18. Germany’s Downtrodden Serfs Turned to the Protestant Reformation to Support Their Cause
Wherever and however the German Peasants War began, shared and widespread grievances ensured that once it commenced, the violent unrest spread swiftly among the downtrodden serfs. The pent-up resentments also ensured that when the peasants finally turned to violence against their noble lords, they turned to violence in a big way. Atrocities abounded, and a noble or landlord who fell into the rebels’ clutches was in for rough treatment. An aristocratic captive being forced to run a gauntlet between rows of peasants wielding clubs and whips was considered to be at the milder end of the spectrum.
Quite a few amongst the rebelling peasants were inspired by changes brought about by the new Protestant Reformation, recently launched by Martin Luther. Guided by Luther’s writing, the uprising’s leaders invoked divine law to support peasant rights and freedom from oppression by the nobles and landlords. The peasants’ demands were encapsulated in a manifesto titled The Twelve Articles of the Christian Union, which also provided biblical justification for the rebels’ cause. As seen below, that document would influence events long after the peasants’ rebellion was over.
