Execution of Felix Manz
- When
- 1526
- Where
- Zürich
- Episodes
- 1
Felix Manz, a co-founder of the Swiss Brethren in Zürich, was executed by drowning on 5 January 1527. He became the first casualty of a 1526 council edict that punished adult re-baptism with death.
Episodes
Background and detail
Legal Context. In March 1526, the Zürich council passed an edict making adult re-baptism punishable by drowning. This legal framework established the specific method of execution that would later be applied to Manz and other Anabaptists in the city.
Execution. On 5 January 1527, Manz was executed by drowning. He is recorded as the first casualty of the 1526 edict and the first Swiss Anabaptist martyred by magisterial Protestants, marking a significant escalation in the persecution of the Radical Reformation.
People involved
- Felix Manz · Anabaptist co-founder and executed martyr
- Zürich Council · Authority that passed the edict and ordered execution
Sources
- Felix Manz Wikipedia, revision of 2026-06-23
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.