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Strasbourg - The Printing Capital
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The census of 1444, the oldest preserved census, documented 16,000 inhabitants which placed Strasbourg behind Cologne and Nuremberg as one of the most important cities. The city would reinforce its independance with respect to the power of the bishop by asserting its role as "Reichstadt" , the city of the Empire, and as such had only to answer to the Empire. The constitutional and administrative organization became more and more assertive: a city council was complemented by three subsidiary councils made up of 15, 13 and 21 representatives.
Four "Stettmeisters" or city rulers were designated by the entire council. An "ammeister", which was the true mayor of the city was elected by the corporations which were associations of professionals united by a common activity. The corporations became more and more numerous.
The most negotiated commodities were grains and wine, followed by meat, salt, oil, sheets, metals and furs. These commodities were well served by the efficency of the canal transport and an annual fair.
The Church experienced a certain decadence, as was the case throughout Europe. Secular and regular clergy were often preoccupied by a comfortable everyday life rather than by their spiritual life. This became so apparent that the people expressed more and more loudly their concern for reform in the Church as well as a greater interest in such small spiritual groups as the Vaudois and the Hussites. In 1450 reform was not far! Because of a recent introduction to the media, which was as revolutionary as Internet is today, communication was fundamentally innovated to promote these ideas of reformation at a speed that was thusfar unknown. From 1431 to 1444, a man named Jean Gensfleisch, who came from Mayence, lived in Strasbourg and would later be known as Gutenberg.
It is not certain that Gutenberg totally invented his printing process in Strasbourg. The first important work to be printed was the Latin Bible which was printed in 1450. Gutenberg had by this time already returned to Mayence. However, one may pose the question as to how far into his research was Gutenberg during his time in Strasbourg. The majority of historians agree upon the date of the invention of the printing as being 1440, during which time Gutenberg was installed in Strasbourg and pursuing his research which was mysteriously baptised "Kunst und Aventur" (Art and Enterprise).
During the second half of the century, the secrets of the printing process, which had been thus far secretly guarded, were released. This new technique would spread rapidly making Strasbourg a printing capital due to the existence of a minimum of 10 workshops which formed dozens of printers who brought the technique to the rest of Europe. Through this technique new ideas would be spread and thus encourage a renaissance of literature.
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