Julius Echter von Mespelbrunn

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Julius Echter von Mespelbrunn (1545–1617) was the Prince-Bishop of Würzburg from 1573. He was born at Mespelbrunn Castle in the Spessart and died in Würzburg. He was the second son of diplomat Peter III Echter and studied in many places across Europe, including Mainz, Leuven, Paris, and Rome, where he earned a license in canon and civil law.

Back in Würzburg, he held church roles and, at the age of 28, was appointed Prince-Bishop even before he was ordained as a priest. He focused on restoring and reforming the church, promoting the Jesuits, and re-founding the University of Würzburg, which opened in 1582 and became a model for Counter-Reformation education. He also founded a seminary in 1589.

Echter took decisive steps against Protestants: he banished Lutheran preachers, removed priests who would not follow the rules, and required Catholics in public offices and Catholic teachers in schools. He offered instruction to non-Catholics but warned of penalties. Within three years, about 100,000 people returned to the Catholic Church.

He died on 9 September 1617 at Marienberg Fortress, aged 72. Most of his body was buried at Würzburg Cathedral, but he had his heart buried in the Neubaukirche, a church he built. After World War II, the church was destroyed and the heart was moved; for the 400th anniversary of the university’s refounding, the heart was placed in a two-ton heart monument in the rebuilt church.

Echter is seen as a leading figure in the Tridentine reform in Germany and fought to strengthen Catholic influence. His lasting legacy includes the Julius Hospital in Würzburg, which he founded, and his work improving administration, economy, and education. He built or renovated around 300 churches and many rectories and schools. The Würzburger Hofbräu even released a Julius Echter Hefe-Weissbier in his honor. Some of his books once belonged to St John’s College, Cambridge, after being taken during the Thirty Years’ War.