The German Peasants’ War (with Lyndal Roper)

Dr. Lyndal Roper joins us on this episode to discuss the turbulent and devastating peasant wars of 1525, a series of events that comes up often in Reformation studies but are hardly in themselves ever the center of focus in historical study.  Dr. Roper's most recent book Summer of Fire and Blood is the first major book in a generation devoted to this subject in detail. In this episode we discuss the motivations behind the peasant revolts, their devastation and their aftermath. Additionally, we discuss the roles that the theologies of Martin Luther, Thomas Müntzer, and Andreas Karlstadt had behind the uprisings. Enjoy!

Dr. Roper is the Regius Chair of History at the University of Oxford. Her general focus is the early modern period, and specializes in studies of Luther, the Reformation, 16th century German art and material culture, gender history in the early modern period, and the history of witchcraft. Her past books include Martin Luther: Renegade and Prophet, Living I Was Your Plague: Martin Luther's World and Legacy, and Witch Craze: Terror and Fantasy in Baroque Germany.