The Luther Connection

Martin Luther preached here and led a special meeting of the Schmalkldic League, the results of which are still relevant to church practices today. Schmalkalden also marks the start of the Martin Luther hiking trail.

St. George's Church and the Luther House

Visitors can take part in church services in St. George’s Church where Luther preached. Nearby, an ornate memorial of a swan, a popular symbol of Martin Luther, adorns the brightly-painted Luther House; the reformer stayed here in February 1537 in rooms above what is now a bookstore.

The Schmalkaldic League

The Schmalkaldic League, an association of 16 Protestant princes sworn to defend one another against Catholic opposition, assembled in the Schmalkalden City Hall in 1537. The assembly, or diet, was led by Martin Luther and Philipp Melanchthon and was a roll call of Europe's rich and famous, totalling 42 Evangelist theologians. Luther's articles of faith, presented here, were incorporated into the Evangelical church’s Book of Concord. Priests are still ordained using the Schmalkalden Articles of Faith to this very day.

The city

Picturesque is the only way to describe the historic heart of this town, with its colorful half-timbered buildings dating from the 15th-18th centuries.

Wilhelmsburg Castle

Overlooking the ancient roofs, Wilhelmsburg Castle is one of Germany's best preserved fortresses. Travel back in time to the Renaissance and the Reformation in the castle museum's permanent exhibition, "Launch into a New Era." The castle chapel’s wooden-pipede organ dates back to 1589 and is one of the oldest of its kind in Europe still in use.

<< Back to all LutherCities