Speaker 1: Hello, and welcome to Western civ Episode three hundred and
Speaker 1: twenty nine. The religions of the Empire the Thirty Years
Speaker 1: War is grouped into a series of complex called the
Speaker 1: wars of religion that begin in the mid sixteenth century
Speaker 1: in Europe and persist really until the very end of
Speaker 1: the seventeenth We've seen such wars already in France and
Speaker 1: the Holy Roman Empire, going back to Martin Luther and
Speaker 1: the peasant Rebellion. Certainly, religious tensions are going to be
Speaker 1: a major contribution to the outbreak of war in sixteen eighteen,
Speaker 1: but the link is far from direct. As we will see,
Speaker 1: these wars are complicated and cannot be defined as simply
Speaker 1: Protestant versus Catholic. In fact, the sixteenth century had seen
Speaker 1: far less religious conflict in Central Europe than the Middle Ages.
Speaker 1: But to understand the religious nature of the conflict, and
Speaker 1: certainly there was one, then we need to understand the
Speaker 1: distinct identities of the three major sects in the Empire, Catholicism, Lutheranism,
Speaker 1: and Calvinism. Catholicism stressed the primacy of organization, with the
Speaker 1: Catholic Church as the only competent authority to interpret the
Speaker 1: Word of God for all Christians. Lutherans stressed the primacy
Speaker 1: of doctrine, claiming to free the Word of God from
Speaker 1: being misinterpreted by a church that had lost its way.
Speaker 1: Calvinism stood for the primacy practice, calling for Lutheran's reformation
Speaker 1: of doctrine to be followed by a second reformation of
Speaker 1: life to bring behavior in line with faith. Other than
Speaker 1: the Reformation itself. Nothing to find Catholicism more in the
Speaker 1: late sixteenth century than the Council of Trent, which lasted
Speaker 1: from fifteen fifty four to fifteen sixty three. Trent was
Speaker 1: intended to heal the rifts caused by the Reformation and
Speaker 1: restore one unified Catholic Church.
Speaker 2: It didn't.
Speaker 1: Instead, Trent symbolized a hardening of the Catholic position, a
Speaker 1: recommitment to Catholic life, and a determination to root out
Speaker 1: heresy by any means necessary. The primary secular agents behind
Speaker 1: this transformation were the Habsburg monarchs, both of Spain and
Speaker 1: of the Empire. In fifteen fifty nine, Spain's final military
Speaker 1: victory over France in northern Italy gave it control over
Speaker 1: the territories on either side of the papal states This
Speaker 1: put tremendous pressure on the pope to tow the Habsburg line.
Speaker 1: I doubt that any pontiff forgot that had been the
Speaker 1: Emperor's Catholic soldiers, not Protestant hordes that had sacked Rome
Speaker 1: in fifteen twenty seven. Popes throughout the late sixteenth century
Speaker 1: looked to France and other European powers to counter Habsburg influence,
Speaker 1: with varying degrees of success. Protestant propaganda presented the Thirty
Speaker 1: Years War as a papal crusade, with the Jesuits as
Speaker 1: the storm troopers of the Catholic faith. Officially called the
Speaker 1: Society of Jesus, the Jesuit order had established itself by
Speaker 1: papal decree in fifteen forty, following, of course, the initiative
Speaker 1: by Ignatius Loyola. The Jesuits had a clear mission to
Speaker 1: eliminate Protestantism, which their founder had called quote an epidemic
Speaker 1: of the soul end quote. They would first remove the
Speaker 1: causes of this infection by displacing Protestants and those Catholics
Speaker 1: who would not cooperate from positions of influence, and then
Speaker 1: they would restore the health of Europe by promoting Catholic
Speaker 1: life and doctrine. These tactics were overtly political and set
Speaker 1: the Jesuits apart from other Catholic orders. The Jesuits started
Speaker 1: at the very top of the political hierarchy, believing that
Speaker 1: if they won over a territory's ruler and its elite,
Speaker 1: gradually the rest of society would follow.
Speaker 2: Acting on Loyola's.
Speaker 1: Orders, a Jesuit accepted the post of confessor to the
Speaker 1: King of Portugal in fifteen fifty two, commencing a policy
Speaker 1: of actively seeking these high positions. Protestants saw this as
Speaker 1: a papal conspiracy, quickly fitting the confessors into role of
Speaker 1: evil advisor. But even among the Catholics, order of the
Speaker 1: Jesuits aroused some hostility. The more traditional orders resented the Jesuits,
Speaker 1: who acquired churches, schools, and other assets through these political connections.
