Wingsch Real Estate Investments   

The Luther City of Wittenberg

Friday, 18 May 2012 - 01:58 pm (CET/MEZ) Berlin | Author/Destination: European Union / Europäische Union
Category/Kategorie: General, Museums, Exhibitions, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  4 minutes

🔊 Listen to this Post Wittenberg, officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg, is a city in Saxony-Anhalt, on the river Elbe. It has a population of about 50,000.

The importance of Wittenberg historically was due to its seat of the Elector of Saxony, a dignity held by the dukes of Saxe-Wittenberg and also to its close connection with Martin Luther and the dawn of the Protestant Reformation; several of its buildings are associated with the events of this time. Part of the Augustinian monastery in which Luther dwelt, first as a monk and later as owner with his wife and family, is preserved and considered to be the world’s premier museum dedicated to Luther. Various Luther and Melancthon memorial sites were added to the UNESCO world heritage list in 1996.

Wittenberg is home to numerous important historical artifacts, as well as portraits and other paintings by Lucas Cranach the Elder and Younger. On the doors of All Saints’ Church, the Schlosskirche (“castle church” built 1496–1506) Luther nailed his 95 theses in 1517. It was seriously damaged by fire in 1760 during a bombardment by the French during the Seven Years’ War, was practically rebuilt, and was later (1885–1892) restored. The wooden doors, burnt in 1760, were replaced in 1858 by bronze doors, bearing the Latin text of the theses. Inside the church are the tombs of Luther and Philipp Melanchthon, and of the electors Frederick the Wise (by Peter Vischer the Younger, 1527) and John the Constant (by Hans Vischer), and portraits of the reformers by Lucas Cranach the Younger.

St. Mary’s Church, the parish church in which Luther often preached, was built in the 14th century, but has been much altered since Luther’s time. It contains a magnificent painting by Lucas Cranach the Elder, representing the Last Supper (with the faces of Luther and other reformers), Baptism and Confession, also a font by Hermann Vischer the Elder (1457). In addition, there are numerous historic paintings in the church.

The ancient electoral palace is another of the buildings that suffered severely in 1760; it now contains archives.

Martin Luther’s home, the Lutherhaus, where he studied and lived both before and after the Reformation, is now a museum containing many artifacts from his life. Melanchthon’s house and the house of Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472–1553), mayor of Wittenberg, can also be found here.

Statues of Luther (by Schadow), Melanchthon and Bugenhagen embellish the town. The spot outside the Elster Gate where Luther publicly burned the papal bull in 1520 is marked by an oak tree.

Read more on Lutherstadt Wittenberg, Wittenberg Tourism, District of Wittenberg, TourismusRegion Anhalt-Dessau-Wittenberg , Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Castle Church Wittenberg, Wittenberg Theatre, Luther Memorials Foundation and Wikipedia Lutherstadt Wittenberg. Learn more about the use of photos. To inform you about latest news most of the city, town or tourism websites offer a newsletter service and/or operate Facebook pages/Twitter accounts. In addition more and more destinations, tourist organizations and cultural institutions offer Apps for your Smart Phone or Tablet, to provide you with a mobile tourist guide (Smart Traveler App by U.S. Department of State - Weather report by weather.com - Johns Hopkins University & Medicine - Coronavirus Resource Center - Global Passport Power Rank - Democracy Index - GDP according to IMF, UN, and World Bank - Global Competitiveness Report - Corruption Perceptions Index - Press Freedom Index - World Justice Project - Rule of Law Index - UN Human Development Index - Global Peace Index - Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index). If you have a suggestion, critique, review or comment to this blog entry, we are looking forward to receive your e-mail at comment@wingsch.net. Please name the headline of the blog post to which your e-mail refers to in the subject line.

---

Recommended posts:

• Town and Parish Church of St. Mary’s of Lutherstadt Wittenberg
• Halle on Saale river
• Naumburg Cathedral in Saxony-Anhalt
• Eisenach in the Thuringian Forest
• Erfurt, Thuringia’s capital
• Coburg, values and change
• The island of Hiddensee
• The Wartburg in Thuringia
• The water town Fürstenberg on the Havel
• The Nibelungen and Luther City of Worms
• Berlin Cathedral
• Berlin-Hohenschönhausen Memorial
• The medical and university town of Erlangen
• The Kleist City of Frankfurt (Oder)
• Theme Week Dresden – The Frauenkirche