Der Bauernkrieg

The Peasants' War - Retold from the Sources by Gerd Schwerhoff

The Peasants' War of 1525 is considered the largest uprising in Europe before the French Revolution. It has been interpreted as a revolt for the unity of the Germans, an early bourgeois revolution, and a revolution of the common man. Gerd Schwerhoff describes, based on extensive source material, what really happened 500 years ago. Anyone who wants to engage in discussions about the Peasants' War in the future will not be able to overlook this captivating new account.

Autumn 1524: Fueled by the message of the reformers, an uprising begins in southwestern Germany that almost engulfs the entire south of the Empire by spring 1525. Everywhere, peasants and sympathetic townspeople organize themselves into large "masses." They destroy monasteries, burn down castles, and force lords, counts, and even princes into their "brotherly union." Almost everywhere, they demand the removal of the church as a secular power factor. The rulers are initially divided, but then the military machinery of the powerful Swabian League is set in motion. The peasants lose decisive battles, many are mercilessly massacred, but some rulers begin to realize that pure repression is insufficient. Contemporaries perceived the events as a "wild act." Gerd Schwerhoff masterfully does justice to the very different locations and paints a new, colorful overall picture. The events, which have been obscured by far-reaching interpretations, appear in a completely new light.

500th Anniversary 2025
"The most radical fact of German history." Karl Marx

The first new reconstruction of the events from the sources in decades

Captivatingly narrated by a leading expert.