Strasbourg in the Heart of the Rhineland Renaissance

Objective:

• Dive into the golden age of Strasbourg, a city of trade and cultural exchanges at the heart of the Rhineland Renaissance.
• Explore the political, economic, and social intricacies of a free city within the Holy Roman Empire at the beginning of the 17th century.
• Explore the world of traders, craftsmen, and their diverse guilds, pivotal figures in the city's life, as seen through the character of Marie Schmidt, daughter and wife of master artisans and Strasbourg's bourgeoisie.
• Follow a certified tour guide who is passionate about history, dressed as a Renaissance bourgeois, and immerse yourself in the daily life of that era. Explore Strasbourg in a unique tour that takes you back in time.

Program

Explore the economic and cultural richness of Strasbourg during the Renaissance. A Rhineland renaissance, nevertheless influenced by Italy, which is frequented by wealthy Strasbourg merchants, and by France, from where numerous Huguenot refugees flow in, rediscovering peace and prosperity in this Protestant city. As the birthplace of printing, reformed from the early 1520s, and a hub of humanism through figures like Sébastien Brandt and Jean Sturm, who founded a college that was a precursor to the University, Strasbourg possessed a constitution and a Senate that contributed to its autonomy and economic influence.

In the early 17th century, Strasbourg remained prosperous, with numerous new constructions and markets brimming with local wines, fruits, and vegetables. Bourgeois and nobles adorned themselves in London cloth and Italian silks and embellished their tables with high-quality silverware. Simultaneously, the city was teeming with daily laborers, peasants, and apprentices who lived more modestly and fervently feared political upheavals and epidemics that occasionally darkened the ideal picture of the "Strasbourg Golden Age."

Get to Know Your Guide/Character:

Meet Marie Schmidt, the daughter of a bookbinder, and the wife of a silversmith. She grew up in the printer's quarter and now lives on Rue des Hallebardes, just steps away from the cathedral. She frequents both the small producers in the markets and the wealthy bourgeois of the "Golden Square," where numerous silversmiths work. Her husband, Wolfgang Kerling, is one of the best among them.

Neighboring the Pfaltz, where laws are voted, in the year 1609, Wolfgang harbors new political ambitions. To persuade his peers, what better than a feast? Marie, who frequently assists him in his work, is tasked this time with organizing a grand banquet. Follow her on her journey through the old town to place orders with the Fronhof greengrocers, the piglet market butchers, and the wine merchants along the Ill River quays. Along the way, she'll share her interest in architecture and history with you, inherited from her childhood spent among her father's bookbinding workshops. From the tanner's houses, her father's suppliers, to the noble townhouses where she regularly delivers her husband's work, Marie knows all of Strasbourg and will be delighted to introduce it to you.