# Church history timeline

Explore the people, stories, and living traditions of Anabaptist church history, from Christian beginnings to the present.

## Dated histories

- The living Anabaptist family: [Anabaptist history is still being written](/en/events/anabaptism-today/) — The present-day story includes communities across continents and many different traditions. Local histories, migrations, mission, and relationships between churches are part of the record still being gathered.
- 2002: [Mennonite Church USA](/en/traditions/mennonite-church-usa/) — Mennonite Church USA formed in 2002 through the union of U.S. congregations of MC and GC.
- 2002: [Mennonite Church USA forms](/en/events/mcusa-2002/) — Mennonite Church USA formed in 2002 through the union of U.S. congregations of MC and GC.
- 1969: [The Missionary Church union](/en/events/missionary-union-1969/) — The exhibit’s Mennonite Brethren in Christ line developed into United Missionary Church and joined a union in 1969.
- Vietnam service and loss, 1962–1968: [Daniel Gerber and Ruth Wilting](/en/people/daniel-gerber-and-ruth-wilting/) — Daniel Gerber’s alternative service and Ruth Wilting’s hospital work brought them to Vietnam, where Gerber disappeared after capture and Wilting was later killed.
- 1960: [Evangelical Mennonite Conference](/en/traditions/evangelical-mennonite-conference/) — The Canadian Kleine Gemeinde adopted the name Evangelical Mennonite Conference in 1960.
- 1960: [Evangelical Mennonite Conference name](/en/events/emc-1960/) — The Canadian Kleine Gemeinde adopted the name Evangelical Mennonite Conference in 1960.
- Somalia service, 1960–1962: [Merlin and Dorothy Grove](/en/people/merlin-and-dorothy-grove/) — Merlin and Dorothy Grove served in education in Somalia; after Merlin’s killing and Dorothy’s injury, their mission colleagues offered a witness of love and forgiveness.
- 1959: [Evangelical Mennonite Mission Conference](/en/traditions/evangelical-mennonite-mission-conference/) — The Rudnerweider church adopted the Evangelical Mennonite Mission Conference identity on 1 July 1959.
- 1959: [Evangelical Mennonite Mission Conference](/en/events/emmc-1959/) — The Rudnerweider church adopted the Evangelical Mennonite Mission Conference identity on 1 July 1959.
- 1958 association; 1994 incorporation; 2012 name change: [Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminaries: learning together](/en/events/associated-mennonite-biblical-seminaries/) — Two Mennonite seminaries built an academic partnership that gradually became one institution at Elkhart.
- 1955 opening; 2010 transfer to Fresno Pacific: [Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary at Fresno](/en/events/mennonite-brethren-biblical-seminary/) — Mennonite Brethren established a graduate seminary for church leadership and later joined its Fresno operation to Fresno Pacific University.
- 1952–1964: [Berlin Bible School and preparation for service](/en/events/berlin-bible-school-1952/) — A winter Bible school at Pleasant View Mennonite Church became a continuing work of Bible study and preparation for Christian service at Rosedale, Ohio.
- Twentieth-century family; multiple beginnings: [Conservative Mennonite fellowships](/en/traditions/conservative-mennonites/) — A broad family of Mennonite fellowships maintaining distinctive church practices, with several different conference histories.
- 1947: [The Volendam and Mennonite refugees](/en/events/volendam-refugees-1947/) — The Volendam carried displaced Mennonites toward refuge in South America after the Second World War, with Peter and Elfrieda Dyck helping lead the transports.
- Opened 1947; university name 2019: [Bethel College at Mishawaka](/en/events/bethel-college-mishawaka/) — Bethel in Mishawaka arose from Mennonite Brethren in Christ efforts to establish Christian higher education.
- 1945–1958: Chicago and the move to Elkhart: [Mennonite Biblical Seminary: the Chicago beginning](/en/events/mennonite-biblical-seminary-chicago/) — Mennonite Biblical Seminary revived General Conference theological education in Chicago and prepared the way for cooperation at Elkhart.
- 1944–2000; Concord College from 1992: [Mennonite Brethren Bible College and Concord College](/en/events/mennonite-brethren-bible-college-winnipeg/) — Winnipeg’s Mennonite Brethren Bible College developed ministerial and academic education before becoming Concord College and joining CMU.
- 1944–1976: institute to Fresno Pacific College: [Pacific Bible Institute and the growth of Fresno Pacific](/en/events/pacific-bible-institute-fresno/) — A small Mennonite Brethren Bible institute in Fresno developed a wider college program while retaining Christian education at its center.
- 1943–2018: [Grace Bible Institute and Grace University at Omaha](/en/events/grace-bible-institute-omaha/) — The chart’s 1943 Grace institution is the Mennonite-founded Bible institute at Omaha, later Grace University.
- Planning in 1941; opened 1947; joined CMU in 2000: [Canadian Mennonite Bible College: planning and opening](/en/events/canadian-mennonite-bible-college/) — Canadian Mennonite Bible College grew from wartime planning into a Winnipeg institution for theological and church education.
- 1937: [Rudnerweider Mennonites](/en/traditions/rudnerweider-mennonites/) — A renewal movement among Sommerfeld Mennonites organized as the Rudnerweider church in 1937.
- 1937: [Rudnerweider church organization](/en/events/rudnerweider-1937/) — A renewal movement among Sommerfeld Mennonites organized as the Rudnerweider church in 1937.
- 1936 roots; 1970 merger; college status in 1987: [Columbia Bible Institute: a shared school at Clearbrook](/en/events/columbia-bible-institute-merger/) — Columbia Bible Institute united Mennonite Brethren and General Conference Bible-school work in British Columbia.
- 1936–1996: [Swift Current Bible Institute and western Canadian church service](/en/events/swift-current-bible-institute/) — Swift Current Bible Institute trained congregational workers and brought together several western Canadian Mennonite educational efforts.
- 1936–1949: [International Mennonite Peace Committee](/en/events/international-mennonite-peace-committee/) — Mennonites organized international cooperation to support conscientious objectors and strengthen their peace witness.
- 1935: [Roxbury Holiness Camp and Brethren in Christ renewal](/en/events/roxbury-holiness-camp/) — A series of revival meetings in Pennsylvania developed into a continuing place of worship, Bible teaching, and fellowship.
- 1933–1969; Bachelor of Divinity introduced in 1946: [Goshen Biblical Seminary and graduate ministry training](/en/events/goshen-biblical-seminary/) — Goshen’s Bible department developed graduate ministerial study before joining a shared Mennonite seminary campus at Elkhart.
- First classes 1931; institute name 1953; college name 1979: [Steinbach Bible Institute and inter-Mennonite education](/en/events/steinbach-bible-institute/) — Steinbach’s Bible school developed from congregational classes into an inter-Mennonite institution for Christian service.
- 1930–1934: [Jacob Siemens and the escape across the Amur](/en/people/jacob-siemens/) — Jacob Siemens led a group of more than two hundred Mennonites across the frozen Amur River into China in December 1930.
- 1929–1988; moved to Altona in 1940: [Elim Bible School: from Gretna to Altona](/en/events/elim-bible-school-altona/) — Elim provided Bible teaching and preparation for congregational service through several institutional forms in southern Manitoba.
- 1927: [Beachy Amish fellowships](/en/traditions/beachy-amish/) — The Beachy Amish history began with a 1927 division in an Amish congregation in Somerset County, Pennsylvania.
- 1927: [The Beachy Amish division](/en/events/beachy-1927/) — The Beachy Amish history began with a 1927 division in an Amish congregation in Somerset County, Pennsylvania.
- 1927 · Anabaptist history: [Somerset County, Pennsylvania](/en/places/somerset-county/) — The Amish congregation associated with Moses Beachy divided in 1927 in Somerset County.
- First issue under this title: January 1927: [The Mennonite Quarterly Review: historical study in service of the church](/en/events/mennonite-quarterly-review-1927/) — Harold S. Bender and the Mennonite Historical Society established a lasting forum for Anabaptist and Mennonite historical research.
- 1925: [A worldwide gathering](/en/events/mwc-1925/) — The first Mennonite World Conference gathering was held in Basel in 1925. Later assemblies form part of the story of worldwide Anabaptist fellowship.
- 1925: [Mennonite World Conference](/en/traditions/mennonite-world-conference/) — A global fellowship established in 1925 to connect Anabaptist churches across national and tradition boundaries.
- 1920: [The beginnings of the Bruderhof](/en/events/bruderhof-1920/) — Eberhard and Emmy Arnold, together with Else von Hollander, founded the Bruderhof in Germany in 1920.
- 1920: [Eberhard Arnold](/en/people/eberhard-arnold/) — Eberhard Arnold, a Protestant theologian, founded the Bruderhof with Emmy Arnold and Else von Hollander in 1920. They left Berlin for Sannerz after the devastation of the First World War.
- 1920: [Emmy Arnold](/en/people/emmy-arnold/) — Emmy Arnold co-founded the Bruderhof in 1920 with her husband Eberhard and her sister Else von Hollander. Their first community was at Sannerz in Germany.
