Capitulation of Erfurt

The Principality of Erfurt (German: Fürstentum Erfurt; French: Principauté d'Erfurt) was a small state in modern Thuringia, Germany, that existed from 1807 to 1814, comprising the modern city of Erfurt and the surrounding land. It was subordinate directly to Napoleon, the Emperor of the French, rather than being a part of the Confederation of the Rhine. After nearly 3 months of siege, the city fell to Prussian, Austrian and Russian forces. Having mainly been Prussian territory before the Napoleonic Wars, most of the lands were restored to Prussia by the Congress of Vienna.

Erfurt (German pronunciation: [ˈɛʁfʊʁt] (listen)) is the capital and largest city in the Central German state of Thuringia. It is located in the wide valley of the Gera river (progression: Gera→ Unstrut→ Saale→ Elbe→ North Sea), in the southern part of the Thuringian Basin, north of the Thuringian Forest. It sits in the middle of an almost straight line of cities consisting of the six largest Thuringian cities forming the central metropolitan corridor of the state, the "Thuringian City Chain" (Thüringer Städtekette) with more than 500,000 inhabitants, stretching from Eisenach in the west, via Gotha, Erfurt, Weimar and Jena, to Gera in the east. Erfurt and the city of Göttingen in southern Lower Saxony are the two cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants closest to the geographic center of Germany. Erfurt is located 100 km (62 mi) south-west of Leipzig, 250 km (155 mi) north-east of Frankfurt, 300 km (186 mi) south-west of Berlin and 400 km (249 mi) north of Munich. Erfurt's old town is one of the best preserved medieval city centres in Germany. Tourist attractions include the Merchants' Bridge (Krämerbrücke), the Old Synagogue (Alte Synagoge), the oldest still standing synagogue in Europe, Cathedral Hill (Domberg) with the ensemble of Erfurt Cathedral (Erfurter Dom) and St Severus' Church (Severikirche) and Petersberg Citadel (Zitadelle Petersberg), one of the largest and best preserved town fortresses in Central Europe. The city's economy is based on agriculture, horticulture and microelectronics. Its central location has made it a logistics hub for Germany and central Europe. Erfurt hosts the second-largest trade fair in eastern Germany (after Leipzig), as well as the public television children's channel KiKa. The city is situated on the Via Regia, a medieval trade and pilgrims' road network. Modern day Erfurt is also a hub for ICE high speed trains and other German and European transport networks. Erfurt was first mentioned in 742, as Saint Boniface founded the diocese. Although the town did not belong to any of the Thuringian states politically, it quickly became the economic centre of the region and it was a member of the Hanseatic League. It was part of the Electorate of Mainz during the Holy Roman Empire, and later became part of the Kingdom of Prussia in 1802. From 1949 until 1990 Erfurt was part of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). The University of Erfurt was founded in 1379, making it the first university to be established within the geographic area which constitutes modern-day Germany. It closed in 1816 and was re-established in 1994, with the main modern campus on what was a teachers' training college. Martin Luther (1483–1546) was its most famous student, studying there from 1501 before entering St Augustine's Monastery in 1505. Other noted Erfurters include the medieval philosopher and mystic Meister Eckhart (c. 1260–1328), the Baroque composer Johann Pachelbel (1653–1706) and the sociologist Max Weber (1864–1920).

The Schottenkirche (pronounced [ˈʃɔtn̩ˌkɪʁçə], "Scots' Church"; also St. Nicolai und Jacobi, "St Nicholas' and James'") in the historical part of the city of Erfurt in Thuringia, Germany, is a Roman Catholic church building dating back to the 12th century. The Romanesque basilica belonged to a former Celtic monastery of St James. Today, it is a subsidiary church of the Catholic parish of St Lawrence's Church.

