A High Price for Peace: A common man's account of the 30 Years War - Paperback

by George a. Speckert (Author)

The Thirty Years War (1618-1648) was a total disaster for Europe, particularly Germany. Almost a third of the population lost their lives either directly through military action, disease, hunger or exposure. Martin Speckhart was born shortly after the beginning of the war and affected by it throughout his life. This is a reconstructed biography. Based on the genealogical and historical facts, this story illustrates what Martin Speckhart experienced during his lifetime in the 17th century in southwest Germany. It is also a depiction of the Thirty Years War from the perspective of a common person. At Martin's birth, the war was already raging and at the age of thirty, when he finally returned home from war, he witnessed the tremendous damage done and participated in the rebuilding of his homeland.

Author Biography

George A. Speckert is originally from St. Louis, Missouri and studied music in the US, England, and Germany. He was active in the music school system in Germany and was head of the City Music School Hannover. He is the author of many music editions. Among the awards he has been honored with, he received the Hannover Prize and the Third European Prize "City for Children." George Speckert teaches film music on a college level and does workshops for filmmaking and film music Europe wide.