This is taken from "Church History in Plain Language" by Bruce Shelley. It may shed some light on the background of the religious persecution encountered by our ancestors. Anabaptists were founded in Zurich, Switzerland, by former priest George Blaurock in 1525, who asked to be baptised in the apostolic fashion - upon confession of personal faith in Jesus Christ (versus infant baptism). The radicals of that day found their best opportunities to preach in Switzerland, the Rhineland and Holland. By mid-century three groups appeared in German-speaking Europe: 1) the Swiss brethren 2) the Hutterite brethren in Moravia (under leadership of Jacob Hutter)and 3) the Mennonites in the Netherlands and North Germany. The authorities decided anyone caught rebaptizing would be put to death by drowning. "If the heretics wnat water, let them have it." Within four years, the movement was practically eradicated. Many of the persecuted fled to Germany and Austria but their prospects were no brighter there. During the Reformation years between four and five thousand Anabaptists were executed by fire, water and sword. Blaurock himself was burned at the stake on September 6, 1529. Today the direct descendants of the Ananbaptists are the Mennonites and the Hutterites. Distant relatives of the Anabaptists include the Baptists, the Quakers and practically all modern Protestants.