MUNZER, miint'ser, Thomas, German re ligious fanatic: b. Stolberg, about 1490; d. Frankenhausen, 15 May 1525. He claimed that he was in direct communion with the Holy Spirit, and advocated communism, denouncing all existing governments. His violence brought him into conflict with Luther as well as with the Catholics. He preached at Zwickau in 1520, and at Prague in 1521, promulgated his doc trines at Allstedt in Thuringia in 1523, and ex cited the people to revolt against the authorities. In Mtihlhausen (1524) he gained the unquali fied support of the populace, deposed the city council and appointed a new one, suffered the monasteries and houses of the wealthy to be sacked, and proclaimed a community of goods. He was now joined by another fanatic named Pfeifer, with his troop of rapacious followers, and this circumstance with the news that 40,000 peasants had assembled in Franconia, and plundered and burned 150 castles of the nobles and 23 monasteries, inflamed his zeal, and he joined in what was termed the "Peasants' War," intending to exterminate "the godless princes and priests? Leaving Pfeifer governor in Mahlhausen, he proceeded to Frankenhausen, and rekindled the ardor of the townspeople.
The dukes of Saxony, Philip and Brunswick, and other rulers sent a force against the insur gents; Miinzer was totally defeated after an obstinate struggle, was taken and executed. (See PEASANTS' WAR). Consult MerX, Thomas Miinzer and Heinrich Pfeiffer' (Gottingen 1889) ; Seidemann, Munzer) (Leipzig 1842); Strobel, G. T., 'Leben, Schriften and Lehren Thoma Miintzers) (Nurnberg 1795); Wolfram, G., 'Thomas Miinzer in Allstedt' ( Jena 1852).