The Tailor-King: The Rise and Fall of the Anabaptist Kingdom of Münster

by Anthony Arthur

The third type of rule, which Jan Matthias represented, is what Weber was the first to call “charismatic.” It is one that our own age of political turmoil sees frequently, and that Weber himself sought to understand through his discovery of earlier exemplars of charismatic leadership. The essential nature of charismatic rule is that it is short and turbulent. The charismatic leader claims special powers, commonly revealed through magic, through visions, dreams, and revelations, through heroic deeds, and through his extraordinary powers of persuasion. He—with rare exceptions, such as Joan of Arc, such leaders are always men—derives his authority not from rules or traditions but from devout followers, disciples who believe in his personal qualities.

The means by which such groups gain power include a gradual, step-by-step undermining of local authority. This is achieved by manipulation of the voting process through pressure tactics, cheating, and terror. An outside enemy must be found, requiring a temporary alliance with the authorities. Once the government is sufficiently infiltrated, its more moderate leaders are caught between the conservatives and the radicals and are immobilized. New dangers are found, both internal and external, requiring immediate and decisive action: the traitors within are exposed and expelled or murdered; their property is appropriated, their books and profane images piled high in the streets and burned. Resistance from former allies who balk at such tactics is mercilessly crushed: the middle ground has vanished, and those who are not with the rulers are against them. The only means for ensuring continued obedience is a greater threat from outside the regime; thus the enemy’s attempts to negotiate are rejected as treachery. The stakes are constantly raised until an apocalyptic final battle (one that, in Hitler’s case, Reck did not live to see to its conclusion) results in complete destruction.