theocracy · Germany and Central Europe

Münster Rebellion

1534 CE – 1535 CE · capital Münster

The radical Anabaptist regime that seized Münster in 1534 and proclaimed a 'New Jerusalem' before being crushed in 1535.

Origins

Münster, capital of the Prince-Bishopric of Münster, had turned Lutheran under the preacher Bernhard Rothmann. Early in 1534 radical Anabaptists, many from the Netherlands, won control of the council. Led by the Dutch baker Jan Matthys, they expelled those who refused rebaptism and declared Münster the New Jerusalem.

Rule and society

Bishop Franz von Waldeck laid siege to the city. After Matthys was killed in a sortie at Easter 1534, the tailor Jan of Leiden proclaimed himself king. The regime abolished private property, introduced polygamy and ruled through prophecy and terror, while hunger spread within the walls.

Decline and legacy

In June 1535 the besiegers, helped by deserters, stormed the city. The leaders were tortured and executed in January 1536, and their bodies were hung in iron cages from the tower of Saint Lambert's church, where the cages still hang. The episode discredited Anabaptism for generations.

Lineage

Prince-Bishopric of Münster 1180 CE – 1802 CEMünster Rebellion

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Münster Rebellion. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/munster-rebellion
MLA
“Münster Rebellion.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/munster-rebellion. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Münster Rebellion.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/munster-rebellion.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Münster Rebellion’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/munster-rebellion (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