Wittenberg


Wittenberg, officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg, is the fourth-largest town in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, in the Federal Republic of Germany. It is situated on the River Elbe, north of Leipzig and south-west of the reunified German federal capital city of Berlin, and has a population of 46,008.
Wittenberg's honorific title Lutherstadt stems from its close connections with the theologian Martin Luther and the Reformation, usually taken to have begun in the town, marking the birth of Protestantism. Several of Wittenberg's buildings are associated with these historical and religious events, including a preserved part of the Augustinian monastery in which Luther lived, first as a celibate monk and later as property owner with his later wife Katharina von Bora and family. Wittenberg was also the seat of the prince Elector of Saxony, a dignity held by the dukes of the Duchy of Saxe-Wittenberg, making it one of the most powerful cities in the Holy Roman Empire. Following the Congress of Vienna the town was transferred to the Kingdom of Prussia. Largely spared destruction during the Second World War, it later became part of East Germany.
Today, Wittenberg is an industrial centre and tourist destination, best known for its intact historic center and various memorial sites dedicated to Luther and his collaborator, fellow theologian Philip Melanchthon. The buildings associated with those two figures were added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1996, along with other sites in Eisleben, because of their religious significance and testimony to one of the most influential movements of medieval Europe.

History

Historical documents first mention the settlement in 1180 as a small village founded by Flemish colonists under the rule of the House of Ascania. In 1260 this village became the residence of the dukes of Saxe-Wittenberg, and in 1293 the settlement was granted its town charter as a free-standing town.
Wittenberg developed into an important trade centre during the following few centuries because of its central location. When the local branch of the Ascanians died out in 1422, control of Saxe-Wittenberg passed to the House of Wettin. The town became an important regional political and cultural centre at the end of the 15th century when Frederick III, the Elector of Saxony from 1486 to 1525, made his residence in Wittenberg. Several parts of the boundaries of the town were extended soon afterwards. The second bridge over the Elbe River was built between 1487 and 1490 and the Castle Church was erected between 1496 and 1506. The Elector's palace was rebuilt at the same time.
In 1502, Elector Frederick founded the University of Wittenberg, which attracted some writers such as Martin Luther, a professor of theology beginning in 1508, and Philipp Melanchthon, a professor of Greek and subsequently Luther's friend and disciple, starting a decade later in 1518.
On 31 October 1517, according to legend, Luther nailed his "Ninety-five Theses" against the selling of indulgences to the door of the Castle Church, an event taken as marking the beginning of the Protestant Reformation and the start of a major branch of Western Christianity, Lutheranism. The Anabaptist movement had one of its earliest homes in Wittenberg, when the Zwickau prophets moved there in late 1521, only to be suppressed by Luther when he returned from the Wartburg in spring of 1522.
The Capitulation of Wittenberg is the name given to the treaty by which John Frederick the Magnanimous was compelled to resign the electoral dignity and most of his territory to the Albertine branch of the noble House of Wettin.
In 1760, during the Seven Years' War, the Austrians bombarded the town, which was then occupied by the Prussians. The French took control in 1806, and Napoleon commanded the refortification of the town in 1813. In 1814, the Prussian Army under Tauentzien stormed Wittenberg; he received the title of "von Wittenberg" as a reward. Wittenberg became part of Prussia a year later following the fall of Napoleon and negotiations at the Congress of Vienna, administered within the Province of Saxony. Wittenberg continued to be a fortress of the third class until the reorganisation of German defences after the foundation of the new German Empire led to its dismantling in 1873.
From 1914 to 1918, during the First World War, a camp was set up two miles from the town at Klein Wittenberg. Eight compounds held 13,000 men. During the typhus epidemic of 1914–1915, conditions were harsh. The camp medical officer, Dr. Aschenbach, was awarded the Iron Cross for his part in the epidemic. The award was questioned by the Allies. The use of dogs to attack POW's was criticised by American Ambassador James W. Gerard in his book "Four Years in Germany".
Unlike many other historic German cities during World War II, Wittenberg's town centre was spared destruction during the conflict. The Allies agreed not to bomb Wittenberg, though fighting took place in the town, with bullet pock-marks visible on the statues of Luther and Melanchthon in the market square – or so the popular version of the town's history goes. In fact the Luther statue was not present in the town square during much of the war but in storage at Luther Brunnen, a roadhouse a few kilometres north of the town.
Wittenberg's reputation as a town protected from Allied bombing is largely accurate. However, just outside Wittenberg the government had built the Arado Flugzeugwerke, which produced components of airplanes for the Luftwaffe. The war factory was worked by Jews, Russians, Poles, political prisoners and even a few Americans—all prisoners engaging in forced labour, including prisoners-of-war who were nominally exempt from such labor. American and British planes bombed the factory near the end of the war, resulting in the death of over one thousand POWs. The 1995 publication of "...und morgen war Krieg!" by Renate Gruber-Lieblich
attempts to document the tragic bombing outside Wittenberg.
In 1945, Wittenberg issued 19 of its own postage stamps, each depicting Hitler but with a large black round overprint covering his face. At the end of the war, Soviet forces occupied Wittenberg; it became part of East Germany in 1949. During the East German period, it formed part of Halle District. By means of the peaceful revolution in 1989, the communist régime dissolved and the town has been governed democratically since 1990.
Wittenberg is currently characterized by renovation and new construction work, an economic recovery and tourism development as a "place of pilgrimage for the Reformation". With the Luther Decade starting in 2008, the city began preparing for the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, which took place in 2017. Numerous buildings have been restored, the infrastructure has been partially renewed and numerous new attractions have been created in the city.
In 2014 Lutherstadt Wittenberg was awarded the honorary title European City of the Reformation by the Community of Protestant Churches in Europe.

