 April to inspect the fortifications, in particular both Citadels.<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1806–1814"/> On 10 July 1813, Napoleon put {{Interlanguage link multi|Alexandre d'Alton|fr}}, [[nobility of the First French Empire|baron of the Empire]], in charge of the defences of Erfurt.<!-- ref name="Koch" confirms d'Alton's name (see below) but the date and his rank as Baron of the Empire are unsourced within [[:de:Belagerung von Erfurt (1813)]] and [[:fr:Alexandre d'Alton]]--> However, when the French decreed that 1000 men would be conscripted into the {{lang|fr|Grande Armée}}, the recruits were joined by other citizens in rioting on 19 July that led to 20 arrests, of whom 2 were [[capital punishment|sentenced to death]] by French [[court-martial]];<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1806–1814"/> as a result, the French ordered the closure of all inns and alehouses.<ref>{{cite book |editor=Willibald Gutsche |title=Geschichte der Stadt Erfurt |trans-title=History of the city of Erfurt |edition=2nd revised |language=de |location=Weimar |publisher=Böhlau |year=1989 |isbn=3-7400-0095-3}}</ref>

Within a week of the Sixth Coalition's decisive [[battle of Leipzig|victory at Leipzig]] (16–19 October 1813), however, Erfurt was besieged by Prussian, Austrian and Russian troops under the command of Prussian Lt Gen [[Friedrich Graf Kleist von Nollendorf|von Kleist]].<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1806–1814"/><ref name="Koch">{{cite book |author=Christoph Wilhelm von Koch |title=Histoire abrégée des traités de paix entre les puissances de l'Europe depuis la paix de Westphalie, Volume 3 |trans-title=Abridged history of the peace treaties between the powers of Europe since the Peace of Westphalia, Volume 3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7lw_AAAAcAAJ&pg=PA303 |publisher=Meline, Cans et Compagnie |year=1838 |language=fr |quote=''{{lang|fr|Le général Kleist assiégeait Erfurt. Par suite d'une capitulation signée le 20 décembre, le générale français d'Alton se retira dans les deux forts de Petersberg et Cyriacsbourg, et la ville fut remise aux Prussiens le 6 janvier 1814.}}'' [General Kleist laid siege to Erfurt. As a result of a capitulation signed on 20 December, the French general d'Alton withdrew to the two forts of Petersberg and Cyriaksburg, and the town was handed over to the Prussians on 6 January 1814.] |author-link=Christoph Wilhelm von Koch |access-date=23 September 2020 |archive-date=13 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231113191707/https://books.google.com/books?id=7lw_AAAAcAAJ&pg=PA303#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> After a first capitulation signed by d'Alton on 20 December 1813 the French troops withdrew to the two fortresses of Petersberg and Cyriaksburg,<ref name="Koch"/> allowing for the Coalition forces to march into Erfurt on 6 January 1814 to jubilant greetings;<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1814–1850">{{cite web |url=http://www.erfurt.de/ef/de/erleben/entdecken/geschichte/chronik/111888.html |title=1814–1850: Erfurt im preußischen Staat |date=22 January 2013 |trans-title=1814–1850: Erfurt in the Prussian state |publisher=Erfurt Stadtverwaltung [Erfurt city administration] |language=de |access-date=3 January 2016 |archive-date=22 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922074157/https://www.erfurt.de/ef/de/erleben/entdecken/geschichte/chronik/111888.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Hühn 1839">{{citation |author=Georg Friedrich Hühn |title=Kurzgefasste Nachricht von der Belagerung, Blokade und Einzug der Königlich Preußischen Truppen in Erfurt. Vom 21sten Oktober 1813 bis zum 8ten Januar 1814. In einem Briefe als ein Journal abgefasst, und an einen vertrauten Freund abgesendet. Bei Gelegenheit der 25jährigen Jubelfeier neu abgedruckt |trans-title=Concise news of the siege, blockade and entry of the Royal Prussian troops into Erfurt. From 21 October 1813 to 8 January 1814. In a letter as a journal written and sent to a trusted friend. Reprinted on the occasion of the 25th jubilee |location=Erfurt |year=1839 |postscript=.}}</ref> the ''{{lang|de|Napoleonsäule}}'' ceremonial column was burned and destroyed as a symbol of the citizens' oppression under the French;<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1806–1814"/><ref name="Denkmale Erfurts"/><ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1814–1850"/><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PnLrCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA25 |title=Die Belagerung von Erfurt 1813–1814 |trans-title=The Siege of Erfurt 1813–1814 |author=Frank Palmowski |publisher=Sutton Verlag |date=2015 |orig-year=First published 2013 |isbn=978-3-954-00604-5 |page=25 |access-date=17 January 2016 |language=de |quote=''{{lang|de|Preußische Truppen marschieren in der Stadt ein. Auf dem Anger kommt es zu Jubelszenen. Der Napoleon-Obelisk wird zerstört.}}'' [Prussian troops march into the city. On the Anger this leads to scenes of jubilation. The Napoleon obelisk is destroyed.]}}</ref> similarly the ''{{lang|de|Napoleonshöhe}}'' was burned on 1 November 1813 and completely destroyed by Erfurters and their besiegers in 1814.<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1806–1814"/><ref name="Denkmale Erfurts"/><!-- This paragraph might also benefit Beck's painting of the Napoleonsäule all aflame, also from<ref name="Denkmale Erfurts"/>; while his DoD is unclear it will clearly be more than 70ya, so that painting too will be out of copyright. --> After a call for volunteers 3 days later, 300 Erfurters joined the Coalition armies in France.<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1814–1850"/> Finally, in May 1814, the French capitulated fully,<!-- date 5 May is unsourced within [[:de:Peterskirche (Erfurt)]] --> with 1,700 French troops vacating the Petersberg and Cyriaksburg fortresses.<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1814–1850"/><!-- date 7 May is contradicted by [[:de:Belagerung von Erfurt (1813)]] --> During the two and a half months of siege, the mortality rate rose in the city greatly; 1,564 Erfurt citizens died in 1813, around a thousand more than the previous year.<ref name="Hühn 1839"/>

