Götz von Berlichingen Gottfried " Götz " von Berlichingen ( 1480 – 23 July 1562 ) , also known as Götz of the Iron Hand , was a German ( Franconian ) Imperial Knight ( " Reichsritter " ) and mercenary . He was born around 1480 into the noble family of Berlichingen in Württemberg . Götz bought Hornberg castle ( Neckarzimmern ) in 1517 , and lived there until his death in 1562 . He was active in numerous campaigns during a period of 47 years ( 1498 – 1544 ) , including the German Peasants ' War , besides numerous feud s ; in his autobiography he estimates that he fought 15 feuds in his own name , besides many cases where he lent assistance to friends , including feuds against the cities of Cologne , Ulm , Augsburg and the Swabian League , as well as the bishop of Bamberg . His name became famous as a euphemism for a vulgar expression ( " er kann mich am Arsche lecken " " he can lick my arse " ) attributed to him by writer and poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe ( 1749 – 1832 ) , who wrote a play based on his life . Life . In 1497 , Berlichingen entered the service of Frederick I , Margrave of Brandenburg - Ansbach . In 1498 , he fought in the armies of Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I , seeing action in Burgundy , Lorraine , and the Brabant , and in the Swabian War the following year . By 1500 , Berlichingen had left the service of Frederick , and formed a company of mercenaries , selling his services to various Dukes , Margrave s , and Barons . In 1504 , Berlichingen and his company fought for Albert IV , Duke of Bavaria . During the siege of the city of Landshut , he lost his right arm when enemy cannon fire forced his sword against him . He had a mechanical prosthetic iron replacement made , which is on display at the Jagsthausen Castle . This prosthetic hand was ahead of its time , being capable of holding objects from a sword to a feather pen . In spite of this injury , Berlichingen continued his military activities . In the subsequent years he was involved in numerous feud s , both of his own and in support of friends and employers . In 1512 , near the town of Forchheim , due to a long running and bitter feud with Nuremberg he raided a group of Nuremberg merchants returning from the great fair at Leipzig . On hearing this , Emperor Maximilian placed Berlichingen under an Imperial ban . He was only released from this in 1514 , when he paid the large sum of 14 , 000 gulden . In 1516 , in a feud with the Principality of Mainz and its Prince - Archbishop , Berlichingen and his company mounted a raid into Hesse , capturing Philip IV , Count of Waldeck , in the process . A ransom of 8 , 400 gulden was paid for the safe return of the count . For this action , he was again placed under the ban in 1518 . In 1519 , he signed up in the service of Ulrich , Duke of Württemberg , who was at war with the Swabian League . He fought in the defence of Möckmühl , but eventually was forced to surrender the town , owing to a lack of food and ammunition . In violation of the terms of surrender , he was held prisoner and handed over to the citizens of Heilbronn , a town he had raided several times . His fellow knights Georg von Frundsberg and Franz von Sickingen successfully argued for his release in 1522 , but only after he paid a ransom of 2 , 000 gulden and swore not to take vengeance on the League . In 1525 , with the outbreak of the German Peasants ' War , Berlichingen led the rebels in the district of Odenwald against the Ecclesiastical Prince s of the Holy Roman Empire . Despite this , he was ( according to his own account ) not a fervent supporter of their cause . He agreed to lead the rebels partly because he had no other option , and partly in an effort to curb the excesses of the rebellion . Despite his wishes to stop wanton violence , Berlichingen found himself powerless to control the rebels and after a month of nominal leadership he deserted his command and returned to the Schloss Jagsthausen to sit out the rest of the rebellion . After the Imperial victory , he was called before the diet of Speyer to account for his actions . On 17 October 1526 , he was acquitted by the Imperial chamber . Despite this , in November 1528 he was lured to Augsburg by the Swabian League , who were eager to settle old scores . After reaching Augsburg under promise of safe conduct , and while preparing to clear himself of the old charges against him made by the league , he was seized and made prisoner until 1530 when he was liberated , but only after repeating his oath of 1522 and agreeing to return to his Burg Hornberg and remain in that area . Berlichingen agreed to this , and remained near the Hornberg until Charles V , Holy Roman Emperor , released him from his oath in 1540 . He served under Charles in the 1542 campaign against the Ottoman Empire of Suleyman the Magnificent in Hungary , and in 1544 in the Imperial invasion of France under Francis I of France . After the French campaign , Berlichingen returned to the Hornberg and lived out the rest of his life in relative peace . He died on 23 July 1562 in Horneck Castle . During his long life , Berlichingen had married twice and left three daughters and seven sons to carry on his family name . Legacy . Götz left an autobiography in manuscript form ( Rossacher Handschrift ) . The text was edited as " Lebens - Beschreibung des Herrn Gözens von Berlichingen " and again in 1843 " Ritterliche Thaten Götz von Berlichingen ' s mit der eisernen Hand " ( ed . M . A . Gessert ) . A scholarly edition of the manuscript text was published in 1981 by Helgard Ulmschneider as " Mein Fehd und Handlungen " . Goethe in 1773 published the play " Götz von Berlichingen " based on the 1731 edition of the autobiography . Jean - Paul Sartre ' s play " Le Diable et le Bon Dieu " features Götz as an existentialist character . The Waffen - SS 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division Götz von Berlichingen in World War II was named after him . From commissioning in June 1958 until decommissioning in June 2006 , the 2nd Fast Patrol Boat Squadron ( 2 . Schnellbootgeschwader ) of the German Navy used the clenched ' Iron Fist ' of Götz von Berlichingen in the center of their squadron crest . During WW2 a number of ships in the German Kriegsmarine with the appearance of freighters but armed as a sort of support cruisers were deployed to the Far East . One of these , built in Danzig , sailed off through the Northeast Passage through the Bering Strait and headed for Japan , finally entering a naval base in Japan . The ship did not get a proper name before the departure ; only a formal name was given - a number . It was agreed before the departure that the captain was given the right to choose a name . Before arriving at the final point the Captain asked through the telegraphist that the ship should be named " Michel " . But the Naval Command were dissatisfied because the name wasn ' t appropriately heroic and asked for another name . So the captain instead chose the name " Götz von Berlichingen " . Maybe referring to the euphemisms : In German : " er kann mich im Arsche lecken " ; In Danish " rend mig i røven " ; in English " he can lick me in the arse " . See also . " Le mot de Cambronne " , a French euphemism for Pierre Cambronne ' s apocryphal reply at the Battle of Waterloo .