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The Protestant Reformation
Martin Luther began the Reformation in the early 1500’s when he nailed his 95 theses on the
church in Wittenberg, however other earlier developments had set the stage for religious change
One development grew from widespread changes in intellectual thought. This came from new
classical learning that was part of the Italian Renaissance
It spread to northern Europe; from that came a movement called Christian Humanism. The
major goal was to reform the Roman Catholic Church
Above all, Christian Humanist believed that if you wish to change society, you must change the
people who make up that society
Why reform the Catholic Church?
§ Main reason was corruption
§ 1450-1520 a series of popes, known as the Renaissance Popes failed to meet the church’s
spiritual needs.
They seemed to be more concerned with Italian politics and worldly interest rather than with
spiritual matters.
Others were concerned with money and used their church offices to advance their careers and
their wealth
Priest seemed ignorant of their spiritual duties. People wanted to know how to save their souls
and many priest were unable to offer them advice or instruction.
People wanted meaningful religious experiences and assurance of their salvation or acceptance
into heaven
Collections of relics grew more popular as a means to salvation. With the worship of a relic, a
person could gain an indulgence (release from all or part of the punishment for sin)
In fact, the Catholic Church also sold indulgences
Martin Luther was a monk and a professor
The certainty of salvation bothered him
The Catholic Church said faith and good works gave you salvation
Luther found that humans are not saved through their good works, but through their faith in God.
This idea, known as justification by faith became the chief teaching of the Protestant
Reformation. Since Luther got this idea by studying the bible alone, it became the primary
source of religious truth
Luther didn’t see himself as a rebel, but was greatly upset by the widespread selling of
indulgences.
On Oct 31, 1517, Luther posted his 95 theses on the door of the castle church in Wittenberg.
Thousands of copies were printed and spread of all parts of Germany
Pope Leo X didn’t take the issue seriously. Called Luther some drunken German who will
amend his ways when he sobers up
By 1520, things had begun to move toward a more definite break. Luther called on the German
princes to overthrow the papacy in Germany and make a new German church.
Luther also attacked the sacraments
Remember the 7 from the Catholic Church?
Luther only kept 2…baptism and the Eucharist
Clergy were now allowed to marry
Emphasize his new doctrine of salvation:
IT IS FAITH ALONE THAT JUSTIFIES AND BRINGS SALVATION THOUGH CHRIST
Catholic Church excommunicated him in 1521.
Charles V brought Luther before A Holy Roman Empire court and by the Diet of Worms, he was
made an outlaw within the empire
His works were burned and Luther was sent into hiding
During the next few years, the movement became a revolution.
Luther got the support of many of German rulers.
Followers of Luther set up new religious services to replace the catholic mass.
This involved Bible Readings, preaching and song
Lutheranism began to flourish
Politics in the German Reformation
Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire wanted to keep the unity of his empire by keeping it
Catholic
Other problems within the Empire cost him this dream because it gave time for Lutherans to
organize before having to face the Catholic forces
France and the pope got into the mix and began fighting Germany and especially Charles
By the time Charles was able to bring military forces to Germany to face the Lutherans, the
princes were well organizes and Charles had to make peace
War came to an end in 1555 with the Peace of Augsburg. Accepted the division of Christianity
in Germany. German states now able to choose between Catholicism and Lutheranism.
The ideal of Christian unity was forever lost. Protestantism was the new thing, however
conflicts were there also
One of the first new groups appeared in Switzerland.
Huldrych Zwingli was a priest in Zurich and influenced the city council to introduce religious
reforms
Relics and images were abolished
§ Paintings and decorations were removed from the churches
§ New church service was made with more scripture reading
He made an alliance with Martin Luther
• Problem was they couldn’t agree with the sacrament of communion
In Oct 1531, war broke out and Zwingli was killed
Now it was up to John Calvin to lead the Protestant movement
He was from France and was forced to flee France for Switzerland
Calvin believed in predestination….God had determined in advance who would be saved and
who would be damned.
