This book is the first in a series of volumes exploring the lineage and heraldry of 16,000 common middle-class German citizens who have been identified from records dating from approximately 1250 to 1850. Access to documents about the commoner social strata of the 13th to 15th centuries is nearly non-existent for English-speaking family historians who wish to extend their family tree back in time before Guttenberg's invention of the printing press and prior to the first migration of our German ancestors to American in the 17th and 18th centuries. This volume includes the following highlights: Significant characteristics of the Holy Roman Empire during the Late Middle Ages and Early Modern Period of European History How to Locate biographical information about middle-class Germans through the online German Biography Database and the CERL Thesaurus File. Strategies for using burgher coats-of-arms as a genealogical tool and resource. A Compendium of 4,000 entries pertaining to hundreds of surnames and given names, where and when each occurred, and place names of historical and modern geographical locales in the Holy roman Empire and Switzerland. A Glossary of over 500 German occupational terms gleaned directly from primary source materials used during the preparation of this book A Gallery of 66 portrait images of selected middle-class citizens cited in the book. Frederick Siler 2022, 8.5" x 11", paper, 259 pp. ISBN: 9781628593310 121-FR0705
