Bartholomew Sastrow: Being the Memoirs of a German Burgomaster

In these memoirs a seventeenth‑century Pomeranian notary offers an unvarnished portrait of life in the turbulent age of the Reformation. He begins with the violent murder of his grandfather, the misfortunes that battered his parents, and a childhood marked by relentless legal battles. Determined to escape poverty, he pursues studies at Greifswald and Rostock, eventually earning admission as a public notary. His early career takes him from the courts of Worms to the bustling streets of Rome, where he encounters both intrigue and danger.

The narrative then follows his return to northern Germany, where he serves as secretary to the Pomeranian chancellor and later as burgomaster of Stralsund. Alongside diplomatic missions, he describes the chaotic diets of Augsburg and the fierce religious debates that reshaped the empire. His voice is blunt, laced with caustic humor and a palpable bitterness earned after decades of struggle. Listeners will find a vivid, ground‑level view of a world where personal ambition collides with political upheaval.