The Spread of the Protestant Reformation

1500-1600

The Reformation and Politics

• Explain how the political situation in Germany shaped the course of the Reformation.

• What do I need to know to answer this question?– What were the political circumstances in Germany?– What were key events in the course of the

Reformation involving politics?– What were key events in the course of the

Reformation affected by politics?

What does this quote mean?

“Other nations wage war; you, happy Austria, marry.”

Why would countries want to wage war or marry?

What do we know about how land, power, and titles are transferred through generations?

The Rise of the Habsburg Dynasty

• States increased power by war and diplomacy

• Marriage was a key way to expand power– Especially wives with no

brothers to share land

• Frederick III ruled most of Austria + Princess Eleonore of Portugal (1452) = little territory, lots of money

(Remember the diplomacy that kept the Italian provinces from fighting prosperity Renaissance?)

Rise of the Habsburgs, con’t

• Frederick’s son Maximillian + Mary of Burgundy (1477) = Netherlands, Luxembourg + Burgundy (eastern France) – This incited a conflict between the Habsburgs and the

French Valois family, who considered Burgundy to belong to the French.

• Charles V (1500-1558) inherited Spain, areas of Italy, Sicily, and Sardinia from mother and Austria, southern Germany, the Low Countries, and East-Central France approx. ½ Europe.

*Nationalism!!

Political Impact of the Protestant Reformation

• Charles V believed it was his duty to maintain political and religious unity of Western Europe

• Religious change represented a threat to the stability of the state

• Luther relied on German nationalism to attack papacy– Used religion to extend

financial and political power away from HRE

Why Would German Princes Convert to Protestantism?

• Religiously, some were convinced that Luther and/or Calvin were correct

• Politically and Economically, some princes wanted freedom from the HRE

• Religious wars began between German Princes and Charles V after failure of the Imperial Diet of 1530– Augsburg Confession was written here – a centuries long cornerstone of Protestant beliefs

The Peace of Augsburg

• The peace of Augsburg 1555 was Charles V’s acknowledgment of the legitimacy of the German princes to determine the official religion of their own principality.

• Were individuals allowed to choose their own faith at this point?

Explain how the political situation in Germany shaped the course of the

ReformationWhat were the political circumstances in Germany?

Decentralized

Largely controlled by the Habsburgs (HRE)

What were key events in the course of the Reformation involving politics?

Frederick III & Maximillian’s lucrative marriages led to the expansion of the HRE

Imperial Diet 1530

Peace of Augsburg 1555

The Spread of the Protestant Reformation

Describe how Protestant ideas and institutions spread beyond German-speaking lands. – What do I need to know?

• What are Protestant ideas and institutions?• How did they spread beyond the Germanies?• Where did the spread?

The Reformation of Ireland and England

• King Henry VIII (Tudor) wanted to divorce Catherine of

Aragon Daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella

• Problematic for Charles V because it would mean his Aunt Catherine would technically be a fornicator, and his cousin Mary Tudor would be a bastard

•The Supremacy Act of 1534 declared the King to be the head of the Church of England

Dissenters such as Bishop of Rochester John Fisher and Sir Thomas More (Utopia) were beheaded

Henry VIII

Henry’s Marital Woes Continue…

• He then married Jane Seymour, who produced Edward Tudor, but she died in childbirth

• Henry VIII married Anne Boleyn, who produced another daughter, Elizabeth Tudor, but not a male heir to the throne. – Anne Boleyn was beheaded in 1536 for adultery and not

producing a male heir

• Subsequently, Henry married Anne of Cleves (divorced), Kathryn Howard (executed), Katherine Parr (divorced).

                           Catherine of Aragon

m. 1509 - 1533

Divorced

                           Anne Boleyn

m. 1533 - 1536

Executed

                           Jane Seymour

m. 1536 - 1537

Died

                           Anne of Cleves

m. 1540 Jan. - July

Divorced

                           Kathryn Howard

m. 1540 - 1542

Executed

                           Katherine Parr

m. 1543 - 1547

Widowed

Catherine of Aragon (m.1509-1533) Divorced

Anne Boleyn (m.1533-1536) Executed

All original graphics, photographs and text on this page are © (copyright) 1995-2010 Lara E. Eakins except where noted.

Jane Seymour (m.1536-1537) Died

Anne of Cleves (m. 1540 January – July) Divorced

Katheryn Howard (m. 1540-1542) Executed

Katherine Parr (M. 1543-1547) Widowed

The Impacts of the Anglican Church

• Henry confiscated monastic lands and redistributed to the Tudor dynasty

• Anglican church was created for personal, political, social, and economic reasons

• Retained theology of Catholic Church including confession, celibacy, and transubstantiation

• Sympathized with Protestant thought• Provoked Pilgrammage of Grace (1536)

rebellion amongst English & Irish Catholics

Ireland

• Remained loyal to the Catholic Church, rejected the Anglican Church

• English lords in Ireland approved the adoption of the Church of Ireland (basically the Anglican Church) – This led to the same

confiscation of church lands and wealth that happened in England

• Violent rebellion in Ireland eventually crushed by English

Tudor’s Religious Legacy

• King Edward VI (r. 1547-1553) – strongly Protestant

• Queen Mary Tudor (r. 1553-1558) – Catholic backlash (to honor her mother) – Married Spanish Catholic

cousin Philip of Spain– This was very brutal and

earned her the nickname Bloody Mary

• Queen Elizabeth I (Elizabeth the Great)

Elizabeth I

• Elizabeth compromised between the Protestant “Puritans” (who wanted to “purify” the Church) and the Catholics

• Elizabethan Settlement – Dignity in church services and order in the land (aka

no more executions)– Risked only a fine for missing Anglican mass– Swore allegiance to her as the “supreme governor of

the Church of England”• Why wouldn’t she ask to be called the head of the church?

Elizabeth’s Main Contributions

• Brought peace and order to England and territories

• Allowed for religious freedom without whole conformity to the Anglican Church

Calvinism - Switzerland

• Predestination - Human beings can do nothing to save themselves due to the omnipotence and absolute sovereignty of G-d.– Willing to endure great hardships to resist evil– Outlawed playing, dancing, to create a godly city on

earth– The “Calling” sanctified occupations

• Burned 58 “heretics” at the stake 1542-46• Significance: This ideology leads to America as

“the city upon the hill”, defining American history

John Calvin

Presbyterianism – The Church of Scotland

• Established by John Knox

• Persuaded Scottish Parliament to create a Calvinist church as the official state church of Scotland

Eastern European Reform

• In Bohemia, ethnic grievances of the Czech majority fused with resentment of the Roman Catholic Church

• Czech’s adopted the utraqism position:– It maintained that the Eucharist should be administered "in both kinds" — as both

bread and wine — to all the congregation, including the laity. (The practice among Roman Catholics at the time was for only the priests to partake of the wine).

• Poland and Lithuania = Catholic• King Sigsmund I of Poland banned Lutheranism• Hungary was defeated by Suleiman the Magnificent

(Ottoman Empire) – Under Turkish/Islamic rule, Lutheranism thrived in parts of

Hungary– Later in 1699 when Europe regained Hungary, there was a

Catholic restoration

Summary of Spread of Protestant Reformation

• England, German Principalities broke away from the Catholic Church– England Church of England – Germanies Mostly Lutheran, some

Calvinism

• France, Spain, the HRE, Poland, and Lithuania remained staunchly Catholic