Frederick II of Prussia chose to attack preemptively and invaded Saxony in August 1756, precipitating the Third Silesian War (part of the Seven Years' War).
At the end of the Seven Years' War, Saxony recovered its independence in the 1763 Treaty of Hubertusburg. ===19th century=== In 1806, French Emperor Napoleon abolished the Holy Roman Empire and established the Electorate of Saxony as a kingdom in exchange for military support.
At the end of the Seven Years' War, Saxony recovered its independence in the 1763 Treaty of Hubertusburg. ===19th century=== In 1806, French Emperor Napoleon abolished the Holy Roman Empire and established the Electorate of Saxony as a kingdom in exchange for military support.
Frederick Augustus remained loyal to Napoleon during the wars that swept Europe in the following years; he was taken prisoner and his territories declared forfeit by the allies in 1813, after the defeat of Napoleon.
The remnant of the Kingdom of Saxony was roughly identical with the present state, albeit slightly smaller. Meanwhile, in 1815, the southern part of Saxony, now called the "State of Saxony" joined the German Confederation.
King Anthony of Saxony came to the throne of Saxony in 1827.
It has been ranked first in the German school assessment (Bildungsmonitor) for several years. Saxony has four large universities, six Fachhochschulen (Universities of Applied Sciences) and six art schools. The Dresden University of Technology (TU Dresden), founded in 1828, is one of Germany's oldest universities.
Shortly thereafter, liberal pressures in Saxony mounted and broke out in revolt during 1830—a year of revolution in Europe.
The revolution in Saxony resulted in a constitution for the State of Saxony that served as the basis for its government until 1918. During the 1848–49 constitutionalist revolutions in Germany, Saxony became a hotbed of revolutionaries, with anarchists such as Mikhail Bakunin and democrats including Richard Wagner and Gottfried Semper taking part in the May Uprising in Dresden in 1849.
The revolution in Saxony resulted in a constitution for the State of Saxony that served as the basis for its government until 1918. During the 1848–49 constitutionalist revolutions in Germany, Saxony became a hotbed of revolutionaries, with anarchists such as Mikhail Bakunin and democrats including Richard Wagner and Gottfried Semper taking part in the May Uprising in Dresden in 1849.
(Scenes of Richard Wagner's participation in the May 1849 uprising in Dresden are depicted in the 1983 movie Wagner starring Richard Burton as Richard Wagner.) The May uprising in Dresden forced King Frederick Augustus II of Saxony to concede further reforms to the Saxon government. In 1854 Frederick Augustus II's brother, King John of Saxony, succeeded to the throne.
(Scenes of Richard Wagner's participation in the May 1849 uprising in Dresden are depicted in the 1983 movie Wagner starring Richard Burton as Richard Wagner.) The May uprising in Dresden forced King Frederick Augustus II of Saxony to concede further reforms to the Saxon government. In 1854 Frederick Augustus II's brother, King John of Saxony, succeeded to the throne.
King John followed a federalistic and pro-Austrian policy throughout the early 1860s until the outbreak of the Austro-Prussian War.
After the war, Saxony was forced to pay an indemnity and to join the North German Confederation in 1867.
In the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, Saxon troops fought together with Prussian and other German troops against France.
In 1871, Saxony joined the newly formed German Empire. ===20th century=== After King Frederick Augustus III of Saxony abdicated on 13 November 1918, Saxony, remaining a constituent state of Germany (Weimar Republic), became the Free State of Saxony under a new constitution enacted on 1 November 1920.
In the 18th and 19th centuries Saxe-Lauenburg was colloquially called the Duchy of Lauenburg, which in 1876 merged with Prussia as the Duchy of Lauenburg district. === Foundation of the second Saxon state === Saxony-Wittenberg, in modern Saxony-Anhalt, became subject to the margravate of Meissen, ruled by the Wettin dynasty in 1423.
The first Free State of Saxony was established in 1918 as a constituent state of the Weimar Republic.
