Ashes of Cramm

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Ashes from Cramm, drawn by Lucas Cranach the Elder

Asche von Cramm , also Assa von Kram, Aschwin IV., Ascanius von Cramm (* around 1490 (?), † June 1528 in Chur in Switzerland) was a mercenary leader during the Reformation and a friend of Martin Luther . At his suggestion, Luther wrote the pamphlet “Whether men of war can also be in a happy position”, published in 1526.

Live and act

Asche von Cramm came from the Lower Saxon noble family von Cramm . Nothing is known about his youth.

It is proven that he fought in the battle of Marignano on the French side in the first battle line in 1515 . In 1519 he was in the service of Duke Heinrich the Middle . As the leader of a 400-man cavalry troop, he fought on the Lüneburg side in the battle of Soltau . He then entered the service of the Elector of Saxony and fought as an electoral colonel in the Peasants' War in the Battle of Frankenhausen in 1525 . In 1528 he died in Chur, Switzerland.

In the 18th century, Asche von Cramm was recognized as a "famous war hero". From today's perspective, its importance in the history of the Reformation is to be emphasized. He was on friendly terms with Martin Luther . On the basis of conversations between the two of them in Wittenberg in the summer of 1525 about the soldiery and life in war, Luther wrote in 1526 “Whether war men can also be in bliss”, which was dedicated to his “strict and honorable” friend. Among other things, Luther goes into the experiences of Cramms in the peasant war. Luther deeply regretted the early death of Cramms. In 1534 he called him a "fine man" in an interpretation of the psalms.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. Cf. Dieter Lent: Cramm, Asche (also Assa, Ascanius) (Aschwin IV.) From . In: Horst-Rüdiger Jarck, Dieter Lent u. a. (Ed.): Braunschweigisches Biographisches Lexikon: 8th to 18th century . Appelhans, Braunschweig 2006, pp. 160f.
  2. See entry. In: Johann Heinrich Zedler : Large complete universal lexicon of all sciences and arts . Volume 6, Leipzig 1733, column 1528.
  3. ↑ For more information on this publication B. Bernhard Lohse: Martin Luther: an introduction to his life and work . Munich 1997, pp. 76-78
  4. Quoted from Dieter Lent: Cramm, Asche (also Assa, Ascanius) (Aschwin IV.) By . In: Horst-Rüdiger Jarck, Dieter Lent u. a. (Ed.): Braunschweigisches Biographisches Lexikon: 8th to 18th century . Appelhans, Braunschweig 2006, p. 161 with further references