Lyndal-roper-2
Lyndal Roper

Summer of Fire and Blood: The German Peasants’ War

Lyndal Roper

Wednesday, 2 April 2025

10:00am

1 hour

Department for Continuing Education: Lecture Theatre

£8 - £15

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Award-winning historian Professor Lyndal Roper tells the story of the German peasants’ War, the greatest popular uprising in western Europe before the French Revolution.

Roper explains how more than 100,000 people gathered in armed bands in 1524 and 1525 to demand a new and more egalitarian order. They took control of vast areas of southern and middle Germany and burned down monasteries, convents and castles. However, the Lords put down the revolt, slaughtering between 70,000 and 100,000 peasants in two months. Roper says the revolt had huge ramifications and was a mass movement that sought to make good on the potential of the Protestant Reformation.

Roper is Regius Chair in History at the University of Oxford and winner of the international Gerda Henkel Prize for outstanding research in the historical humanities. Her previous books include Witch Craze: Terror and Fantasy in Baroque Germany and Martin Luther: Renegade and Prophet.

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The Oxford Literary Festival sponsors, donors & partners

The Telegraph Festival media partner University of Oxford European Union Supported by the Delegation of the European Union to the UK Cultural Relations Platform Supporter of the festival's Voices of Europe programme Bodleian Libraries Festival cultural partner Oxford Martin School Festival ideas partner Oxford Mathematics Spanish Embassy The Spanish Embassy: supporters of the programme of Spanish literature and culture Cervantes Institute, London The Cervantes Institute, London Blackwell’s Festival on-site and online bookseller Symington Wines of the Douro Valley Compassion in World Farming Pasture to Plate Oxford Business College Where learning meets opportunity: education partners of the festival Old Bank Hotel Five-star hotel partners of The Oxford Collection Old Parsonage Hotel Five-star hotel partners of The Oxford Collection Oxford Brookes University Oxford International Centre for Publishing Critchleys Accountants to the festival Confucius Institute Voltaire Foundation Felicity Bryan Associates Goldmoney Properties Princeton University Press Prestige publishing partner. Celebrating 25 years in Europe in 2024 Oxford University Department for Continuing Education Jewish Book Week Partner of Oxford Literary Festival Jim Mellon Miles Young Tim and Marion Stevenson Martin and Elise Becket Smith Ian and Carol Sellars David Isaac Mary and Cecil Quillen Supporters of the programme of American literature and culture Yale University Press London New College New College founded 1379 Exeter College Exeter College: college home of the festival. Founded 1314 Worcester College Worcester College founded 1714 Trinity College Trinity College founded 1555 Magdalen College Magdalen College founded 1458 Reuben College Reuben College founded in 2019 Pusey House Brasenose College Brasenose College founded in 1512 New Dutch Writing Human Ecology Project MACROVegan Bear Ram Elk Festival Digital Strategy & Web Design Racalia Olive Oil Olive oil from Sicily Paul Bloomfield Ltd University of Oxford Alumni Office Alumni Office The Sheldonian Theatre Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies Oxford University Images Oxford University Images CAV Oxford The Litmus Partnership Schoolreaders Windrush Group The Oxford Times BBC Radio Oxford Local radio partner Conference Oxford Ox in a Box OX magazine