This week in Christian history: Holy Roman Emperor retires to monastery, Saint Augustine’s University opens

Georg Spalatin born – Jan. 17, 1484

This week marks the anniversary of when Georg Spalatin, a scholar and member of the royal court of Saxony known for his support of the Protestant Reformation, was born.

Born Georg Burckhardt in the town of Spalt near Nuremberg, Germany, as a college student, he changed his surname to a variation of the Latinized version of his hometown’s name.

Spalatin eventually became a servant of German elector Frederick the Wise, a nobleman who famously protected Martin Luther after he was excommunicated by the Roman Catholic Church.

“He would continue as an intermediary between Luther and Frederick during the early days of the Reformation, both mollifying Luther’s hard edges and encouraging Frederick to support Luther’s efforts,” according to the website Reformation 500.

“In addition to his reformatory and diplomatic work, Spalatin left his mark on the Reformation through his translation into German of Latin works by Luther, Melanchthon, and Erasmus, as well as his historiographical studies of Ernestine Saxony.”