Löwenberg (Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany)
Löwenberg (Löwenburg), was a government district (Amt) of the former grand duchy of Berg, in the Siebengebirge, Rhineland-Westphalia, Germany. In the 16th century and the first half of the 17th numerous Anabaptists were living here. In 1564 the duke gave orders to keep a close watch for Anabaptists and rebaptized persons, and to hunt them up in the woods, ravines, heaths, and similar lonely places. In 1565 the pastor of Honnef denied that he was a follower of the Anabaptists; he had, on the contrary, converted a number of those who had followed after the Anabaptists for one to six years. On 26 November 1565, Konrad Koch was beheaded in Honnef. On 1 May 1591 the Concept of Cologne was signed for the Löwenberg congregation by "Jan Koch, on behalf of the church in Hauffen (i.e., Honnef) and Caspar of Dollendorf." On 9 April 1619, a decree was issued by the Count Palatine that he, the count, perceived with displeasure that the Anabaptists were greatly increasing in the Löwenberg district and were secretly meeting. All the Anabaptists caught at such meetings were to be punished. Following new decrees by the government against the Anabaptists, lists of the Anabaptists were turned in to the authorities. On 30 December 1652 the decree was issued that the Anabaptists who were carrying on important trade or possessed considerable estates were to leave the country within two years; those who had no possessions, within six months. From the Löwenberg area some went to the gravure of Wied, south of the Siebengebirge, in 1654-1656, and became the founders of the Neuwied Mennonite congregation. Others (especially the Schumacher family) went to the Palatinate around Kriegsheim, from where they later immigrated to the United States. The later fate of most of the Anabaptists of the Löwenberg area has not yet been investigated. The last information about the Mennonites in this area is a report of 1670 that the Mennonites had all left the country, but were still owners of estates.
Bibliography
Niepoth, Wilhelm. "Die Wanderungen und Wandlung der Mennonitenfamilie Schuhmacher." Der Mennonit 10 (1956): 27 f.
Rembert, Karl. Die "Wiedertäufer" im Herzogtum Jülich. Berlin: R. Gaertners Verlagsbuchhandlung, 1899: 444, note 2.
Risler, W. "Täufer im bergischen Amt Löwenburg." Mennonitische Geschichtsblätter 12 (1951):6-21, 13 (1956): 31-46.
State archives of Düsseldorf, Jülich-Berg II: 244, 255, 256.
| Author(s) | Wilhelm Niepoth |
|---|---|
| Date Published | 1957 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Niepoth, Wilhelm. "Löwenberg (Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1957. Web. 16 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=L%C3%B6wenberg_(Nordrhein-Westfalen,_Germany)&oldid=141205.
APA style
Niepoth, Wilhelm. (1957). Löwenberg (Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 16 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=L%C3%B6wenberg_(Nordrhein-Westfalen,_Germany)&oldid=141205.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 3, pp. 405-406. All rights reserved.
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