A Specialist for Franconia with North German Roots

When we talk about Franconia today, most people probably have a clearly defined region in the north of Bavaria in mind and think of cities such as Würzburg, Nuremberg or Bayreuth. Accordingly, a Chair of Regional History (Franconian History in the Middle Ages and Modern Times) should focus precisely on this region. And that's true - at least almost.

"We research the history of historical Franconia - in other words, today's districts of Upper, Lower and Middle Franconia plus a few neighbouring areas in southern Thuringia, north-eastern Baden-Württemberg and the border area with Hessen, which were also Franconian in the past," explains Benjamin Müsegades. The historian heads the Chair of Regional Franconian History at Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg (JMU) since 1 September 2025, succeeding Helmut Flachenecker, who held the chair for almost 22 years.

A Look at Nobility and Peasants

"We are interested in the historical area, the people and the tradition," says Müsegades. As a medievalist, he is mainly responsible for history from its beginnings in the 4th century to the end of the Middle Ages around 1520/30. His research focuses on the history of the nobility - both the high and low nobility, for example the House of Brandenburg-Ansbach or the Counts of Henneberg, as well as that of the prince-bishops.

The new chair holder is also interested in the role of peasants in the Middle Ages. "A farmer doesn't keep a diary. There is therefore little written evidence to tell us about his live," he says. This is why Müsegades has to use other sources to indirectly analyse living conditions in the countryside. One example of this are lists that show how many animals, what proportion of the harvest and what other services a ruler demanded from his farmers. "This can be compared with the quantities actually delivered and conclusions can be drawn about the economic and social situation of the rural population." Another possibility is to analyse registers that record whether serfs fled or were otherwise in conflict with their masters.

Working on Original Sources with Students

Benjamin Müsegades is fascinated by working with historical sources: "I like working with unprinted records that I find in archives and libraries," he says. He also wants to convey this fascination to his students - for example, by working with them to analyse and edit such sources. He also finds it appealing to research churches, castles and other architectural testimonies to history with students. In Würzburg, he would therefore like to take a look inside the cathedral with them.

Incidentally, it was these visible traces that attracted Müsegades to Würzburg as a student. After a year studying in the USA almost 20 years ago, he still had some time before the start of term in Germany. "I wanted to visit typical medieval cities," he says. His choice at the time was Mainz and Würzburg. "Würzburg is really strongly characterised by the Middle Ages."

Another focus of Müsegades' research is the history of the subject itself. His focus is on the post-war period. Among other things, he is interested in who was appointed at the time and what topics the respective academics worked on.

Benjamin Müsegades' Career

Benjamin Müsegades (*1982) comes from near Hamburg; he studied History and English for secondary school teaching at the University of Greifswald and the University of the South in Sewanee (Tennessee, USA). In 2013, he was honoured in Greifswald with the thesis "Zwischen Hofmeister und Präzeptor. Imperial education and training 1400-1540". From September 2013 to March 2021, he was Scientific Director of the Institute of History and Regional Studies of the Franconian Palatinate at Heidelberg University, interrupted for a few months by a postdoctoral fellowship in London.

At the beginning of 2020, Müsegades completed his habilitation at the University of Heidelberg with the thesis "Heilige in der mittelalterlichen Bischofsstadt. Speyer and Lincoln in comparison (11th to early 16th century)". This was followed by the temporary professorship for European Medieval History at the Humboldt University of Berlin and the temporary professorship for Comparative Regional History in European Perspective at the University of Heidelberg. On 1 March 2025, he was appointed Director of the Hessian Institute for Regional History in Marburg.

A North German who studied in East Germany and is now specialising in Franconian regional history: Is that even possible? Benjamin Müsegades has obviously heard this question many times before. He answers it, without having to think about it for long, with a quote from his colleague Oliver Auge from Kiel. He replied to a similar question: "You don't have to be a whale to research whales".

Contact

Prof. Dr Benjamin Müsegades, Chair of Regional History (Franconian History in the Middle Ages and Modern Times), T: +49 931 31-89246, benjamin.muesegades@uni-wuerzburg.de