- 1920: [Else von Hollander](/en/people/else-von-hollander/) — Else von Hollander was one of the three founders of the Bruderhof at Sannerz in 1920, alongside her sister Emmy Arnold and Eberhard Arnold.
- 1920: [Bruderhof](/en/traditions/bruderhof/) — The Bruderhof began in Germany in 1920. Its communal history later connected with the Hutterite tradition and developed its own community story.
- 1920: [Mennonite Central Committee](/en/traditions/mennonite-central-committee/) — Mennonite Central Committee began in 1920 as a cooperative response to hunger among communities in Ukraine.
- 1920: [Mennonite relief cooperation: MCC](/en/events/mcc-1920/) — Mennonite Central Committee began in 1920 as a cooperative response to hunger among communities in Ukraine.
- 1920 · Anabaptist history: [Sannerz](/en/places/sannerz/) — Sannerz was the German village where the Bruderhof began in 1920.
- Relief service in 1920: [Clayton Kratz](/en/people/clayton-kratz/) — Clayton Kratz was one of the early Mennonite relief workers sent to communities suffering in the aftermath of revolution in Russia.
- 1920–1965; Upland College name from 1949: [Beulah and Upland College in California](/en/events/beulah-upland-college/) — Beulah College became Upland College, a Brethren in Christ educational community whose work later joined Messiah.
- 1920–1923: [Canadian Mennonite Board of Colonization](/en/events/canadian-mennonite-board-colonization/) — Canadian Mennonites organized relief and immigration assistance for families affected by revolution, famine, and displacement.
- 1918–1919: [The Hofer brothers and Jacob Wipf](/en/people/hofer-brothers-and-jacob-wipf/) — Joseph, Michael, and David Hofer and their brother-in-law Jacob Wipf suffered imprisonment after refusing military participation as Hutterite conscientious objectors.
- 1918: [Hutterite communities move north](/en/events/hutterites-to-canada-1918/) — Wartime hostility and the costs of refusing military participation helped drive Hutterite colonies toward new homes in Canada.
- Soviet period 1917–1991: [Soviet Mennonites: Kirchliche and Brethren](/en/traditions/soviet-mennonites/) — The chart follows Mennonite and Mennonite Brethren communities through revolution, war, repression, and migration in the Soviet period.
- 1917–1919: [The Mennonite mission in Argentina](/en/events/argentine-mission-1917/) — A mission begun in 1917 established a center at Pehuajó and became part of the growth of Mennonite congregational life in Argentina.
- 1917–1929: [The Dutch Gemeentedag movement](/en/events/gemeentedagbeweging-1917/) — Dutch Mennonite gatherings and brotherhood houses grew from a desire to renew shared spiritual life.
- Peter: 1914–2010; Elfrieda: 1917–2004: [Peter and Elfrieda Dyck](/en/people/peter-and-elfrieda-dyck/) — Peter and Elfrieda Dyck served displaced people through Mennonite Central Committee and helped lead Mennonite refugee transports to South America.
- Predecessor 1914–1915; independent seminary 1921–1931: [Witmarsum Theological Seminary at Bluffton](/en/events/witmarsum-theological-seminary/) — Witmarsum organized a shared Mennonite theological school at Bluffton before its assets supported a later seminary at Chicago.
- 1911–1912: [Mennonite mission and church growth in Congo](/en/events/mennonite-congo-mission/) — Planning in 1911 was followed by the arrival of the first Congo Inland Mission workers in 1912.
- German edition published in 1911: [P. M. Friesen’s history of the Mennonites in Russia](/en/events/friesen-russian-mennonite-history-1911/) — Peter M. Friesen gathered documents and historical interpretation into a major account of Russian Mennonite church life.
- 1910: [Conservative Amish Mennonites: Rosedale Network](/en/traditions/conservative-amish-mennonites/) — Ministers meeting at Pigeon, Michigan, formed the Conservative Amish Mennonite Conference in 1910; its history continues as Rosedale Network.
- Opened 1909; early development through 1954: [Hesston College and Bible School](/en/events/hesston-college-bible-school/) — Hesston developed a Mennonite academy and Bible school into a college serving congregations and students in the western United States.
- Chartered 1909; classes began 1910; university name 2020: [Messiah College: Bible school and Christian higher education](/en/events/messiah-college-grantham/) — The Brethren in Christ founded Messiah as a Bible and missionary school that developed into a broader Christian university.
- Opened 1908; conference ownership from 1934: [Tabor College and Mennonite Brethren education](/en/events/tabor-college-hillsboro/) — Tabor College joined Mennonite Brethren Christian formation with broad education at Hillsboro, Kansas.
- Chartered 1900; classes began 1903; junior college closed 1986: [Freeman Junior College and its earlier school](/en/events/freeman-junior-college/) — Freeman’s Mennonite school expanded from elementary and secondary education into teacher training and a junior college.
- 1897–1905: [Allianz fellowship in Molotschna](/en/events/allianz-molotschna-1905/) — Bible courses and open fellowship on Mennonite estates contributed to the Allianz-related church organized in 1905.
- 1896: [The Lone Tree conference and confession](/en/events/lone-tree-conference-1896/) — The Church of God in Christ, Mennonite gathered at Lone Tree, Kansas, and recorded a common confession of faith.
- 1893; division in 1926–1927: [Martinites, Wenger Mennonites, and the Horning fellowship](/en/events/weaverland-groffdale-division/) — Pennsylvania's Martinite fellowship became the shared historical background of the Weaverland or Horning and Groffdale or Wenger conferences.
- 1890s: [Sommerfeld Mennonites](/en/traditions/sommerfeld-mennonites/) — A West Reserve Mennonite church associated with Bergthal migration and later colony and renewal movements.
- 1890: [The Budget: letters between scattered communities](/en/events/budget-newspaper-1890/) — A newspaper founded in Sugarcreek helped Amish and Mennonite communities remain in contact through local letters.
- Mission began in 1890: [Abraham and Miriam Friesen: mission to India](/en/people/abraham-miriam-friesen/) — Abraham and Miriam Friesen were sent from the Mennonite Brethren in Russia to begin mission work in India.
- 1889: [Evangelical Mennonite Brethren](/en/traditions/evangelical-mennonite-brethren/) — A fellowship organized in North America in 1889, later named the Fellowship of Evangelical Bible Churches.
- 1889: [Woolwichers and the Ontario Old Order beginning](/en/events/woolwich-old-order-beginnings/) — Woolwichers was a local name for Ontario Old Order Mennonites associated with Bishop Abraham Martin and the division of 1889.
- Society formed 1888; school opened 1889; rebuilt 1964–1965: [Mennonite Collegiate Institute at Gretna](/en/events/mennonite-collegiate-institute-gretna/) — Gretna’s Mennonite school grew from teacher preparation into a residential Christian secondary institution.
- 1887–1961: [Mennonite colleges: learning within the church](/en/events/mennonite-colleges-1887-1961/) — Mennonite communities founded colleges and church schools to join academic learning with faith, congregational life, and preparation for service.
- First issue: 1 August 1887: [Evangelical Visitor: a printed meeting place for the Brethren in Christ](/en/events/evangelical-visitor-1887/) — The Brethren in Christ began Evangelical Visitor to share teaching, news, and the work of congregations separated by distance.
- 1883: [United Missionary Church and Missionary Church](/en/traditions/united-missionary-church/) — The exhibit’s Mennonite Brethren in Christ line developed into United Missionary Church and joined a union in 1969.
- 1882 origins; Halstead 1883–1893: [Halstead Seminary and the path to Bethel College](/en/events/halstead-mennonite-seminary/) — Halstead’s Mennonite school prepared students for teaching and church service before its work passed to Bethel College.
- Publication began in 1882: [Der Zionspilger: a Swiss Mennonite paper with readers abroad](/en/events/der-zionspilger-1882/) — Der Zionspilger carried the life of Swiss Mennonite congregations into a wider German-reading community, including readers in America.
- 1882: [The Evangelical United Mennonite conference of 1882](/en/events/evangelical-united-conference-1882/) — Preserved minutes document an 1882 conference concerned with ministry, publishing, mission, and common church discipline.
- 1880–1882: trek to Central Asia: [Claas Epp Jr.](/en/people/claas-epp-jr/) — The younger Claas Epp led an eastward migration in 1880 while expecting a place of refuge before Christ’s return.
- 1880–1890: [General Conference mission among Native American communities](/en/events/general-conference-native-missions/) — General Conference Mennonites began mission work among several Native American peoples in the American West.
- 1880–1930: [Russian Mennonites: upheaval, relief, and new homes](/en/events/russian-mennonite-upheaval-and-relief/) — Prosperous settlements faced revolution, hunger, and displacement, drawing Mennonite congregations into coordinated relief and renewed migration.
- 1875–1925 in Manitoba: [Reinländer Mennonites in Manitoba](/en/traditions/reinlander-mennonites/) — Reinländer congregations formed a distinct Old Colony church history after migration to Manitoba.
