A PORTRAIT of MANSFELD in the SIXTEENTH CENTURY If, As

CHAPTER ONE

A PORTRAIT OF MANSFELD IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY

If, as this monograph argues, lay religiosity is shaped by a variety of religious factors interacting with diverse political, economic, and social forces, then before addressing the controversy over original sin and its implications, it is first necessary to sketch the broader context while, at the same time, introducing Mansfeld. To this end, the geography, socio-economic makeup, political configurations within the territory as well as Mansfeld’s place in a wider political context, and the territory’s church structure are broadly outlined in this chapter. Moreover, as will become apparent during an analysis of the controversy itself, the past remained the present, in particular with regard to the early Reformation. Actions taken by various groups of pastors, counts, and laity then deeply informed their identities and the events of the 1570s. For this reason the development of a distinctive Mansfeld religious character and accompanying ecclesiastical structures over the course of the sixteenth century receive considerable attention, as does the reaction of the various dynastic lines of counts to these changes in religion.

A Tale of Two Cities

The cities of Tal Mansfeld and Eisleben lie nine kilometers apart, nes- tled along the eastern perimeter of the Harz Mountains, which sweep across north central Germany. In the early modern period, the territory of Mansfeld, home to both cities, formed a gateway to the small mountain Grafschaften dotting the Harz range.1 As its name suggests, the city of Tal Mansfeld with its c. 2,500 inhabitants lay in a valley.2 By dint of hard work and an entrepreneurial spirit, many of the thirteen

1 These included the territories of Stolberg-Wernigerode, Stolberg-Stolberg, Schwarzburg, Beichlingen, and Hohenstein. 2 Erich Keyser, Deutsches Städtebuch: Handbuch Städtischer Geschichte, v. 2 (Stuttgart: W. Kohlhammer Publisher, 1941), 604. Keyser puts the population at between 2,000 and 3,000 for the sixteenth century. 16 chapter one council members who ran the city’s affairs had become wealthy in the mining operations that formed the backbone of the city’s and territory’s economy. A dean, the second most powerful churchman in the territory, presided over the city’s seven clerics. The council, clergy, and commoners of Tal Mansfeld all literally looked up to their superiors, the counts, whose fortress perched high above the valley on a hilltop. This elaborate configuration of buildings included fortifications, moats and stone walls, an armory and powder tower, a castle-church, stables, an apothecary, a library, a pub, gardens, and all manner of associated buildings. The counts, dean, and numer- ous advisors and craftsmen resided in the fortress of Mansfeld where, in 1545, during his penultimate visit to Mansfeld, Martin Luther stayed as he attempted to end the quarreling among the territory’s rulers. For Luther, it was a chance to return to his homeland, for he was born in Eisleben and spent his childhood in Tal Mansfeld. The fortress’s layout furnished the appellation for each of the three dynastic lines of counts, the territory having been divided in 1501. The “front position” (Vorderort) line had its residence closest to the cliff overlook- ing Tal Mansfeld, the “middle position” (Mittelort) counts resided in apartments next to them, and the area furthest from the precipice was occupied by the “back position” (Hinterort) dynastic line. Each line ruled particular sections of the territory, itself divided into thirteen districts (Ämter).3 The Vorderort controlled three fifths of the territory and the Mittelort and Hinterort one fifth each, while all three lines administered the cities, forests, and meadows jointly. Upon leaving the fortress to make the short journey to Eisleben, a traveler passed the huge, sacred black oak (Sacra Quercus), which stood until June 21, 1574, when lightning struck, burning the tree to the ground. Until that time, thieves were hanged from its branches, and under its foliage, the authorities dispatched evildoers with fire and sword.4 Like Tal Mansfeld, Eisleben, with its c. 7,000 inhabitants in the

3 They were Heldrungen, Artern, Arnstein, Friedeburg, Bornstedt, Eisleben, Mansfeld, Morungen, Schraplau, Allstedt, Rothenburg, Rammelburg, and Seeburg. 4 This citation requires some explanation because the origins and location of the work from which it is taken are confusing, and it is referred to repeatedly in this study. It comes from volume IV of Cyriakus Spangenberg’s Mansfeldische Chronica (vol. 1 Eisleben: Andreas Petri, 1572), a description of the territory, its various layers of government, its cities, towns, castles, cloisters, and unoccupied areas. This fourth volume was probably finished in the final year of the sixteenth century, but remained unprinted until the twentieth century. Spangenberg divided volume IV into three