Reformation and Religious Wars in Europe: Key Figures, Events, and Concepts

Martin Luther

German priest who started the Reformation, criticized the sale of indulgences, founder of Lutheranism

Sola fide

Luther's belief that one can achieve salvation through faith alone, there is no need for good works as preached by the Catholic faith

95 Theses

List of 95 complaints and criticisms of the Catholic Church posted by Martin Luther in 1517, spread quickly via printing press

Indulgences

Relics of the Catholic Church sold to lessen a soul's time in Purgatory, one of the key issues that sparked reform movements

Diet of Worms (1521)

Meeting at which the pope and the Holy Roman Empire asked Luther to recant his Protestant beliefs, Luther refused and was excommunicated from the Church & made an outlaw

Peasants' Revolt (1524)

Movement among German peasants who attempted to use Luther's movement for political and social gain, threatened the entire movement, rejected by Luther who sided with the German princes to put down the revolt

Peace of Augsburg (1555)

Agreement in the Holy Roman Empire that allowed each German prince to choose the religion of his territory - either Catholic or Lutheran

Ulrich Zwingli

Leader of the Swiss Reformation, split from the Catholic Church for reasons similar to Luther's, disagreed with Luther on some key beliefs and is a great example of why there are so many branches of Protestantism

Anabaptists

Radical reform group that practiced 're-baptism' once one was old enough to read and understand the Scriptures

Jean Calvin

Founder of Calvinism, established a theocracy in Geneva, preached a strict discipline to God and the Bible, Calvinism would become the largest Protestant movement

Predestination

The Calvinist belief that God has predetermined who will be granted salvation and nothing one does can change his decision, 'the elect' are those chose to go to Heaven

Henry VIII of England

English Tudor king who started the English Reformation for political rather than religious reasons, Henry VIII was determined to acquire a male heir and married and divorced freely in order to do so

Act of Supremacy (1534)

Law passed by Parliament that stated the king of England was also the head of the Anglican Church, officially split England from the Pope and Rome

Edward VI of England

Only male heir to Henry VIII, young king whose advisors ran the country and moved the Anglican Church toward Protestantism

Mary I of England

'Bloody' Mary, strict Catholic daughter of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon, restored Anglican Church to Catholicism via harsh laws and brutal rule

Elizabeth I of England

The 'Virgin Queen', last of Henry VIII's heirs, a moderate Protestant politique who brought peace and political stability to England, laid foundation for English empire

Ignatius of Loyola

Founder of the Jesuits, key aspect of the counter-reformation, fought to win converts back to the Catholic faith

Council of Trent

Meeting of the highest Catholic Church officials to discuss the issues of the day, rejected all Protestant ideas and beliefs, reaffirmed the traditional Catholic doctrine, established the Index of Forbidden Books, reformed the discipline of the clergy

Politique

A ruler who valued political stability over religious uniformity, preached tolerance, Elizabeth I, Henri IV, William of Orange

St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre (1572)

Key event in the French Wars of Religion, Catholics murdered 20k Protestants across France in just a few days, this elevated the fight in France to a European-wide struggle between Catholics and Calvinists

Henri IV of France

Became king of France at the end of the Wars of Religion, fought for Protestants, but converted to Catholicism to prove to his people that religion was not something worth fighting over, issued the Edict of Nantes

Edict of Nantes (1598)

Law passed by Henri IV stating that France was officially a Catholic country, but granting religious freedom to Protestants in France, key factor in ending the French Wars of Religion

William of Orange

Leader of the Dutch resistance to Spanish rule in the Dutch Revolt, united the Dutch via religious tolerance with the Pacification of Ghent

Pacification of Ghent

Dutch version of the Peace of Augsburg, agreement among the Dutch states that allowed the leader of each to choose his state's religion, united the Dutch against Spanish control

Spanish Armada

Spanish attempt in 1588 to invade England in the name of Catholicism, defeated by the English and Dutch, key factor that led to the decline of Spain as Europe's premier power.

Defenestration of Prague (1618)

spark of the Thirty Years' War, response to attempts to re-Catholicize Bohemian Protestants, split the Holy Roman Empire into two alliances - Catholic League v. Protestant Union

Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden

Protestant king of Sweden, entered Thirty Years' War on the side of the Protestants and ended the early Catholic dominance in the war

Cardinal Richelieu

French Catholic leader who supported the Protestants in the Thirty Years' War for political reasons - wanted to protect France while weakening its biggest rivals, the Habsburgs, who ruled Catholic Spain and Austria

Peace of Prague (1635)

agreement among German Catholics and Protestants that ended their involvement in the Thirty Years' War and an end to the religious aspect of the war, foreign nations continued fighting for another 13 years for political reasons

Treaty of Westphalia (1648)

treaty that ended the Thirty Years' War, legalized Calvinism, granted Dutch independence, confirmed France as new dominant nation, kept German states disunited

Conditions for the Reformation

disunity in HRE, Renaissance values of individualism and education, printing press, problems within the Catholic Church (pluralism, poor training, Late Middle Ages issues, secular popes, etc.), calls for change from within the Catholic Church, Erasmus

Protestant Denominations

different Protestant leaders (Luther, Zwingli, Calvin, etc.) did not completely agree on key religious beliefs, most importantly was how to gain salvation and the nature of the Eucharist, different ideas = different denominations

Reformation's Impact on Europe

legalized Protestant faiths, establishment of Anglican Church, caused wars, allowed people to move based on their faith, caused Peasant Revolt

Religion and Politics Interaction

Calvinism was closely tied to politics → Calvin's theocracy in Geneva, English Reformation based on politics and created a new church that split from Rome, religious beliefs split the HRE into two opposing military alliances, politics and faith mixed in the Thirty Years' War

Status of England and Spain (17th century)

England on the rise thanks to the stability brought by Elizabeth I laying the foundation for empire, Spain on the decline with the defeat of the Spanish Armada, loss in the Dutch Revolt, and loss in the Thirty Years' War

Thirty Years' War Reasons

RELIGION - Defenestration of Prague, Catholic League v. Protestant Union, Edict of Restitution, involvement of Sweden under Gustavus Adolphus; POLITICS - French support for Protestants in order to rival the Habsburgs, foreign involvement in the war and disregard for the Peace of Prague

Elizabeth I as Politique

practiced moderate Protestantism, lenient ruler who focused on political stability

Henri IV

converted from Protestant to Catholic to prove it was not a big deal, issued the Edict of Nantes in 1598