- 1874: [Hutterite migration to North America](/en/events/hutterite-migration-1874/) — Hutterite communities began migrating from the Russian Empire to North America in the 1870s after changes affecting military exemption and community life.
- Manitoba settlement 1874–1876: [Chortitzer Mennonites](/en/traditions/chortitzer-mennonites/) — The Bergthal migration to Manitoba’s East Reserve in 1874–1876 established the Chortitzer church history.
- 1874 · Anabaptist history: [Manitoba](/en/places/manitoba/) — Migration to Manitoba in the 1870s shaped several distinct Mennonite church histories.
- 1874–1890: [Mennonite and Hutterite migration to North America](/en/events/russian-mennonite-hutterite-migration/) — Military-service changes and the search for secure community life contributed to migration from the Russian Empire.
- 1873–1876: [Mennonite Board of Guardians: helping immigrants](/en/events/mennonite-board-of-guardians/) — Two Mennonite aid committees united to help families travel from the Russian Empire and establish new homes in North America.
- Regional divisions 1872–1901: [Old Order Mennonites](/en/traditions/old-order-mennonites/) — Old Order Mennonite fellowships developed through several regional divisions beginning in the later nineteenth century.
- 1872: [Old Order Mennonite regional divisions](/en/events/old-order-divisions/) — Old Order Mennonite fellowships developed through several regional divisions beginning in the later nineteenth century.
- 1872: [Bernhard Warkentin, Philip Wiebe, and the land scouts](/en/events/bernard-warkentin-philip-wiebe/) — Two scouts investigated North American farmland before the major migration from the Russian Empire.
- Separation in 1872; conference in 1899: [Joseph Stuckey and the Central Illinois Amish division](/en/traditions/stuckey-amish/) — A dispute over discipline separated Joseph Stuckey and several Illinois congregations from the wider Amish fellowship.
- 1872; further division in 1907: [Wisler Mennonites: Indiana and Ohio beginnings](/en/events/wisler-mennonite-beginnings/) — The Wisler name connects the Indiana–Ohio Old Order beginnings with a later conference that retained the name after a further division.
- 1872: [The Masontown meetings of 1872](/en/events/masontown-revival-1872/) — Daniel Brenneman and John F. Funk conducted a series of meetings that became an early milestone in Mennonite Church revivalism.
- Opened 1868; theological work ended 1878; normal school ended 1879: [Wadsworth Mennonite School: an early shared educational effort](/en/events/wadsworth-mennonite-school/) — Wadsworth’s short-lived school joined biblical instruction, languages, and practical work in an early General Conference project.
- 1866: [Egly Amish and Evangelical Mennonite Church](/en/traditions/evangelical-mennonite-church/) — Henry Egly’s Amish reform movement developed into the Defenseless Mennonites and later the Evangelical Mennonite Church.
- 1864 beginnings; 1867 move to Elkhart: [John Fretz Funk](/en/people/john-fretz-funk/) — Publisher and Mennonite leader whose Elkhart work circulated periodicals, historical books, and practical help for immigrants.
- 1864–1908: [Herald of Truth: teaching and news across Mennonite homes](/en/events/herald-of-truth-1864-1908/) — John Fretz Funk’s newspaper served the Mennonite Church for forty-four years before joining Gospel Witness to form Gospel Herald.
- 1862: [Walnut Creek: meetinghouse and Amish Mennonite change](/en/events/walnut-creek-meetinghouse/) — The first Amish meetinghouse in Holmes County became part of wider debate about congregational change.
- 1861–1862: itinerant ministry: [Daniel Hege](/en/people/daniel-hege/) — An early General Conference minister who traveled among congregations to encourage fellowship, mission, and education.
- 1860: [The Mennonite Brethren emerge](/en/events/mennonite-brethren-1860/) — Renewal within Mennonite communities in the Russian Empire contributed to the formation of the Mennonite Brethren in 1860.
- 1860: [Mennonite Brethren](/en/traditions/mennonite-brethren/) — The Mennonite Brethren arose through renewal among Mennonites in the Russian Empire. The tradition later developed across national boundaries.
- 1860: [General Conference Mennonite Church](/en/traditions/general-conference/) — A Mennonite conference shown on the exhibit’s North American timeline; its U.S. congregations joined in forming Mennonite Church USA in 2002.
- Later nineteenth century: [Old Order Amish](/en/traditions/old-order-amish/) — Old Order Amish identity developed during nineteenth-century disagreements over conference organization and changes in church life.
- 1859: [Church of God in Christ, Mennonite](/en/traditions/church-of-god-in-christ-mennonite/) — John Holdeman and others began worshiping separately in Ohio in 1859, forming a distinct Mennonite church history.
- 1859: [John Holdeman’s separate fellowship](/en/events/holdeman-1859/) — John Holdeman and others began worshiping separately in Ohio in 1859, forming a distinct Mennonite church history.
- Founded 1 January 1854: [Mennonitische Blätter: connecting German Mennonite congregations](/en/events/mennonitische-blaetter-1854/) — Jakob Mannhardt’s periodical joined historical remembrance, Christian instruction, and news from scattered Mennonite congregations.
- 1853–1856: [Mennonite care for the wounded during the Crimean War](/en/events/crimean-war-mennonite-service/) — Mennonites near the Crimean War cared for wounded people while declining active military service.
- Publication began in 1852: [Religiöser Botschafter: an early Mennonite newspaper in America](/en/events/religioeser-botschafter-1852/) — John H. Oberholtzer’s German-language newspaper opened a durable channel for teaching and communication between American Mennonite congregations.
- 1847–1851: [Mennonite mission from the Netherlands to Java](/en/events/dutch-mennonite-mission-java/) — A Dutch mission association helped begin a Mennonite mission in Java with support across national boundaries.
- 1847–early 1990s: [Swiss Mennonite congregations: chapels and conference](/en/events/swiss-mennonite-congregational-life/) — Swiss Mennonite congregations continued through local worship, new meetinghouses, shared conference work, and the preservation of their community records.
- 1847–1863: [Oberholtzer and the Eastern District Conference](/en/events/eastern-district-1847/) — A Pennsylvania division over conference order and cooperation produced the fellowship later known as Eastern District Conference.
- 1840–1842: [Early Mennonite Sunday schools in Ontario](/en/events/ontario-sunday-schools-1840/) — Congregations in Waterloo County introduced organized Sunday instruction alongside the worshiping life of the church.
- Colony established 1836; registers from 1843: [Bergthal Mennonites](/en/traditions/bergthal-mennonites/) — The Bergthal colony’s migration to Manitoba became the background of the Chortitzer and Sommerfeld church histories.
- 1832–1900: [John Holdeman and a call to renewal](/en/people/john-holdeman/) — John Holdeman gathered a separate fellowship after a religious awakening and a call to preach in Ohio.
- 1817: agricultural society leadership: [Johann Cornies](/en/people/johann-cornies/) — Molotschna leader associated with agricultural improvement, settlement development, and the society marked on the timeline in 1817.
- 1812: [Kleine Gemeinde](/en/traditions/kleine-gemeinde/) — A reform movement in the Molotschna settlement that began in 1812 under Klaas Reimer and later developed different national histories.
- 1812: [Reformed Mennonites](/en/traditions/reformed-mennonites/) — A distinct North American Mennonite fellowship led by John Herr from 1812.
- 1812: [Kleine Gemeinde begins](/en/events/kleine-gemeinde-1812/) — A reform movement in the Molotschna settlement that began in 1812 under Klaas Reimer and later developed different national histories.
- 1812 · Anabaptist history: [Molotschna](/en/places/molotschna/) — The Molotschna settlement was the setting of Kleine Gemeinde and Mennonite Brethren beginnings.
- 1811: [Dutch Mennonite Conference: ADS](/en/traditions/dutch-mennonite-conference/) — The Algemene Doopsgezinde Sociëteit brought Dutch Mennonite congregations into a shared association in 1811.
- 1808–1865: [Westward settlement from Pennsylvania to Ohio, Indiana, and Iowa](/en/events/westward-anabaptist-settlement/) — Amish and Mennonite families formed new settlements across the expanding American Midwest.
- 1803–1857: [Samuel Frölich and the Apostolic Christian beginnings](/en/people/samuel-frolich/) — Samuel Frölich’s preaching gathered believers from Reformed and Mennonite backgrounds into a new church community.
- 1789: [Russian Mennonite communities](/en/traditions/russian-mennonites/) — Communities established in the Russian Empire developed several church traditions and later migrated to the Americas and elsewhere.
- 1789: [Old Colony Mennonites](/en/traditions/old-colony/) — Old Colony history connects the Chortitza settlement with later migrations and a wider family of colony-based Mennonite churches.
- 1789: [Settlement at Chortitza](/en/events/chortitza-1789/) — Communities established in the Russian Empire developed several church traditions and later migrated to the Americas and elsewhere.
- 1789 · Anabaptist history: [Chortitza](/en/places/chortitza/) — The Chortitza settlement became the Old Colony within the Mennonite history of the Russian Empire.
