RELIGIOUS AND SOCIAL TENSIONS, 1523-36
The Late Middle Ages were in most of Europe characterised by social tensions. In many places, authorities were questioned – especially the rich and powerful Catholic Church. In 1521, Martin Luther – under the protection of a German prince – definitively split from the Pope and the Catholic Church. Luther, however, was only the tip of the iceberg, and several religious reform movements asserted themselves in Germany in these years. These currents were also felt in Denmark, where the Lutheran Reformation became a reality in 1536. Until then, the deposed king Christian II still played a role; partly because it was feared that his brother-in-law, the emperor Charles V, would lend him military support to reclaim the Danish throne, and partly because he became a symbol of unity for the dissatisfaction with the ruling system.
Frederik I did nothing to stop the religious reform movements that quickly spread throughout Denmark, especially in the cities. He was
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One of Christian II’s followers, Skipper Clement, managed to raise a peasant rebellion in all of western and northern Jutland, and defeated an army consisting of noblemen. Before that, the Jutlandic members of the Council of the realm had conferred and then approached Duke Christian, who arrived in Jutland with a mercenary army at the end of 1534, and was hailed as Christian III (1503-1559). He would soon secure power in Jutland and during the following year also Funen, Zealand and Scania as well, thanks to his army. After a siege lasting a year, Copenhagen also surrendered. Following this, the catholic bishops were imprisoned, their lands and riches as well as that of the monasteries were confiscated by the Crown, and a Lutheran national church was established under the king’s leadership. The Danish Reformation had thus been
At the year 1524, Martin Luther, a significant figure in the Reformation and the founder of Lutheranism, had just finished hiding in Frederick the Wise’s Saxony castle after the Edict of Worms declared that he was an “outlaw” of the Holy Roman Empire. Luther’s action that led up to this event was the publication of the 95 Theses in 1517, which denounced indulgences and attacked the corruption of the papacy. Luther was able to remain hidden due to the extreme decentralization of the Holy Roman Empire. Emperor Charles V could not devote much of his attention to Luther, as he was controlling Spain, The Holy Roman Empire, and the New World.
The peasant revolts in the German states from 1524-1526 were caused primarily by the extended manipulation of many Lutheran ideals, as well as grievances toward their lords and superiors, while the responses of this revolt were solely condemning of those participating. The compassionate doctrines of the recently introduced lutheran doctrines provided much justification for the Peasant revolts of the 1520’s. Documents one and three demonstrate this idea of Lutheranism. Document one is of Leonhard von Eck, the Chancellor of Bavaria as he reports to the Duke of Bavaria.
The beginning of the 16th century brought with it the Reformation. The Catholic Church became challenged by Martin Luther and John Calvin. With nailing of the 95 theses on the Church doors, Luther began the Protestant Reformation. The counter-reformation was introduced in Europe to weaken the Protestant Reformation and rebuild the power of the Catholic Church through education, clergy reform, and spreading of the Catholic faith. The counter-reformation can be additionally seen as a political movement because of the loss in revenue in the Baltic provinces.
The English Reformation lead to a drastic change in England based on a single King’s wishes. King Henry VIII desired to begin a new church that would allow him to divorce his wife. He began the Church of England and demanded that his kids follow in his footsteps. Anyone who disagreed with King Henry was executed and the politics of England changed too. Rebellions over this new Church began and many were killed and unhappy.
Luther’s radical new ideas regarding religion excited the peasants of the German states and his ideas stated in documents such as his 95 theses acted as a catalyst for the revolts that erupted in the lower class between the years 1524 and 1526. Peasants believed the cause of these revolts were the mistreatment they received from their lords and ruling princes. Their acts of revolution were largely based on new radical ideas surrounding religion, and some even saw it as God’s will. A third cause cited by the peasants was a need for their release from serfdom.
During the 16th century in Europe, the beginning of a reformation occurred that still affects us to this day. This shift in ideas and action caused wars, persecutions, and brought about a counter reformation. This event is known as the Protestant Reformation. Although many people attribute the reformation beginning with Martin Luther nailing his 95 theses to the church door in 1517, there were signs of reform stirring in the church before that.
Starting in 1517, there was a schism between people and their minds. These people fought for what they believed no matter how similar or how different, however, the battles fought between the factions were justified by any means necessary. The battles took great tolls on both sides, over fifty million people were killed. This discrepancy in belief was called the Protestant Reformation, started by Martin Luther. The main two factions of the Reformation were the Protestants and the Papacy; the Papacy having the backing of Spain and all of the corrupt rulers that wanted power and Martin Luther and his Protestants having the backing of princes and rulers looking for opportunity in political and financial front, though some of Luther’s backers did
This provided even more difficulties for Emperor Charles V to regain power, as it was now nearly impossible to impose the Catholic faith on German territories. Despite Charles's relentlessness, he eventually surrendered his will in the Peace of Augsburg in 1555. This event marks a critical turning point in the Protestant Reformation, as it acknowledges the divide within Christianity, granting Catholicism and Lutheranism equal standing. This discourse ultimately resulted in German princes holding the ultimate decision to choose either Lutheranims or Catholicism as their
The sixteenth century in Europe was a time of change for the Europe. People were starting to question the Church's authority, some people who questioned the Church were Martin Luther, John Calvin and Henry VIII. These people helped to start the Protestant Reformation. The Protestant Reformation was a time when new religions were formed by people who protested the Catholic faith and what it was doing. Many people date the start of the Protestant Reformation with German Martin Luther's
Protestants most likely opposed the basic Catholic values, they did not like the way the Holy Roman Empire was run, and they disapproved of the Pope. Between 1524 and 1526, the new changes that were brought by the reformation such as the teachings of Luther depicted personal freedoms of the peasants, which were simply not present in Germany, as these
Protestant Reformation Protestant Reformation was a European Christian movement. This movement, led by Martin Luther reformed the Roman Catholic Church practices and begin Protestantism. The reformation started because of the corruption of Roman Catholic Church. The corruption that begin the protestant reformation was phony relics and indulgences. The church priests would sell these relics to poor people knowing that they were fake and build on lies only to make money for the church.
The Protestant Reformation broke out in Germany in the beginning of 1517. The Church and the Pope began to lose power and authority and people began to question the teachings and ways of the Catholic Church. Ideas of new religions, such as Protestant, Lutheran, and Calvinists, started to spread throughout Europe. The Church was corrupt and started to lose followers. These problems led to people speaking out against the Church and it became a revolution of political and religious debates.
The Reformation was a time in Europe in the 1500s in which people questioned the beliefs of the Catholic Church. There were many changes made by the catholic church. The people that were responsible were Martin Luther, John Calvin and King Henry VIII. The Protestant Reformation of 16th century Europe was primarily the result of three men and their disagreements with the Catholic Church; Martin Luther, John Calvin, and King Henry VIII forever changed the religious landscape of Europe.
The opposition Luther took against the Church soon had an instant impact on peasants. Individuals began to form opinions on both political and religious fields, but they had failed to interpret the beliefs of Luther correctly.
The Protestant Reformation was important in European History because with it came a Counter-Reformation. The Reformation revealed corruption in the Church, such as buying and selling salvation—indulgences—for profit, simony, and the overall battles for power and wealth (within the Church). Martin Luther and John Calvin were crusaders for the reformation and were able to share their ideas and beliefs effectively; they were then accepted/recognized by the people—the educated and uneducated, the middle class and nobility. Luther and Calvin’s beliefs allowed for other people to find a sense of freedom and individualism in religion.