Gotha

Gotha is the fifth largest city in the state of Thuringia and the district town of the Gotha district. From 1640 to 1918 Gotha was the capital and residence of the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha. The German insurance system was established in the city in 1820 with Gothaer Versicherung and in 1875 in Gotha`s Tivoli the German Socialist Workers` Party, which was later renamed the SPD.

The city was also a hub of the German publishing industry. In the past, Gotha rivaled Weimar, the other center of the Erestine dynasty. While Weimar was the artistic center, Gotha became its scientific counterpart. the Natural History Museum and the Gotha Observatory bear witness.

The baroque Friedenstein Palace dominates the townscape. The castle was formerly the seat of government of the Dukes of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

Gothaer Waggonfabrik was a famous company from Gotha, which mainly manufactured trams and airplanes. In Gotha today the Gotha tram, more precisely the Thuringian Forest Railway, is one of the last interurban trams in Germany.