(1482–1538) When she married Ulrich Zwingli secretly in 1522, Anna Reinhart was the well-to-do widow of Hans Meyer von Knonau, a soldier of wild habits who had died in 1517. With ten other priests, Zwingli had appealed to the Bishop early in 1522 for permission to marry, but was refused. Thus, he married secretly, and not until April 5, 1524, did he and Anna make their arrangement public. She brought three children to the marriage, and had four others by Ulrich: Regula (July 31, 1524), Wilhelm (January 24, 1526), Ulrich (January 6, 1528), and Anna (May 4, 1530). Only one letter from Ulrich to his wife survives, dated January 11, 1528: “Grace and Peace from God. Beloved wife, I say God be thanked that He has permitted you a happy birth …” When Ulrich was killed at Kappel, Anna grieved deeply. Heinrich Bullinger took her and the children into his home and treated her like family until she died peacefully seven years later. (1524–1565) Regula, Zwingli’s oldest ...

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