Montbéliard

Montbéliard, known in German as Mömpelgard, was a county on the edge of the Burgundian Gate. Its castle overlooked a town whose ruling family linked French-speaking lands to Württemberg. The marriage of Henriette of Montbéliard and Eberhard of Württemberg brought the county into that house, under which it remained for centuries.

Duke Ulrich of Württemberg encouraged reforming preachers in Montbéliard in the 1520s. Guillaume Farel preached there in 1524, though pressure from Catholic Swiss cantons later compelled his departure. Pierre Toussain arrived in the town in 1535 and opened a school for boys and girls. In 1538 Count George abolished the Mass and Catholic ceremonies, establishing evangelical worship in the county. Montbéliard's religious life was shaped by both Lutheran and Swiss religious reforming influences.