Thomas Biesinger

Who was Thomas Biesinger?

Thomas Biesinger was a German convert to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and a Mormon missionary to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Biesinger was the first Mormon missionary to preach in the present-day Czech Republic and Hungary.

Biesinger was born in Wiesenstetten, Württemberg, German Confederation. In 1862, he was taught about Mormonism from LDS Church missionaries and was baptized into the LDS Church in Lake Constanze.

In 1865, Biesinger emigrated to Utah Territory in the United States, settling in Lehi.

In October 1883, Biesinger was called to serve a mission for the church to Austria-Hungary. After three months of preaching in Vienna, Biesinger went to Prague in Bohemia and became the first Mormon missionary to preach in the Czech lands. He was arrested on 25 March 1883 and after a preliminary hearing he was confined in prison for 38 days. He was then tried and found guilty of canvassing as a missionary for a sect not approved of by the state and sentenced to 30 days imprisonment at hard labor and a fine of 30 guldens. There was also suggestions at his trial that he was intending to lead people into the immoral practices of Mormon polygamy.