In 1918, after Germany's defeat in World War I, its monarchy was overthrown and a republican form of government was established under the current name.
The revolution in Saxony resulted in a constitution for the State of Saxony that served as the basis for its government until 1918. During the 1848–49 constitutionalist revolutions in Germany, Saxony became a hotbed of revolutionaries, with anarchists such as Mikhail Bakunin and democrats including Richard Wagner and Gottfried Semper taking part in the May Uprising in Dresden in 1849.
In 1871, Saxony joined the newly formed German Empire. ===20th century=== After King Frederick Augustus III of Saxony abdicated on 13 November 1918, Saxony, remaining a constituent state of Germany (Weimar Republic), became the Free State of Saxony under a new constitution enacted on 1 November 1920.
In 1871, Saxony joined the newly formed German Empire. ===20th century=== After King Frederick Augustus III of Saxony abdicated on 13 November 1918, Saxony, remaining a constituent state of Germany (Weimar Republic), became the Free State of Saxony under a new constitution enacted on 1 November 1920.
In October 1923 the federal government under Chancellor Gustav Stresemann overthrew the legally elected SPD-Communist coalition government of Saxony.
That meant Augustus and the subsequent Electors of Saxony, who were Roman Catholic, ruled over a state with an almost entirely Protestant population. In 1925, 90.3% of the Saxon population was Protestant, 3.6% was Roman Catholic, 0.4% was Jewish and 5.7% was placed in other religious categories. After World War II, Saxony was incorporated into East Germany which pursued a policy of state atheism.
That summer, the entire state was handed over to Soviet forces as agreed in the London Protocol of September 1944.
troops under General George Patton occupied the western part of Saxony in April 1945, while Soviet troops occupied the eastern part.
The new minister-president Rudolf Friedrichs (SED), had been a member of the SPD until April 1946.
zone of occupation in October 1946 and May 1947, but died suddenly in mysterious circumstances the following month.
zone of occupation in October 1946 and May 1947, but died suddenly in mysterious circumstances the following month.
He was succeeded by Max Seydewitz, a loyal follower of Joseph Stalin. The German Democratic Republic (East Germany), including Saxony, was established in 1949 out of the Soviet zone of Occupied Germany, becoming a constitutionally socialist state, part of COMECON and the Warsaw Pact, under the leadership of the SED.
After World War II, it became part of the German Democratic Republic and was abolished by the communist government in 1952.
In 1952 the government abolished the Free State of Saxony, and divided its territory into three Bezirke: Leipzig, Dresden, and Karl-Marx-Stadt (formerly and currently Chemnitz).
Besides the formerly Silesian area of Saxony, which was mostly included in the territory of the new Saxony, the free state gained further areas north of Leipzig that had belonged to Saxony-Anhalt until 1952. == Geography == ===Topography=== The highest mountain in Saxony is the Fichtelberg (1,215 m) in the Western Ore Mountains. ===Rivers=== There are numerous rivers in Saxony.
(Scenes of Richard Wagner's participation in the May 1849 uprising in Dresden are depicted in the 1983 movie Wagner starring Richard Burton as Richard Wagner.) The May uprising in Dresden forced King Frederick Augustus II of Saxony to concede further reforms to the Saxon government. In 1854 Frederick Augustus II's brother, King John of Saxony, succeeded to the throne.
The international Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has a presence in the Freiberg Germany Temple which was the first of its kind in Germany, opened in 1985 even before its counterpart in Western Germany.
Nonetheless, even during this time Saxony remained an important place of religious dialogue and it was at Meissen where the agreement on mutual recognition between the German Evangelical Church and the Church of England was signed in 1988. ===Sports=== In 2020, there were 4,447 registered sports clubs of various disciplines with over 600,000 members in Saxony.
Following German reunification, the Free State of Saxony was reconstituted with slightly altered borders in 1990 and became one of the five new states of the Federal Republic of Germany. The area of the modern state of Saxony should not be confused with Old Saxony, the area inhabited by Saxons.
