An early Slavic tribe's settlement was located at Kamienica, and the first documented use of the name Chemnitz was the 1143 site of a Benedictine monastery around which a settlement grew.
Circa 1170 Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor granted it the rights of an Imperial city.
In 1307, the town became subordinate to the Margraviate of Meissen, the predecessor of the Saxon state.
In medieval times, Chemnitz became a centre of textile production and trade.
More than one third of the population worked in textile production.

By the early 19th century, Chemnitz had become an industrial centre (sometimes called "the Saxon Manchester", German: Sächsisches Manchester, [ˈzɛksɪʃəs ˈmɛnt͡ʃɛstɐ] (listen)).
In 1913, Chemnitz had a population of 320,000 and, like Leipzig and Dresden, was larger at that time than today.
After losing inhabitants due to the First World War Chemnitz grew rapidly again and reached its all-time peak of 360,250 inhabitants in 1930.
Thereafter, growth was stalled by the world economic crisis.
An early Slavic tribe's settlement was located at Kamienica, and the first documented use of the name Chemnitz was the 1143 site of a Benedictine monastery around which a settlement grew. Circa 1170 Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor granted it the rights of an Imperial city. In 1307, the town became subordinate to the Margraviate of Meissen, the predecessor of the Saxon state. In medieval times, Chemnitz became a centre of textile production and trade. More than one third of the population worked in textile production.
By the early 19th century, Chemnitz had become an industrial centre (sometimes called "the Saxon Manchester", German: Sächsisches Manchester, [ˈzɛksɪʃəs ˈmɛnt͡ʃɛstɐ] (listen)). In 1913, Chemnitz had a population of 320,000 and, like Leipzig and Dresden, was larger at that time than today. After losing inhabitants due to the First World War Chemnitz grew rapidly again and reached its all-time peak of 360,250 inhabitants in 1930. Thereafter, growth was stalled by the world economic crisis.
Chemnitz