75,000 visitors celebrated 500 years of the Peasants' War in Saxony-Anhalt!

75,000 visitors celebrated 500 years of the Peasants' War in Saxony-Anhalt!

The appreciation of the history and culture of the Peasants' War has brought many people together in Saxony-Anhalt over the last 16 months. Around 75,000 visitors took advantage of the cultural offerings of the state exhibition, which took place in various cities, including Halle, Eisleben, Mansfeld, Allstedt and Stolberg in the Harz. This reports MDR.

An additional civic supporting program was very popular with around 11,000 participants. The reason for these celebrations was the 500th anniversary of the German Peasants' War and the anniversary of the death of Thomas Müntzer, a central player in these uprisings. The state exhibition was organized by seven institutions that worked together on an exhibition program.

Decentralized state exhibition and upcoming highlights

But the celebrations don't end there. The new decentralized state exhibition under the title “Gerechtigkeyt 1525” will be continued next year and promises exciting insights into Müntzer’s work and the consequences of the Peasants’ War. The exhibition, which was initiated by institutions such as the Luther Memorials Foundation and the Saxony-Anhalt Art Foundation, is presented at five locations. Prime Minister Reiner Haseloff emphasizes the importance of this event for understanding social developments.

The opening program for the new exhibition begins on May 31, 2024 with the interactive participatory exhibition "1525! Uprising for Justice" in Eisleben and Mansfeld, which will be on view until January 6, 2026. At the same time, another large exhibition on the Early Renaissance will open in the Moritzburg Halle Art Museum, which will run from November 24, 2024 to March 2, 2025. The museum is also planning an artist-in-residence program with international artists, whose work will be presented from May 25, 2025.

Promoting culture and preserving historical sites

An important aspect of this cultural movement is the preservation of historical sites related to the Peasants' War. Allstedt Castle was renovated as part of the exhibitions in order to be made accessible to visitors. From July 2025, a multimedia production based on the biography of Thomas Müntzer will be presented there. In the birthplace of Stolberg, a contemporary art exhibition in the Alte Münze Museum will set additional accents.

The total costs for the state exhibition amount to around 6 million euros, which are provided by the federal government and the state of Saxony-Anhalt. These investments are not only intended to promote culture, but also to provide impetus for culture-oriented tourism in the Mansfeld-Südharz district. Thomas T. Müller, director of the Luther Memorial Foundation, emphasizes the proximity to visitors and the importance of cooperation between various state cultural foundations and cultural actors in rural areas.

Anyone interested can find all further information and an overview of the important dates, such as the inauguration of the art parcours in Allstedt on May 17, 2025, at Culture Saxony-Anhalt.