Reformations-Atlas. Die Reformation in Mitteldeutschland ed. by Markus Hein and Armin Kohnle

Abstract

Reviewed by: Reformations-Atlas. Die Reformation in Mitteldeutschland ed. by Markus Hein and Armin Kohnle Jeffrey Jaynes Reformations-Atlas. Die Reformation in Mitteldeutschland. Edited by Markus Hein and Armin Kohnle. Wettin-Löbejün: Verlag Janos Stekovics, 2018. 212 pp. The 500-year anniversary of the Protestant Reformation prompted several aids for studying this important period. Reformations-Atlas is one of the best. It features seventy-six maps ranging from local city plans to world maps that depict the current scope of Lutheran and Reformed influence respectively. It concentrates, however, on numerous regional maps that sketch Saxony's Reformation heartland. This coffee-table-style book is a more than an atlas as it features images, timelines, and short introductory essays that elevate its scholarly contribution. The book is organized into eight chapters, beginning with the religious and political landscape that shaped the Reformation in "middle Germany." A helpful map of principal German highways shows how Leipzig, more than Wittenberg, stood at the crossroads of trade networks, fueling its book trade and the influence of its university. Other maps depict the church patrons honored across the breadth of Saxony (the customary saints, Mary, and the Trinity) and popular pilgrimage sites. The chapter concludes with maps and essays that focus on the two Wettin princes, Elector Frederick and Duke George, heirs of the Leipzig Partition (1485), and their commitments to the traditional faith. The next two chapters attend more biographically to Martin Luther, addressing his background (chapter 2) and the early stages of the Reformation (chapter 3). An excellent city plan and description of Luther's academic home at Erfurt highlights this section. Several itinerary maps are included, notably Luther's route to and from Rome, his journey to the Diet of Worms, and then to the Wartburg. Chapter 3 also addresses the Wittenberg Reformation broadly, with attention to Philip Melanchthon, Justus Jonas, and even Thomas Müntzer. A fascinating map chronicles the introduction of evangelical preachers and pastors into the towns of Saxony and adjacent communities, followed by an up-close analysis of the evangelical movement in Leisnig. This chapter concludes with the critical year [End Page 92] of 1525 featuring maps of Müntzer's career, the "Peasants' War," and the plundering of regional monasteries. Programmatic dimensions of reform appear in the next three chapters: Ernestine Saxony (chapter 4), Albertine Saxony (chapter 5), and the German Empire (chapter 6). This section opens with a detailed map of the "magisterial Reformation" by identifying when various German cities and territories adopted their first church ordinances (Kirchenordnungen). Specific phases and visitors are depicted on a map that chronicles the first visitations under Elector John (Ernestine Saxony) to later efforts under Duke Maurice (Albertine Saxony). These evangelical visitations differed significantly from earlier diocesan visitations, described for the bishoprics of Meissen (1522) and Merseburg (1524). In addition, chapters 4 and 5 include more local expressions of reform like the first visitations in Zwickau, or the efforts of Elisabeth von Rochlitz (1537). Visitations in the 1530s also targeted Anabaptist communities, and their presence across Saxony is represented. Chapter 6 redirects the focus to wider aspects of imperial politics, tracing the various leagues and alliances created to secure particular positions. This chapter concludes with representations of the Saxon theaters of conflict during the Schmalkaldic War, and the realignment of Wettin lands in the Wittenberg Capitulation. The final two chapters gauge the influence of the Reformation in middle Germany. The print culture that shaped the Reformation is on full display (chapter 7), featuring an array of images. One helpful map illustrates the translations of Luther's Small Catechism across most of Europe before 1600. Music receives good exposure in this chapter, with maps that note the distribution of hymnals and the creation of numerous Kantoreien. The final chapter shifts to the spread of the Lutheran Reformation to Scandinavia and across the Atlantic. Movements inside of Germany are also featured in maps of various Pietist traditions, from the seventeenth to the nineteenth centuries. One could hope for similar detailed atlases of other German regions and beyond. Encountering a stimulating book like this one generates ideas about additional things to include, such as the [End Page 93] influence of the...