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Bundschuh, a shoe with bootstraps worn by ordinary people in the Middle Ages |
Four years ago, I blogged about the Bundschuh movement, a peasants' revolt in the village of Lehen, now a district of Freiburg. I also participated in the festivities on the 500th anniversary of the aborted uprising.
Now, I have walked the commemorative Bundschuh trail created since then. My German readers may like to consult this link for a complete story of the farmers' revolt in 1513.
The Bundschuh trail is conceived like a pilgrimage path with 14 stations. It starts at the Bundschuhhalle (1), where the Leheners hold festivities and special events. This place had nothing to do with the peasants' revolt in 1513. Since this historical event and Lehen's Bergle (hill) are the village's only important attributes, they are marketed in combination. So you walk on the trail up and down the Bergle (11) with its vineyards and apple orchards.
In September 1513, the conspirers first met at the Hartmatte (2), a meadow outside the village, to take the Bundschuh vow. Today, the famous Hartmatte is buried beneath a motorway and the tracks of Freiburg's streetcar.
Many of Lehen's streets are named after participants in the revolt.
Naturally, there is
Jos Fritz
(3), the leader, his wife Els Schmidin* (6), and Pastor Johannes Schwartz
(4), who spiritually supported the movement calling the Bundschuh ein
göttlich Ding (a divine thing).
*In the Middle Ages, women kept their family name, just adding the suffix "in" when married
At the village church, St. Cyriak, an information panel tells about the history of the building. Johannes Schwartz was parish priest at Lehen from
1497 to 1513, when following the betrayal of the conspiracy, he fled to
Alsace.
A 20th-century Longinus- und Armakreuz in the churchyard was worth a detour. These crosses are named after the Roman legionnaire Longinus, who pierced Jesus in his side with a lance. In addition, it shows the arms, the Arma Christi, i.e., the weapons of Christ. The cross was created by Friedbert Andernach in 1987.
The last station of the trail is the Bundschuh oak (14), carved out of an upside-down oak trunk. The work of art by Thomas Rees commemorates the peasants' uprising and presents the signs of the times 500 years ago. The head of the crucified Christ is bent by the weight of two oppressors. To the right sits a clergyman pointing with one hand to heaven and opening the other hand for a euro. To the left sits a drinking nobleman squeezing out a peasant.
The Bundschuh trail is conceived like a pilgrimage path with 14 stations. It starts at the Bundschuhhalle (1), where the Leheners hold festivities and special events. This place had nothing to do with the peasants' revolt in 1513. Since this historical event and Lehen's Bergle (hill) are the village's only important attributes, they are marketed in combination. So you walk on the trail up and down the Bergle (11) with its vineyards and apple orchards.
In September 1513, the conspirers first met at the Hartmatte (2), a meadow outside the village, to take the Bundschuh vow. Today, the famous Hartmatte is buried beneath a motorway and the tracks of Freiburg's streetcar.
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| Our guide at Jos-Fritz-Straße |
*In the Middle Ages, women kept their family name, just adding the suffix "in" when married
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| Els-Schmidin-Weg |
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| Information panel (10) |
A 20th-century Longinus- und Armakreuz in the churchyard was worth a detour. These crosses are named after the Roman legionnaire Longinus, who pierced Jesus in his side with a lance. In addition, it shows the arms, the Arma Christi, i.e., the weapons of Christ. The cross was created by Friedbert Andernach in 1987.
The last station of the trail is the Bundschuh oak (14), carved out of an upside-down oak trunk. The work of art by Thomas Rees commemorates the peasants' uprising and presents the signs of the times 500 years ago. The head of the crucified Christ is bent by the weight of two oppressors. To the right sits a clergyman pointing with one hand to heaven and opening the other hand for a euro. To the left sits a drinking nobleman squeezing out a peasant.
It was an afternoon well spent.
*
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