- 1787–1871: [Jonas Stutzman and the first Amish settlement at Walnut Creek](/en/people/jonas-stutzman/) — Jonas Stutzman’s life joined pioneer settlement, teaching, and an intensely personal expectation of Christ’s return.
- 1786–1806: [From Prussia to Chortitza and Molotschna](/en/events/prussian-russian-migration/) — Scouts, wagon journeys, and new villages linked Prussian Mennonites to settlements in the Russian Empire.
- 1783–1826: [Mennonite migration into Canada](/en/events/mennonite-migration-canada/) — Revolution, conscience, and the search for farmland contributed to Mennonite and Amish settlement in Canada.
- 1778; Brethren in Christ name by 1863: [The River Brethren and believers’ baptism](/en/events/river-brethren-1778/) — A revival among Pennsylvania Mennonite communities contributed to the gathering of the River Brethren.
- 1778–1836: [Christian Nafziger and the journey to Ontario](/en/people/christian-nafziger/) — Christian Nafziger explored a Canadian settlement and recruited Amish Mennonite families to establish homes there.
- 1778–1851: [Christian Funk and the Revolutionary-era separation](/en/events/christian-funk-separation/) — A disagreement over allegiance and support for the American Revolution divided Pennsylvania Mennonites and left a long search for reconciliation.
- Beginnings 1775–1788: [Brethren in Christ: River Brethren](/en/traditions/brethren-in-christ/) — A Pennsylvania movement with Anabaptist and Pietist roots that emerged between 1775 and 1788.
- 1766 publication; 1773 recognition: [Cornelis Ris](/en/people/cornelis-ris/) — The Hoorn minister whose 1766 confession circulated among Dutch and German Mennonite congregations.
- 1761: [Hutterite communities under coercion in 1761](/en/events/hutterite-coercion-1761/) — Arrest and compulsory religious instruction disrupted Hutterite communal life in Austria and Hungary.
- September 1757: [Jacob Hochstetler and the test of nonresistance](/en/people/jacob-hochstetler/) — The Hochstetler family’s ordeal at Northkill became a remembered test of refusing violence in the face of danger.
- 1748 edition; Revolutionary-era episode labeled 1776: [Ephrata and the German Martyrs’ Mirror](/en/events/ephrata-martyrs-mirror/) — The Ephrata printing of Martyrs’ Mirror carried the memory of faithful witnesses to German-speaking readers in Pennsylvania.
- 1718–1771: documented teaching and death: [Christopher Dock](/en/people/christopher-dock/) — Pennsylvania schoolmaster whose teaching, illustrated writing, and School Management joined learning with Christian formation.
- 1708: [The Schwarzenau Brethren](/en/events/schwarzenau-1708/) — A group baptized in the Eder River at Schwarzenau began a movement shaped by both Anabaptist convictions and Pietism.
- 1708: [Schwarzenau Brethren](/en/traditions/schwarzenau-brethren/) — The Schwarzenau Brethren represent a related movement shaped by Anabaptism and Pietism, beginning with the baptisms at the Eder River in 1708.
- 1708; stone replacement in 1770: [A meetinghouse at Germantown](/en/events/germantown-meetinghouse/) — A log meetinghouse gave the Germantown Mennonites a settled place for congregational worship.
- Documented activity 1708–1729: [Alexander Mack and the gathered Brethren](/en/people/alexander-mack/) — Alexander Mack helped gather believers at Schwarzenau for baptism and a shared life ordered by the New Testament.
- Born c. 1706; ministry documented 1765–1770: [Johannes Nafziger and the care of Amish congregations](/en/people/johannes-nafziger/) — Johannes Nafziger supported Amish congregations through personal assistance and written guidance for ministry.
- North American development, eighteenth century: [Mennonite Church: MC](/en/traditions/mennonite-church/) — The older Mennonite Church in North America developed from Swiss and German congregational histories.
- 1700–1743; expulsion in 1711: [Anabaptist hunters and the expulsion from Bern](/en/events/bern-anabaptist-hunters/) — Bounties, confiscation, hidden worship, and forced migration shaped the lives of Swiss Anabaptists in the early eighteenth century.
- 1700–1800: [Worship behind the street front in Holland](/en/events/dutch-mennonite-meetinghouses/) — Dutch Mennonites worshiped in meeting places whose outward appearance was restricted even as congregational life continued within.
- 1693–1694: [The Amish division and the call for renewal](/en/events/amish-division-1693/) — Disagreement over communion, church discipline, and relations with sympathetic outsiders divided the Swiss Brethren.
- 1693: [Jakob Ammann](/en/people/jakob-ammann/) — Jakob Ammann was a Swiss Anabaptist leader concerned with spiritual renewal, separation from the world, and the practice of church discipline. Disagreement over the ban and shunning contributed to the division of 1693, and his followers came to be called Amish.
- 1693: [Amish traditions](/en/traditions/amish/) — Amish history grows from the Swiss Anabaptist tradition and the disagreements associated with Jakob Ammann. The later story includes migrations and distinct fellowships.
- 1683: [Mennonite migration to Germantown](/en/events/germantown-1683/) — The 1683 Germantown settlement opened an important North American chapter in Mennonite migration.
- 1683 · Anabaptist history: [Pennsylvania](/en/places/pennsylvania/) — Pennsylvania connects early Mennonite migration with later congregational and fellowship histories.
- 1681–1683: [Pennsylvania: an opening for persecuted believers](/en/events/pennsylvania-refuge/) — Pennsylvania offered Mennonites and other persecuted communities a place to worship and establish new homes.
- Division in 1664; reunion in 1801: [The Lamb and Sun congregations](/en/traditions/lamb-and-sun-mennonites/) — The Lamb and Sun names remember an Amsterdam division and the later reunion of its congregations.
- 1660: publication: [Preserving the memory: Martyrs’ Mirror](/en/events/martyrs-mirror-1660/) — Thieleman J. van Braght’s collection preserved accounts of Christian witnesses and Anabaptist martyrs, along with letters, confessions, and reflections.
- 1660: [Thieleman J. van Braght](/en/people/thieleman-van-braght/) — Thieleman J. van Braght gathered the accounts, letters, confessions, and exhortations that make up Martyrs’ Mirror. He organized Christian witness century by century, bringing the testimony of the early church and medieval believers together with the sufferings of the Anabaptists.
- 1659 measures; 1671 banishment: [Swiss Brethren banished toward the Palatinate](/en/events/bern-banishment-1671/) — The supplied overview describes an Anabaptist commission at Bern in 1659 and increasing pressure on Swiss Brethren to conform or leave. Arrest, removal, and the loss of a settled home continued the persecution into a period beyond many of the book’s individual martyr accounts.
- Mid-seventeenth century: [Swiss believers condemned to the galleys](/en/events/swiss-galley-slaves/) — The end of some executions did not end the coercion of Anabaptist believers; forced labor and exile continued.
- 1644–1708: [William Rittenhouse: ministry and papermaking](/en/people/william-rittenhouse/) — William Rittenhouse joined Mennonite pastoral service to the trade of papermaking in early Pennsylvania.
- 1639–1651: leadership and order: [Hutterite order and renewal under Andreas Ehrenpreis](/en/events/hutterite-ordnung/) — Andreas Ehrenpreis took leadership after a period of great disruption in Hutterite community life. The supplied overview dates his election as bishop to 1639 and describes his work to restore the fellowship’s order and discipline.
- 21 April 1632: [The Dordrecht Confession](/en/events/dordrecht-confession/) — The Third Confession printed near the beginning of Martyrs’ Mirror identifies itself as a statement drawn up at a peace convention at Dort on 21 April 1632. Its eighteen articles set out a shared confession of Christian faith and practice.
- 1632–1660: confession and publication: [Dordrecht (Dort)](/en/places/dordrecht/) — Dordrecht, called Dort in the supplied edition, connects the confession of faith drawn up on 21 April 1632 with the later work of Thieleman J. van Braght. The introductory line of the Third Confession identifies the gathering and its date.
- Distinct fellowships from c. 1630: [Old Flemish Mennonites](/en/traditions/old-flemish-mennonites/) — Old Flemish congregations retained separate church relationships while other Dutch groups pursued union.
- 1615: history of the martyrs: [Hans de Ries](/en/people/hans-de-ries/) — Waterlander teacher and collector whose 1615 martyr history helped prepare the way for Martyrs’ Mirror.
- September 1614: [Hans Landis and the Swiss persecution](/en/events/hans-landis-1614/) — The account of Hans Landis in Martyrs’ Mirror shows that persecution of Swiss Anabaptists continued into the seventeenth century.
- 1614: [Hans Landis](/en/people/hans-landis/) — Hans Landis was a Swiss teacher who continued ministering when the Zürich authorities ordered him to stop. Martyrs’ Mirror describes his arrest, release from an earlier imprisonment, renewed examination, and execution by beheading in September 1614.
- 1607–1612: [English refugees and the Dutch Mennonites](/en/events/smyth-robinson-mennonites/) — John Smyth and John Robinson led English religious refugees to the Netherlands in 1607–1608. The supplied overview follows their communities to Amsterdam and, in Robinson’s case, to Leiden in 1609.