The state was broken up into smaller units during communist rule (1949–1989), but was re-established on 3 October 1990 on the reunification of East and West Germany. === Prehistory === In prehistoric times, the territory of present-day Saxony was the site of some of the largest of the ancient central European monumental temples, dating from the fifth century BC.
Areas around Hoyerswerda were also part of the Cottbus Bezirk. The Free State of Saxony was reconstituted with slightly altered borders in 1990, following German reunification.
While these high-technology sectors do not yet offer a large number of jobs, they have stopped or even reversed the brain drain that was occurring until the early 2000s in many parts of Saxony.
FutureSAX, a business plan competition and entrepreneurial support organisation, has been in operation since 2002. Microchip-makers near Dresden have given the region the nickname "Silicon Saxony".
In Leipzig, there is a significant Buddhist community, which mainly caters to the population of Vietnamese origin, with one Buddhist temple built in 2008 and another one currently under construction.
Its economy grew by 1.9% in 2010.
With 36,066 students as of 2010, it is the largest university in Saxony and one of the ten largest universities in Germany.
Former Minister President Stanislaw Tillich is of Sorbian ancestry and has been the first leader of a German state from a national minority. === Religion === As of 2011, the Evangelical Church in Germany represented the largest Christian denomination in the state, adhered to by 21.4% of the population.
The eastern part of Germany, excluding Berlin, qualifies as an "Objective 1" development-region within the European Union, and was eligible to receive investment subsidies up to 30% until 2013.
Michael Kretschmer has been Minister President since 13 December 2017. ==== 2019 state election ==== In the 2019 state election the AfD received its highest share of the vote in any state or federal election, while the CDU and The Left both fell to record lows in Saxony.
Other rivers include the Mulde and the White Elster. ===Largest cities and towns=== The largest cities and towns in Saxony according to the 30 September 2018 estimate are listed below.
The CDU formed a government coalition with the Greens and the SPD. 'Summary of the 1 September 2019 election results |- ! Nationality || Population (31.12 2019) |- |||24,310 |- | ||18,730 |- | || 11,725 |- | || 11,620 |- | ||9,570 |- | || 8,435 |- | ||6,940 |- | || 6,795 |- | || 6,725 |- | || 6,575 |- |} === Birthrate === The average number of children per woman in Saxony was 1.60 in 2018, the fourth-highest rate of all German states.
The Sikh faith also maintains a presence in Saxony's three largest cities with three (though small) Gurdwara. == Economy == The Gross domestic product (GDP) of the state was 124.6 billion euros in 2018, accounting for 3.7% of German economic output.
In 2018, exports amounted to 40,48 billion euro while imports stood at 24,41 billion euro.
Michael Kretschmer has been Minister President since 13 December 2017. ==== 2019 state election ==== In the 2019 state election the AfD received its highest share of the vote in any state or federal election, while the CDU and The Left both fell to record lows in Saxony.
The CDU formed a government coalition with the Greens and the SPD. 'Summary of the 1 September 2019 election results |- ! Nationality || Population (31.12 2019) |- |||24,310 |- | ||18,730 |- | || 11,725 |- | || 11,620 |- | ||9,570 |- | || 8,435 |- | ||6,940 |- | || 6,795 |- | || 6,725 |- | || 6,575 |- |} === Birthrate === The average number of children per woman in Saxony was 1.60 in 2018, the fourth-highest rate of all German states.
Today, the automobile industry, machinery production, and services mainly contribute to the economic development of the region. Saxony reported an average unemployment of 5.5% in 2019. The Leipzig area, which until recently was among the regions with the highest unemployment rate, could benefit greatly from investments by Porsche and BMW.
Nonetheless, even during this time Saxony remained an important place of religious dialogue and it was at Meissen where the agreement on mutual recognition between the German Evangelical Church and the Church of England was signed in 1988. ===Sports=== In 2020, there were 4,447 registered sports clubs of various disciplines with over 600,000 members in Saxony.
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