Murner, Thomas

Murner, Thomas (tō'mäs moor'nur) [key], 1475–1537, German satirist and Franciscan monk, b. Strasbourg. He was the most scurrilous writer of his time and spared almost no one in his satire. He attacked the clergy, even his own order, but when the Reformation became more radical, Murner turned against Luther. His most celebrated work is the pamphlet Von dem grossen Lutherischen Narren: wie ihn Doktor Murner beschworen hat [on the great Lutheran fool: how Dr. Murner exorcised him]. Murner's other works were inspired by Sebastian Brant's Narrenschiff [ship of fools] (1494).

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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