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The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. The Columbia University Press

Berlichingen, Götz von

Götz von Berlichingen (göts´ fən bĕr´lĬkhĬng-ən), 1480–1562, German knight and adventurer. The head of a band of free soldiers, he lost (1504) his right hand in the battle of Landshut and wore an iron one in its place. His forays against various cities earned him popular fame. He reluctantly agreed to lead the peasants of Franconia during the Peasants' War (1524–26) but deserted them before their defeat. In 1542 he served with Holy Roman Emperor Charles V against the Turks and two years later fought against the French. His memoirs inspired Goethe's drama Götz von Berlichingen (1773).

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/reference/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/gotz-von-berlichingen

Copyright The Columbia University Press

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. The Columbia University Press

Götz von Berlichingen

Götz von Berlichingen: see Berlichingen, Götz von.

Columbia

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