German Federal Archives

The trade fair and university city of Erfurt, located on the Gera River in the southern part of the Thuringian Basin, is today the largest city in the Free State of Thuringia with a good 214,000 inhabitants and is also the state capital. First mentioned in a document in 741/42 when the bishopric was founded, Erfurt developed from the 13th century onwards, thanks to its central location and woad cultivation, into a flourishing trading and craftsmen's city as well as a European center of education.