Peasant Fires: The Drummer of Niklashausen

..". lively and intellectually stimulating... " --Speculum

"Wunderli... has lucidly reconstructed acontroversial conflict in 15th-century south-central Germany.... this engagingnarrative takes off from Hans Behem -- the peasant who claimed to see the Virgin andgained followers until crushed by the established church -- to explore larger forcesat work in Germany on the eve of the Reformation... Wunderli also attempts to sortout the violent conflict that ensued and Hans's subsequent trial. His scrupulousnessand sensitivity make for a small but valuable book." -- PublishersWeekly

"Fascinating and well written, this is highlyrecommended for academic and larger public libraries." -- LibraryJournal

"Richard Wunderli... deftly tells the story inPeasant Fires, finding in it a foreshadowing of peasant uprisings in the 16thcentury." -- New York Times Book Review

..". astimulating read... an engaging synthesis." -- Central EuropeanHistory

In 1476, an illiterate German street musician had a visionof the Virgin Mary and began to preach a radical social message that attractedthousands of followers -- and antagonized the church. The drummer was burned at thestake. This swiftly moving narrative of his rise and fall paints a vivid portrait of15th-century German society as it raises important questions about the craft ofhistory.

"A gem of a book.... It has a plot, good guys andbad buys, it opens up a 'strange' world, and it is exceptionally well written."-- Thomas W. Robisheaux