The Bismarck Tower, built in 1895/96 by the Thuringia Forest Association Blechhammer-Sitzendorf, is located at Sommerberg above the village of Sitzendorf and is the oldest Bismarck Tower in Thuringia.
Until the beginning of the Second World War, annual Bismarck Tower Festivals were celebrated here, which were extremely popular with the local community. However, as Bismarck was not appreciated by the GDR Government, at this time the tower’s name was changed to “Beautiful View”.
In order to prevent the tower from disintegrating, only urgent repairs were made during the 1970s and 1980s. In 1995, the tower was forced to close due to structural issues. After two months of faithful restoration, the tower was reopened on 14.10.1995. Since then, the popular Bismarck Tower Festival has been held again every year, now organised by the Heritage and Tourist Association in Sitzendorf.
Schwarzatal
