In 1525 this was the site of the final battle in the Peasants' War, whose spiritual leader was Thomas Müntzer. Werner Tübke's monumental 1,722m² panorama depicting the Peasants' War can be admired in the museum.

The Carmelite abbey was the starting point of the Reformation in Augsburg. Luther stayed here when he met Cardinal Cajetan in 1518 and defended his heretical Theses for the first time.

Altenburg, where Luther's ally Georg Spalatin exerted great influence, was a focal point during the Reformation. Spalatin entered the service of Frederick III in 1508 and became canon at St. George's seminary in 1515.

Thomas Müntzer – priest, social revolutionary and Luther's opponent – delivered his Sermon to the Princes here in 1524. There is a museum about Thomas Müntzer and his time at Allstedt Palace.

At the beginning of May 1501, at the age of 17, Luther enrolled for the summer semester at Erfurt University. He entered the closed Augustinian monastery in Erfurt on 17 July 1505.

For several years Luther attended school in Eisenach and lived with the Cotta family. After the imperial ban he spent ten months at Wartburg Castle and translated the New Testament into German.

Luther preached in the Church of St. Mary in Eilenburg on several occasions. He was especially fond of Eilenburg cuisine – and even thought about moving here in his old age.

It is not certain that Luther ever stayed in Dresden, but he is commemorated by the Luther statue in front of the Church of Our Lady and by the Martin Luther Church in Dresden-Neustadt.

Martin Luther lived at Coburg for five months in 1530, during the Imperial Diet of Augsburg. His living and working quarters have been preserved and can be viewed at Coburg Fortress.

Philipp Melanchthon, Luther's revered, infinitely wise companion, was born in Bretten on 16 February 1497. Today Melanchthon's magnificent house on the market square is a museum of the history of the Reformation.

Luther's mother, Margarethe Lindemann, was born here in 1459. Bad Neustadt is a spa town in an idyllic setting on the river Saale. It is dominated by Salzburg Castle, which sits on a hill and is visible for miles.

On 1 May 1521 Luther preached in the collegiate church, whose distinctive tower still marks the skyline. Its pastor Heinrich Fuchs is said to have been the first priest to get married.

Martin Luther was born and died here. The house in which he was born and the house where he died – both UNESCO World Cultural Heritage sites – and the site of his baptism, the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, are the main Luther sites in Eisleben.

For 36 years Luther lived in Wittenberg, today a UNESCO world cultural heritage site. He triggered the Reformation by nailing his Theses to the door of the Castle Church and also got married in the town. Wittenberg University was founded by Elector Frederick the Wise in 1502.

Luther visited Jena a total of eleven times before 1537. He preached at St. Michael's Church, repeatedly warning against the excessively radical implementation of his reform ideas.

In 1519 Luther took part in the Leipzig Disputation, a famous discussion with the Catholic theologian Johann Eck. 20 years later, in 1539, he preached in St. Thomas' Church in Leipzig.

In 1546, shortly before his death, Luther travelled through Halle to Eisleben. The Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg is right on the Martin Luther memorial trail.

Heidelberg is where Luther made his first theological appearance outside Wittenberg after nailing his Theses to the door of the Castle Church there. Leading the Heidelberg Disputation on 26 April 1518, he mounted another defence of his Theses.

Luther's first documented stay at Gotha was in May 1515; his last visit was in 1540. Together with Bad Langensalza and Erfurt, Gotha was one of the abbeys founded by Augustinian monks from Tuscany.

In 1523 Katharina von Bora, who became Luther's wife, fled from Nimbschen Abbey near Grimma where she had spent her childhood and youth. The abbey ruins can still be seen today.

In 1524 the ban on Martin Luther was reiterated at the 3rd Diet of Nuremberg, yet Nuremberg was the first free imperial city to introduce the Reformation in 1524/25. More about Nuremberg

In 1521 Martin Luther and Kaspar Sturm stopped at the Zur Kanne inn – on what is now Mainzer Strasse – on their way to and from the Diet of Worms.

The great Thomas Müntzer – church reformer, priest, spiritual mentor and leader of rebellious peasants – was executed in Mühlhausen in 1525. This dark episode is marked by a statue at Frauentor gate.

Luther and several fellow travellers made a stop in Naumburg in 1521. Luther stayed in the house of Mayor Gressler; the council accounts show that 23 groschen and 3 pfennige were spent on wine and beer.

Luther and Zwingli confronted each other at the Marburg Colloquy in October 1529. The crux of their disagreement was their different interpretation of the role of The Last Supper.

Möhra is the Luther family's original home; his parents lived there until 1483. Martin Luther preached in Möhra in 1521, reportedly under a lime tree on the market square. The Luther House can still be seen today.

Luther's family moved to Mansfeld just a year after his birth. He spent his childhood there and his father Hans worked in the local mine. His family home is now a museum.

Around the age of 14, Luther entered the school of the Brethren of the Common Life in Magdeburg. He returned on several occasions and preached in St. John's Church during his final stay in 1524.

Luther often spent time in Weimar and preached important sermons there. Main places of interest: former Franciscan monastery, Luther courtyard, palace and Church of St. Peter and St. Paul.

Torgau played a key role in the Reformation. It is where the first Protestant church was built and where Katharina Luther died while trying to escape from the plague. Her grave can be visited.

Luther stayed in Zeitz in 1542, 1544 and 1545. He resided at the former bishop's palace and preached in the abbey church. Many of Luther's descendants lived in Zeitz, and it too has a Luther House.

At the Diet of Worms, on 17 and 18 April 1521, Luther defended his 95 Theses in the presence of Emperor Charles V. Worms is one of Germany's oldest towns and has the largest Reformation monument in the world.

This is the town where the Schmalkaldic League, an alliance of Protestant princes, was founded in 1531. The romantic medieval quarter and Wilhelmsburg Palace are delightful places to visit.

Pirna is the birthplace of Johann Tetzel, the indulgence preacher who first sparked Luther's criticism. Nearby attractions include Saxon Switzerland and countless palaces and castles.

The Diets (imperial assemblies) convened in Speyer in 1526 and 1529 strongly influenced the Reformation. Speyer Cathedral, which is the world's largest Romanesque church, and Trinity Church are prime examples of ecclesiastical architecture.

The Luther House in Sonneberg is a reminder of Luther's visits. Since the 19th century it has been a restaurant specialising in rustic fare. The German Toy Museum is also worth a visit.