The Dreadful History and Judgement of God on Thomas Mntzer: The Life and Times of an Early German Revolutionary

(Hardback)

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In this brilliant work of historical excavation, Andrew Drummond charts the life and work of Thomas Mntzer, the man Martin Luther proclaimed a Ravening Wolf and a False Prophet. Despite his short life - he died on the executioners block in 1525 at thirty-five - Mntzer sought to fundamentally upend German society. Omnia sunt communia, all things are to be held in common, proclaimed Thomas Mntzer at the head of the massed ranks of a peasant army in the year 1525. Ranged against him: the might of the princes of the German Nation. But how did Mntzer, the son of a coin-maker from central Germany, rise in just a few short years to become one of the most feared revolutionaries in early modern Europe, striking terror into the hearts of the religious and political establishment Far from the bloodthirsty devil of legend, Drummond shows us Mntzer as a man, one of considerable learning and principle, deeply sympathetic to the misery of the peasantry and the poor. Seeking to save Mntzer from the condescension of history, Drummond guides us through the religious and political disputes of the Reformation, placing his life and thought in the context of those turbulent years. In doing so, we get a portrait of an often contradictory, but always radical figure, one who continues to inspire movements of the poor across the globe.

Reviews

At last - a new account for our times of Thomas Mntzer, theologian and revolutionary. Drummond brings Mntzer and his world vividly to life. He shows us just why Mntzer hated Luther, and how he came to take up arms. What did it mean to be a revolutionary in sixteenth-century Germany - Drummond shows us. You will be gripped and inspired by this exciting story - I couldn't put it down. -- Lyndal Roper, Regius Professor of History at Oxford, and author of Martin Luther: Renegade and Prophet
Posterity has endorsed not just Luther's victory but also his determined character assassination of his rival. Andrew Drummond's scholarly but eminently readable, thoughtful, thorough and at times witty biography of Mntzer redresses the balance for English-speaking audiences -- Professor Michael Russell, University of Glasgow
Among the famous figures associated with 16th century Germany, that of religious thinker and social revolutionary Thomas Mntzer deserves to be far better known. Andy Drummond's excellent, brilliantly written and entertaining, new biography delves deep into the archival material to draw out the history of a radical whose life is often obscured by propaganda and myth. As we approach the 500th anniversary of Mntzer's execution, this book is the definitive account of his life. -- Martin Empson, author of 'Kill all the Gentlemen': Class Struggle and Change in the English Countryside

Author Bio

Andrew Drummond is a historian, novelist and translator based in Edinburgh. He is the author of five novels: An Abridged History of the Construction of a Railway Line Between Ullapool and Lochinver; A Hand-book of Volapk; Elephantina; Novgorod the Great; and The Books of the Incarceration of the Lady Grange. He has also written short stories and translations from German. More recently, he has written a biography of the 18th century adventurer Maurice Benyovszky, and an account of the attempts to extend rail connections to the north-west Highlands of Scotland.