St. Augustine's Monastery (German: Augustinerkloster) in Erfurt, central Germany, is a former church and monastery complex dating from the 13th century. The site is almost one hectare (2.5 acres) in size. It was built by Augustinian friars, an order of the Catholic Church. It is most well known as the former home of Martin Luther (1483–1546), the father of the Reformation, who lived there as a friar from 1505 until 1511.About 74 ordained and 70 lay brothers lived at the monastery at its peak in the early 16th century. After the Reformation, from 1525 the monastery church was used by the local Lutheran congregation. The site became the property of Erfurt city council after the last friar died in 1556. It was secularised in 1559, but was later reconsecrated in 1854. It now belongs to the Evangelical Church in Central Germany.Parts of the complex were destroyed in a British air raid in 1945, in which 267 people sheltering on the site were killed. Today the complex has a mixture of medieval and modern buildings. It is now used as a place of worship and as a meeting and conference centre. Music concerts are performed in the church, which has a Walcker organ, built in 1938. It also provides simple accommodation for travellers and for retreats.In February 2016, an application was made to have St. Augustine's Monastery, along with 11 other sites, added to the UNESCO World Heritage Site designated "Luther Sites in Central Germany". Because of their role in the Reformation, all of these sites are considered to "represent one of the most important events in the religious and political history of the world".

St Giles' Church (German: Ägidienkirche, also St. Ägidii) in the historical centre of the city of Erfurt in Thuringia, Germany, forms the eastern entrance from Wenigemarkt (Minor Market) to the Krämerbrücke (Merchants' Bridge) with its archway. The single-nave Gothic church building is one of the former two bridgehead churches. At the western end stood the Benediktikirche (St Benedict's Church) since the 11th century, which was demolished in 1890 and is now only remembered by the name of Benediktsplatz (St Benedict's Square).

The Krämerbrücke (pronounced [ˈkʁɛːmɐˌbʁʏkə]; Merchants' bridge) is a medieval arch bridge in the city of Erfurt, in Thuringia, central Germany, which is lined with half-timbered shops and houses on both sides of a cobblestone street. It is one of the few remaining bridges in the world that have inhabited buildings. It has been continuously inhabited for over 500 years, longer than any other bridge in Europe. The stone, pedestrian bridge, which dates from 1325, is one of the oldest secular structures in Erfurt. It spans the Breitstrom, a branch of Gera River, and connects two town squares – Benediktsplatz and Wenigemarkt.

The Kaufmannskirche (pronounced [ˈkaʊfmansˌkɪʁçə], "Merchant's Church") is a church building in the historical centre of the city of Erfurt in Thuringia, Germany. It is located at the north end of Erfurt's Anger square and has been Lutheran since 1521.

The Alte Synagoge (Old Synagogue) in Erfurt, Germany, is one of the best preserved medieval synagogues in Europe, its oldest parts dating back to the late 11th century. Most parts of the building date from around 1250–1320. It is thought to be the oldest synagogue building intact to its roof still standing in Europe and the world.Since 2009 it has been used as a museum of local Jewish history. It houses the Erfurt Treasure, a hoard of medieval coins, goldsmiths' work and jewellery found in 1998. It also has facsimiles of the Erfurt Hebrew Manuscripts, an important collection of 12th-14th century religious texts that belonged to the medieval Jewish community of Erfurt.The Historic Synagogues of Europe project, carried out by the Center for Jewish Art at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, has given the Old Synagogue, Erfurt its highest level of significance rating: 4 (International) – "The building is of outstanding architectural, urban or historical importance. It has unique features and/or is especially influential internationally as an architectural pattern."In 2015 it was proposed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

St Michael's Church (German: Michaeliskirche) in the historical centre of the city of Erfurt in Thuringia, Germany, is a Gothic church building. It belongs to the Evangelische Stadtmission Erfurt and is the university church of the University of Erfurt.

St Lawrence's Church (German: Lorenzkirche) in the city of Erfurt in Thuringia, Germany, is a Roman Catholic parish church dating from around 1300. The Gothic hall church is located on the northern edge of Anger square and at the beginning of the Schlösserstraße in the centre of the historical part of Erfurt.

The Evangelical Church in Central Germany (German: Evangelische Kirche in Mitteldeutschland; EKM) is a United church body covering most of the German states of Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia and some adjacent areas in Brandenburg and Saxony.

The Erfurt Stadtbahn is a light rail (German: Stadtbahn) network that is the basic public transit system of Erfurt, the capital of Thuringia in Germany. It represents the evolution of the city's original tramway which, outside of the city center, travels on track in its own right-of-way. The meter gauge network is made up of six lines, and has a total route length of 45.2 kilometers (28.1 mi), making it one of Germany's more moderate-sized Stadtbahn networks. The network is run by Stadtwerken Erfurter Verkehrsbetriebe AG (SWE EVAG), and is integrated in the Verkehrsverbund Mittelthüringen (VMT). The Stadtbahn carried 41.933 million passengers in 2012, which corresponds to about 114,885 passengers per day.