Who was Martin Luther ?
There were two famous people with the name Martin Luther, and it appears that many are confused by this.
- Martin Luther was a German priest born in 1483 who died in 1546.
- Martin Luther King was an American clergyman born in 1929 who was assassinated on April 4, 1968.
Martin Luther
Martin Luther was a German priest who was the instigator of the Protestant Reformation.
He was born on the 10th November 1483 and died at the age of 62 on 18 February 1546, in the city of his birth, Eisleben.
Luther was ordained as a priest in 1507.
Luther felt very strongly about certain aspects of the Catholic religion, one being the importance placed on finances. After visiting Rome in about 1510, this became evident, and thus began the Protestant Reformation, and his eventual excommunication for the Roman Catholic church by Pope Leo X on 3 January 1521.
Following this, Charles V the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 to 1556, declared Luther an outlaw, banning his literature, and requiring his arrest. He also made it a crime for anyone in Germany to give Luther food or shelter and permitted anyone to kill Luther without legal consequence.
Martin Luther King
Martin Luther King was famous for his activities as a leader of the African American civil rights movement,
He was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee.
The United States observes a national holiday on the third Monday of January each year, called “Martin Luther King, Jr. Day”, in his honour.
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