After the [[Congress of Vienna]], Erfurt was restored to [[Kingdom of Prussia|Prussia]] on 21 June 1815, becoming the capital of one of the three districts (''{{lang|de|Regierungsbezirke}}'') of the new [[Province of Saxony]], but some southern and eastern parts of Erfurter lands joined Blankenhain in being transferred to the [[Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach]] the following September.<ref name="Erfurt Chronik 1814–1850"/> Although enclosed by [[Thuringia]]n territory in the west, south and east, the city remained part of the Prussian [[Province of Saxony]] until 1944.<ref name=":0" />

=== Since 1815 ===
[[File:Kaffeetrichter2.JPG|thumb|left|Streetscape in the southern city extension ({{lang|de|[[Gründerzeit]]}} style).]]
[[File:Kieler Straße Erfurt.JPG|thumb|Housing projects in [[Bauhaus]] style from 1930.]]
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-J0422-0203-002, Erfurt, Hotel "Erfurter Hof".jpg|thumb|Hotel "{{lang|de|Erfurter Hof}}", place of the first meeting of [[East Germany|East]] and [[West Germany|West]] German heads of government in 1970.]]
After the [[Revolutions of 1848 in the German states|1848 Revolution]], many Germans desired to have a united national state. An attempt in this direction was the failed [[Erfurt Union]] of German states in 1850.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Erfurt Union Parliament {{!}} German Confederation, Reforms, Nationalism {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Erfurt-Union-Parliament |access-date=2024-05-12 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref>

The [[Industrial Revolution]] reached Erfurt in the 1840s, when the [[Thuringian Railway]] connecting [[Berlin]] and [[Frankfurt]] was built. During the following years, many factories in different sectors were founded. One of the biggest was the "Royal Gun Factory of [[Prussia]]" in 1862. After the [[Unification of Germany]] in 1871, Erfurt moved from the southern border of Prussia to the centre of Germany, so the fortifications of the city were no longer needed. The demolition of the city fortifications in 1873 led to a construction boom in Erfurt, because it was now possible to build in the area formerly occupied by the city walls and beyond. Many public and private buildings emerged and the infrastructure (such as a tramway, hospitals, and schools) improved rapidly. The number of inhabitants grew from 40,000 around 1870 to 130,000 in 1914, and the city expanded in all directions.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

The "[[Erfurt Program]]" was adopted by the [[Social Democratic Party of Germany]] during its congress at Erfurt in 1891.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Internet History Sourcebooks: Modern History |url=https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/mod/1891erfurt.asp |access-date=2023-10-24 |website=sourcebooks.fordham.edu |archive-date=2 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231202135744/https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/mod/1891erfurt.asp |url-status=live }}</ref>

Between the wars, the city kept growing. Housing shortages were fought with building programmes and social infrastructure was broadened according to the welfare policy in the [[Weimar Republic]]. The [[Great Depression]] between 1929 and 1932 led to a disaster for Erfurt, nearly one out of three became unemployed. Conflicts between far-left and far-right-oriented milieus increased and many inhabitants supported the new Nazi government and [[Adolf Hitler]]. Others, especially some communist workers, put up resistance against the new administration. In 1938, the new synagogue was destroyed during the {{lang|de|[[Kristallnacht]]}}. Jews lost their property and emigrated or were deported to [[Nazi concentration camps]] (together with many communists). In 1914, the company ''[[Topf and Sons]]'' began the manufacture of crematoria later becoming the market leader in this industry. Under the Nazis, ''JA Topf & Sons'' supplied specially developed crematoria, ovens and associated plants to the [[Auschwitz-Birkenau]], [[Buchenwald]] and [[Mauthausen-Gusen]] concentration camps. On 27 January 2011 a memorial and museum dedicated to the Holocaust victims was opened at the former company premises in Erfurt.<ref>Schüle, Annegret (2017) ''J.A Topf & Söhne: ein Erfurter Familieunternehmen und der Holocaust''. Erfurt: Landeszentrale für politische Bildung Thüringen</ref>

