Großengottern is located in the northern Thuringian basin between the towns of Mühlhausen and Bad Langensalza.

Poplar forests are found on the southern edge of the Gotternsches Ried; the Großengottern dam is a reservoir originally built for the irrigation of the fields.

[2] The Mülverstedt convent of the Hermits of Saint William acquired a plot of land in Großengottern in the first half of the 14th century in order to set up a hospital here.

[4] In the Late Middle Ages and Early Modern Period, the Lords of Seebach held the office of Schultheiß (mayor) in Großengottern along with market rights and a castle fiefdom.

On 4 March 1949, a four-engine US supply plane for the Berlin Airlift exploded and crashed between Großengottern and Heroldishausen.