Discover Wittenberg
Aparthotel Wittenberg is a haven for travellers seeking a second home. Our team provides you with the freedom to unplug from the hectic into the calm. Wittenberg combines the attentive service of a boutique hotel with the convenience and independence of residential living. Each of our 115 apartments have been restored and enhanced to reflect the conveniences of contemporary design, whilst preserving the Wittenberg’s authentic and original ethos, charm and character that dates to 1772.
Located in the east of the city by the Nieuwe Keizersgracht canal, was built by the Lutheran Church. Used as an orphanage, elderly house, kindergarten and even for refugees. The Lutherans were known for giving back to the community and kept looking for a type of business that could sustain the upkeep of the building. After renovating for 13 months, we opened the hotel end of 2017.
There are many Swans hidden throughout the property which are part of the Lutheran heritage. Some are golden, some in the most beautiful colours. The swan is a popular symbol for Martin Luther and is frequently found in Lutheran art. The history (or perhaps legend) behind the references to Luther as a swan are quite interesting.
The Goose
Jan Hus (1370-1415), whose name literally means “Goose” in the Bohemian language, was an important religious figure whose teachings strongly influenced Martin Luther and the Reformation. He was excommunicated and burned at the stake on July 6, 1415. So what does this have to do with Luther and a swan? The following is recorded by a priest observing the execution of Hus. Just prior to being burned at the stake, Hus was asked to recant his teachings. His response…
“You are now going to burn a goose, but in a century
you will have a swan which you can neither roast nor boil.”
Aparthotel Wittenberg
Wittenberg is part of a hotelgroup named edyn. Wittenberg is part of the boutique style Aparthotels, but the name itself came with the building. Wittenberg is a town in Germany with particular history.
In 1517 Elector Frederick of Saxony had a dream about a monk who wrote on the church door of Wittenberg with a pen so large that it reached to Rome. The more those in authority tried to break the pen, the stronger it became. When asked how the pen got so strong, the monk replied “The pen belonged to an old goose of Bohemia, a hundred years old.”
After the burning of Jan Hus on the stake ,almost exactly 100 years later, on October 31, 1517 Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, from where the religion spread widely. Martin Luther himself, who clearly would be familiar with the history of Jan Hus, referred to himself as the swan of which Hus prophesied. Therefore the swans and Wittenberg are very much connected to the property.