Marienkirche
About This Site
The Marienkirche, a five-aisled Gothic hall church begun in 1317 and topped by the tallest church tower in Thuringia outside Erfurt, was where Thomas Müntzer preached and briefly governed the city in 1525; deconsecrated in 1975, it now holds the Museum St. Marien and the city's memorial to him.[1]
A century to build, 1317–c. 1420
The Teutonic Order, which had held the older church on the site since 1243, began the present building in 1317. Work stopped in the mid-fourteenth century after Mühlhausen's citizens and the Order fell out, resumed only in the 1360s, and was probably not finished until the early fifteenth century — a five-aisled Gothic hall church raised from the town's own travertine. At 86.7 metres, its tower is the tallest in Thuringia after Erfurt Cathedral, and the church itself is the state's second-largest.[1]
Müntzer's church and his Eternal Council, 1524–1525
Thomas Müntzer arrived in Mühlhausen in August 1524 and was accepted as a preacher at the Marienkirche in February 1525. On 17 March 1525 he founded an Eternal Council in the church, meant to end patrician and noble rule of the city for good, and from here led the town's peasants out to join the wider uprising. They were defeated at Frankenhausen on 15 May; Müntzer was executed on 27 May.[1]
From church to museum, since 1975
The Marienkirche was deconsecrated in 1975 and now holds the Museum St. Marien and a memorial to Müntzer; it still hosts services on a handful of occasions each year — Easter, Whit Monday, the city festival and Reformation Day.[1]
Questions visitors ask
- When was the Marienkirche built?
- The Teutonic Order began the present building in 1317, on the site of an older church it had held since 1243. Work stopped for a decade after a dispute with the town, and the church was probably not finished until the early fifteenth century.[1]
- How tall is the Marienkirche's tower?
- 86.7 metres — the tallest church tower in Thuringia after Erfurt Cathedral. The church itself is the state's second-largest.[1]
- What did Thomas Müntzer do at the Marienkirche?
- He was accepted as its preacher in February 1525, and on 17 March 1525 founded an Eternal Council there meant to end patrician and noble rule of Mühlhausen for good, before leading the town's peasants out to join the wider Peasants' War uprising.[1]
- Is the Marienkirche still used as a church?
- It was deconsecrated in 1975 and now holds the Museum St. Marien and the Müntzer memorial, though it hosts services on a handful of occasions each year — Easter, Whit Monday, the city festival and Reformation Day.[1]
- What happened to Müntzer after Mühlhausen?
- The peasants he led from here were defeated at Frankenhausen on 15 May 1525; Müntzer was executed on 27 May.[1]
Sources
- Marienkirche (Mühlhausen) — Wikipedia, retrieved 30 August 2026
Visit Information
Bei der Marienkirche, 99974 Mühlhausen
In Weimar's history
Around Weimar
67 km Northwest
The church where Müntzer briefly governed the city in 1525, and where a visitor to Mühlhausen meets that history today.