For history fans

Exciting city history, found treasure, and a medieval community: expeditions into jewish life in Erfurt

Wartburg Castle is located pretty much exactly in the geographical centre of Germany – as befits its historical significance. Allow at least half a day to visit one of Germany’s most famous castles – and a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site since 1999 – as there are plenty of exciting things to discover here. A walking tour in five parts.

Many colourful expressions in the German language that remain in common usage – such as Lästermaul (scandalmonger), nicht jedes Wort auf die Goldwaage legen (to take something with a pinch of salt), die Zähne zusammenbeissen (to grit your teeth) or ein Dorn im Auge (a thorn in your side) – were actually invented by the same man who translated the New Testament at Wartburg Castle. Martin Luther exemplifies the power of words. Indeed, many of the phrases he coined can be found in the Duden dictionary of the German language to this day.

Martin Luther’s longest trip took him all the way to Rome, but he was generally more likely to be found travelling around the towns and cities of Thuringia, where he filled the churches with his sermons, met friends, debated with religious opponents and visited monasteries. Here are some of our tips for days out in the heart of Reformation country at five important locations associated with Martin Luther in Thuringia.

Weimar boasts a wealth of UNESCO World Heritage, with a total of 19 individual sites. The Classical Weimar ensemble comprises 16 locations, while ‘Bauhaus and its sites in Weimar, Dessau and Bernau’ includes three sites in Weimar. Weimar is steeped in culture; it offers encounters with literary history and celebrated intellectuals around every corner. The leading thinkers of the classical era were Johann Wolfgang Goethe, Friedrich Schiller, Martin Wieland and Gottfried Herder, but women such as the Duchess Anna Amalia and Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna also had influential roles. We have brought some aspects of classical Weimar to life – featuring the people and stories associated with the individual locations.

Our plan had been to spend a day in the park of Tiefurt House – picnicking, chatting and enjoying the fresh country air. According to the weather forecast, we were due to have cloudless blue skies and a pleasant temperature. But that’s not quite how things turned out, and within half an hour of our arrival at the park the rain came bucketing down.

The enchanting moment lasts just under seven seconds. A bell rings - and the curtains move with a gentle rattle as if moved by magic. The cliffs rise up, and the forest approaches. Afterwards the opera begins without interruption. Welcome to the small Baroque world of the Ekhof Theatre in Gotha, a cradle of modernday theatre culture!

“Paths are silent guides,” says Andreas Pahl, quoting the great landscape gardener Prince Pückler and points to a romantic, moss-covered stone structure flanked by a curved bridge – a picture-perfect ruin. The spruce trees nearby were by no means coincidental either. Weimar’s green spaces are admirable!

In the small village of Kaatschen, one timber-framed house follows another. The Saale river flows along one side, while on the other the hills are covered in vines. The entrance to the village is a glorious sight as you cross the Saale river on a stone bridge into the district of Grossheringen. This idyllic spot is home to the Zahn winegrowing estate, and behind its wooden gates lies the restaurant with its inviting terrace. Here, vines grow above the heads of the guests to create a natural green roof.

“Hi, my name is Anna. I’m from Thuringia in Germany.” I’ve lost track of how often I have said those words. I’m a youthful 35, unattached, carefree and always keen to learn new things. After finishing my degree and spending quite a bit of time abroad I got a job in international marketing. Travel has always been my great passion. Exploring new cultures and different countries – and getting to know the locals properly – are what I like doing best. Now I have friends all over the world. Some people call me a globetrotter, but I’m always happy to return home to Thuringia.

Think Wartburg Castle, think myth, history and ancient stone. But at Romantik Hotel auf der Wartburg, head chef Annett Reinhardt is using a light touch to transform historical menus and Thuringian traditions into fabulous contemporary dishes.

Late afternoon is the perfect time to visit Wartburg Castle and its plain, wood-panelled Luther Room. As the sun begins to set, it casts its rays through the medieval windows, bathing the ancient desk in a soft glow. Specks of dust dance in the golden light, which fills the entire room with a magical radiance.

A truly historical location: the legendary Luther Room at the mighty Wartburg Castle, which has towered majestically above the Thuringian town of Eisenach for nearly a thousand years and attracts almost half a million visitors every year. This is where Martin Luther produced his translation of the New Testament in only eleven weeks, while he was in hiding under the alias of Squire George after being arrested 500 years ago.

The wife of Freiherr von Stein went for walks here with the great poet, and her son Carl transformed the estate into a garden paradise. Goethe visited often, and with good reason. His close friend Charlotte von Stein, lady-in-waiting to Duchess Anna Amalia, had her country residence at Kochberg Castle.

Throughout his life, the most famous scion of the Bach dynasty, Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750), proved that musicians are a restless sort … Bach was born in Eisenach, while Weimar, Ohrdruf, Arnstadt and Mühlhausen had the good fortune to provide a home to his talent, even if his paymasters of the time did not always appreciate it.

Around the turn of the 19th century, three major figures in Weimar were committed to establishing a glittering new era which they described as the ‘new Weimar’. A permanent exhibition dedicated to them opened at the Museum Neues Weimar in 2019. It portrays the emergence of the modernist movement and its role as precursor to the Bauhaus in Weimar using outstanding international examples of realist, impressionist and art nouveau works. We are talking to Sabine Walter, the curator who was instrumental in putting together the permanent exhibition ‘Van de Velde, Nietzsche and Modernism around 1900’ at the Museum Neues Weimar.

It originated in Weimar. And it went on to conquer the world – and our living rooms …