Christoph Froschauer was the first printer

Printer (publisher)

In publishing, printers are both companies providing printing services and individuals who directly operate printing presses. With the invention of the moveable type printing press by Johannes Gutenberg around 1450, printing—and printers—proliferated throughout Europe.Today, printers are found...

 in Zürich

Zürich

Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...

, notably for printing the Froschauer Bible, the Zwinglian

Huldrych Zwingli

Ulrich Zwingli was a leader of the Reformation in Switzerland. Born during a time of emerging Swiss patriotism and increasing criticism of the Swiss mercenary system, he attended the University of Vienna and the University of Basel, a scholarly centre of humanism...

 Bible translation. His workshop is the nucleus of the Orell Füssli publishing house.

He learned the printer's trade with his uncle, Hans Froschauer, in Augsburg

Augsburg

Augsburg is a city in the south-west of Bavaria, Germany. It is a university town and home of the Regierungsbezirk Schwaben and the Bezirk Schwaben. Augsburg is an urban district and home to the institutions of the Landkreis Augsburg. It is, as of 2008, the third-largest city in Bavaria with a...

 and came to Zürich in 1515. Working for one Hans Rüegger, he built a printing press. At Rüegger's death in 1517, Froschauer married his widow and took over the press, and given citizenship in 1519. Dispute over a "sausage eating" organised by Froschauer in his workshop during lent in 1522 brought about open conflict between Zwingli and the clerical establishment, thus setting off the Reformation in Switzerland

Reformation in Switzerland

The Protestant Reformation in Switzerland was promoted initially by Huldrych Zwingli, who gained the support of the magistrate and population of Zürich in the 1520s. It led to significant changes in civil life and state matters in Zürich and spread to several other cantons of the Old Swiss...

.
At his wife's death in 1550, he married Dorothea Locher.

The Froschau quarter of Zürich, just off the current Froschaugasse (47°22′24"N 8°32′43"E), is named for Froschauer. The historical workshop was at the northern boundary of the Froschau, at Brunngass 18, facing the Zähringerplatz.

He printed the works of Erasmus von Rotterdam, Luther

Martin Luther

Martin Luther was a German priest, professor of theology and iconic figure of the Protestant Reformation. He strongly disputed the claim that freedom from God's punishment for sin could be purchased with money. He confronted indulgence salesman Johann Tetzel with his Ninety-Five Theses in 1517...

 and notably of Zwingli

Huldrych Zwingli

Ulrich Zwingli was a leader of the Reformation in Switzerland. Born during a time of emerging Swiss patriotism and increasing criticism of the Swiss mercenary system, he attended the University of Vienna and the University of Basel, a scholarly centre of humanism...

. Between 1520 and 1564, about 700 titles in close to a million copies left Froschauer's four presses. The paper used was produced in the city's paper mill at the Limmat

Limmat

The Limmat is a river in Switzerland. It is the continuation of the Linth river, known as Limmat from the point of effluence from Lake Zurich, in the city of Zurich. From Zurich it flows in a northwesterly direction, after 35 km reaching the river Aare...

, also operated by Froschauer.
Froschauer died of the plague in 1564. His nephew Christoph Froschauer the Younger (1532–1585) took over the shop.

External links

• Froschauer, Christoph (d. 1564) at Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online
  Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online
  The Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online is an online encyclopedia of topics relating to Mennonites and Anabaptism. The mission of the project is to provide free, reliable, English-language information on anabaptist-related topics....