Update Nineteen

One Faith Day Eight

The Counter-Reformation / The Religious Wars
16th century – 18th Century

I: Scars of the Reformation

i: Introduction

For all theological purposes, by the 1550s the reformation was over. While the Protestant churches would continue to divide over theological issues, as there was no longer a central authority for interpretation of the faith, the rift between the Roman Church and the churches of the reformation was complete. What we deal with here is the effect of that rift on European society and how the Church of Rome solidified this rift as dogma. The world now was a vastly different place than its ancient counterpoint fifteen centuries earlier. For five hundred years of Christianity the Empire of Rome had dominated the west, reaching deep into the east and south. Its power was for so long uncontestable. But time and inertia worked against it and it crumbled under its own weight, bringing western culture to the brink of oblivion as hordes of unlearned savages out of the north and the east ravaged lands ranging from the African coasts to the Bosphorus Straits, even pillaging in streets of the Eternal City itself. Following this decimation of Europe and Christendom the onslaught of the advanced Islamic armies added to the destruction. Totally consuming the heart of Christendom, taking the crucial cities of Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem, this attack left the Church crippled in its unity, and yet it left power in the hands of the one place that might once again change the tides and remake Europe in its image, the city of Rome. From this position of darkness, as Europe descended into the aptly named Dark Ages, the Church in Rome remade the powers of Europe into a force to be reckoned with. Christendom was reasserted after three hundred years of darkness as the Christian Franks drove the Muslims out of much of Western Europe and Charlemagne took on the long lost title of Emperor of the Romans. Unity had been restored to the states of Europe, at least in name. Unity did exist in the West, in the Roman Church and its Eastern counterpart, but the individual nation-states and city-states continued to vie for secular dominance. This strife refused to remain secular, however, as the Great Schism soon severed the two Churches, but the western Roman Church would rise to monolithic proportions over what was quickly becoming the greatest power on earth, the European nations. Starting in the thirteenth century, under the influence and patronage of the Church, as well as a newly rising noble class, the arts of the Classical age were brought back. Unfortunately for the Roman Church, this also led to a resurgence of Classical ideas, ideas that included liberty and freedom of thought. The Church continued to thrive in this rapidly changing atmosphere, yet despite its political successes the influx of power also brought an influx of corruption. Over the years this increased until the age of the reformers. While the Roman Church had withstood any number of great threats to its power it had never met a challenge that had weakened it and threatened to replace it. It finally met that challenge in a handful of men willing to risk death to stand up for their beliefs. The rift this caused in Europe, whose warfare technology had been steadily advancing beyond any other in the world, would have devastating effects on the continent, but arguably would lead to its domination of the world. For now though, as the sixteenth century continued to grind its bloody course, the seams that had held society together were splitting and all out war was coming fast.

ii: Shattered Unity

The shattered unity of contingent political entities was most apparent, and earliest to occur, in the German states. Going into the dark ages this territory had been a dark, fragmented land. Out of it had come the many people groups that would eventually become several of the European nations. Running from the hordes of Asia and seeking land for a growing population they had spread out all over the continent. But the old tribal systems still remained in Germany, and as Charlemagne and his successors carved out a new Roman Empire, these tribes would be the basis for the kingdoms of the Holy Roman Empire. By the turn of the first millennium, Germany had become the Holy Roman Empire. But this was a unity enforced across many kingdoms. In all, twenty-six separate political entities, ranging from great kingdoms to tiny free states, as well as hundreds of smaller entities, were banded together under the imperial banner. This collection was held together by the electors and their support of particular emperors. For more than half a millennium this structure held fast despite the various wars and crusades that constantly racked the continent. Now in the sixteenth century this was about to end. The outbreak of protestant theology across fully half of the Empire caused an undeniable break in unity. Violence broke out almost immediately between different people groups. When the Lutheran princes made their position clear with the confession of Augsburg, going against the will of the Emperor to read it aloud in German, the division was made permanent. War ensued between the different regions of the empire. Protestant armies in the north fought against the rich church estates in the south. Much blood had been spilt already by the Germans in the putting down of the Great Peasant Revolt. Even more was spilt now to retain religious freedom. The Catholic regions wanted to restore church power in the north while the protestant princes were bending the theological issues to their secular ends, using it as an excuse to increase territory and power. This picture was repeated across Europe. Catholics in France fought to extinction the Huguenots, slaughtering them in the streets of Paris. Protestants ran out Catholic in England, only to be defeated by Mary with more bloodshed, leading to more war between Catholic elements in England and the Protestants in Scotland. In Switzerland a bitter struggle was fought between the city-states of different religions resulting in multiple massacres. All nation of Europe was touched by this initial uprising, save Spain and southern Italy.

iii: Devastated Europe

Following these intense battles Europe was exhausted. For decades war had raged between the different religions of Christianity. Finally, as the land was being destroyed, war slowed and eventually stopped. In France the Catholics had been successful, exterminating all of the Protestants, but in Switzerland and Germany Protestants had held their own. In 1552 the Protestants in Germany won a decisive battle, leading to the Peace of Passau and religious freedom for Lutherans. The fighting did not stop yet despite this peace. In 1555 the Peace of Augsburg put an end to the fighting, even as fighting was dying out throughout Europe. The Peace of Augsburg followed the principle that the ruler chooses the religion. Peasants and others were given the right to move to a region which corresponded to their religion during a grace-period. Lutherans could keep captured lands but former bishops had to give up their rights and estates. This peace would settle across all of Europe, leaving a devastated land, one tired of war, but one still steeping, as greater horrors were shortly to come. As the seventeenth century neared, the bounds of peace which wrapped up the continent were beginning to break.