Marcus Sanford

Mansfelder Freiheit! Marcus Sanford

A teenaged farmgirl near Magdeburg, Germany, in the 1540s must learn about love and faith in one of the stormiest settings: the Prince insists on marrying a second wife at the same time, causing an alliance of independent regions to teeter on collapse. The novel stays close to the marital decisions throughout, but provides a timeline of its short focus during this busy period. The disenfranchised masses of the new merchant city economy, no longer grounded in a traditional farm, become a feature in the novel as even many of those farms must be abandoned in new wars. The role of the city of Magdeburg, already independent for a century, is impressive, concluding with a declaration as to how the 'Two Kingdoms' of the church and state should relate. Precedent is set for the Glorious Revolution in England and for American independence. The fortunes of Prince Philipp take on a Davidic tragedian character. Another suitor of the farmgirl provides a connection back to the independence movement in the Czech nation in the prevous century, and its amazing strategic leader.