Peasant uprisings of the past: from Niklashausen to the German departure!

Peasant uprisings of the past: from Niklashausen to the German departure!

From the middle of the 15th century, Germany experienced a time of upheaval and the unrest, which were led by shepherd prophets and farmers. These movements were an expression of the deeply rooted grievances that prevailed in society. A striking example of this is Hans Böhm, a cattle shepherd from Niklashausen, who preached on March 24, 1476 against a large crowd. Böhm claimed that the Holy Virgin Mary had appeared to him and called for a fundamental social upheaval.

his message met with great response, and soon up to 40,000 followers gathered who saw him as Messiah of the poor and turned against the authorities. However, Böhm was quickly arrested by the local authorities, led by the Prince -Bishop of Würzburg, and executed according to torture. These events led Niklashausen to become a pilgrimage site, but was suppressed by the authority of Rigoros. After his death, however, the social and political tensions remained.

The bundle shoe movement

In the following years there were further uprisings, all of which emerged from the same roots of oppression and serfdom. The bundschuh-movement extended from 1493 to 1517 and was not uniform movement, but rather a collection of several uprisings that took place in different regions, as in Schlettstadt, Untergrombach and on the Oberrhein. The Bundschuh, a symbolic field sign of the farmers, became the identification mark of these uprisings.

In 1493, 110 conspirators in Schlettstadt chose the Bundschuh as their symbol. Their demands not only included the looting and displacement of Jews, but also the introduction of a jubilee year, the abolition of tariffs and the establishment of their own courts for the municipalities. But this uprising was quickly put down, and the leading heads were forced to hide or fled into exile.

Joß Fritz and his uprisings

A central actor of this time was Joß Fritz, a former serf who took the lead in several bundle shoes between 1502 and 1517. Under his leadership, an alliance of around 7,000 men and 400 women in Untergrombach and Lehen mobilized. The main elements of their demands included the abolition of serfdom and the distribution of the church goods, whereby no gentleman besides emperor and pope should be recognized.

Unfortunately, the uprisings were not spared from betrayal and inner conflicts, and many were brutally depressed. Despite these setbacks, the movement under the leadership of Joß Fritz kept experiencing up. An important incident was the uprising of 1514, which became known as the uprising of the "poor Konrad". He was directed against the introduction of false weights and dimensions in Württemberg and led to initial successes, but was ultimately depressed by Duke Ulrich.

context and consequences

These uprisings are part of a more extensive development that resulted in the peasant wars of the 16th century. These conflicts, including the German Peasant War from 1524 to 1526, are characterized by struggles against economic exploitation, social injustices and political oppression by the nobles. The resistance of the farmers and their demands reflect a growing awareness of social injustice, which laid the basis for profound changes in the feudal structures.

Overall, the events of that time show how crucial the mobilization of the farmers and the support of the city population were for the course of such uprisings. Although these movements often failed, they contributed to making the grievances visible in society and raising awareness of the need for changes. The role of religion, tradition and social networks proved to be central to mobilization and forces behind these revolutionary movements.