• This belief spread and Calvinism spread
• Calvin worked on reforming Geneva in Switzerland
• Created a church government
• It was very strict. Punished people for “CRIMES” like dancing, signing obscene songs,
drunkenness, swearing
ENGLAND
More reforms. In fact, they started their own church
King Henry VIII wanted to divorce his wife, Catherine of Aragon because he only had a
daughter, not a son
• Needed a male heir.
• He wanted to marry Anne Boleyn.
• His was impatient with the pope’s unwillingness to annual his marriage and Henry turned
to England’s own church courts
The archbishops of Canterbury said that the king’s marriage was null and void. And Anne was
crowned queen. Three months later, she had a child.
This child was female and would go on to be Elizabeth I
In 1534, Parliament moved to finalize the break of the Catholic Church in England with the pope
in Rome.
It was called the Act of Supremacy of 1534 and declared that the king was “taken, accepted, and
reputed the only supreme head of earth of the Church of England”
Gave king control of religious doctrine.
Dissolved the monasteries and sell their land and possessions to wealthy landowners
When Henry died in 1547, his son from his 3rd wife Edward VI (9 years old) took the crown
Church officials moved the Church of England (ANGLICAN CHURCH) in a protestant
direction
Clergy had right to marry and new kinds of church service
When Mary, Henry’s daughter by Catherine came to the throne in 1553, England was ready for a
reaction
Mary was catholic and wanted to bring it back
However, the way she went about it was bad
Burned 300 Protestants and got the nickname Bloody Mary
By the end of her reign, and the backlash, England was even more protestant
Luther had allowed the state to play an important role. Some didn’t like this, they were radicals
and known as Anabaptists
The true church was a voluntary community of adult believers who had undergone spiritual
rebirth and had then been baptized. This believe in adult baptism separated them from other
religions
All believers were equal….
They chose their own minister
Any member of the community was eligible to be a minister
Complete separation of church and state
Anabaptist refused to hold office and/or bear arms (Thou shall not kill)
They were labeled radicals. In fact, the only things Protestants and Catholics could agree on was
they hated the Anabaptists and wanted to get rid of them
The Catholic Reformation
By the mid 1500’s, much had changed
But through all this, the Catholic Church still had a revitalization in the 1500’s giving it new
strength and enabling it to regain much that it had lost
The Catholic reformation was support by 3 chief pillars
1. The Jesuits
2. The Reform of the Papacy
3. The Council of Trent
The Society of Jesus (Jesuits)
Was founded by Ignatius of Loyola
§ Took a special vow of absolute obedience to the pope making them an important
instrument for papal policy
§ Used education to spread their message
§ Very successful restoring the Catholic Church to part of Germany and Eastern Europe.
Reform of the Papacy
Pope Paul III appointed a reform commission in 1537
Commission blamed the church’s problems on the corrupt politics of the popes. Paul III began
the Council of Trent
Met on and off for 18 years
Reaffirmed traditional catholic teaching in opposition to protestant beliefs.
Both faith and good works were necessary for salvation. The
Seven sacraments and clerical celibacy were all upheld
Belief in Purgatory and the use of indulgences was strengthened, but selling them were forbidden
After the Council of Trent, the church possessed a clear body of doctrine and was unified under
the supreme leadership of the pope
Fights between Catholics and Protestants.
Calvinism and Catholicism had become highly militant (combative) religions. Both battled for
not just converts, but also in eliminated he other’s authority.
Both sides struggled for the people of Europe caused chaos during the late 1500’s
Religion was main reason, but economic, social, and political forces played an important role in
the wars
None worse than the “French War of Religion” (1562-1598)
§ They were French civil wars
§ French kings persecuted Protestants, but they didn’t do anything to stop the spread of
Protestantism
The Huguenots were French Protestants influenced by John Calvin.
They only made up only 7% of total French population, but 40-50% of nobility became
Huguenots.
Included in these group of nobles was the house of Bourbon with ruled the southern French
kingdom of Navarre. They were also next in line of royal secession.
The dynasty in power was very Catholic.
French towns and provinces hated the monarchy and helped the nobles to weaken it.
