Editing Jakob Walter (section)

==Early life==
Jakob Walter was born in 1788 in the town of [[Rosenberg (Ostalb)|Rosenberg]], near [[Ellwangen]] in the [[Duchy of Württemberg]] in the [[Holy Roman Empire]]. The area a few years later became part of the short-lived [[Confederation of the Rhine]] founded by [[Napoleon]] and was at that point a French vassal state.

By trade, Walter was a [[stonemason]]. He was a [[Roman Catholic]] and seems to have been devout; in his book, he condemns the Brandenburgian peasants for not attending [[Mass (liturgy)|Mass]], and at one point tells how he destroyed a book he considered [[heresy|heretical]]. Walter recorded his sins as well. Walter's faith was a common focal point of hope throughout the war.