During [[World War II]], Erfurt experienced more than 27 British and American air raids, about 1600 civilians died. Bombed as a target of the [[Oil Campaign of World War II]], Erfurt suffered only limited damage and was captured on 12 April 1945, by the US [[80th Infantry Division (United States)|80th Infantry Division]].<ref>Stanton, Shelby, ''World War II Order of Battle: An Encyclopedic Reference to U.S. Army Ground Forces from Battalion through Division, 1939–1946'', Stackpole Books (Revised Edition 2006), p. 150</ref> On 3 July, American troops left the city, which then became part of the [[Allied Occupation Zones in Germany|Soviet Zone of Occupation]] and eventually of the German Democratic Republic ([[East Germany]]). In 1948, Erfurt became the capital of [[Thuringia]], replacing [[Weimar]]. In 1952, the {{lang|de|[[States of Germany|Länder]]}} in the GDR were dissolved in favour of centralization under the new socialist government. Erfurt then became the capital of a new "{{lang|de|[[Erfurt (Bezirk)|Bezirk]]}}" (district). In 1953, the {{lang|de|[[Hochschule]]}} of education was founded, followed by the {{lang|de|Hochschule}} of medicine in 1954, the first academic institutions in Erfurt since the closing of the university in 1816.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

On 19 March 1970, the East and West German heads of government [[Willi Stoph]] and [[Willy Brandt]] met in Erfurt, the first such meeting since the division of Germany. During the 1970s and 1980s, as the economic situation in GDR worsened, many old buildings in city centre decayed, while the government fought against the housing shortage by building large {{lang|de|[[Plattenbau]]}} settlements in the periphery. The [[Peaceful Revolution]] of 1989/1990 led to [[German reunification]].{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}
[[File:DDR Street signs.jpg|thumb|Socialist-era street signs removed from around the city of Erfurt after 1990.]]

With the re-formation of the state of [[Thuringia]] in 1990, the city became the state capital. After reunification, a deep economic crisis occurred in Eastern Germany. Many factories closed and many people lost their jobs and moved to the former West Germany. At the same time, many buildings were redeveloped and the infrastructure improved massively. In 1994, the new university was opened, as was the Fachhochschule in 1991. Between 2005 and 2008, the economic situation improved as the unemployment rate decreased and new enterprises developed. In addition, the population began to increase once again.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

A [[Erfurt school massacre|school shooting]] occurred on 26 April 2002 at the Gutenberg-Gymnasium.<ref name="Observer20020428">{{Cite news |last=Hooper |first=John |date=2002-04-28 |title=How teacher stopped the school slaughter |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/apr/28/schools.education |access-date=2013-04-25 |issn=0261-3077 |archive-date=3 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231103085715/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/apr/28/schools.education |url-status=live }}</ref>

Since the 1990s, organized crime has gained a foothold in Erfurt, with several mafia groups, including the [[Armenian mafia]] present in the city. Among other events, there has been a robbery and an arson attack targeting the gastronomy sector and in 2014 there was a shoot-out in an open street.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Weiß |first=Felix |date=2019-04-15 |title=German police closing in on Armenian mafia |url=https://georgian-knot.com/2019/04/15/german-police-closing-in-on-armenian-mafia/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230610113601/https://georgian-knot.com/2019/04/15/german-police-closing-in-on-armenian-mafia/ |archive-date=2023-06-10 |access-date=2023-09-18 |website=The Georgian Knot |language=de-DE}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Baumgartner |first=Pete |date=2018-11-09 |title=Armenia Backs Berlin Envoy Despite Reported Ties To Mafia In Germany |language=en |work=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/armenia-backs-berlin-envoy-smbatian-mafia-ties-germany/29590378.html |url-status=live |access-date=2023-09-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220814092023/https://www.rferl.org/a/armenia-backs-berlin-envoy-smbatian-mafia-ties-germany/29590378.html |archive-date=2022-08-14}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Sattarov |first=Orkhan |date=2015-11-09 |title=Germany: Armenian mafia controls the streets of Erfurt |url=https://en.vestikavkaza.ru/articles/Germany-Armenian-mafia-controls-the-streets-of-Erfurt.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230918193603/https://en.vestikavkaza.ru/articles/Germany-Armenian-mafia-controls-the-streets-of-Erfurt.html |archive-date=2023-09-18 |access-date=2023-09-18 |website=en.vestikavkaza.ru |language=en}}</ref>