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WARTBURG CASTLE
Martin Luther, His Bible, His Devil and a Saint

Leave a man alone in his room with a pen and inkwell and he can change the world. After his refusal to recant his views in opposition to the Catholic Church’s selling of indulgences at the Diet of Worms in 1521 (see Cathedral at Worms), Martin Luther hid out at Wartburg Castle in the Thuringian forest town of Eisenach. Luther had lived briefly in the town of Eisenach under his own name, but while staying in a lonely small room at the end of the guards walk at Wartburg Castle, the exiled former monk hid out under the name of “Junker Jörg” (The Knight George). He spent his time to translate the Latin bible into German, creating the “Luther Bible”. The translation, suggested by his friend Melanchthon took 11 weeks to complete. It seems that the stay was a rough time for Luther, fighting the inner demons of depression, while outwardly fighting the Devil. The Lutherstube (Luther’s Room) at Wartburg castle no longer contains the original furniture when Luther was there, except for a curious whale bone seat, but has been recreated. The one piece not replaceable was the famous ink stain on the wall where Luther was said to have flung his inkwell at the devil. He apparently missed because the devil is surely still around, but the ink stain has been chipped away over the centuries by souvenir hunters, so it is now mostly a hole in the plaster.

Wartburg Castle has been referred to as one of the best preserved castles in Germany and a symbolic one. The castle was built in 1067 by a Count (Landgrave) Ludwig of Thuringia. Much of the early Romanesque portions of the castle palace remain, making it one of the few palaces of that period extant in German. The castle was restored with great attention to detail and added to with romantic revival elements in the 19th Century by architect Hugo von Ridgen. A detailed book of plans and progress of the restoration of Wartburg Castle can be found at the Castles Institute in Schloss Philippsburg over along on the Rhine (see Philippsburg Castles Research). The book is also in the museum of Wartburg, but behind glass.

Wartburg Castle has a significance that goes much beyond its Luther history connection. Adolph Hitler considered it one of the “most German of castles” and the local town authorities had to battle with him like Luther with his devil when Wagnerian enthusiast Hitler wanted to replace the castle’s cross with a Swastika. One of the most impressive rooms within the castle is the Singers Hall (Sängersaal) or Hall of Minstrels, immortalised by Richard Wagner’s opera Tannhäuser. In the middle ages, a contest of poets and minstrels was regularly held at Wartburg castle. Wagner took some poetic license of his own and set the action of the second act of his opera here. Wartburg and its Wagner Germanic identity also inspired "Mad" King Ludwig of Bavaria when he decided he needed a moutain top castle of his own (see Ludwig's Fantasy Castle Neuschwanstein).

In curious antithesis to its connection to Lutherian protestantism, Wartburg Castle was also the home of a Roman Catholic Saint. Elizabeth of Hungary was brought to Wartburg at the age of 4 and became the consort of Thurnigian Count Ludwig IV. After his death, she became devoted to charity and was responsible for enough miracles to be canonized after her own early death, and made Saint Elizabeth (see Hofkirche Innsbruck). Her chambers at the castle are one of the focuses of a tour through the Romanesque palace where the rooms are mostly devoid of furniture, with the wonderful medieval art motifs of the walls remaining of the grandure of its times. One of the striking wall paintings is of the burial procession of the death of St. Elizabeth.

While Eisnenach was a symbol of German unification in the 1800s for its gathering of protesting students in 1817, demanding the unifying of disparate fiefdoms into a modern German nation, the Burschenschaften, the town and its famous castle rather suffered the worse for the division of Germany into east and west after WWII. The castle’s once great armor collection was looted by the Russians and its furnishings vanished under East German control. A few pieces remain in the museum.
The city of Eisenach itself became an industrial town during the East German years, known for the manufacture of an East German car named for it. Today, Eisenach still retains some of it industrial feel, but the old town center has a square of historic half-wood buildings and stone medieval period gate house remaining from the city walls.

The Castle of Wartburg sits high on a mountain cliff above the town with great views of the Thuringia forested countryside, some of the most beautful woods in Germany. Wartburg castle was designated as a Unesco World Heritage site in 1999 and is a very popular tourist destination for its historic and religious importance. It can get very crowded on weekends or summer holiday periods. A guided tour is required to see inside the old palace and museum, but part of the grounds and courtyard can be wandered without paid admission. Luther’s Room is after the tour and climbing the winding wooden staircase of the medieval south tower affords a view of the castle and the surrounding forests. There is a restaurant at Wartburg Castle with a terrace view for a snack or lunch, or if you don’t feel like sitting, when heading back to the car or town stop for a real Thuringia sausage. There is a car park near the castle, which can be filled at busy times. Busses line up underneath the walking bridge to the castle gates. From the city without a car the castle can be reached by a half-hour marked walk up the wooded hill or by city bus from the train station.

Should you have a desire to live like a count yourself while touring the seat of Thuringian Landgraves, there is a luxury hotel connected to Wartburg Castle on the moutaintop, the Hotel Auf Der Wartburg, which announces its five stars with a private drive and offering means to stay at a German Castle that is far from the ascete's chamber Martin Luther endured during his stay, but at reasonably monkish price. For the European travel bargain hunter, since the former east of Germany has yet to catch the economy of the west, the prices can offer a bit of savings. In the town center is one of the Stiegenberger chain of Germany deluxe hotels the Hotel Thuringer Hof, with a very Protestant price standard room starting at only 89 Euro.

Aside from the famous historic castle, the city of Eisenach was also the birthplace of Johann Sebastian Bach (Bachhaus), the Luther House where Reformation leader lived for a time holds a number of Lutheran history artifacts and the O2 auto museum dedicated to its DDR period car manufacturing history. Eisenach lies on the rail and A4 autobahn route from Hessen Frankfurt or Kassel to Erfurt and Dresden or Berlin. The city is about an hour drive from Weimar to the east or Marburg to the west. For more of Martin Luther, head over to Wittenberg south of Berlin (see Lutherstadt Doors of the Castle Church). © Bargain Travel Europe

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See Also:

SCHLOSS LUDWIGSECK - CASTLE B&B HESSEN

CASTLE HOTEL KÖNIGS WUSTERHAUSEN BRANDENBURG

HOMBERG EFZE - REFORMATION AND REVOLUTION

GERMANY CASTLE ROAD

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