Life of Luther
Julius Koestlin
PART I. LUTHER'S CHILDHOOD AND YOUTH
UP TO HIS ENTERING THE CONVENT.—1483-1505.
PART II. LUTHER AS MONK AND
PROFESSOR, UNTIL HIS ENTRY ON THE WAR OF REFORMATION—1505-1517.
PART III. THE BREACH WITH ROME, UP
TO THE DIET OF WORMS. 1517-21.
PART IV. FROM THE DIET OF WORMS TO
THE PEASANTS' WAR AND LUTHER'S MARRIAGE.
PART V. LUTHER AND THE
RECONSTRUCTION OF THE CHURCH, TO THE FIRST RELIGIOUS PEACE. 1525-1532.
PART VI. FROM THE RELIGIOUS PEACE OF
NUREMBERG TO THE DEATH OF LUTHER.
AUTHOR'S DEDICATION TO MY
DEAR WIFE PAULINE WITH THE WORDS OF LUTHER
'God's highest gift on earth
is to have a pious, cheerful, God-fearing, home-keeping wife.'
AUTHOR'S PREFACE
No German has ever
influenced so powerfully as Luther the religious life, and, through it, the
whole history, of his people; none has ever reflected so faithfully, in his
whole personal character and conduct, the peculiar features of that life and history,
and been enabled by that very means to render us a service so effectual and so
popular. If we recall to fresh life and remembrance the great men of past ages,
we Germans shall always put Luther in the van: for us Protestants, the object
of our love and veneration, who will not prevent, however, or prejudice the
most candid historical inquiry; for others, a rock of offence, whom even
slander and falsehood will never overcome.
I have already in my larger
work, 'Martin Luther: his Life and Writings,' 2 vols., 1875, put together all
the materials available for that subject, together with the necessary
references, historical and critical, and have endeavoured to explain and illustrate at length the subject matter of his various writings.
I now offer this sketch of his life to the wide circle of what are called
educated German readers. For further explanations and proofs of statements
herein contained I would refer them to my larger work. Further investigation
has prompted me to make some alterations, but only a few, in matters of detail.
For the illustrations and
illustrative documents I beg to express my warm thanks, and those of the
publisher, to the friends who have kindly assisted us in the work.
J. KOSTLIN, Professor at the
University of Halle-Wittenberg.
Oct. 31, 1881, the
anniversary of Luther's 95 Theses.
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