Nine Brothers, Several Sisters, and Another Sister, in the Year 1529

About the year 1529, the knowledge of the truth began to shine also in the places along the river Rhine, so that divine zeal and the fire of God arose, which the priests, by inciting the authorities, tried hard to stop. First nine brothers and several sisters were arrested for the faith in the city of Altzey, without the order of the Elector or Palsgrave, simply through the instigation of the priests and the help of the nobility. They lay in prison for a considerable time, and as they were waiting to see how to deal with them, the Burgrave at Altzey asked the Palsgrave, his prince and lord, what he should do with them. The prince answered him that they had a court of justice at Altzey, and that he should let it examine and judge them. The Burgrave did so, and brought them before the court of justice, which, however, would not sentence them, because they had been arrested simply for the sake of their faith, and no other cause of death existed. Acts 18, verses 15 and 16. In the meantime an imperial diet was held, at which the Palsgrave stated that he had some prisoners who had been arrested on account of their faith, for Anabaptism, and asked how he should deal with them. The matter was committed to the four inquisitors, as they are called; but the inquisitors were referred to the mandate of the Emperor, where they would find fully what imperial constitutions, institutions and ordinances had been made concerning such people, and according to which they should deal with them.

For the constitution clearly implies that each and all Anabaptists and anabaptized persons, whether men or women, if they possess reason and are of adult age, are to be executed with fire, the sword, or in some other way according to the character of the persons; and that wherever they were found, they should be brought before the court, accused, and convicted, and be judged or dealt with in no other way, on pain of severe punishment.

Moreover, when they would not apostatize, the mandate was also read to them; and upon that, without any further sentence, they were led out to death by virtue of the imperial mandate. The brothers were executed with the sword, but the sisters were drowned in the horse pond. While they were still in prison, a sister came to them and comforted the sisters (Matthew 25, verse 39); she told them to hold to the Lord bravely and firmly, and not to regard these sufferings, for the sake of the eternal joys that should follow. Second Corinthians 1, verse 5. When this was noticed, she too was arrested very quickly. She was afterwards burned, because she had thus comforted and strengthened the others.