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Weekend Tips: What to Do This Weekend in Berlin
July 19 to 21, 2024: Events, concerts, exhibitions and more things to do for your perfect weekend in Berlin. more
Current language: English
Renaissance and Reformation
Tour with Castle Area Manager Kathrin Külow
Heinrich Bollandt: Kurfürst Joachim II., 1619
© SPSG / Wolfgang Pfauder
On November 1, 1539, Elector Joachim II of Brandenburg received communion in both forms at St. Nikolai in Spandau, and Brandenburg became Protestant.
As Elector Prince, Joachim had met the reformer Martin Luther in Wittenberg. His mother was an early follower of the Reformation and therefore had to flee to Electoral Saxony. She did not return to Spandau until 1545.
Joachim I's father was a strict opponent of Luther. In his will he committed his sons to the old faith. He died in July 1535.
While his brother Hans von Küstrin professed Protestantism shortly after his accession to power, Joachim II did not take this step until 1563. His ecclesiastical policy was conservative and aimed at maintaining good relations with the emperor and the Catholic princes in the empire.
Joachim I began to transform the electoral court on the Spree into a Renaissance court. in 1506, together with his brother Albrecht, he founded the university in Frankfurt an der Oder. This development continued under his son. The Berlin court now also attracted princely sons of neighboring and related families, who perfected their education here. Joachim II had the Berlin palace remodeled in the style of the early Renaissance. The model was Hartenfels Castle in Torgau. Joachim II commissioned the Cranach workshop to decorate the cathedral church and the palace.
Kathrin Külow (SPSG), head of the palace department, gives a guided tour of the Cranach exhibition and provides insights into the history of Kurbrandenburg in the 16th century.
Translated with DeepL
As Elector Prince, Joachim had met the reformer Martin Luther in Wittenberg. His mother was an early follower of the Reformation and therefore had to flee to Electoral Saxony. She did not return to Spandau until 1545.
Joachim I's father was a strict opponent of Luther. In his will he committed his sons to the old faith. He died in July 1535.
While his brother Hans von Küstrin professed Protestantism shortly after his accession to power, Joachim II did not take this step until 1563. His ecclesiastical policy was conservative and aimed at maintaining good relations with the emperor and the Catholic princes in the empire.
Joachim I began to transform the electoral court on the Spree into a Renaissance court. in 1506, together with his brother Albrecht, he founded the university in Frankfurt an der Oder. This development continued under his son. The Berlin court now also attracted princely sons of neighboring and related families, who perfected their education here. Joachim II had the Berlin palace remodeled in the style of the early Renaissance. The model was Hartenfels Castle in Torgau. Joachim II commissioned the Cranach workshop to decorate the cathedral church and the palace.
Kathrin Külow (SPSG), head of the palace department, gives a guided tour of the Cranach exhibition and provides insights into the history of Kurbrandenburg in the 16th century.
Translated with DeepL
Meeting point: Café castle box office
Price: €8.00
Reduced price: €6.00
Booking: Tickets at the castle box office in the café
030.8 13 35 97 or
Price: €8.00
Reduced price: €6.00
Booking: Tickets at the castle box office in the café
030.8 13 35 97 or
Next date:
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