Changes

The revolt covered large areas of Europe and it began in Alsace-Lorraine (now in France) and spread as far west as Austria. It was often led by members of the minor nobility and leading peasants in their communities. The revolts usually began with a symbolic act of defiance , such as a the refusal to carry out some order or custom. Soon the peasants would begin to arm themselves and formed companies based on local territorial units<ref> Scott, p. 117</ref>. Many of the peasants had served as soldiers but the majority were untrained and only armed with farm implements. The first revolts were in 1524 and they had spread to all of South West Germany by 1525. Soon there were revolts in the Black Forest Area. The local elite used their own forces and urban militias to try and quell the disturbances. In the past, such measures had worked but the peasants were too large in number and too well-organised. In Swabia, the peasants published the 12 Articles and these later were adopted by other rebels elsewhere and they became the manifesto of the movement. The 12 Articles demanded the dismantling of much of the old feudal system and the rollback of many of the new innovations in the lawlaws. Some of the articles also demanded that ‘tithes’ or payments to the church be only spent locally and that local communities had a greater role in the governing of their churches. The 12 Articles sought a social, economic and religious revolution in German-speaking lands. The 12 Articles were published and spread throughout Germany and this inspired more peasants to take up arms<ref>Miller, p. 120</ref>. It seemed that members of the lesser nobility and the urban elite would side with the peasants and the Imperial government and the great nobles were forced to make concessions to these groups. Once they had received their concessions they sided with the great nobles. This allowed the nobles to come together to defeat the peasant armies, that had seized large areas of Germany. In the southwest of Germany, the rebels heartland the nobles formed the Swabian League. This League was a military alliance and it formed its own army. Militarily, the nobles had all the advantaged they had professional officers and had cavalry. The peasants resisted at times fiercely and circled wagons to defend themselves, but the army of the nobles prevailed</ref> Miller, p. 117</ref>. The professional army of the Swabian League and similar military alliances throughout Germany soon had the upper-hand, they killed thousands of peasants in battle and executed many others. Those who surrendered had to pay hefty fines. The Peasants soon became radicalized and the largest band was led by the radical preacher Thomas Muntzer. Both sides perpetrated atrocities. At the battle of Frankhausen, the Swabian League shattered the peasant army. They later captured and executed Thomas Muntzer. Sporadic resistance continued until 1527 but the Peasant Revolt had been completely defeated, with the deaths of up to 100,000 people of all classes <ref> Miller, p. 121</ref>.