The Renaissance & Reformation1350-1650

The Reformation Ideas Spread

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Henry VIII – Defender of the Faith? Was firmly against the Protestant revolt but soon a

dispute emerged in 1527

Henry’s motives were not theological but matrimonial & economical

Wanted the Church’s vast wealth: property, labor/services & money

Pope vs. Henry VIII

Henry had one child, daughter – Mary Tudor

Wife was unable to bear a son

Henry VIII wanted an annulment to marry Anne Boleyn – pope said no

Break with Rome

Henry VIII used Parliament to take over the Church in England

Act of Supremacy 1534 – Henry VIII proclaimed supreme ruler of the Church of England

Through a policy of confiscation, Henry VIII redistributed Church wealth & property to secular supporters

Resistant Catholics were executed for treason

Anglican Church established

Henry VIII rejected most Protestant doctrines

Aside from breaking away from Rome & using the English Bible, most forms of Catholicism remained

Married Anne Boleyn, had another daughter – Elizabeth

Henry VIII married four more times & had one son – Edward

Edward VI & Bloody Mary

Edward died in his teens, sister Mary becomes Queen

Determined to return England to Catholicism

Hundreds of Protestants were burned at the stake

Edward VI – king at 10 yrs old

Advisors were devout Protestants

Parliament passed new laws ushering in Protestant reforms

Uprisings were brutally suppressed

The Elizabethan Settlement

Elizabeth became queen in 1558

Elizabeth created a compromise between Protestants & Catholics

Catholic ceremony & ritual were kept

Clergy remained but monarch was head of the Church, not the Pope

Moderate Protestant doctrines were accepted

Church services were conducted in English, not Latin

The Catholic Reformation

Pope Paul III

Set out to revive the authority of the Church in the 1530s & 1540s

To stamp out corruption, he appointed reformers to ‘clean house’

Council of Trent – 1545

Church leaders met to reaffirm the traditional Catholics views Protestants rejected

Created schools to better educate clergy who could challenge Protestant teachings

The Inquisition

Strengthened by Pope Paul

Used secret testimony, torture & execution to root out heresy

Forbidden Books – list of works considered immoral

Included books by Luther & Calvin

The Jesuits Founded by Ignatius Loyola in 1540

New religious order created to combat heresy in Europe

Rigorous religious training, discipline & obedience

Advised Catholic rulers & helped them combat heresy

Established schools to instill Catholic beliefs

Sent missionaries throughout Asia, Africa & the Americas.

Widespread Intolerance: Witch Hunts

Religious frenzy & wars fostered intolerance

Witch Hunts

Btw 1450 & 1750, tens of thousands of men & women died as victims from witch hunts

Victims were social outcasts: beggars, poor widows, midwives & herbalists

Most victims were in Germany, Switzerland & France – areas with brutal religious wars

Widespread Intolerance: Jews

In the 1500s, Jews were placed in ghettos throughout Italy & pressured to convert

Luther hoped Jews would convert to Protestantism – they didn’t

Called for the expulsion of Jews from Christian lands, the destruction of books & property

Some German princes did expel the Jews, others forced them to wear yellow badges

Charles V banned Jews from the Americas

After 1550, many Jews fled to Eastern Europe & the Ottoman Empire

The End