- 1605–1650: [War and the dispersal of Hutterite communities](/en/events/hutterite-war-dispersal/) — The supplied overview follows attacks on Hutterite communities during the wars that afflicted Moravia and the surrounding lands from the beginning of the seventeenth century. It describes killing, captivity, plunder, and the loss of homes and communal resources.
- 1601–1641: [Altona: refuge and freedom of worship](/en/events/altona-religious-liberty/) — Dutch Mennonite refugees established a congregation at Altona under privileges that protected worship and trade.
- Migration history, seventeenth–eighteenth centuries: [Mennonites of Swiss–South German ancestry](/en/traditions/swiss-south-german-mennonites/) — Migrations connected Swiss and South German Anabaptist communities with European refuges and later congregations in North America.
- Seventeenth and eighteenth centuries: [Krefeld: refuge, work, and Mennonite community](/en/events/krefeld-mennonite-refuge/) — Mennonites at Krefeld established a community whose weaving and trade brought a measure of protection.
- 1571: [Hans Haslibacher](/en/people/hans-haslibacher/) — Hans Haslibacher was an older Swiss believer brought before the authorities at Berne. Martyrs’ Mirror recounts his imprisonment, examination, and steadfast refusal to renounce the faith he had confessed.
- 1569; sentence dated 16 May: [Dirk Willems saves his pursuer](/en/events/dirk-willems-rescue/) — Martyrs’ Mirror recounts how Dirk Willems turned back to rescue a pursuer who had fallen through the ice. He was recaptured and later executed.
- 1569: [Dirk Willems](/en/people/dirk-willems/) — Dirk Willems was imprisoned at Asperen in Holland in 1569. Martyrs’ Mirror recounts that he escaped, crossed the ice, and turned back when the man pursuing him fell through it. His rescue of the pursuer cost him the opportunity to get away.
- 1569: Dirk Willems’s witness: [Asperen](/en/places/asperen/) — Asperen in Holland is the setting of Dirk Willems’s imprisonment, flight across the ice, rescue of his pursuer, and recapture. Martyrs’ Mirror gives the local setting as part of the account of his faith and suffering.
- c. 1569; sentence dated 26 February 1569: [Worship in Pieter Pieters Beckjen’s boat](/en/events/amsterdam-boat-worship-1569/) — An Amsterdam boatman made room for persecuted believers to encourage one another from Scripture, and was condemned for his faith.
- 1566: [Flemish Mennonites](/en/traditions/flemish-mennonites/) — Flemish Mennonite communities formed one of the Dutch branches during sixteenth-century disagreements over discipline and congregational life.
- 1566: [Frisian Mennonites](/en/traditions/frisian-mennonites/) — A Dutch Mennonite branch that developed in Friesland and also took root in West Prussia.
- 1565–1592: [Hutterite schools, crafts, and shared life](/en/events/hutterite-golden-age/) — Hutterite communities in Moravia developed schools, religious writing, agriculture, and skilled crafts. The institutional Hutterite history identifies 1565–1592 as a flourishing period, with communal work supporting the life and teaching of the congregations.
- From 1560; continued through 1665: [The Hutterite Chronicles](/en/events/hutterite-chronicles/) — The supplied overview describes the beginning of an official Hutterite chronicle in 1560 at Austerlitz in Moravia. The work gathered accounts of the community’s beginnings, leaders, migrations, and suffering for preservation by later generations.
- Winter 1553–1554: [Mennonite aid to refugees at Wismar](/en/events/wismar-refugee-aid/) — During the winter of 1553–1554, Mennonites at Wismar helped Reformed refugees whose ship had become ice-bound. The supplied overview remembers practical assistance across a difference of confession.
- 1551–1582: ministry: [Leenaert Bouwens](/en/people/leenaert-bouwens/) — Leenaert Bouwens was ordained as an elder by Menno Simons at Emden in 1551, according to the supplied overview. His ministry involved travel, preaching, and baptism among congregations from East Friesland to Flanders.
- Mid-sixteenth century; confession 1577: [Waterlander Mennonites](/en/traditions/waterlanders/) — A Dutch Mennonite stream associated with Waterland, with a confession of faith in 1577 and a distinctive approach to church discipline.
- Sixteenth century to the 1639 Amsterdam union: [High German Mennonites](/en/traditions/high-german-mennonites/) — The High Germans connected South German and Rhineland believers with Dutch congregations and efforts toward reconciliation.
- 1547–1552: [Hutterite banishment and winter refuge](/en/events/hutterite-banishment-1547/) — The supplied history overview describes a period of renewed pressure on the Hutterites from 1547 to 1552. An imperial edict forced believers from communal homes in the regions of Moravia, Austria, and Hungary.
- 1544: [Maria and Ursula van Beckum: steadfast together in 1544](/en/events/maria-ursula-van-beckum-1544/) — Martyrs’ Mirror remembers Maria and her sister-in-law Ursula refusing to abandon Christ and praying for those who condemned them.
- Sixteenth-century settlement: [Danzig and Prussian Mennonites](/en/traditions/prussian-mennonites/) — Mennonite communities in the Vistula region linked Dutch Anabaptist histories with later migrations into the Russian Empire.
- 1540 · Anabaptist history: [Danzig and the Vistula region](/en/places/danzig-vistula/) — Mennonite settlements in the Vistula region linked Dutch congregations with later migration to the Russian Empire.
- 1539: [Anna Jans](/en/people/anna-jans/) — Anna Jans is the woman remembered in the supplied edition as Anna of Rotterdam. The account preserves the testament she gave to her son Isaiah on 24 January 1539, as she prepared to die for her faith.
- 25 February 1536: [Jakob Hutter’s witness](/en/events/jakob-hutter-execution/) — Jakob Hutter was executed in Innsbruck in 1536. His leadership and organization helped give the Hutterite tradition its lasting name.
- 1536: [Jakob Hutter](/en/people/jakob-hutter/) — Jakob Hutter led Anabaptist believers from Tyrol toward refuge in Moravia and helped organize their shared life. The Hutterite history dates his election as chief elder to 1533 and his execution at Innsbruck to 25 February 1536.
- Menno Simons’s ministry, 1536–1561: [Menno Simons](/en/people/menno-simons/) — Menno Simons was a former Dutch priest who became an influential Anabaptist teacher. The Mennonite name preserves his association with the communities he helped strengthen; it does not make every later branch the work of one founder.
- 1536: [Menno’s commitment and call to leadership](/en/events/menno-commitment-1536/) — The supplied overview connects Menno Simons’s study of Scripture with his decision to leave the priesthood and identify openly with the Anabaptists. It dates his public commitment to 30 January 1536.
- 1536: Jakob Hutter’s execution: [Innsbruck](/en/places/innsbruck/) — Innsbruck is the place where Jakob Hutter was executed on 25 February 1536, according to the Hutterite institutional history. The event belongs to the period when he led and organized believers moving between Tyrol and Moravia.
- 1536–1556 (David Joris’s later ministry): [Jorists: David Joris and the meaning of discipleship](/en/events/jorists-and-david-joris/) — The Jorists appear in the Dutch portion of the chart as a distinct movement whose teachings nonresistant witnesses examined against Scripture.
- 1535–1540 songs; 1564 collection: [The Ausbund: prison songs and congregational memory](/en/events/ausbund/) — The Ausbund grew from hymns written by imprisoned believers. The supplied overview dates the core prison songs to 1535–1540 and the earliest printed collection it describes to 1564.
- 1535–1544 (principal activity described here): [Batenburgers: violence and the nonresistant witness](/en/events/batenburgers-and-the-sword/) — The Batenburgers’ separate line in the chart supplies context for the accusations of religious violence that peaceful Anabaptists had to answer.
- 1534–1535: [Münster and the rejection of armed religion](/en/events/munster-1534-1535/) — In 1534–1535, leaders at Münster proclaimed the city a new Jerusalem and organized an armed religious community. The supplied overview names Jan Matthijs and Jan van Leyden and follows the siege, the fall of the city, and the punishment of its leaders.
- 1531 in overview; c. 1533 in Martyrs’ Mirror: [Sicke Snyder](/en/people/sicke-snyder/) — Sicke Snyder received baptism upon his faith and was imprisoned at Leeuwarden in Friesland. Martyrs’ Mirror describes his refusal to abandon that confession under pressure and his death by the sword.
- Ministry in Moravia and Poland, 1531–1540: [Ulrich Stadler and the shared life of the brotherhood](/en/people/ulrich-stadler/) — Ulrich Stadler helped lead refugee communities and explained the spiritual meaning of shared possessions.
- 1530s; a wider family name: [Mennonite traditions](/en/traditions/mennonites/) — Mennonite history includes Dutch, Swiss, German, and later worldwide communities. Shared roots coexist with differences in worship, practice, organization, and relationships.
- Anabaptist ministry c. 1530–1563: [Leupold Scharnschlager: exile and pastoral correspondence](/en/people/leupold-scharnschlager/) — Leupold Scharnschlager cared for believers across borders after losing his home for joining the Anabaptists.
