Saxony is a place in Germany.
It sits near Poland. Many people live there. The cities are big and busy. It has a very long history.
Do you want to visit?
Saxony is a place in Germany.
It sits near Poland and the Czech Republic. Many people live there.
The capital city is Dresden. Leipzig is the largest city. A group of people called Sorbs also live there. Saxony has a very long history. It was once a kingdom. It became a state again in 1990. This happened when Germany was joined back together. It is a very special part of the land.
Saxony is a state in Germany.
It is a landlocked place. This means it has no ocean nearby. It sits near the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic.
Saxony shares borders with four other German states. Its capital city is Dresden. The largest city is Leipzig. More than 4 million people live there. A small group of people called Sorbs also live in the area.
Saxony has a very long history. The name has been used for over a thousand years. It was once a duchy and a kingdom.
In the past, the borders were different. After World War II, it was part of East Germany. The government broke the state into smaller parts in 1952. But the state came back in 1990. This happened when Germany was joined back together. Today, it is one of the sixteen states of Germany. The modern state is not the same as the old land of the Saxons. The name moved to this area for historical reasons.
Saxony is a state located in the heart of Germany.
It is a landlocked place, which means there are no oceans nearby. Instead, it sits near the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic.
Within Germany, it shares borders with Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria. The state is the tenth largest in the country. It is also the seventh most crowded state, with over 4 million people living there. Dresden serves as the capital city, while Leipzig is the largest city.
A small group of about 80,000 people called Sorbs also live in the region.
The history of this name is very old and complex. The name Saxony has been used for more than a thousand years. It was used for many different types of governments. These included a medieval duchy and an electorate of the Holy Roman Empire. It was also known as a kingdom and a republic. It is important to know that modern Saxony is not the same as "Old Saxony." The old area where the Saxons lived was much further north. That area covers parts of modern Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt instead.
Very long ago, people lived on this land in prehistoric times. They built huge temples in central Europe during the fifth millennium BC.
Later, Germanic tribes began to arrive during the first century BC. By the late Roman period, several tribes called the Saxons emerged. This is where the name of the state comes from. In the late 6th century, Polabian Slavs also lived in the area. They are the ancestors of the Sorb people living there today.
Over many centuries, different rulers controlled the land. The territory became part of the Holy Roman Empire by the 10th century. During this time, some dukes of Saxony were even kings or emperors. In 1425, a new powerful state was formed under the Wettin family. This group ruled the area and made Dresden their capital.
In 1806, the Electorate became a kingdom under Napoleon. Later, after many wars, the borders changed again at the Congress of Vienna.
This event caused the kingdom to lose much of its land.
Modern Saxony was formed through many changes in the last century. In 1918, the monarchy ended and a republic was started. After World War II, the Soviet Union occupied the area. It then became part of communist East Germany. In 1952, the government broke the state into smaller pieces. However, everything changed in 1990 when Germany was reunited.
Saxony was brought back as a free state with new borders. Today, it is one of the five new states in the Federal Republic of Germany.
Saxony, officially known as the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state in Germany.
It sits in a central location within the country. The state shares borders with Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria. It also borders two other nations: Poland and the Czech Republic.
Saxony is the tenth largest of Germany's sixteen states by area. It is also the seventh most populous state. More than 4 million people live in this region. The capital city is Dresden. The largest city in the state is Leipzig.
The history of the name Saxony is quite complex. It has been used for over a millennium. The name applied to the medieval Duchy of Saxony. It also applied to the Electorate of Saxony within the Holy Roman Empire. Later, it was used for the Kingdom of Saxony and two different republics. It is important to distinguish modern Saxony from "Old Saxony." Old Saxony was the area inhabited by the original Saxons. That region roughly matches modern Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and parts of North Rhine-Westphalia. Because of this, the modern state shares a name with the old duchy for historical reasons. It does not share a direct ethnic or linguistic connection to that northern area.
Archaeological evidence shows a very long human history in this territory. During prehistoric times, people built monumental temples here. These date back to the fifth millennium BC. Notable sites have been found near Leipzig and in Dresden.
Germanic presence likely began in the first century BC. During the Roman empire era, some parts may have been controlled by King Marobod. By the late Roman period, several tribes known as Saxons emerged. These tribes gave the region its name. In the late 6th century, Polabian Slavs also settled the area. Most notably, the Sorbs lived here. The Sorbs are a West Slavic ethnic group. About 80,000 Sorbs still live in Saxony today.
During the Middle Ages, the region saw many shifts in power. The territory became part of the Holy Roman Empire by the 10th century. At that time, the dukes of Saxony were also kings or emperors. This was known as the Ottonian or Saxon dynasty. In 985, the Margravate of Meissen was founded as a frontier march. This helped promote the settlement of German farmers. In 1425, a major change occurred. Sigismund, the King of the Romans, granted the electoral privilege to Frederick of the House of Wettin.
This merged the Electorate of Saxony with the Margraviate of Meissen. This created a powerful state. It eventually included Dresden as its capital.
Saxony experienced significant political changes during the 18th and 19th centuries. Between 1697 and 1763, two Electors of Saxony also served as Kings of Poland. This created close ties between the two regions. You can still see the Polish coat of arms on many buildings and churches in Saxony.
In 1806, Napoleon abolished the Holy Roman Empire. He established the Electorate of Saxony as a kingdom. This happened in exchange for military support. However, the kingdom faced many wars. After the defeat of Napoleon, the Congress of Vienna changed the borders. Saxony lost nearly 60% of its territory. It also lost 40% of its population. Much of this land became the Prussian Province of Saxony.
The 20th century brought further transformations to the state. In 1918, the monarchy was overthrown. A republic was established under the name Free State of Saxony. After World War II, the state was under Soviet occupation. It then became part of communist East Germany. In 1952, the communist government abolished the state. They broke it into smaller units instead.
This lasted until the reunification of Germany. On 3 October 1990, the Free State of Saxony was reconstituted. It became one of the five new states in the Federal Republic of Germany. The modern state has enlarged borders compared to the previous version.
Today, Saxony is a key part of the modern German federal system. It functions as a Free State within the country. The state government is led by a Minister President.
The political structure includes the Landtag, which is the state parliament.
The region remains a place where history and modern life meet. From its ancient temples to its modern cities, Saxony has a deep legacy. It connects the history of the Holy Roman Empire to the modern German republic.
Where will your curiosity go next?
🖼️ Images & Media (24)
+ 12 more
More to explore
✨ What else?
Related topics you might enjoy
🔬 Go deeper
More advanced topics to explore
🪜 Step back
Simpler topics to build understanding
What is Nepedia?
A free, ad-free encyclopedia for children. Every article is written at five reading levels, so the same page works for a five-year-old and a fifteen-year-old — use the level switcher above to see this one change. No account needed to read.