KOTHEN, a city, the capital of the duchy of Anhalt-Kothen, in Germany. It is the residence of the sovereign, and the seat of the civil and ecclesiastical branches of the administration. It is on the river Ziahe, which runs to the Elbe, on a level and fertile plain. The palace is remarkable for its hall, decorated with the arms and the proverbs of Prince Ludwing, built in 1617. It contains 740 well-built houses, and 5500 inhabitants. It has three churches and several public buildings, and the institutions adapted to a contracted independent state. The trade is mostly dependent on the wants of the court.