Page:Collier's New Encyclopedia v. 10.djvu/587

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ZWINGES 507 ZWINGLI the left bank of the Mulde; 82 miles S. W. of Dresden. Of its churches the most noteworthy is the Gothic Marienkirche, which dates from 1451, was restored in 1839-1842, and has a tower 285 feet high. The old castle has been converted into a prison. The town carries on many manufactures; but the chief source of its wealth is the rich beds of coal in the surrounding district, which employ 8,000 miners. Pop. (1896) 50,391. For the Prophets of Zwickau, see Anabaptists. ZWINGER, THEODORE, THE EL- DEB (tsving'er) (Latin Zwingerus. zwin-je'rus), a famous Swiss physician and scholar; born in Basel, Switzerland, in 1533; became Professor of Greek at Basel in 1565. He wrote: "Theater of Human Life" (1565), a collection of anecdotes, etc. He died in Basel, in 1588. ZWINGLI (tsving'le), or ZUINGLI- US (zwing'gli-us), TJLIIIC, a Swiss re- former born in the hamlet of Wild- haus, in the Toggenburg, Jan. 1, 1484. ULRIC ZWINGLI After receiving instruction from his uncle the parish priest of Wessen, he was sent to study first at Basel, then at Berne, and afterward at Vienna. At the age of 18 he returned to his native village, but only to quit it again almost immediately, and renew his studies at Basel. He applied himself to scholastic theology, but gave it up in disgust as a mere waste of time, and soon after re- joiced to hear the teachings of Thomas Wittenbach. Zwingli eagerly studied the classics, and became one of the best scholars of his time. He was also pas- sionately fond of music, and learned to play well on the flute, the lute, the violin, and other instruments. In 1506 he was ordained priest — he had been master of arts for several years — and accepted the place of pastor of Glarus, which he filled with zeal and devotedness for 10 years. During this period thoughts were working in his mind, which were the germs of the reformation to come. He twice accompanied the Swiss auxili- aries to the wars in Italy, fought at the battle of Marignano ; and used his in- fluence with his countrymen to dissuade them from foreign military service. In 1514 he had visited Erasmus at Basel, and was greatly influenced by his writ- ings. The year of 1516 Zwingli has noted as the period of the commencement of the Swiss Reformation. That same year he removed to the secluded monastery of Einsiedeln, of which he was appointed priest and preacher. His clear and elo- quent announcement of scriptural truth astonished his new hearers, and drew crowds from the surrounding country to hear him. In 1519, through his high reputation for learning, piety and elo- quence, and the active influence of his friend Oswald Myconius, Zwingli was appointed preacher at the cathedral of Zurich, and was thus brought into the center of the political movement of Swit- zerland. His preaching produced im- mense excitement by its novelty; but while most were charmed, not a few were alarmed and angiy. In the au- tumn of the same year he was attacked by the plague (known then as the "great death"), and it was reported that he was dead. He, however, recovered, and with a new vigor and devotedness, and fullness, resumed his work. In 1522 began the action of the court of Rome against the Reformation in Switzerland; the Bishop of Constance, by letter to the chapter of Zurich, attempted to stop the preaching of Zwingli. The latter re- plied in his "Architeles," and the at- tempt failed. But an order of the Diet was soon after obtained, which prohib- ited preaching against the monks. About the same time Zwingli married Anna Reinhold, a widow, and mother of Zwingli's beloved disciple and friend, Gerold. He did not make his marriage known till two years later. Meanwhile enmity was growing into persecution, and the reformer was some- times overwhelmed with the forebodings of evil to come, and the failure of his hopes. Early in 1523 a conference be- tween the advocates and opponents of the new doctrines was held at Zurich, by order of the Great Council; but the dis-