The Reformation

What was Christianity's only form in Western Europe during the Middle Ages?

Catholicism.

What power did the Catholic Church hold during the Middle Ages?

Religious, political, and economic power.

What did people believe about papal infallibility?

The Pope was considered incapable of being wrong.

How did Renaissance ideas encourage religious reform?

Humanism, logic, science, and the printing press encouraged people to question Church teachings.

What was the Reformation?

A religious movement that challenged Catholic authority and created Protestantism.

What was nepotism?

Giving high positions to family members.

What was the papacy?

The highest office of the Catholic Church.

How did the Medici family gain influence in the Church?

They used wealth and nepotism to gain control of the papacy.

Who was Pope Leo X, and when did he become Pope?

Giovanni de' Medici; he became Pope in 1513.

What were indulgences?

Certificates sold by the Church that supposedly reduced punishment for sins after death.

What did Martin Luther believe about salvation?

Salvation comes through faith in God, not buying indulgences.

What were Luther's 95 Theses?

A 1517 manifesto containing 95 criticisms of Church corruption and indulgences.

When and where did Luther post the 95 Theses?

October 31, 1517, in Wittenberg.

Why were the 95 Theses translated into German in 1518?

So more people could understand Luther's ideas and spread them.

What is excommunication?

Formal exclusion from the Church.

What did Pope Leo X do to Luther?

He issued a papal bull threatening to expel Luther from the Church.

What happened to Pope Clement VII in 1527?

German soldiers sacked Rome and took him prisoner.

What caused the German Peasants' War (1524-1525)?

Peasants rebelled against Church taxes and noble oppression.

What happened at the Battle of Frankenhausen?

The peasants were defeated during the German Peasants' War.

What happened during the Massacre of Mérindol in 1545?

French royal troops killed thousands of reformers and destroyed up to 28 Protestant villages.

What caused the Prayer Book Rebellion of 1549?

English Catholics rebelled against the Anglican Book of Common Prayer.

Who were the Huguenots?

French Calvinist Protestants.

What happened during the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre in 1572?

Catholic mobs attacked Huguenots; estimates of deaths reached up to 70,000.

What happened during the Siege of Leiden (1573-1574)?

Spanish Catholic forces besieged Leiden until a Protestant fleet saved the city.

Which countries were predominantly Protestant?

England, Germany, and the Netherlands.

Which countries were predominantly Catholic?

France, Spain, and Italy.

What is a religious denomination?

A distinct religious group.

How did the printing press encourage Protestant denominations?

It helped people read and interpret the Bible themselves, spreading new religious groups.

What did Huldrych Zwingli believe about Communion?

The bread and wine were symbols.

What Catholic practice did Zwingli challenge in 1522?

The restriction against eating meat during Lent.

What distinguished the Anabaptists?

They rejected infant baptism and favored adult baptism.

How were Anabaptists punished in Zurich?

Authorities condemned them for heresy and executed four leaders by drowning.

What did John Calvin publish in 1536?

Institutes of the Christian Religion.

What did Calvin criticize about Lutheranism?

He believed it retained too many Catholic traditions.

Why did Calvin reject Anabaptism?

He considered it too radical.

What did Henry VIII do in 1534?

He broke from Rome and established the Church of England after the Pope refused his divorce.

What religious beliefs did Henry VIII retain?

Catholic beliefs.

How did Edward VI change the Church of England?

He promoted strong Protestant reforms beginning in 1547.

What did Mary I do religiously?

She restored Catholicism and persecuted Protestants.

What religious settlement did Elizabeth I establish?

Anglicanism, combining Catholic rituals with Protestant theology while rejecting papal authority.

Who were the Puritans?

Protestants who wanted to remove remaining Catholic practices from the Church of England.

What happened to Puritans under James I and Charles I?

They faced persecution.

What happened during the English Civil War?

Charles I was executed, and Oliver Cromwell came to power.

What did Oliver Cromwell's government ban?

Catholic practices and holidays, including Christmas.

What did Charles II restore in 1660?

The monarchy and Anglicanism.

What was one positive effect of Protestant denominations spreading?

Christianity spread to more people and new religious groups developed.