Cardinal Albrecht of Brandenburg

In order to obtain not only his offices as bishop of Magdeburg and administrator of the diocese of Halberstadt, but also the lucrative bishopric dignity of Mainz, Albrecht was forced to take on large debts with the banking house of the Fugger family in Augsburg. In order to finance these debts he received permission to expel an indulgence in his dioceses. The sales practice of his indulgence dealer Tetzel provoked criticism from Luther, who then wrote his 95 theses.