- 1528: [Community of goods in Moravia](/en/events/community-of-goods/) — A community of Anabaptist refugees in Moravia began sharing their possessions. This practice became a defining feature of Hutterite life.
- 1528: [Hutterite traditions](/en/traditions/hutterites/) — Hutterite history centres on gathered Christian communities and community of goods. Its migration story links Moravia, eastern Europe, and North America.
- 1528 · Anabaptist history: [Moravia](/en/places/moravia/) — Moravia provided a setting for Anabaptist refugee communities and the development of Hutterite common life.
- 5 January 1527: [Felix Manz and the cost of conviction](/en/events/felix-manz-execution/) — Felix Manz was drowned in Zürich on 5 January 1527. His story is central to the memory of persecution among the Swiss Brethren.
- 24 February 1527: [The Schleitheim Articles](/en/events/schleitheim-articles/) — The Schleitheim Articles set out seven points of agreement for a gathered Anabaptist community, including baptism, communion, church discipline, and refusal of the sword.
- 1527: [Felix Manz](/en/people/felix-manz/) — Felix Manz helped shape the early Zürich fellowship and shared its conviction that baptism should follow faith. Martyrs’ Mirror calls him Felix Mantz and describes his preaching, imprisonment, and death by drowning at Zürich.
- 1527: [Michael Sattler](/en/people/michael-sattler/) — Michael Sattler is associated with the seven Schleitheim Articles of 1527, which address baptism, church discipline, the breaking of bread, separation, shepherds, the sword, and oaths. They set out a shared order of discipleship for the gathered brethren.
- 1527 · Anabaptist history: [Schleitheim](/en/places/schleitheim/) — The 1527 gathering at Schleitheim produced seven articles of agreement for Anabaptist church life.
- 1527–1528: [Nikolsburg: refuge, the sword, and shared goods](/en/events/nikolsburg-debate/) — Anabaptist refugees found protection around Nikolsburg under the Lords of Liechtenstein. The supplied overview describes a large fellowship whose members disagreed about the use of the sword and payment of war taxes.
- 1527–1528: [Balthasar Hubmaier](/en/people/balthasar-hubmaier/) — Balthasar Hubmaier appears in the supplied Nikolsburg overview as a teacher who allowed the sword to political rulers, in contrast with believers who rejected participation in violence. The disagreement forms part of the background to the separation of the Stäbler group.
- Ministry 1526–1527; died 6 December 1527: [Hans Hut: preaching, baptism, and imprisonment](/en/people/hans-hut/) — Hans Hut carried Anabaptist preaching across South Germany and Austria before dying in imprisonment at Augsburg.
- 21 January 1525: [The Zürich baptisms](/en/events/zurich-baptisms-1525/) — On 21 January 1525, Conrad Grebel baptized George Blaurock at a gathering associated with Felix Manz in Zürich. This is a central starting point for Swiss Anabaptist history.
- 1525: [Conrad Grebel](/en/people/conrad-grebel/) — Conrad Grebel belonged to the Zürich circle that sought a church ordered by the teaching and practice of the New Testament. On 21 January 1525, after prayer, he baptized George Blaurock upon his confession of faith. Blaurock then baptized the others who were present.
- 1525–1529: baptism and ministry: [George Blaurock](/en/people/george-blaurock/) — George Blaurock asked Conrad Grebel to baptize him at the Zürich gathering of 21 January 1525 and then baptized the others present. The act expressed their commitment to become a fellowship of believers following Christ together.
- 1525: [Swiss Brethren](/en/traditions/swiss-brethren/) — The Swiss Brethren emerged in the context of the Zürich baptisms and early Swiss Anabaptism. Later Swiss Mennonite and Amish histories share this background.
- 1520s: several regional beginnings: [The regional roots of Anabaptism](/en/traditions/radical-reformation-roots/) — Anabaptism developed in several regions during the Radical Reformation, including Switzerland, South Germany and Austria, and the Netherlands.
- 1525 · Anabaptist history: [Zürich](/en/places/zurich/) — Zürich was the setting of the 1525 believers’ baptisms and Felix Manz’s execution in 1527.
- The Radical Reformation: [Scripture and Anabaptist convictions](/en/events/anabaptist-convictions/) — Believers’ baptism, discipleship, brotherly love, a gathered church, and nonresistance stand at the center of this history.
- 1525: [Bolt Eberli](/en/people/bolt-eberli/) — The supplied overview names Bolt Eberli among the earliest Swiss Brethren to lose his life for his faith. It recounts his preaching at St. Gall, arrest, and death by burning on 29 May 1525.
- Documented leadership 1525–1556: [Pilgram Marpeck and the South German fellowship](/en/people/pilgram-marpeck/) — Pilgram Marpeck joined civic experience, practical work, and written teaching in the service of Anabaptist congregations.
- 1525–1527 (early community): [St. Gallen: Scripture, baptism, and a gathered community](/en/events/st-gallen-early-anabaptists/) — St. Gallen became an early centre of believers’ baptism as public Scripture readings led townspeople to examine faith and the shape of the church.
- 1522–1525: [Bible study and the Zürich circle](/en/events/zurich-bible-study-1522/) — Lay Bible study in Zürich brought believers together around the Scriptures before the baptisms of 1525. The supplied overview dates these beginnings to 1522 and follows the participation of Conrad Grebel and Felix Manz, with George Blaurock later joining them.
- 1506–1556: [Peter Riedemann: a confession written in captivity](/en/people/peter-riedemann/) — Peter Riedemann expressed the faith of the Hutterite brotherhood through confessions written amid persecution.
- 1504–1568: [Dirk Philips and the teaching of a gathered church](/en/people/dirk-philips/) — Dirk Philips served with Menno Simons and wrote extensively about baptism, new birth, church order, and discipleship.
- Born c. 1500; died November 1527: [Hans Denck: Scripture, conscience, and discipleship](/en/people/hans-denck/) — Hans Denck’s teaching and writing influenced the early Anabaptist movement in South Germany.
- Born c. 1500; died 1568: [Obbe Philips and the early Dutch brotherhood](/en/people/obbe-philips/) — Obbe Philips helped gather the early Dutch movement before withdrawing from its ministry around 1540.
- Born c. 1494/1495; imprisoned 1533; death date uncertain: [Melchior Hoffman: preaching and long imprisonment](/en/people/melchior-hoffman/) — Melchior Hoffman spread Anabaptist teaching in northern Europe and spent years imprisoned in Strasbourg.
- c. 1471: [Stephen, Waldensian elder at Vienna](/en/people/stephen-of-vienna/) — Stephen was an elder of the Waldenses who had sought refuge in Austria amid persecution in and around Bohemia. Martyrs’ Mirror recounts his arrest at Vienna and his refusal to abandon either his faith or the people entrusted to his care.
- c. 1471: Stephen’s witness: [Vienna](/en/places/vienna/) — Vienna is the setting of the death of Stephen, an elder of the Waldenses, in Martyrs’ Mirror. His community had sought safety in Austria after persecution in and around Bohemia.
- 1428: [William White](/en/people/william-white/) — William White appears with Abraham of Cholchester and John Waddon in Martyrs’ Mirror’s account of witnesses at Norwich in 1428. The surrounding sections preserve the royal order for their arrest, their confession, and the account of their imprisonment and death.
- 1428: the Norwich witnesses: [Norwich](/en/places/norwich/) — Norwich is the setting of the accounts of William White, Abraham of Cholchester, and John Waddon. Their 1428 witness is accompanied by sections on the order for arrest, their confession, and imprisonment.
- 1415: teaching discussed in the source: [John Huss](/en/people/john-huss/) — John Huss is discussed in Martyrs’ Mirror’s fifteenth-century account of faith and baptism. It relates how Jerome of Prague brought Wickliffe’s writings from England into Bohemia and sets out the articles Huss received from them, including opposition to oaths.
- 1370: teaching in the source account: [John Wycliffe](/en/people/john-wycliffe/) — Martyrs’ Mirror calls this English teacher John Wickliffe and places a discussion of his teaching at 1370. It describes his service at Lutterworth and considers his writings on baptism, the Lord’s Supper, the authority of Scripture, and the swearing of oaths.
- c. 1285 (source account): [Gerard Sagarellus](/en/people/gerard-sagarellus/) — Gerard Sagarellus of Parma appears in Martyrs’ Mirror alongside Dulcinus in the discussion of those whose beliefs were associated with the Waldenses. The account emphasizes his refusal to abandon his confession under condemnation.
- c. 1160–1170: conversion and beginnings: [Peter Waldo](/en/people/peter-waldo/) — Peter Waldo was a wealthy citizen of Lyons whom Martyrs’ Mirror describes as moved to repentance after the sudden death of a companion. He gave generously to the poor and began teaching Scripture in the language understood by the people who came to hear him.
- 1147: apprehension: [Henry of Toulouse](/en/people/henry-of-toulouse/) — Henry of Toulouse was a disciple and fellow teacher of Peter Bruis in Martyrs’ Mirror’s account. The source presents their preaching together, including the conviction that baptism should follow belief.
