Kamenz, a town in the kingdom of Saxony, on the Black Elster, 21 m. N.E. of Dresden, on a branch line of railway from Bischofswerda. Pop. (1900), 9726. It has four Evangelical churches, among them a Wendish one, and a handsome new town-hall with a library. The hospital is dedicated to the memory of Lessing, who was born here. A colossal bust of the poet was placed opposite the Wendish church in 1863, and a monument was raised to him on a neighbouring hill in 1864. The industries of Kamenz include wool-spinning, and the manufacture of cloth, glass, crockery and stoneware. Built about 1200, Kamenz, was known by the name Dreikretcham until the 16th century. In 1318 it passed to the mark of Brandenburg; in 1319 to Bohemia; and in 1635, after suffering much in the Hussite and Thirty Years’ wars, it came into the possession of Saxony. In 1706 and 1842 it was almost entirely consumed by fire.
Kamenz is also the name of a village in Prussia, not far from Breslau; pop. 900. This is famous on account of its Cistercian monastery, founded in 1094. Of the house, which was closed in 1810, only a few buildings remain.
