History of Gröditz

1st century AD The Germanic tribe of the Hermunduri settled in the fertile Röderland region.

7th century AD The Sorbian tribe of the Daleminzer settled permanently in our area. The Sorbian name indicates this.

12th century AD The Germans reconquered the Slavic settlement area. Gröditz developed into a typical street village. It belonged to the Saathain manor within the Margraviate of Meissen.

1217 This year is considered to be the first documented mention of the village. Documents mention a person named Johannes de Grodiz, who named himself after Gröditz.

1282 The village of Grodiz is pledged to the Rizowe (Riesa) monastery.

1372 Grodis is mentioned in a letter of complaint against Emperor Charles VI.

1306 The village and all its appurtenances pass to the von Köckeritz family (Saathain).

1383 Mention of Heidenreich Schefer, who owed money to the provost of the monastery.

1406 The village is owned by Conrad von Köckritz and belongs to the Hain district.

1436 Niczschko Hafirland receives Groditz with all its appurtenances as a fief.

1464 Grödiss (Grödiß) and Reppis are owned by the “Schleinitze” family in Saathain.

1474 Beer is brewed in Grodiz.

1485 Grodis passes to the Albertine line of the Wettin family.

1503 Gröditz is important as a stop on the old salt road to Kamenz.

1522 Heinrich von Schleinitz of Saathain receives “... the village of Grodes with a foreword, meadows, fisheries, forests, services, courts, and the highest and lowest authorities and a mill ...”

1547 Gröditz belongs to Saathain and is under the hereditary and supreme jurisdiction of Schleinitz.

The village covers 20 hides (farmers' share of arable land).

1553 A tavern keeper is mentioned for the first time.

1625 Mention of a judge, border dispute between Gröditz and Wainsdorf

1662 Gröditz has its own tavern.

1705 “Groundless” paths between Gröditz and Reppis are mentioned as a result of the large amount of water.

1717 Gröditz is mentioned in its current spelling. There is a children's teacher named Lorenz. The manor belongs to Woldemar Freiherr von Löwendal.

1721 A mill with three grinding gears is located on the banks of the Röder.

1730 There is also quartering in Gröditz in connection with the Zeithain pleasure camp.

1740-1744 The Grödel-Elsterwerda raft canal is constructed.

1769 Johann Chr. Richter is mentioned as a judge.

1779 Saxon Cabinet Minister Count Detlev Carl von Einsiedel buys the old mill and builds a bar mill as a branch of the Lauchhammer ironworks.

1805 There are 24 fireplaces in the village.

1815 Gröditz leaves the Saathain judicial district as a result of the division of the land, and the village and ironworks each receive their own jurisdiction.

1832 The Gröditz court is dissolved and merged with Frauenhain. Farmers are able to free themselves from the manorial system. A factory school is established in the ironworks, and the Swiss teacher Stucki is hired.

1848-1850 A boundary wall is built between the ironworks and the municipal grounds.

1857 Construction of the Riesa–Elsterwerda railway line begins.

1864 Gröditz gets its own post office.

1867 Mr. Pilster builds the first house in Pilstergasse from slag bricks.

1872 The school association is founded and the municipal school is built, teaching children from Gröditz and Reppis.

1875 The Gröditz railway station is put into operation.

1883/1884 The Kübler & Niethammer company builds the sulfite pulp mill.

1891 Gröditz gets its own church.

1904 The Imperial Post Office is opened.

1909-1911 The “Alte Kolonie” (Old Colony) is established to retain skilled workers for the two factories – iron and pulp.

1911 Electric lighting is introduced in Gröditz.

1924 The Röder Bridge on the main road is built.

1928 The village of Reppis is incorporated into Gröditz.

1930/1931 The town hall is built.

1933 With the construction of the water tower, Gröditz gets a water supply.

1936 The first kindergarten opens on the Röder meadows.

1942 The last barge sails on the Grödel-Elsterwerdaer raft canal.

1945 The town is surrendered to the Red Army without a fight, and Johannes Voneben becomes the first mayor.

1952 The steelworks' polyclinic is inaugurated (closed in 1991). As a result of administrative reforms, Gröditz is assigned to the district of Riesa. The Philipp Müller Stadium sports facilities are inaugurated.

1954 The elementary school is ceremoniously handed over.

1956 The Catholic church is built.

1957 The cinema opens with the film “Mazurka der Liebe” (Mazurka of Love).

1966 The fire station is built.

1967 The town is granted town rights.

1968 The second secondary school on Wainsdorfer Straße is handed over.

1972 The former Niethammer villa on Eichenhain, which was established as an epidemic hospital in 1945, is closed and converted into a nursing home.

1974 EKO (Erstlings- und Kinderbekleidungswerk Oschatz, a factory producing baby and children's clothing) begins production, closing in 1991.

1977 The sports and swimming hall on Eichenhain is officially handed over.

1980 Classes begin at the third secondary school in the new residential area known as the “Musikerviertel” (musicians' quarter).

1983 The current town coat of arms is unveiled above the entrance to the town hall.

1990 The mayors of Linkenheim-Hochstetten and Gröditz sign a partnership agreement.

1992 Siegfried Richter, a native of Gröditz, becomes an honorary citizen of the town.

1995 The new “Einkaufszentrum Am Markt” shopping center, the furniture store on Bahnhofstraße, and the “Rödermeile” are inaugurated.

1996 The nursing home under the management of the ASB is built on the site of the former polyclinic.

1997 The “Spanischer Hof” hotel celebrates its opening.

1999 The demolition of the former outdoor swimming pool on the B 169 is completed.

2000 The administrative union between Gröditz and Nauwalde comes into force. In February, the new “Castello” cinema officially opens.

2004 The demolition of the “Sigmund Jähn” school is completed in December.

2008 The new leisure park on Wainsdorfer Straße is officially handed over.

2011 The first Prime Minister of Saxony, Prof. Dr. Kurt Biedenkopf, becomes an honorary citizen of the town.

2012 In July, the redesigned town hall forecourt is officially inaugurated. In October, the first sod is turned for the conversion of the three-sided farmstead on Hauptstraße into a meeting place. The new multi-purpose sports hall at the Siegfried Richter secondary school is inaugurated in November.

2013 The municipality of Nauwalde, including the districts of Spansberg, Nieska, and Schweinfurth, is incorporated into the town of Gröditz. This brings the population of Gröditz to just under 7,630. The old station building is demolished and the site redesigned. A new P + R car park is created. The swimming pool closes on June 30.

2014 In July, the new cycle path bridge over the Geißlitz between Gröditz and Nauwalde is handed over.

2015 The town library is housed in the new premises of the renovated half-timbered house in the Dreiseithof.

Sources: Urkunde Grundsteinlegung des Rathauses; Sächs. Hauptstaatsarchiv; Kirchspiel zu Frauenhain; Deutsches Städtebuch; Stadtarchiv Gröditz, Aufzeichnungen Kloster Mühlberg