Ehemaliges Franziskanerkloster Hof 20220522 HOF02558

Nikolaus Decius (also ''Degius'', ''Deeg'', ''Tech a Curia'', and ''Nickel von Hof''; c. 1485 – 21 March 1541 (others say 1546) was a German monk, hymn-writer,

Protestant reformer Protestant Reformers were those theologians whose careers, works and actions brought about the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century. In the context of the Reformation, Martin Luther was the first reformer (sharing his views publicly in 15 ...

and composer. He was probably born in Hof in

Upper Franconia Upper Franconia (german: Oberfranken) is a ''Regierungsbezirk'' (administrative 'Regierungs''region 'bezirk'' of the state of Bavaria, southern Germany. It forms part of the historically significant region of Franconia, the others being Middle F ...

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

, around 1485. He studied at the

University of Leipzig Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 Decemb ...

and obtained a master's degree at

Wittenburg University Wittenberg University is a private liberal arts college in Springfield, Ohio. It has 1,326 full-time students representing 33 states and 9 foreign countries. Wittenberg University is associated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ...

in 1523 and became a monk. Although a monk, he was an advocate of the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and ...

and a disciple of

Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation and the namesake of Lutherani ...

. He was ''Probst'' of the cloister at Steterburg from 1519 until July 1522 when he was appointed a master in the St. Katherine and Egidien School in

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( , from Low German ''Brunswiek'' , Braunschweig dialect: ''Bronswiek'') is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the ...

. He wrote in 1523 "

Allein Gott in der Höh sei Ehr "" (Alone to God in the highest be glory) is an early Lutheran hymn, with text and melody attributed to Nikolaus Decius. With the reformers intending church service in German, it was intended as a German version of the Gloria part of the Latin ma ...

", a German paraphrase of the Latin '' Gloria'', adapted by Luther in 1525. Decius's version was first sung on

Easter Day Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the ''Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel P ...

at Braunschweig on 5 April 1523. Decius's Low German version first appeared in print in ''Gesang Buch'' by Joachim Sluter, printed in 1525. In 1526, Decius became preacher at the Church of St. Nicholas in Stettin at the same time as Paulus von Rhode was appointed preacher at St. James's in Stettin. In 1535 he became pastor of St. Nicholas and died there in March 1541 after a suspected poisoning. Shortly before his death he wrote the hymn "

O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig "O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig" ("O Lamb of God, innocent") is an early Lutheran hymn, with text and melody attributed to Nikolaus Decius. Originally intended as a German version of the Latin Agnus Dei, it was instead used as a Passion hymn. In both ...

" (O Lamb of God, innocent) sung on a tune from the 13th century. Decius's version was first published in

Anton Cornivus Anton may refer to: People *Anton (given name), including a list of people with the given name *Anton (surname) Places *Anton Municipality, Bulgaria **Anton, Sofia Province, a village *Antón District, Panama **Antón, a town and capital of th ...

's ''Christliche Kirchen-Ordnung'' in 1542.

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...

used it as a ''

cantus firmus In music, a ''cantus firmus'' ("fixed melody") is a pre-existing melody forming the basis of a polyphonic composition. The plural of this Latin term is , although the corrupt form ''canti firmi'' (resulting from the grammatically incorrect tre ...

'' in the opening chorus of his '' St Matthew Passion''. It was translated into English by Arthur Tozer Russell in the 19th century.

Sources

Ludger Stühlmeyer Ludger Stühlmeyer (born 3 October 1961 in Melle, West Germany) is a German cantor, composer, docent and musicologist. Biography Stühlmeyer was born to a family of cantors and made his first steps under the guidance of his father in the town c ...

: ''Nikolaus Decius – ein Kirchenlieddichter aus Hochfranken.'' In: ''Jahrbuch der Erzdiözese Bamberg 2014.'' Heinrichs-Verlag Bamberg, 89. Jahrgang 2013, S. 72–76. * Ludger Stühlmeyer: ''Die Kirchenlieder des Hofers Nicolaus Decius.'' In:''Curia sonans. Die Musikgeschichte der Stadt Hof. Eine Studie zur Kultur Oberfrankens. Von der Gründung des Bistums Bamberg bis zur Gegenwart.'' Phil.Diss., Bayerische Verlagsanstalt, Heinrichs-Verlag Bamberg 2010, , S. 110–112, 135–137, 357–358. * Werner Merten: Decius, Nikolaus. In: Wolfgang Herbst: Wer ist wer im Gesangbuch? S. 73-74 Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2001, * * Th. Ruys. P. D. Utrecht 1919 (Diss. Amsterdam). H. J. Jaanus. P. D. (Documenta Reformatoria 1960, 247ff.). *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Decius, Nikolaus German Protestant hymnwriters People from Upper Franconia German Protestant clergy People from Hof, Bavaria 1485 births 1541 deaths