Fritz Blanke

Fritz Blanke (22 April 1900 - 4 March 1967) was a Swiss church historian. As a researcher he mainly focussed on Martin Luther, Johann Georg Hamann, Huldrych Zwingli, the Anabaptists and the relationship between churches and sects.

Life He was born in Kreuzlingen and studied theology in the universities of Tübingen, Heidelberg and Berlin.

In 1926 he became a privatdozent in church history in Königsberg. From 1929 onwards he was professor for church history and history of dogma at the University of Zürich, where in 1964 he founded the Institut für Schweizerische Reformationsgeschichte (Institute for Swiss Reformation History).

He received an honorary doctorate from the Albertus-Universität Königsberg in 1930. Originally holding German citizenship, he became a naturalised Swiss citizen in Zürich in 1939, where he later died.

Selected works Monographs Der verborgene Gott bei Luther. 1928. Johann Georg Hamann als Theologe. 1928. Das Wesen der Sekte. 1934. Columban und Gallus. Urgeschichte des schweizerischen Christentums. 1940. Ulrich Zwingli, 1940. Der Islam als missionarisches Problem. 1941. Der junge Bullinger 1504–1531. (collaboration with Leo Weisz). 1942. Die leibliche Himmelfahrt der Jungfrau Maria. Zürich 1950. Luthers Humor. Scherz und Schalk in Luthers Seelsorge. 1954. Brüder in Christo. Die Geschichte der ältesten Täufergemeinde. Zollikon 1525. 1955.

Reviews and journal articles Zu Zwinglis Vorrede an Luther in der Schrift «Amica Exegesis» 1527. In: Zwingliania, 5/4, 1930, S. 185–192. (Online version) Zwinglis Beitrag zur reformatorischen Botschaft. In: Zwingliania, 5/5–6, 1931, S. 262–275. (Online version) Reformation und Alkoholismus. In: Zwingliania, 9/2, 1949, p. 75–89. (Online version) Bischof Sailer and Johann Caspar Lavater. In: Zwingliania, 9/7, 1952, p. 431–443. (Online version) Täufertum und Reformation. In: Guy F. Hershberger (ed.): Das Täufertum. Erbe und Verpflichtung. Stuttgart 1963.