One problem that arises from any study of the early Anabaptists in Switzerland is that of their connection with the Peasants' War in Germany. Its nature and extent, if it existed at all, is exiguous, uncertain and controversial, yet it cannot be entirely dismissed, since some of Zwingli's teaching is reflected, albeit vaguely and dubiously, in the disturbances of 1525.

The Swiss peasant was, like his fellows all over Europe, the true backbone of society. Upon his labours in the field everything else depended; it was the local farmer and the local harvest that kept men alive. To some extent he was idealised while also being exploited by his superiors and laughed at by literate townsmen for his supposed credulity, ignorance and obstinate conservatism. William Tell was the perfect peasant: honest, upright, God-fearing, industrious, patriotic, freedom-loving and brave. Zwingli, who did not fail to draw attention to his own rustic upbringing, constantly paid tribute to the tillers of the soil.

They were, in fact, a depressed majority. Although serfdom in its more objectionable forms was light in Switzerland, the burdens of service and of payment in kind exacted from the peasant were considerable. There were dues for grinding his corn, for marrying his daughter, for entering on his inheritance; his best beast was the property of his master when he died, and there were customary payments at every turn. In addition, the church not only exacted a fee for all services from baptism to burial, but derived much of its income from the tithe of the peasants' crops and animals.