Bartel Bruch, the son of Nicolaus Bruch and grandson of Jacob Bruch, was a wool weaver in Birkenfeld and Buhlenberg in the early 17th Century. Wool weaving was one of the big industries in the Birkenfeld region around the turn of the 17th Century. There are no mentions of Bartel in the records of the Wool Weavers Guild, likely because the surviving lists of masters and students are from a time before he was old enough and from a time after his death.
Bartel was weaving as early as 1614 when he caused a scandal involving a fellow weaver, Jost Kropp. In November of that year, Maria, the daughter of Johann Fickeisen (also a wool weaver, from Ellenberg), was sued by Kropp. Kropp had recently employed Maria as a servant, but now he alleged that she had stolen wool from him. When questioned, she admitted that Bartel Bruch had come to her and said that he did not have enough yarn on his loom to finish the cloth he was weaving. He asked her to take some wool from her master. Over the course of two weeks, she stole wool from Kropp and gave it to Bartel. During one of their secret meetings, Bartel promised her a pair of woolen stockings in exchange. Maria’s father was present during her testimony and, weeping, urged her to confess everything for the sake of her soul.
Both Maria and Bartel were then summoned before the court. Bartel denied any wrongdoing, claiming he had never asked for wool from Maria and certainly never asked her to steal from Kropp. Maria stuck to her story, adding that she took the wool to Bartel’s house before daybreak. On one occasion, Bartel’s sister [actually his stepsister] even held the door open for her. Maria once gave him wool in Kropp’s house while Kropp and his wife were asleep. Bartel continued to deny everything. When asked where he had acquired the wool he was using, he was not specific about the details. Maria pointed out that the wool she had given him was a mix of white and grey, which was indeed the color of the cloth Bartel was making. Still, Bartel refused to admit his guilt.
Bartel clearly knew that the court could not punish him if he did not confess. It was her word against his. And indeed, the court lamented that it could not convict him despite strong suspicions. It urged him not to further corrupt Maria, lest Bartel be eternally punished by God. Poor Maria’s wages were confiscated by Kropp and her father was ordered to flog her.[1]
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[1] Birkenfeld Amtsprotokolle, “Jost Kropp zu Birkenfeld contra Maria, Johann Fickesein zu Ellenberg tochter,” 18 Nov 1614 (LHA Ko. Best. 33, n. 14039).
Bruch Family History 