- 1145 (Peter in the source account): [Peter Bruis](/en/people/peter-bruis/) — Peter Bruis preached in France against practices he judged contrary to the gospel. Martyrs’ Mirror describes his rejection of infant baptism and his teaching that baptism belongs to believers, alongside his objections to the mass, images, and pilgrimages.
- 1059–1079: examinations: [Berengarius](/en/people/berengarius/) — Berengarius appears with Bruno of Angiers in Martyrs’ Mirror’s accounts of teaching about baptism and the Lord’s Supper. The book follows the condemnation of their views and Berengarius’s repeated examinations before church councils.
- 1022–1023 (source account): [The fourteen witnesses at Orleans](/en/events/orleans-witnesses-1022/) — Martyrs’ Mirror recounts the condemnation of fourteen people at Orleans, naming Stephen as their chief figure. The account discusses accusations concerning baptism, the Lord’s Supper, and other beliefs, and records their execution in the presence of King Robert.
- 1022–1023: fourteen witnesses: [Orleans](/en/places/orleans/) — Orleans is the setting of the account of fourteen witnesses, with Stephen named as their chief figure. The narrative places the proceedings near the close of 1022 or at the latest in 1023.
- 923: [Eugenia of Cordova](/en/people/eugenia-of-cordova/) — Eugenia is named in Martyrs’ Mirror among the Christians who suffered in the region of Cordova. The account describes her as a faithful Christian woman who was beheaded for the testimony of Jesus Christ.
- c. 884: [Johannes Erigena](/en/people/johannes-erigena/) — Johannes Erigena, also called Scotus in the source, is remembered for learning, translation, and teaching concerning the Lord’s Supper. Martyrs’ Mirror describes his opposition to transubstantiation and connects his writings with the later convictions of Berengarius.
- 850: [John of Cordova](/en/people/john-of-cordova/) — John was a tradesman at Cordova accused of insulting Mohammed. Martyrs’ Mirror says the witnesses were insufficient to secure a death sentence, but he was severely beaten, publicly mocked, and imprisoned because he would not forsake Christ.
- 850–923: linked witnesses: [Cordova](/en/places/cordova/) — Cordova is a recurring setting in the ninth- and tenth-century accounts. John’s witness in 850 is followed by other named Christians, including Eugenia near the city in 923.
- 750: [Clement of Scotland](/en/people/clement-of-scotland/) — Clement joined Albert of Gaul in opposing teachings and ceremonies they believed contrary to the gospel. Martyrs’ Mirror describes them as companions in doctrine and follows Clement’s attempt to answer the charges brought against him.
- c. 606: [Adrian, teacher opposed to infant baptism](/en/people/adrian-the-teacher/) — Adrian appears in Martyrs’ Mirror’s seventh-century discussion of baptism. A letter attributed to Gregory the Great accuses him of ordering that infants should not be baptized, and the book places the proceedings about the close of 606.
- 511: [Arnold, teacher near Paris](/en/people/arnold-near-paris/) — Arnold preached the gospel in a forest near Paris. Martyrs’ Mirror records that he was killed there in 511 and that his wife buried him at the place of his death.
- 424: [Albanus of Mentz](/en/people/albanus-of-mentz/) — Albanus is a fifth-century teacher in Martyrs’ Mirror’s account of the spread of the gospel. He came to Mentz to preach Christ and was killed with others, the heading giving the year 424.
- 302: [Eulalia of Emerita](/en/people/eulalia-of-emerita/) — Eulalia’s account belongs to the fourth-century persecution narratives. Martyrs’ Mirror describes her open confession of the one true God before the magistrates and her refusal to take part in idol worship at Emerita, also named Merida in the text.
- c. 201: [Perpetua and Felicitas](/en/events/perpetua-and-felicitas/) — Perpetua and Felicitas are remembered together in the third-century accounts. Martyrs’ Mirror describes them as Christian women of Tuburbi in Mauritania, one nursing a child and the other pregnant when they were imprisoned.
- c. 172: [Blandina](/en/people/blandina/) — Blandina appears with Maturus, Sanctus, and a youth from Pontus among the Christians persecuted on the Rhône. Martyrs’ Mirror describes her confession of Christ as the source of her strength through repeated torments.
- Second- and twelfth-century witnesses: [Lyons and the Rhône](/en/places/lyons/) — The Rhône accounts preserve the witness of Blandina and her companions; the medieval account returns to Lyons in the story of Peter Waldo. The place links two distinct periods of Christian witness.
- 168: [Polycarp of Smyrna](/en/people/polycarp-of-smyrna/) — Polycarp was a teacher of the church at Smyrna whom Martyrs’ Mirror describes as a disciple of the apostle John. The account opens with Christ’s encouragement to the church in Revelation 2 and presents Polycarp as a shepherd who remained faithful in suffering.
- 111: [Ignatius of Antioch](/en/people/ignatius-of-antioch/) — Ignatius served the church at Antioch in Syria. Martyrs’ Mirror describes him as a disciple of John and a diligent shepherd whose teaching centered on Christ. Arrested under Trajan, he was sent under guard to Rome.
- 69: [Simon Peter](/en/people/simon-peter/) — Peter appears in the first-century baptism passages as a preacher at Pentecost and as a witness to the reception of the gospel in the household of Cornelius. The account joins repentance and baptism with the gift of the Holy Spirit and the gathered life of believers.
- 69: [Paul the apostle](/en/people/paul-the-apostle/) — The first-century baptism section recalls Saul’s baptism after Ananias came to him, and the wider account follows Paul’s ministry through repeated suffering. His letters and example give the book a language of endurance, service, and hope in Christ.
- 69–111: linked source accounts: [Rome](/en/places/rome/) — Rome connects the accounts of Peter and Paul under Nero with the later journey and death of Ignatius under Trajan. Martyrs’ Mirror gives 69 for the apostolic accounts and 111 for Ignatius.
- 34: [Stephen of Jerusalem](/en/people/stephen-of-jerusalem/) — Stephen was one of the seven chosen to serve the church at Jerusalem. Martyrs’ Mirror follows Acts 6–7: his wisdom in dispute, the accusations against him, and his testimony before the council about God’s dealings with his people.
- 33 (supplied overview): [Jesus Christ: the cross and resurrection](/en/people/jesus-christ/) — The history begins with Jesus Christ, his crucifixion, and his resurrection. The supplied opening overview places Calvary and the empty tomb at the heart of the story, with the risen Christ presented as Lord and Savior.
- Acts and the first century: [Christian beginnings: baptism, fellowship, and witness](/en/events/christian-beginnings/) — Acts begins this history with the preaching of Christ, repentance, baptism, fellowship, prayer, and care for one another. Martyrs’ Mirror’s first-century account brings together the baptisms at Pentecost, in Samaria, of the Ethiopian, of Saul, and in other households and communities.
- First-century Christian community: [Jerusalem](/en/places/jerusalem/) — Jerusalem is the setting of the Pentecost preaching and the gathered community described in Acts. The first-century source passages connect baptism with teaching, fellowship, prayer, and the care of believers for one another.
- Christian beginnings: [Amish family and community life](/en/events/amish-family-and-community-life/) — The photographed account connects Amish homes, schools, work, marriage, and burial with a shared life shaped by Christian conviction and community tradition.
- Christian beginnings: [Barn raising and mutual aid](/en/events/barn-raising-and-mutual-aid/) — A community rebuilding after fire or disaster makes visible the mutual care that the photographed history associates with Christian love.
- Christian beginnings: [Gathered for worship](/en/events/anabaptist-worship/) — The worship scenes present Amish, Hutterite, and Mennonite communities gathering in different settings while sustaining a shared life of faith.
- Christian beginnings: [Christian love carried into service](/en/events/christian-love-and-service/) — The final globe scene joins the future of the church with the call to make God’s love in Jesus Christ known through both the gospel and practical service.
- Christian beginnings: [Reading the chart’s worldwide reach](/en/events/source-map-global-reach/) — The source map records a widening geographical horizon while leaving individual local histories to their own documented timelines.

