Munster

a city of Westphalia, Prussia. It is situated in a loop of the brook Aa, in a sandy plain midway between Cologne and Bremen. Munster grew up originally around a monastery of the twelfth century. It was long the seat of a martial archbishop. It is still an episcopal residence. Although the medieval walls have been leveled to form promenades, the city retains many of the characteristics of medieval times. The marketplaces are surrounded by covered arcades and picturesque gabled houses. Among buildings of note are the Church of St. Lambert, the City Hall, the Guild Hall of Shoemakers, the Cathedral, the Academy, the Museum of Ecclesiastical Antiquities, and the Historical Museum. It would be difficult, probably, to find a city in Germany that represents more adequately the architecture and that preserves more faithfully the atmosphere of Luther's time. The University of Munster has ninety-five instructors and some sixteen hundred students. A botanical garden and a zoological garden add to the attractions of the city. In history, Munster is noted chiefly as the center of the Anabaptist uprisings. The ornaments of the cathedral were mutilated by Thomas Munzer and his peasantry. The cages in which the leaders of the peasants were hung, and the pincers with which they were tortured are still shown. Several railways pass through Munster. The modern city is noted for manufactures of woolens, linens, cotton goods and leather. There are also starch factories and a sugar refinery. The present population exceeds 80,000. See Anabaptists