It was especially when a woman took part in the literary struggle that she was destined to suffer, this however rarely happened; the best known instances are those of Caritas Pirkheimer and Argula von Grumbach, born at Stauffen; both experienced how bitter it is for women to take part in the disputes of men. The Roman Catholic Caritas wrote a letter full of reverence to Emser, and had to go through the trial of seeing her letter printed by the Lutheran party with contemptuous marginal notes. The Lutheran Argula, the friend of Spalatin, sent an admonitory letter to the rector of the university at Ingoldstadt, when it had compelled Arsatius Seehofer by imprisonment and a threat of the stake, to recant seventeen heresies, which he had propounded to the students from the writings of Melancthon. Argula bravely took the master's part, whom she called a child of eighteen years old, and offered to go to Ingoldstadt herself to defend the good cause against the university. She was in consequence of this, maliciously assailed in verse, against which she valiantly defended herself in counter-rhymes. The last years of Caritas and her mild brother were embittered by the rude attacks of the Protestant rabble and their teachers. Argula was banished from the Bavarian court, and her husband was dismissed in disgrace from his court appointment.
The Glauburgs were one of the most distinguished patrician families of Frankfort-on-the-Maine; Hutten had been very intimate with some members of this family, and had at one time indulged in the charming dream of establishing himself at Frankfort and marrying one of them. Even the ardent spirit of Hutten was powerfully attracted by their splendid opulence and highly refined life. He eagerly disclaimed the suspicion that he intended to take away his bride to the rocky home of his family. He wooed the maiden with more consideration than was his wont, and Arnold of Glauburg was his confidant. But it was a short dream; his destiny soon tore him away. The following letters from two ladies will introduce us into this patrician family; they are printed in the Frankfort archives of J. C. von Fichard, 1811-1815. The first is the letter of a mother to her son, in which she recommends to him a maiden for his wife, in order to withdraw him from the revolutionaries of Wittenberg and the neighbourhood of Luther; a letter which is characteristic of the position of women in a family, and written by one possessed of energy and a practical understanding, who was accustomed to rule, and not without a disposition to intrigue; her son was the nephew of that Arnold of Glauburg, the son of Johann, to whom Hutten sent with hearty greeting his dialogue Febris.
1526.
From Margaret Horng[[57] ]at Frankfort, to her son John
von Glauburg at Wittenberg.
"Having given you first, dear Johann, my friendly greeting, know that we are all well in health, praise and thanks be to God, and hope to hear the same of you. Dear Johann, after I had last written to you, the wife of Johann Knoblauch died, to whom God be merciful. She was my good friend, and her death has caused me as great grief as the decease of my two blessed husbands, which was however a great calamity to me; but what God wills we must bear with patience. She and I came here the same year, and lived so friendly together that neither ever angered the other with a word. On her death-bed she commended to me her two daughters as if I were her sister, and begged that I should take care of their dowry, if I should live till they married. One of them is now marriageable, an elegant, well-formed maiden; she is in height like your step-sister Anna, which is also her name, and she is a clever housekeeper, so that he who has her for a portion will not be ruined by her; I foresee that her father will soon establish her, for there are three who woo her, two of them are noblemen, and the third is Johann Wolf Rohrbach, the son of Frau Ursula at the green gate, who is now grown up and has been with his mother since Easter. Although he is only nineteen years old, yet it is the wish of his mother and his friends to establish him whilst she is still alive. For now no one knows what to do with their sons, that they may learn and study what is for their soul's salvation, and not be led astray: for when they have long studied, and spent much money, it is of little advantage to many of them, and perhaps it would have been more profitable to them, to have retained the innate honesty and simplicity which they have from God, than that they should study, and not rightly understand the Scripture, and that then the devil should lead them astray through pride, and others with them because they are learned and know how to talk well. Such men lead the people into great error. I would gladly write much to you thereupon, but having promised in my last letter that I would not write to you again thereof, I will not do so whilst you are at Wittenberg; for you imagine that you are in safe keeping in Wittenberg. God grant it may be true, and that you will find it so. Further, dear Johann, know wherefore I now write to you thus---- an honourable person has just told me that the wife of Johann Knoblauch had desired her husband, if you and your belongings should ask his daughter in marriage, and the daughter were willing, that he should give her to you rather than to any other. To this I answered, that I did not know your inclinations, but would write and inform you of this, and whatever answer I got from you I would communicate to this person. Therefore, dear son, I make known to you that the maiden pleases me well in all her ways, better than any other with whom I am acquainted; and the mother has always been an honourable steadfast woman. Therefore, I am well pleased that she is not of a fickle nature, for whoever has not an apt and steadfast wife, be she ever so polished and rich, will become a poor miserable man. Therefore, dear Johann, follow my advice, for I give you faithful counsel. It is true there are eleven children to provide for, some of whom are still little, but possibly may become fewer in number, and there is a good fortune, the greater part of it in landed property. Therefore bethink you, dear son, I do not wish to constrain you to change your condition, but it would be the greatest pleasure to me were you to enter this family, for looking into the future, I can see no place that would altogether suit you so well as this one. Dear Johann, if this idea should please you, and you should wish to see her and that she should see you beforehand, come here in the first week of Lent with any travelling companions that you like, to give you security on the road; but keep your purpose to yourself, saying nothing of it to your companions till a day or two before your departure, then tell Justinian that you are going home. But do not tell him why you wish to go home, but make it appear as if it were on account of your property which you wish to regulate, as I had written to you so strongly in my last three letters about it, declining to administer it any longer, as is indeed my intention, if you will in nowise take my advice. There is good reason why you should prevent his saying a word, in order that it should remain secret. Dear Johann, I beg of you to bethink yourself of how the times are, and that it is not fitting for you to remain longer unsettled. Ah! may my brother-in-law Herr Hammann find a wife also for Justinian now; it would do him no harm, as he leads a life of pleasure; and let it not be with him as it was with his deceased cousin Blasius, who had so accustomed himself to a profligate life that no one could persuade him to marry till he became old and had lost his health; he had no child, and now his wife is betrothed again to a nobleman, one Schenk of Schweinsburg. They say she will soon celebrate her nuptials: God grant her happiness."
Thus far the letter: the wish of the prudent mother was fulfilled; her son returned, as she had so cautiously charged him to do, to Frankfort; he married the maiden of her choice, and they lived together forty years in happy matrimony.
Though we can obtain no other particulars of him and Anna Knoblauch, yet we find accounts of members of the same family, towards the end of the century, which characterize in a charming way the position of a bride with her betrothed. A grandson of the above mentioned, the rich patrician Adolf von Glauburg of Frankfort, made acquaintance, when on a visit at Nuremberg, with the beautiful Ursula Freher, daughter of the city Syndic of Nuremberg, and sister of the renowned scholar and statesman, Marquard Freher of Heidelberg. The charms and agreeableness of the lady were celebrated throughout Swabia. The following letters were written by her to him, from Nuremberg to Frankfort during the time of betrothal.
1598.
I.
"To the noble and honourable Johann Adolf von Glauburg, to the hands of my dearly beloved Junker.