Franz Wessel (Mayor)

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Franz Wessel (born September 30, 1487 in Stralsund , † May 19, 1570 in Stralsund) was a German politician. He was mayor of the Hanseatic city of Stralsund for 18 years .

Wessel was born in 1487 as the son of the brewer Hans Wessel and his wife Otke Strelow. He attended school in Stralsund's Marienkirche from 1497 to 1499 . From 1499 to 1507 he went on business trips to Denmark , Scania and Holland , during which he acquired and completed his own business knowledge and diplomatic skills.

In 1508 and 1510 he went on pilgrimages that took him to Santiago de Compostela , among others .

Wessel came by inheritance (his father died in 1509) to great fortune. In 1511 he married Margarete Lange, who came from an old councilor family.

In 1511 he led the city's defense against the Danish attackers. In 1516 he became provisional for St. Mary's Church, where he made a contribution by replacing rotten wood and missing steel fittings to save the structure from an impending collapse.

Franz Wessel was an early advocate of the ideas of the Reformation, which was spread by Christian Ketelhot in Stralsund . He was elected to the city council in 1524 and was responsible for the ecclesiastical order. Wessel also represented the city at trials, state parliaments and Hanseatic parishes, as well as at the coronation of Christian III. 1537 in Copenhagen .

In 1541 he was elected mayor of his hometown. He suffered a stroke on February 1, 1559 , from which he did not recover. He died on May 15, 1570.

In 1555 he gave St. Mary's Church a Bible in which he had handwritten notes on the history of his city. These records are an important testimony to this time.

Franz-Wessel-Straße in Stralsund is reminiscent of Wessel .

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personal data
SURNAME Wessel, Franz
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Mayor of Stralsund
DATE OF BIRTH September 30, 1487
PLACE OF BIRTH Stralsund
DATE OF DEATH May 19, 1570
Place of death Stralsund