The Tale of Götz von Berlichingen: The Mercenary with an Iron Hand (7 photos)

Functional prosthetics are taken for granted today, but just half a century ago, a biomechanical limb would have seemed like a miracle. Now imagine a man living in the 16th century who wore a prosthetic hand with articulating fingers—one that allowed him not only to grip objects but even to wield weapons in battle. German knight Götz von Berlichingen etched his name into history largely thanks to this marvel of medieval engineering.





Today, many people cling to romantic notions of knights as chivalrous defenders of fair maidens or, at the very least, valiant champions of the faith. In reality, the truth was far grimmer—a fact vividly illustrated by the life of German knight Götz von Berlichingen.



Götz von Berlichingen

Born into an ancient yet impoverished noble family, Götz was a sellsword driven primarily by gold. He assembled a band of cutthroats and fought for whoever paid top dollar. When honest military work dried up, Götz and his men turned to plain old highway robbery. Yet credit where credit is due: von Berlichingen was no coward, always leading from the front in the thick of battle.

How Von Berlichingen Lost His Arm

As was typical for a man of his trade, the mercenary knight took plenty of sword strikes to the visor and spear thrusts to the breastplate. Scars covered his body, but Götz dismissed his injuries as mere occupational hazards—until the day he lost his right hand in battle.





In 1504, 23-year-old Götz took part in the siege of Landshut alongside the forces of Duke Albert IV of Bavaria. It was a bloody feudal conflict that promised lucrative pay for mercenaries. During the fighting, however, the knight lost his right hand. While the exact details remain murky, one account claims a cannonball struck his sword guard, driving it back and shattering his hand completely.

To prevent fatal complications, the duke's surgeon amputated what remained of the limb. Thus, young and vigorous, von Berlichingen found himself maimed. In an era when combat relied almost entirely on melee weapons, losing a hand was a ticket to poverty. War was his sole livelihood, and he knew no other trade.

Two Steel Hands

But Götz was not one to give up easily. He immediately sought a solution—and found one. The knight commissioned a steel hand that strapped to his forearm with leather belts. The first prosthesis was rather crude, resembling an iron gauntlet featuring four hook-like fingers. Though far from ideal, it allowed him to grip a sword.



When commissioning the device, the knight insisted it also look realistic. The artisan engraved fingernails onto the hooked digits and creased palm lines into the steel. Armed with his new hand, von Berlichingen returned to his old ways, spending years fighting in wars and skirmishes. Over time, having learned all the flaws of his original hand, he decided to commission a far superior model.

The second iron hand was also fashioned like a gauntlet, extending up to the elbow. The modern

American Journal of Surgery

later described it as a "clunky contrivance, but showing no small ingenuity." The fingers on this second design were no longer simple hooks; they were fully articulated, enabling him to hold not just a sword, but various other weapons as well.

Levers operated by his left hand controlled the movement of the fingers, while internal spring mechanisms locked the joints into place. With these versatile digits, Götz could wield a dagger, battle axe, or mace, hold a horse's reins, and even write with a quill! What's more, the wrist could rotate to virtually any position.



The mechanical hand is preserved to this day in the museum at Berlichingen Castle in Jagsthausen. The invention was so revolutionary for its time that the town even incorporated it into its coat of arms. Today, the town has a population of just 1,600, and nearly every local can tell you the indomitable knight's story in vivid detail. During World War II, Götz's iron hand also served as the emblem for the 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division

Götz von Berlichingen

.

Von Berlichingen's Memoirs

Götz von Berlichingen fought as a mercenary across various armies until the age of 64. His iron fist struck down foes during the Ottoman campaigns and the invasion of France in 1544. Yet even a man with a steel hand and an iron will eventually grows old, forcing the knight to finally retire.



Götz von Berlichingen in old age. 19th-century engraving.

Even in retirement, his mechanical hand knew no rest. Götz set out to write his memoirs. Contemporaries claimed the old knight churned out pages with his prosthetic hand as fluently as any scribe with a natural one. Götz passed away in 1562 at the ripe age of 82, dying of old age in his own bed—a remarkably rare end for someone of his profession.

The one-handed warrior's memoirs were not published until 1731, but the book quickly captivated readers. Inspired by the autobiography, the legendary Johann Wolfgang von Goethe penned his play

Götz von Berlichingen

. Goethe romanticized the mercenary, reimagining him as a sensitive youth. In the play, von Berlichingen dies at a young age rather than as an old man, leaving behind a tragic and cautionary tale.

Götz's Legacy in the German Language and Folklore

Knight Götz von Berlichingen is remembered not only for his iron hand, but also for a famous idiom known to virtually all Germans. When enemies besieged his ancestral castle of Jagsthausen and called on him to surrender, the knight infamously retorted: "Tell him he can kiss my ass." This crude refusal became known as the "Swabian salute" and has endured for centuries.



Commemorative plaque featuring the "Swabian salute"

Götz's steel hand also worked its way deep into German folklore. Innumerable tall tales grew around it. One legend claims the knight did not die of old age at all; rather, a servant found him dead one morning with iron finger marks bruised into his neck, while the prosthetic itself had vanished without a trace. Another myth claimed the severed steel hand stalked homes at night, strangling unsuspecting victims in their sleep.