Aftermath of War (1640)
At the beginning of this year [1640], when we had a bit of peace and rest from the war, hunting wolves was just about our biggest task. Many wolves came into our area during the war, for God sends evil beasts into the land to punish us by eating our sheep and cattle.
Before the war, by contrast, it was remarkable to see one wolf, but in recent years we commonly see many of them together, for there are plenty of them, both young and old. They run among the livestock, even when two or three men are present, and take goats and sheep from the herds. If the men try to prevent it, the wolves react with great violence. Why, they even come into the villages and walk in front of the houses and take cats and dogs away, which is why for a long time no one has been able to keep dogs in the villages.
[ . . . ]
Source of original German text: Gerd Zillhardt, Der Dreissigjährige Krieg in zeitgenössischer Darstellung: Hans Heberles „Zeytregister“ (1618-1672), Aufzeichnungen aus dem Ulmer Territorium. Ein Beitrag zu Geschichtsschreibung und Geschichtsverständnis der Unterschichten. Forschungen zur Geschichte der Stadt Ulm, herausgegeben vom Stadtarchiv, Ulm, vol. 13. Ulm, 1975, pp. 85, 93-94, 98-100, 110, 122-23, 129-31, 154-56, 158-59, 161-63, 176, 182.
Translation: Thomas A. Brady Jr.
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