Moveable and Fixed Feast Day Calendars for Germany

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Many times in the German Church Records, a minister recorded the date of an event by the name of the Fixed or Moveable Feast Date which is based on the liturgical year (the church year) rather than the Julian or Gregorian date that we would recognize. To convert a Moveable Feast Day that you see in a record to a Julian or Gregorian date, choose the year that you are working in from the table below.

Another great tool for calculating a moveable feast day is the book The Comprehensive Genealogical Feast Day Calendar by Inger M. Bukke, Peer K. Kristensen, and Finn A. Thomsen. (FHL Library call number 529.44 C738)

Calendars vary by Religion, Date, and German state
All of Germany had switched to using the Gregorian calendar by 1700 when 19 February 1700 on the Julian Calendar became 1 March on the Gregorian Calendar for Protestant Germany.


 * The free city of Danzig 1582: Changed from the Julian Calendar to the Gregorian calendar between October and December.

Certain German Catholic states changed from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calender on earlier dates. They are:


 * Bishopric of Augsburg (Bavaria) 1583: February 14 Julian became 24 February 24 Gregorian
 * Silesia and Lausitz 1584 January 13 Julian became January 23 Gregorian
 * Westphalia 1584: July 2 Julian became July 12 Gregorian
 * Bishopric of Paderborn 1585: June 17 Julian became June 27 Gregorian
 * Duchy of Prussia 1612: August 23 Julian became September 2 Gregorian
 * Pfalz-Neuburg 1615: February 19 Julian became March 1 Gregorian

During this transition of information, some of the following links are to pages entitled "Denmark: Moveable Feast Days." When this happens, be assured that the calendar also applies to Germany.

Gregorian Calendars
These calendar years apply to all of Germany for both Catholic and Protestant Germany.