Die frühneuzeitliche Erinnerungsgemeinschaft in Breslau. Zur memorativen Rolle der schlesischen protestantischen Leichenpredigt

The Early Modern Community of Memory in Wroclaw. The Memorative Function of the Protestant Funeral Sermons from Silesia The printed funeral sermons of the seventeenth-century were a medium which helped the urban elite of Wroclaw such as town councillors, merchants, scholars, clericals and craftsmen to enhance its prestige and emphasize its representation in the society. The nobility as well as the bourgeoisie was a part of a community of memory according to the Maurice Halbwach’s concept of collective memory. The article aims to show on (auto)biographic information given in selected Pro- testant funeral sermons, the network of mutual relationships in the society and the ways of shaping the memory.