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Oppositionelle Handwerker beschreiben ihre Stadt
Abstract Life in the cities, especially in the 16th century, was characterised by social, political and religious conflicts within the urban community, which found their written expression in a series of chronicles. These chronicles, however, were not only written by the prevailing party but were also handed down by social groups whose views were opposed to those of the authorities. In this article, such critical voices from chronicles are presented collectively. For this purpose, chronicles by four chroniclers, who came from the artisan-oppositional milieux of their respective cities, are analysed: Dionysius Dreytwein from Esslingen, Sebastian Fischer from Ulm, Jörg Preu the Elder from Augsburg and Jan de Rouc the Younger from Ghent. All four described and commented on profound changes in their cities, such as the introduction of the Reformation or the Interim and the abolition of the guild constitution. They also highlighted conflicts within the cities that could lead to diffuse murmuring and chatter as well as open rebellion and revolt. It is particularly interesting here that the chroniclers presented took the perspective of the defeated party, thus giving it a voice. Through the evaluation of these oppositional chronicles, our picture of the cities of the 16th century in research becomes more differentiated and multi-layered.
Keywords city chronicles; craftsmen; urban conflicts
