The Protestant Reformation and Key Figures

Vocabulary flashcards covering the key individuals, events, dates, and concepts of the Protestant Reformation in Europe.

Erasmus

The best-known Christian humanist, Catholic priest, and scholar who criticized church abuses, transformed European education and religious thought, authored 'The Praise of Folly' in 1509, and helped pave the way for the Reformation while remaining loyal to the Catholic Church.

The Praise of Folly

A satire written by Erasmus in 1509 that criticized abuses within the Catholic Church.

Martin Luther

A German Catholic monk, priest, and professor at the University of Wittenberg whose Ninety-Five Theses sparked the 16th-century Protestant Reformation and divided Western Christianity.

Ninety-Five Theses

The writing authored by Martin Luther and posted on the church door in Wittenberg that initiated the Protestant Reformation.

Frederick III

The ruler who protected Martin Luther from Catholic Church persecution in Wartburg.

Protestants

Followers of Martin Luther who adopted this name because they were in protest of papal authority.

Lutheranism

The first Protestant faith, established around the religious doctrine and teachings of Martin Luther.

1521

The year Martin Luther was excommunicated from the Catholic Church.

Ulrich Zwingli

A priest in the Swiss city of Zürich whose influence prompted the city council to introduce religious reforms, and who was killed in battle when war erupted between Protestants and Catholics in October of 1531.

John Calvin

A French-educated reformer who assumed leadership of Swiss Protestantism, published 'Institutes of the Christian Religion,' established a theocracy in Geneva, and introduced predestination.

Institutes of the Christian Religion

A book published by John Calvin that summarized his understanding of Protestant thought.

Theocracy

A system of government controlled by religious leaders wherein the laws are based strictly on religious doctrines or teachings.

Predestination

A concept emerging from John Calvin's belief in the all-powerful nature of God, which he added to mainstream Lutheran beliefs.

John of Leiden

A Dutch religious reformer and Anabaptist leader who created a sanctuary for Anabaptists.

Henry VIII

The king of England with six wives who broke away from the pope and the Catholic Church to establish his own church and make England a Protestant nation.

Thomas Cranmer

The Archbishop of Canterbury appointed during the English Reformation who ruled in May 1533 that King Henry VIII's marriage was 'null and absolutely void.'

Charles V

The Holy Roman emperor during the English Reformation who attempted unsuccessfully to convince Martin Luther to change his ideas.

Mary Tudor

A daughter of King Henry VIII nicknamed 'Bloody Mary' who attempted to restore Catholicism in England by ordering the execution of almost 300 Protestants burned at the stake for heresy.

Queen Elizabeth

The first child of King Henry VIII who established a religious compromise between Catholics and Protestants.

1455

The year Johannes Gutenberg printed the first complete edition of the Bible using a printing press with movable type.

Factors Encouraging the Protestant Reformation

Corrupt practices and power struggles within the church, notably that some clergy sold indulgences and popes competed with Italian princes for political power.