November 15, 1136 Death of St. Leopold III (ca. 1073 – 1136) Leopold was of the noble family of the Babenberger. He was born in Melk, Austria. He was the duke of Austria from 1095 until his death. He founded three monasteries. In the investiture controversies he took the side of the popes. He was canonized in 1485 by Pope Innocent VIII. His … [Read more...]

November 14, 1716 Death of Gottfried Leibniz in Hannover. Leibniz is the inventor of differential and integral calculus. Newton also invented calculus independently at about the same time but Leibniz was the first one to publish. November 14, 1719 Birth of Leopold Mozart in Augsburg, Germany. He was the father of Wolfgang Amadeus … [Read more...]

November 12, 1802 Birth of Gustav Friedrich Klemm in Chemnitz, Germany. Klemm was an anthropologist and director of the royal library at Dresden. He developed a concept of culture involving social organization, technology and belief in his 10 volume work, Allgemeine Kulturgeschichte der Menschheit. November 12, 1806 Death of Josef Gottlieb … [Read more...]

November 11 - St. Martin's Day (Martinstag) This festival was originally celebrated in memory of St Martin of Tours (b. 316 AD) and marked the 40 day fasting period before Christmas. When the fasting period was made shorter and renamed Advent (see below), the tradition came to be associated with Martin Luther, who was born on this day in 1546. … [Read more...]

November 10, 1483 Birth of Martin Luther in Eisleben, Germany. He was a German monk, priest, professor of theology and important figure of the Protestant Reformation. He strongly disputed the claim that freedom from God's punishment for sin could be purchased with money. November 10, 1683 Birth of George II in Hannover. He was the son of … [Read more...]

November 9, 1522 Birth of Martin Chemnitz in Treuenbrietzen, Germany. A leading Protestant theologian, Chemnitz did much to unify the Protestants in the early Lutheran church. November 9, 1876 Death of Friedrich Wilhelm Ritschl in Leipzig, Germany. Ritschl was a classicist specializing in the works of Plautus. He served as a professor at … [Read more...]

November 8, 1308 Death of Duns Scotus (original name: Johannes) in Cologne, Germany (born in Scotland). Duns Scotus was a Franciscan who was educated in England and had taught at the University of Paris prior to his final academic appointment at Cologne in 1307. He had become a very controversial scholar through one of his conclusions, that Mary … [Read more...]