CENTRE OF THE REFORMATION
Visitors to the town can still see for themselves that the reformer was right. Torgau’s imposing 16th century town centre has been miraculously preserved almost intact to this day. Its 500 Renaissance and late-Gothic style architectural monuments form an urban ensemble of international standing. Hartenfels Palace, the best preserved early Renaissance palace in Germany, and the magnificent town hall that dominates the market square, are the highlights in an impressive historic townscape. The foremost example of Renaissance architecture in Torgau is the Grosser Wendelstein, an open spiral stairwell built in 1533-1536 by Konrad Krebs on the main building of Hartenfels Palace. The elegant stairway soars upward for two storeys, with no additional support. Visitors encounter the first sculptural portrait of Luther on a medallion in the upper entrance.
The Palace Chapel is situated in the one of the wings. The chapel was consecrated on 5 October 1544 by Martin Luther and is widely regarded as the first to be built as a Protestant church. It bears witness to the first time that the spiritual programme of the Reformation was embodied in architecture and art. Torgau’s palace was the seat of the Electors of Saxony of the Wettin dynasty’s Ernestine line. Electors Frederick the Wise, John the Steadfast and John Frederick the Magnanimous in particular were patrons and sponsors of Lutheran ideas. Their political influence ensured that the new beliefs were disseminated throughout their realm. In 1526, the region’s rulers, who were supporters of the Reformation, formed the Association of Torgau. Torgau became the political centre of the Reformation. Traditionally, Wittenberg is known as the „mother of the Reformation“ while Torgau is dubbed the „wet-nurse of the Reformation“.
Torgau with Hartenfels
Palace and town church
Grosser Wendelstein i
n the Hartenfels Palace courtyard
View inside the Palace Chapel