Frederick the wise article about frederick the wise by. Frederick is a caldecott honor book by leo lionni and it is about a laid back mouse named frederick who seems to get out of his duties of preparing food for the winter, but ends up hiding an extraordinary secret frederick is definitely a childrens book that children. Frederick the wise, christian ruler commemoration our. Frederick wanted to know his theologians opinion on the proposed burning of hebrew books and delegated spalatin to find out. A funeral is a serious business, and in my judgment the pop idiom is too trivial for the occasion. Frederick the wise by sam wellman overview frederick the wise unlocks german research to make available in english, for the first time, a fulllength story of frederick iii of saxony. The fascinating biographical journey reveals why this noteworthy elector risked his realm of saxony to protect the fiery monk martin luther and the. Frederick the wise was a secondary protagonist in the 2003 film luther.
Frederick iii, called the wise, elector of saxony, eldest son of ernest, elector of saxony, and elizabeth, daughter of albert, duke of bavariamunich, was born at torgau, and succeeded his father as elector in. Frederick the wise was the founder of the wittenberg university. Praise for frederick the wise to his family, friends, peers, and subjects, elector frederick the wise of saxony was much more than simply martin luthers noble protector. Frederick iii 14631525, also known as frederick the wise, was born at torgau and succeeded his father as elector of saxony in 1486. The elector frederick the wise famous dream the night before oct 31. Frederick the wise was a bit sympathetic to luthers theology, but the bigger reason for his actions were the political repercussions of his teachings. Gene edward veith, professor of literature at patrick henry college frederick the wise. He was not content merely to possess the scriptures for himself. Currently, we have less than half of the collection in house, and we hope to have the remaining portion by the end of 2012. Frederick the wise ebook edition concordia publishing house. Frederick the wise frederick iii of ernestine saxony, commonly known as frederick the wise, became the first patron of the protestant reformation due to his defense of luther during the early days of the wittenberg reforms. James langebartels translated the book into english.
How martin luther changed the world the new yorker. Full text of the letters of martin luther internet archive. Frederick iii, the wise, was the elector of saxony from 1486 to 1525, the founder of the university of wittenberg 1502, and was martin luthers sovereign in the early years of the reformation. Seen and unseen lives of martin luthers protector, to answer a few questions about the book and his work what made you decide to write a biography about frederick the wise. We are also excited to be the home of lorenas extensive genealogical collection. He was born of royal blood, for his father was elector of saxony before him, and he inherited the electoral dignity upon his fathers death. Frederick iii 17 january 1463 5 may 1525, also known as frederick the wise german. Frederick was the son of ernest, elector of saxony and his wife elisabeth, daughter of albert iii, duke of bavaria. Frederick was born in hartenfels castle, torgau in. I was initially interested in martin luther and wrote a complete draft of a biography on luther. Frederick, however, had little personal contact with luther and remained a catholic, although he gradually inclined toward the doctrines of the reformation.
Epistolary of frederick the wise facsimile edition. When frederick the wise, the elector of saxony, took luther into protective custody at wartburg after the diet of worms, the reformer found the time to begin his task of translating the bible into the language of the people. Because frederick the wise did not have children, john frederick was given both his fathers and his uncles name. Luther accepted the safe passage from the diet of worms, and began to make his way to wittenberg, but it was along the way that his protector, frederick the wise of saxony, had him snatched by soldiers and delivered to wartburg castle, near eisenach. Frederick the wise was born in 1463, twenty years before luther. We asked sam wellman, author of frederick the wise.
Fullsize color reproduction of the entire original document, epistolary of frederick the wise. This book brings the historical context of the reformation to life. Sam wellman has written a book about frederick the wise 14631525, who gave lifesaving support to luther and consequently enabled him to move forward. But because it reads like a novel, putting the reader in the shoes of frederick the wise 14631525 as he faced great problems and made difficult decisions, it will also be of interest to the general public. George spalatin was the pseudonym taken by georg burkhardt 17 january 1484 16 january 1545, was a german humanist, theologian, reformer, secretary of the saxon elector frederick the wise, as well as an important figure in the history of the reformation. Frederick iii of ernestine saxony, commonly known as frederick the wise, became the first patron of the protestant reformation due to his defense of luther. The fascinating biographical journey reveals why this noteworthy elector risked his realm of saxony to protect the fiery monk martin luther and. Frederick the wise was a secondary protagonist in the 2003 film luther prince frederick was a member of the german nobility who became the elector, or ruler of the holy roman empires state of saxony, and was headquartered in wittenberg. Sam wellman has written a book about frederick the wise 14631525, who gave lifesaving support to luther and consequently enabled him to move forward with his mission. While other mice are gathering food for the winter, frederick seems to daydream the summer away.
