The Protestant Reformation Flashcards
Christianity in Europe to 1500
– 30-312CE: Christianity spread through Mediterranean
– 312 CE: Constantine legalized Christianity
– 380: Theodosius made it favored religion of Roman Empire
– 496: Clovis king of the Franks became Christian
– 800: Charlemagne made Emperor of the Romans
– 1054: Western European (Catholic) & Eastern European (Orthodox) Churches
split in “The Great Schism”
– 1122: Concordat of Worms ends “Investiture Contest”
– 1300s-1500s: Renaissance intellectual exploration results in increased criticism of
Church & calls for reform; printing press = mass literacy for 1st time
Basically, in Europe, there was one kind of Christianity. Until the Protestant
Reformation, it was just “Christianity.” Today we call it “Catholicism” or “The
Roman Catholic (Christian) Church.”
The Protestant Reformation
– had been long time coming but reached critical point in 1517
– split European Christianity into countless denominations
– most US Christian
denominations are
Protestant
– They are called “Protestant” because they protested papal, clerical, & royal domination of faith. (There were some material reasons, too.)
John Wycliffe (d. 1384)
argued for Church poverty
& poverty of clerics
– drafted predestinarian
theology of “the elect”
– argued against absolute
authority of Roman papacy
& for authority of Bible
– translated Bible into
English
– inspired Lollard
Movement, which paved
way for Church of England
Jan Hus (d. 1415)
Czech Church reformer
– inspired by Wycliffe though not in 100% agreement
– against wealth & greed he saw in Church
– said Bible was more
authoritative than the Church
itself
– preached & wrote in Czech rather than Latin
– early Czech nationalism vis- à-vis German influences
– Hussite movement survived
into 1600s
Martin Luther (d. 1546)
– devout Christian theologian
appalled by Church abuses
such as sale of indulgences
– started as Church reformer
but was excommunicated, so he
founded his own church
– taught that faith rather than
sacraments was key to
salvation
– priesthood of all believers,
not just Catholic clergy
– translated Bible to German =
anyone can read it for himself–
followers survive today as
Lutheran Christians
John Calvin (d. 1564)
major work: Institutes of
Christian Religion
– emphasized salvations
through God’s grace
– God’s omnipotence =
predestination
– divided human society into
elect & reprobate/damned
– founded theocratic state in
Geneva
– Calvinist thought had deep
effect on groups such as
Puritans & Presbyterians = big
influence in US history
Henry VIII (d. 1547) & the Church
of England –
Henry VIII was king of England
– wanted a divorce BUT that was
difficult for political AND religious
reasons
– Henry took over the Church in
England and the Church of
England or Anglican Church was
born
– religious debate, conflict, & war
marked English history until 1689
– modern Episcopalian Christians
are historically related to Anglican
Church
– modern Baptists are historically
linked to those English Protestants
who opposed Anglicanism
Counter Reformation
– Catholic Church
acknowledged need to reform
– Council of Trent (1545-63):
maintained core beliefs &
structure, but did address
many issues raised by
Protestants such as poor
training of clergy and abuses
within the Church
– Jesuit Order: missionary
work outside of Europe; very
successful
– Roman Inquisition: agency
that checked advance of
Protestantism
The Thirty Years’ War 1618-
1648
first spate of religious violence
in Germany ended with Peace of
Augsburg 1555
– by 1600s many kings &
aristocrats had embraced
Protestant Christianity
– dominant Christian
denominations: Calvinist,
Catholic, Lutheran
– German Habsburg Emperor
Ferdinand II wanted to reassert
Catholic primacy but Protestant
nobility resisted
– Protestant King of Sweden
Gustav II Adolph major
supporter of Protestants
The Thirty Years’ War 1618-
1648-2
first modern armies;
heavy use of firearms; millions of civilians &
soldiers died
– ended with Treaty of
Westphalia 1648 =
religion of the local nobility determined
religion of locality
– goal of united Christian
Europe abandoned
– last major religious war
in continental Europe
French Wars of Religion
– Huguenots (French Calvinists)
vs. Catholics
– Protestant movement had
spread from Germany to France,
but was persecuted
– Huguenots were maybe 10% of
population but high percentage of
French nobility was Huguenot
– by 1561, Huguenots were
political force & war began in
1562
– Holy League: Catholic Christian
nobility opposed to Huguenots
French Wars of Religion
Aug. 24/5 1572: St.
Bartholomew’s Day Massacre
– war continued until 1589 when
Henry IV became king of France
– Edict of Nantes 1598: religious
toleration law of land in France
– BUT tension remained high &
violence erupted again in 1620s
– 1643: Edict of Nantes back in
force, but Huguenots had lost
military power
– 1685: Louis XIV revoked Edict
of Nantes & soon about 400,000
French Protestants leave France
English Civil Wars 1642-
1651*
– 4 sides: King Charles I
(Anglican), Parliament (Puritan
majority), Scottish Covenanters
(Presbyterians), & Irish
Confederates (Catholics)
– all sides switched sides
–royal power, taxes, & religion
were major factors
– 1649: Charles I executed;
monarchy abolished;
commonwealth established
– 1651: Charles II fled to France
– 200,000 killed & England has
never been at war over religion
since then
Oliver Cromwell (d. 1658)
anti-Anglican Puritan
– fought on side of
Parliament
– leader of “New Model
Army”
– defeated opponents in
English Civil Wars
– Lord Protector of
Commonwealth of British
Isles 1653-1658
– republican gov’t failed
after his death & Charles II
restored in 1660
The Glorious Revolution 1688
– James II was Catholic and
tried to restore Catholicism in
England, but this sparked
rebellion.
– The rebels invited William of
Orange & Mary Stuart come to
England with their army
– James II fled & William &
Mary were made monarchs.
–power transferred from
monarchy & gave it to
Parliament
– result: secured Protestantism
as the Christianity of prestige
& power in Britain