30 years this war went on for.
In 1589, Henry of Navarre, succeeded to the thorn as Henry IV. He knew that he wouldn’t be
accepted by catholic France, so he converted.
When he became king, the fighting in France finally came to an end.
To solve religious problems, he issued the Edict of Nantes in 1598
It recognized Catholicism as the official religion of France, but gave Huguenots the right to
worship and to enjoy all political privileges
Spain was the greatest supporter of militant Catholicism and Philip II was King
His first goal was to consolidate the lands he had inherited from his father.
He ruled Spain, the Netherlands and had possessions in Italy and the Americas.
Insisted on strict agreement to Catholicism and strong monarchical authority.
Because it was the Catholics that drove out the Muslims, they thought their people chosen by
God to save catholic from the protestant heretics
The Spanish Netherlands was one of the richest parts of Philip’s empire.
The nobles there didn’t like him and he tried to crush Calvinism
Lots of violence in 1566 when Calvinists destroyed statues in catholic churches
Phillip sent in 10000 troops to crush the rebellion.
When Philip’s reign ended in 1598, Spain had the most populous empire in the world. Had most
of South American and a number of settlements in Asia and Africa.
To most Europeans, Spain greatest power, but its treasury was empty.
Gone bankrupt from spending too much on war…real power will shift to France and England
ENGLAND OF ELIZABETH
Elizabeth Tudor ascended to the throne in 1558 when England had fewer than 4 million people.
During her reign, she became the leader of the protestant nations and laid the foundations for a
world empire
She moved quickly to solve the difficult religious problem she got from her catholic half sister.
Repealed the law favoring Catholics. New Act of Supremacy named Elizabeth the only supreme
governor of both church and state.
She tied to keep Spain and France from becoming too powerful by balancing power. If one
nation seemed to be gaining in power, England would support the weaker nation
However, she couldn’t escape a war with Spain
Philip II wanted to invade England. He wanted an overthrow of Protestantism and a return to
Catholicism
Philip ordered preparations for an armada (fleet of warships) in 1588. The fleet that set sail
didn’t have the ships or the manpower that Philip had planned.
Spanish fleet, battered by a number of encounters with the English, sailed back to Spain by a
northward route around Scotland an Ireland where it was pounded by storms and many of the
ships sank.
-------Although the Peace of Augsburg was signed, there were still problems
For example, Calvinism had not been recognized by the settlement (only Lutheranism)
Political and territorial motives were evident.
The War started in 1618.
It was a struggle between catholic forces led by the Hapsburg Holy Roman Empire and
Protestants nobles in Bohemia
After this, it was a large political struggle as Denmark, Sweden, France an Spain entered the war
France and the rulers of Spain and the HRE battled for European leadership
This war was the most destructive thus far. Most battles were on German soil and most nations
besides England were involved
For 30 years, German countryside was destroyed as well as the towns
France emerged as the dominant nation in Europe
Peace of Westphalia was signed and said that all German states could determine their own
religion.
The 300+ German states were now independent and the Holy Roman Empire came to an end
German will still not be united for another 200 years
Superstition and Enlightenment
After the religions reformation and wars, new types of thinking emerged. Some good and some
bad
Witch Hunts and Panic
Many started in villages
People used ‘witches’ to explain the unexplained
Only priest could perform ‘magic’ (turning wine into Jesus’ blood, etc) so any other form was
outlawed in many communities
Women were the primary target (80% of accused witches were women)
Panic ended with 150,000 accused and over 50,000 killed for being a witch
Writers and Philosophers
They writers reacted to the renaissance and intellectual traditions
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
His most famous work, Don Quixote, used down-to-earth realism
William Shakespeare
Wrote about a boy and a girl
Blaise Pascal
Wanted to write to disprove the Jesuits and their teachings
Thomas Hobbes
A political thinker. His 1651 book Leviathan established the foundation for most of Western
political philosophy from the perspective of social contract theory
John Locke
Also a political thinker. He came up with ideas like ‘life, liberty, property’ and was the base of
the American Revolution.