Located in a side valley of the Schaalbach stream, the village was first mentioned in 1275 as Lichstete. The name is probably derived from the personal name Licho, which is a contraction of Liubicho. The former Adelsdorf once had two manors, which were united in the 18th century and came into the possession of the von Ketelhodt family. The then Chancellor of the Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, Christian Ulrich von Ketelhodt, founded a "Rose Festival" in 1769. At the event, which took place annually, a respected girl from the village was crowned as a rose bride and honored with a sum of money. This art-loving head of government had buildings and parks created on his property with Greek names reminiscent of classical antiquity. One example that is still visible today is the "seat of the muses" above Lichstedt, an ashlar stone depicting the nine muses. The inhabitants of the clustered village were mainly farmers. Their fields, as well as the manor property expropriated by the land reform in 1945, were farmed cooperatively from 1953. The former manor house, which dominated the townscape alongside the new church built in 1867, no longer exists today.

The small settlement of Groschwitz, not far from the village, was first mentioned in 1334 as "villa Groyzwitz" and in 1411 as "Kraschzwicz", after a Slavic village elder Gros. By 1511, some of the few families living there had already moved to Lichstedt. The village was replaced by a manorial outwork. The sparse shell limestone soil was mainly used for sheep grazing. After 1945, the property became a state-owned estate and later the headquarters of the Lichstedt Agricultural Production Cooperative. Several semi-detached houses and new stables changed the appearance of the village. The Groschwitz estate was incorporated into the Lichstedt municipal district in 1926. A large part of the Groschwitz field served as a parade ground for the Rudolstadt garrison. Even before the Second World War, a gliding site was built to the west of the village. Operations at the Groschwitz airfield, which was reopened in 1958, had to be discontinued in 1980 due to security concerns. The airfield was reopened in 1990. The former estate became an adventure farm with a festival barn, agricultural museum, farm store and modern vacation apartments and guest rooms. The red and fallow deer, sheep, cats and poultry living there are particularly interesting for children.

Lichstedt and Groschwitz have belonged to the town of Rudolstadt since July 1, 1997.