Meiningen City (Germany)

Stadt Meiningen, Landkreis Schmalkalden-Meiningen, Thüringen

Last modified: 2021-10-09 by klaus-michael schneider
Keywords: meiningen | castle | hen | triplemount |
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• Meiningen City
• Meiningen Banner
• Meiningen Flag
• Meiningen Coat of Arms

• Schmalkalden-Meiningen County (Landkreis Schmalkalden-Meiningen)
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Meiningen City

Meiningen Banner

It is a green-white vertical bicolour. The coat of arms is shifted towards the top.
Sources: this online catalogue and §2(2) of local Hauptsatzung, version 21 May 2003
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 2 Oct 2021

Meiningen Flag

It is a green-white horizontal bicolour with centred arms.
Sources: this online catalogue and §2(2) of local Hauptsatzung, version 21 May 2003
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 2 Oct 2021

Coat of Arms

Shield Azure a castle Argent with five towers with roofs Gules, topped by alternating balls Or and crescents Argent, in open gate Or a hen Sable armed Gules on top of a triplemount Vert.
Meaning:
Meiningen had been part of the Grabfeld region, which had been colonised by Franconian settlers since the 8th century. In 982 the German King Otto II donated his properties in the area to the St. Peter Convent in Aschaffenburg. The oldest church, dedicated to St. Martin and the related royal estate were donated to the Bishopric of Würzburg in 1008 by King Heinrich II as a royal fiefdom. An urban settlement developed in the 12th century. The bishops built a moated castle. In 1222 the settlement was heavily destroyed in a war between the bishops and the Counts of Henneberg. In 1230 Meiningen had a mint and in 1239 a Franciscan Abbey was established. The counts pawned the city temporarily but in the end they didn't forge ahead in order to acquire the settlement. In 1339 a local council was established. Finally in 1542 the bishopric sold the city to the counts. In 1583 it was acquired by the Wettin kin. Later it became a dominion of Sachsen-Altenburg, in 1672 of Sachsen-Gotha. In 1680 the Duchy of Sachsen-Meiningen was established. The first city seal around 1290 displayed a castle with three towers, a draw bridge and four stars in the open gate. On occasion of the grant of extended city rights in 1344 it was decided to display a castle with five towers and a half length portrait of the bishop in the open gate. The bishop was replaced by the Henneberg arms in the 16th century. The colours of the banner are those of Sachsen-Meiningen.
Sources: Bensing et alii 1984, pp.291-292 and §2(1) of local Hauptsatzung, version 21 May 2003
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 2 Oct 2021

The arms were approved on 23 May 1557 by the Count Wilhelm IV of Henneberg.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 2 Oct 2021

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