Historical population

The figures are given for the metropolitan district at the point in time. Up to 1791 the figures are generally estimated, later figures are from census or local authorities.
Source: 2012 census.

Divisions

The town Wittenberg consists of Wittenberg proper and the following Ortschaften or municipal divisions:
Wittenberg has a typical oceanic climate with cool winters and warm summers. The average temperature in Wittenberg ranges from in winter to in summer, with the average temperature from May to September being above. Winter begins in early October and spring begins in mid-April of the following year. There are 14.1 days of daytime high temperatures exceeding each year, and about 18 days of daytime maximum temperatures below freezing each winter.
The Wittenberg weather station has recorded the following extreme values:
  • Highest Temperature on 9 August 1992.
  • Warmest Minimum on 7 August 2015.
  • Coldest Maximum on 1 February 1956.
  • Lowest Temperature on 2 February 1956.
  • Highest Daily Precipitation on 27 July 2016.
  • Wettest Month in July 1954.
  • Wettest Year in 2007.
  • Driest Year in 2018.
  • Earliest Snowfall: 30 October 1940.
  • Latest Snowfall: 29 April 1985.
  • Longest annual sunshine: 2,117.7 hours in 2018.
  • Shortest annual sunshine: 1,388.1 hours in 1977.

    Sights and culture

Lutherstadt Wittenberg has a wide range of cultural sites. Most are located within the historic old town along the Wittenberg Culture Mile.
Wittenberg is home to numerous historical sites, as well as portraits and other paintings by Lucas Cranach the Elder and Younger. On the doors of All Saints' Church, the Schlosskirche Luther is said to have 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 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 Martin Luther, Philipp Melanchthon, Johannes Bugenhagen, Paul Eber and of the electors Frederick the Wise and John the Constant, and portraits of the reformers by Lucas Cranach the Younger, who is also buried in the church.
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 painting by Lucas Cranach the Elder, representing the Last Supper, Baptism and Confession, also a font by Hermann Vischer the Elder. 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, mayor of Wittenberg, can also be found here. Statues of Luther, 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.
The original Wittenberg University quadrangle also lies in the city centre.