Hans Müller, also known as Hans Müller von Bulgenbach, (c.1490 – 12 August 1525 in

Habsburg-Laufenburg This is a family tree of the Habsburg family. This family tree only includes male scions of the House of Habsburg from 1096 to 1564. Otto II was the first to take the Habsburg Castle name as his own, adding "von Habsburg" to his title and crea ...

), was a peasant leader during the

German Peasants' War The German Peasants' War, Great Peasants' War or Great Peasants' Revolt () was a widespread popular revolt in some German-speaking areas in Central Europe from 1524 to 1525. It was Europe's largest and most widespread popular uprising befor ...

. After a career in the French military, he played a pivotal role in the initial peasant uprising at Stuhlingen, and organised peasant bands throughout southwestern Germany. He was captured after the peasants' loss at

Klettgau Klettgau (High Alemannic: ''Chleggau'') is a municipality in the district of Waldshut in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is the center of the ''Klettgau'' historical region stretching across the Swiss border into the cantons of Aargau, Schaffhaus ...

in July 1525, imprisoned at the Hohentwiel fortress, and executed in August of that year.

Participation in the German Peasants' War

The exact date of his birth is not known, but is probably between 1485 and 1495. The location of his birth is usually given as the village of Bulgenbach, which today is in the vicinity of

Grafenhausen Grafenhausen is a town in the district of Waldshut in Baden-Württemberg in Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the ...

, near the Black Forest lake of Schluchsee. Müller entered the imperial military service and fought in France. After he returned to his homeland, in the territory of the

Stühlingen Stühlingen (; High Alemannic German, High Alemannic: ''Stüelinge'') is a town in the Waldshut (district), Waldshut district in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated on the border with Switzerland, with a border crossing to the village of Ob ...

count, he was caught up in peasant uprisings in 1524. In June, he was elected by his peasant company as captain, and in October, he took his 3,500 man strong brigade of the southern

Black Forest The Black Forest ( ) is a large forested mountain range in the States of Germany, state of Baden-Württemberg in southwest Germany, bounded by the Rhine Valley to the west and south and close to the borders with France and Switzerland. It is th ...

in the direction of

Furtwangen Furtwangen im Schwarzwald (; Low Alemannic: ''Furtwange im Schwarzwald'') is a small city located in the Black Forest region of southwestern Germany. Together with Villingen-Schwenningen, Furtwangen is part of the district (German: Kreis) of Sch ...

, where he added to his company. Then he went to

Donaueschingen Donaueschingen (; Low Alemannic German, Low Alemannic: ''Eschinge'') is a German town in the Black Forest in the southwest of the States of Germany, federal state of Baden-Württemberg in the Schwarzwald-Baar ''Districts of Germany, Kreis''. It ...

, and united with the

Brigach The Brigach is the shorter of two streams that jointly form the river Danube in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The Brigach has its source at above sea level within St. Georgen in the Black Forest. The Brigach crosses the city Villingen-Schwenning ...

Valley Haufen, and on 14 December, engaged in a small battle with 2,000 nobles. He was also at the Cloister of

St. Blasien St. Blasien (; sometimes spelled in full as Sankt Blasien) is a small town located in the Waldshut district in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated in the Southern Black Forest, 17 km northeast of Waldshut-Tiengen. St. Blaise's Ab ...

and the Castle Gutenberg. In 1525, the entire northern region of the

Bodensee Lake Constance (, ) refers to three Body of water, bodies of water on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps: Upper Lake Constance (''Obersee''), Lower Lake Constance (''Untersee''), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Seerhei ...

was in an uproar, and in February and March of that year, he established three more armed peasant bands (''Haufen''), one for the lake, and one

Allgäu The Allgäu (Standard ) is a region in Swabia in southern Germany. It covers the south of Bavarian Swabia, southeastern Baden-Württemberg, and parts of Austria. The region stretches from the pre-alpine lands up to the Alps. The main rivers flo ...

, and one for

Baltringen Baltringen is a once autonomous village in Baden-Württemberg in the region of Upper Swabia, situated approximately 17 km north of Biberach an der Riß, Biberach. Administratively, Baltringen is part of the municipality of Mietingen. Baltri ...

(''

Baltringer Haufen The Baltringer Haufen (also spelled ''Baltringer Haufe'', German for Baltringen Band, Baltringen Troop or Baltringen Mob) was prominent among several armed groups of peasants and craftsmen during the German Peasants' War of 1524–1525. The n ...

''). By this time, Müller had command of approximately 12,000 peasant soldiers. On 23 May, Müller and his Haufen took possession of

Freiburg im Breisgau Freiburg im Breisgau or simply Freiburg is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fourth-largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg after Stuttgart, Mannheim and Karlsruhe. Its built-up area has a population of abou ...

, where the city fathers in the emergency entered into the so-called "Christian Union" with the peasants. Müller sought to besiege

Radolfzell Radolfzell am Bodensee (, ) is a town in the state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany, located at the western end ( Zeller Lake) of Lake Constance, approximately northwest of the city of Konstanz (Constance). It is the third largest town, after Ko ...

with his troops. On 1 July he and his soldiers were involved in the Battle of Griesen, today in the Klettgau, and were badly beaten. He was captured and imprisoned on the

Hohentwiel Hohentwiel () is a mountain of volcanic origin in the Hegau region of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is the '' Hausberg'' of the industrial city of Singen, located west of it and ca west of '' Zeller See'' (Lake Constance). The ...

, and later moved to the Habsburg fortress in Laufenburg, where he was tortured and finally, probably on 12 August, decapitated.Buszello
Müller, Hans

Notes and citations

Sources

Horst Buszello

In: Neue Deutsche Biographie (NDB). Band 18. Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1997, S. 397 f. {{DEFAULTSORT:Bulgenbach, Hans Muller Von German Peasants' War 16th-century German people 1490s births 1525 deaths