George of the Palatinate

George of the Palatinate (10 February 1486 – 27 September 1529) was Bishop of Speyer from 1513 to 1529. Life His parents were Elector Palatine Philip and his wife Margaret of Bavaria-Landshut, a daughter of Duke Louis the Rich. He held posts as canon in Mainz, Trier and Speyer and was Provost in Mainz from 1499 to 1506. From 10 November 1502, he was also Dean of St. Donatian in Bruges. Later, he was priest at Hochheim and Lorch. On 12 February 1513, he became Bishop of Speyer. He studied theology in Heidenberg in 1514 and received his Holy Orders on 10 July 1515. On 22 July 1515, he was consecrated as bishop. George sought to improvide discipline among the clergy in his diocese and forbade the study of the writings of Martin Luther. However, he could not prevent his suffragan bishop Engelbrecht from converting to the new faith. On 28 April 1523, he published his most memorable letter to his clergy, which states: