Rimpler was born Georg Rümpler in Leisnig, Electorate of Saxony, in either 1634, 1635, or 1636. The son of a butcher, Rimpler pursued a military career and joined the Swedish Army at the age of 20. Initially serving as a musketeer, Rimpler fought during the 1656 Siege of Riga and later took an interest in military fortifications. During the 1660s he received an education in Nuremberg, studying under German mathematician Georg Gork.