Remembrance culture

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The preservation and commemoration of personalities and historical events is part of the town's culture of remembrance. In Mühlhausen, several monuments such as the statues of Müntzer, Bach and Roebling commemorate personalities who are closely connected with the town's history.

 

The monument "Mühlhäuser Löwe" offers a particularly scenic view of the medieval imperial city.

Bach Monument

The monument next to the Church of Blaise the Divine, created by sculptor Klaus Friedrich Messerschmidt, shows the young Johann Sebastian Bach standing next to his monument pedestal.

about Johann Sebastian Bach:

Johann Sebastian...

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The monument next to the Church of Blaise the Divine, created by sculptor Klaus Friedrich Messerschmidt, shows the young Johann Sebastian Bach standing next to his monument pedestal.

about Johann Sebastian Bach:

Johann Sebastian Bach is one of Germany's most important composers. He was born on 21 March 1685 in Eisenach, where he also spent his first ten years. During the period from 1703 to 1708, Bach was organist at the Neue Kirche, now Bachkirche, in Arnstadt. He was originally invited to take care of the organ in what was then the church of St. Boniface, where he became church organist shortly thereafter. During this time Bach wrote many works for the organ, including the famous "Toccata and Fugue in D minor". In early 1707, he moved to the high-ranking and better-paid position of organist at the Church of Blaise the Divine in Mühlhausen. Thanks to the much higher pay, he was soon able to start a family and on 17 October 1707 he married his cousin Maria Barbara Bach, with whom he had seven children. In Mühlhausen he had many tasks, including the disposition of the church organ. He composed the cantata "Gott ist mein König" (God is my King), which is the only one that has survived as a print from this period. In 1708 Bach traveled to Weimar, where he played for Duke Wilhelm Ernst and was offered a position as court organist in the palace chapel, known as the Himmelsburg. During this period of nearly ten years in Weimar, he composed much of his organ work as well as cantatas, works for harpsichord, and early versions of the Brandenburg Concertos. In 1714 he rose to the position of concertmaster - his reputation as an organ virtuoso spread rapidly beyond the German lands. In 1717 Bach was appointed court kapellmeister in Anhalt-Köthen by Prince Leopold. His wife Maria Barbara died there in 1720, and just one year later Bach married for the second time: the musician's daughter Anna Magdalene Wilcke. In April 1723 he began the prestigious position as Thomaskantor in Leipzig. It was at this last station in his life that Bach created his major vocal works (St. John's Passion and St. Matthew's Passion), as well as numerous cantatas and motets. On 28 July 1750 Johann Sebastian Bach died at the age of 65 in Leipzig.

Address

Untermarkt
99974 Mühlhausen

Müntzer Monument

Thomas Müntzer (1489-1525) was a preacher in Mühlhausen’s St. Mary’s Church and the most important theologian in the central German Peasants’ War. The world’s first freestanding monument for the radical reformer was created by...

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Thomas Müntzer (1489-1525) was a preacher in Mühlhausen’s St. Mary’s Church and the most important theologian in the central German Peasants’ War. The world’s first freestanding monument for the radical reformer was created by the eminent sculptor Will Lammert between 1956 and 1957 and made from locally mined travertine.

Address

Blobach
99974 Mühlhausen

Lion Monument

Between 1914 and 1918 1,313 citizens of Mühlhäusen were killed on the battlefields of the First World War. To their memory the citizens erected a war memorial at the city hill. Construction works commenced on 27 October 1926, and...

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Between 1914 and 1918 1,313 citizens of Mühlhäusen were killed on the battlefields of the First World War. To their memory the citizens erected a war memorial at the city hill. Construction works commenced on 27 October 1926, and the inauguration took place on 5 June 1928. The keystone contains a ‘Book of Heroes’ with the names of the fallen. The monument has changed its meaning due to experiences from the more recent history. In the present day, Volkstrauertag (the German version of Veterans Day or Armistice Day) is a day when citizens gather to commemorate all victims of war and violence.

From the upper platform, at the top of which stands a stone lion, the visitor has a beautiful view of the medieval imperial city of Mühlhausen and the surrounding countryside.

Address

Schillerweg
99974 Mühlhausen

Röbling monument

The monument to Johann August Röbling is located on the Untermarkt. He is one of the city's most famous sons and the designer of the Brooklyn Bridge in New York. On May 11, 2007, the bronze monument was dedicated in the presence...

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The monument to Johann August Röbling is located on the Untermarkt. He is one of the city's most famous sons and the designer of the Brooklyn Bridge in New York. On May 11, 2007, the bronze monument was dedicated in the presence of his great-great-grandson Kriss Roebling.

about Johann August Roebling:

John Augustus Roebling (originally Johann August Röbling, * June 12, 1806 in Mühlhausen in Thuringia, † July 22, 1869 in New York, N.Y.) was a German-American engineer and bridge builder. On September 30, 1837, he received the certificate of naturalization of the USA and called himself John A. Roebling from then on.

Address

Untermarkt
99974 Mühlhausen

Müntzer memorial plaque

Thomas Müntzer was initially a follower of Martin Luther's ideas. However, Luther quickly distanced himself from him during the Peasants' War, as Thomas Müntzer expressed radical, social revolutionary aspirations and advocated...

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Thomas Müntzer was initially a follower of Martin Luther's ideas. However, Luther quickly distanced himself from him during the Peasants' War, as Thomas Müntzer expressed radical, social revolutionary aspirations and advocated the violent liberation of the peasants. He also fought in it himself. Thomas Müntzer worked as a pastor at St. Mary's Church, and from there he promoted the uprisings.

On May 15, 1525, he was captured after the battle of Frankenhausen. Thomas Müntzer was tortured and publicly executed in Mühlhausen on May 27, 1525.

The Peasants' War Monument serves as a reminder of the time of Thomas Müntzer and the Peasants' War.

Address

Stadtpark
99974 Mühlhausen