Reformation

Differing conceptions of salvation
and the individual’s relationship to the church were at the heart of the conflicts
among Luther, subsequent Protestant reformers such as Calvin and the Anabaptists, and the Catholic Church.

Reformation, c. 1450-c. 1648

Late medieval reform movements in the church - including lay piety, mysticism, and Christian humanism - created a momentum that propelled a new generation of 16th-century reformers, such as Erasmus and Martin Luther. After 1517, when Luther posted his 95 Theses criticizing ecclesiastical abuses and the doctrines that led to them, Christianity fragmented, even though religious uniformity remained the ideal. Some states, such as Spain and Portugal, which had recently expelled Muslims and Jews, held fast to this ideal. Others did not, notably the Netherlands and lands under Ottoman control, which accepted Jewish refugees.

In central Europe, the Peace of Augsburg (1555) permitted each state of the Holy Roman Empire to be either Catholic or Lutheran at the option of the prince. By the late 16th century, northern European countries were generally Protestant and Mediterranean countries generally Catholic. To re-establish order after a period of religious warfare, France introduced limited toleration of the minority Calvinists within a Catholic kingdom (Edict of Nantes, 1598; revoked in 1685). Jews remained a marginalized minority wherever they lived.

Differing conceptions of salvation and the individual’s relationship to the church were at the heart of the conflicts among Luther, subsequent Protestant reformers such as Calvin and the Anabaptists, and the Catholic Church. The Catholic Church affirmed its traditional theology at the Council of Trent (1545–1563), ruling out any reconciliation with the Protestants and inspiring the resurgence of Catholicism in the 17th century. Religious conflicts merged with and exacerbated long-standing political tensions between the monarchies and nobility across Europe, dramatically escalating these conflicts as they spread from the Holy Roman Empire to France, the Netherlands, and England. Economic issues such as the power to tax and control ecclesiastical resources further heightened these clashes.

All three motivations—religious, political, and economic—contributed to the brutal and destructive Thirty Years’ War, which was ended by the Peace of Westphalia (1648). The treaty established a new balance of power with a weakened Holy Roman Empire. The Peace of Westphalia also added Calvinism to Catholicism and Lutheranism as an accepted religion in the Holy Roman Empire, ensuring the permanence of European religious pluralism. However, pluralism did not mean religious freedom; the prince or ruler still controlled the religion of the state, and few were tolerant of dissenters.

Source: https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/pdf/ap-european-history-course-and-exam-description.pdf

The Church Before the Reformation

Main facade of Saint Peter's Basilica, Rome

Alchemy and Astrology

Nostradamus was a French seer who published prophecies that have since become famous. He's been credited with predicting the Great Fire of London, the rise of Napoleon and Adolf Hitler, and 9/11.

Pope Paul III (r. 1534–1549)
Council of Trent (1545–1563)
Roman Inquisition (est. 1542)
Pope Paul IV (r. 1555–1559)
Index of Forbidden Books
Jewish ghettos
Baroque art
Ignatius Loyola and the Society of Jesus (1540)
Francis Xavier
Teresa of Avila and the Carmelite Order
Angela Merici and the Ursuline Order

Mannerism and Baroque Art

MANNERISM

Pontormo (Descent from the Cross)
Parmigianino (Madonna with the Long Neck)
Tintoretto (Last Supper)
Sofonisba Anguissola (Lucia, Minerva, and Europa Playing Chess)
El Greco (View of Toledo, Fifth Seal)

Baroque Spotify Playlist

Wars of Religion in the 1500s

The St. Bartholomew's Day massacre of French Protestants (1572). It was the climax of the French Wars of Religion, which were brought to an end by the Edict of Nantes (1598).