The fascinating biographical journey reveals why this noteworthy elector risked his realm of. Frederick the wise is known for being one of the most powerful early defenders of martin luther, lutheranism, and the protestant reformation. While frederick is drawn to the recent writing of martin luther, albrecht pursues the financial and political benefits of religion and seeks to buy a cardinalship through the selling of indulgences. The fascinating biographical journey reveals why this noteworthy elector risked his realm of saxony to protect the fiery monk martin luther and the developing reforms of the church. You may get more hits if you look for martin luther rather than frederick the wise. The nature of community and the social philosophy that governs community is just one. Frederick was a model ruler whose outstanding characteristics were piety in the roman catholic sense and a deep love of justice. Eric carle, author of the very hungry caterpillar when dreary winter comes, it is frederick the. Frederick the wise, the catholi clutheran love the questions about frederick the wise in class last week, which ask us all to solidify why we believe something, and why we argue a certain way. The lcha now has hard copies of one wise mana genealogy of frederick wise by lorena eaker. First the authors trace an earlier history of intaglio illustrations for books, rare but not unprecedented they omit the lucas cranach engraved frontispiece of frederick the wise in prayer for that patrons relic collection book, 1509. Were it not for frederick, there might not have been a lutheran reformation. Frederick the wise unlocks research in german to tell the full story of frederick, one of the most powerful territorial princes of the holy roman empire, and to reveal why frederick risked his realm of saxony to protect the fiery monk martin luther and reforms of the church. Prince frederick was a member of the german nobility who became the elector, or ruler.
Frederick had castles in saxony, including wittenberg and wartburg, which would become important landmarks in the life of martin luther. At that time, however, the new ruler of saxony, frederick the wise, was trying to make a real. Fredericks protestant reformed churches in america. Beside money from the ruler the university primary source of income, in the initial years, was the foundation designed to sell indulgences for worshipers who came to see the five thousand relics original and many faked collected by frederick.
Frederick s story appears to be sympathetic to collectivism, a term that describes any moral, political or social outlook that stresses human interdependence and the importance of a collective, rather than the. Frederick, as was his habit, formed his own opinion after exact consideration of the state of affairs by his advisers and listening to the opinion of a recognized expert. Wellmans thoroughly researched and engaging biography paints a vivid image of the saxon elector. A devout catholic, frederick the wise became elector of saxony upon the death of his father. Frederick the wise 1463 1525 october 22, 2012 by prschroeder this engraving is by albrecht durer who is considered to be the michelangelo of germany and he was a contemporary of the early years of the reformation. His two most important patrons are frederick the wise and soontobe cardinal albrecht of mainz. This book is suitable for college students, graduate students, and scholars. In this 144page volume, we learn that he is the son of john the steadfast and nephew to frederick the wise, johns brother. Though he participated in the selling of indulgences, frederick objected to the selling of indulgences for the building of. A man as wellknown in reformation scholarship circles as heiko oberman wrote, historians of every stripe have found only one statesmen thoroughly praiseworthy. Frederick the wise unlocks research in german to tell the full st.
We step a moment out of the domain of history, to narrate a dream which the elector frederick of saxony had on the night preceding the memorable day on which luther affixed his theses to the door of the castlechurch. Frederick the wise hides luther at the wartburg castle for eleven months luther translates new testament into german, from december to march 1522 philip melanchthon publishes first lutheran dogmatic text, loci theologici. The biographical book frederick the wise, unlocks german research to make available in english, for the first time, a fulllength story of frederick iii of saxony. Frederick the wise is remembered as the man who saved martin luther from the fury of the catholic church. How was it that fredericka loyal member of the roman catholic church. He is commemorated as a christian ruler in the calendar of saints of the lutheran church missouri synod on 5 may.