## Connections

- The regional roots of Anabaptism → Swiss Brethren: Regional emergence within the Radical Reformation. [Reference](https://github.com/trueChristian/history.truechristian.church/blob/main/sources/church-history/photos/IMG_9375.jpg)
- The regional roots of Anabaptism → Mennonite traditions: Regional emergence within the Radical Reformation. [Reference](https://github.com/trueChristian/history.truechristian.church/blob/main/sources/church-history/photos/IMG_9375.jpg)
- The regional roots of Anabaptism → Hutterite traditions: Regional emergence within the Radical Reformation. [Reference](https://github.com/trueChristian/history.truechristian.church/blob/main/sources/church-history/photos/IMG_9375.jpg)
- Mennonite traditions → Waterlander Mennonites: A distinct Dutch Mennonite stream. [Reference](https://anabaptistwiki.org/mediawiki/index.php?title=Waterlander_Confession_of_Faith_(1577))
- Mennonite traditions → Flemish Mennonites: A distinct Dutch Mennonite stream. [Reference](https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Flemish_Mennonites)
- Mennonite traditions → Frisian Mennonites: A distinct Dutch Mennonite stream. [Reference](https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Frisian_Mennonites)
- Flemish Mennonites → Danzig and Prussian Mennonites: Dutch communities settle in the Vistula region. [Reference](https://github.com/trueChristian/history.truechristian.church/blob/main/sources/church-history/photos/IMG_9377.jpg)
- Frisian Mennonites → Danzig and Prussian Mennonites: Dutch communities settle in the Vistula region. [Reference](https://github.com/trueChristian/history.truechristian.church/blob/main/sources/church-history/photos/IMG_9377.jpg)
- Waterlander Mennonites → Dutch Mennonite Conference: ADS: Later cooperation among Dutch congregations. [Reference](https://doopsgezinden.nl/organisatie/doelstelling-en-structuur/)
- Flemish Mennonites → Dutch Mennonite Conference: ADS: Later cooperation among Dutch congregations. [Reference](https://doopsgezinden.nl/organisatie/doelstelling-en-structuur/)
- Frisian Mennonites → Dutch Mennonite Conference: ADS: Later cooperation among Dutch congregations. [Reference](https://doopsgezinden.nl/organisatie/doelstelling-en-structuur/)
- Danzig and Prussian Mennonites → Russian Mennonite communities: Migration and settlement at Chortitza. [Reference](https://www.mharchives.ca/documents-regarding-the-early-chortitza-mennonite-settlement/)
- Russian Mennonite communities → Old Colony Mennonites: A particular colony or congregational history. [Reference](https://www.mharchives.ca/documents-regarding-the-early-chortitza-mennonite-settlement/)
- Russian Mennonite communities → Bergthal Mennonites: A particular colony or congregational history. [Reference](https://www.mharchives.ca/holdings/organizations/ChortitzerMC_fonds.htm)
- Russian Mennonite communities → Kleine Gemeinde: A particular colony or congregational history. [Reference](https://archives.mhsc.ca/index.php/evangelical-mennonite-conference-kleine-gemeinde-fonds)
- Russian Mennonite communities → Mennonite Brethren: A particular colony or congregational history. [Reference](https://usmb.org/history/)
- Russian Mennonite communities → Evangelical Mennonite Brethren: A particular colony or congregational history. [Reference](https://www.fellowshipforward.org/history.html)
- Russian Mennonite communities → Soviet Mennonites: Kirchliche and Brethren: A particular colony or congregational history. [Reference](https://github.com/trueChristian/history.truechristian.church/blob/main/sources/church-history/photos/IMG_9379.jpg)
- Bergthal Mennonites → Chortitzer Mennonites: Bergthal migration to Manitoba’s East Reserve. [Reference](https://archives.mhsc.ca/chortitzer-mennonite-conference-fonds)
- Bergthal Mennonites → Sommerfeld Mennonites: West Reserve church development. [Reference](https://archives.mhsc.ca/index.php/sommerfeld-mennonite-church-manitoba)
- Sommerfeld Mennonites → Rudnerweider Mennonites: Renewal and separate church organization. [Reference](https://www.mharchives.ca/holdings/organizations/EMMC_fonds.htm)
- Rudnerweider Mennonites → Evangelical Mennonite Mission Conference: New conference name in 1959. [Reference](https://www.mharchives.ca/holdings/organizations/EMMC_fonds.htm)
- Kleine Gemeinde → Evangelical Mennonite Conference: Canadian conference name adopted in 1960. [Reference](https://collections.mharchives.ca/evangelical-mennonite-conference-intro)
- Swiss Brethren → Mennonites of Swiss–South German ancestry: Refuge and migration across Europe and to North America. [Reference](https://github.com/trueChristian/history.truechristian.church/blob/main/sources/church-history/photos/IMG_9376.jpg)
- Mennonites of Swiss–South German ancestry → Mennonite Church: MC: North American congregational and conference history. [Reference](https://www.mennoniteusa.org/who-are-mennonites/history/)
- Mennonite Church: MC → Reformed Mennonites: Separate fellowship develops. [Reference](https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_New_International_Encyclop%C3%A6dia/Mennonites)
- Mennonite Church: MC → Old Order Mennonites: Separate fellowship develops. [Reference](https://uwaterloo.ca/mennonite-archives-ontario/catalogs/archives/old-order-mennonites)
- Mennonite Church: MC → Church of God in Christ, Mennonite: Separate fellowship develops. [Reference](https://churchofgodinchristmennonite.net/who-we-are/)
- Mennonite Church: MC → Conservative Mennonite fellowships: Several later conservative fellowships; multiple beginnings. [Reference](https://github.com/trueChristian/history.truechristian.church/blob/main/sources/church-history/photos/IMG_9380.jpg)
- Swiss Brethren → Amish traditions: The division associated with Jakob Ammann in 1693. [Reference](https://github.com/trueChristian/history.truechristian.church/blob/main/sources/church-history/photos/IMG_9377.jpg)
- Amish traditions → Old Order Amish: Later Amish and Amish Mennonite development. [Reference](https://rosedalenetwork.org/about/faq/)
- Amish traditions → Egly Amish and Evangelical Mennonite Church: Later Amish and Amish Mennonite development. [Reference](https://fecministries.org/about/history/)
- Amish traditions → Conservative Amish Mennonites: Rosedale Network: Later Amish and Amish Mennonite development. [Reference](https://rosedalenetwork.org/history-of-rosedalenetwork/)
- Old Order Amish → Beachy Amish fellowships: The Somerset County division of 1927. [Reference](https://www.beachyam.org/librarybooks/Beachy%281955%29_Rise.htm)
- Hutterite traditions → Bruderhof: Historical fellowship and communal influence; independent beginning in 1920. [Reference](https://www.bruderhof.com/history)
- The regional roots of Anabaptism → Schwarzenau Brethren: Anabaptist and Pietist influences on a later movement. [Reference](https://www.brethren.org/about/history/)
- Mennonites of Swiss–South German ancestry → Brethren in Christ: River Brethren: Anabaptist background interacts with Pietism. [Reference](https://bic-history.org/history/)
- Mennonite Church: MC → United Missionary Church and Missionary Church: Evangelical renewal, several unions, and later Missionary Church history. [Reference](https://github.com/trueChristian/history.truechristian.church/blob/main/sources/church-history/photos/IMG_9379.jpg)
- Mennonite traditions → General Conference Mennonite Church: Cooperative conference established in North America. [Reference](https://github.com/trueChristian/history.truechristian.church/blob/main/sources/church-history/photos/IMG_9379.jpg)
- General Conference Mennonite Church → Mennonite Church USA: U.S. congregations unite in 2002. [Reference](https://www.mennoniteusa.org/who-are-mennonites/history/)
- Mennonite Church: MC → Mennonite Church USA: U.S. congregations unite in 2002. [Reference](https://www.mennoniteusa.org/who-are-mennonites/history/)
- Mennonite traditions → Mennonite World Conference: Shared institution; not a denominational split. [Reference](https://github.com/trueChristian/history.truechristian.church/blob/main/sources/church-history/photos/IMG_9379.jpg)
- Mennonite traditions → Mennonite Central Committee: Shared institution; not a denominational split. [Reference](https://github.com/trueChristian/history.truechristian.church/blob/main/sources/church-history/photos/IMG_9379.jpg)
- The regional roots of Anabaptism → High German Mennonites: South German and Rhineland believers develop the High German fellowship; some migrate to Dutch cities. [Reference](https://gameo.org/index.php?title=High_German_Mennonites)
- High German Mennonites → The Lamb and Sun congregations: Amsterdam High German–Frisian union joins the Flemish congregation in 1639; the congregation later divides in 1664. [Reference](https://gameo.org/index.php?title=High_German_Mennonites)
- Flemish Mennonites → The Lamb and Sun congregations: The Amsterdam congregation’s 1664 division yields the Lamb and Sun groups; they reunite in 1801. [Reference](https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Emblems)
- The Lamb and Sun congregations → Dutch Mennonite Conference: ADS: The chart follows the reunited Dutch congregations toward the 1811 association. [Reference](https://github.com/trueChristian/history.truechristian.church/blob/main/sources/church-history/photos/IMG_9378.jpg)
- Flemish Mennonites → Old Flemish Mennonites: Groningen and Danzig Old Flemish congregations retain separate fellowship during seventeenth-century unions. [Reference](https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Flemish_Mennonites)
- Amish traditions → Joseph Stuckey and the Central Illinois Amish division: The 1872 withdrawal of fellowship from Joseph Stuckey and supporting Illinois congregations. [Reference](https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Stuckey%2C_Joseph_%281825-1902%29)
- Old Colony Mennonites → Reinländer Mennonites in Manitoba: Immigrants from Chortitza and Fürstenland organize the Reinländer church in Manitoba in 1875. [Reference](https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Reinlander_Mennoniten_Gemeinde_%28Manitoba%29)

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