Speaker 1: Many were alarmed by their apparent radicalism. A deranged former
Speaker 1: Jesuit tried to assassinate Henry the Fourth in France in
Speaker 1: fifteen ninety four, while another member defended turanicide in a
Speaker 1: book published five years later, and it was easy to
Speaker 1: believe that there were others behind these conspiracies, such as
Speaker 1: the English Gunpowder Plot of sixteen oh five. However, Jesuits
Speaker 1: had to reconcile their counter reformation mission with their hierarchical
Speaker 1: worldview and evolve a distinct approach to their role as confessors.
Speaker 1: They believed that the devil tempted princes to grant concessions
Speaker 1: to the heretics. If this occurred, they would reassure the
Speaker 1: prince that God would forgive him, provided such concessions had
Speaker 1: been only politically necess and that they could be revoked
Speaker 1: at the absolute first opportunity. Such arguments opened the door
Speaker 1: to pragmatism or compromise, might cloud otherwise militancy. It fitted
Speaker 1: the very personalities of the different confessors, who were after all,
Speaker 1: engaged in a very personal relationship with the princes that
Speaker 1: they served. Now, the number of Jesuits in the Empire
Speaker 1: itself had dramatically increased over the years. In fifteen fifty six,
Speaker 1: the year of Loyola's death, there were only one thousand.
Speaker 1: That number was up to sixteen hundred and sixteen fifteen,
Speaker 1: which might not seem like a lot, but it's actually
Speaker 1: out of a number of thirteen thousand worldwide. There were
Speaker 1: twenty two Jesuit colleges in the Rhineland in sixteen eighteen.
Speaker 1: These colleges were the key to Jesuit success. They provided
Speaker 1: the means through which the children I eat sons might
Speaker 1: better themselves of the bourgeoisie. So they were quite popular
Speaker 1: in many regions, and rulers encouraged the expansion of these institutions.
Speaker 1: Yet I should point out that the Protestant Reformation had
Speaker 1: largely curtailed Catholic expansion within the Empire. The habsburg Lands
Speaker 1: were Catholic, as were Bavaria and Laurent, but that was
Speaker 1: about it.
Speaker 2: Now.
Speaker 1: The second faith to consider is Lutheranism. Obviously, the Empire
Speaker 1: had been the focal point of the early Reformation all
Speaker 1: the way through the Peace of Augsburg in sixteen fifty five.
Speaker 1: To be clear, though Luther had wanted to reform the church,
Speaker 1: not create a new one, It only refused papal authority
Speaker 1: when the pope refused to consider his interpretation of doctrine.
Speaker 1: It was the centrality of doctrine, rather than hierarchical authority,
Speaker 1: that set Luther's Church apart from the Catholics. The concept
Speaker 1: that the Word of God came directly from the Bible
Speaker 1: lessened the role of the priest as the intermediary. It
Speaker 1: also prompted Luther to reduce the number of sacraments down
Speaker 1: to two Baptism and Eucharist. Lutheranism spread easily in the Empire,
Speaker 1: especially in the regions that were more autonomous, where rulers
Speaker 1: were free to choose their own faiths. In these regions,
Speaker 1: rulers took over the role formerly held by bishops, thus
Speaker 1: consolidating their own authority. This political leadership was essential to
Speaker 1: the survival of Lutheranism, especially after Charles the Fifth declared
Speaker 1: Lutheran outlaw in fifteen twenty one. Charles's effort to legislate
Speaker 1: the faith of his subjects failed, as we know, and
Speaker 1: the spread of Lutheranism shattered the unity of law and
Speaker 1: religion within the Empire. It entrenched the growing schism within.
Speaker 1: But if Lutheranism was a sort of known quantity, by
Speaker 1: sixteen eighteen, Calvinism was still a new kid on the block.
Speaker 1: Forssam Luther's Reformation hadn't.
Speaker 2: Gone far enough.
Speaker 1: Those seeking this quote unquote Second Reformation became associated with
Speaker 1: the theology of the French reformer Jean Calvin, whose ideas
Speaker 1: spread into Germany after the religious piece of Augsburg. The
Speaker 1: conversion of the Elector Palatine around fifteen sixty gave the
Speaker 1: new movement a boost and helped to ensure that, unlike
Speaker 1: Calvinism elsewhere in Europe, Calvinism in the Holy Roman Empire
Speaker 1: would be led by the princes more than those at
Speaker 1: the bottom of the social pyramid. Around twenty counts and
Speaker 1: minor princes followed the Elector's example by sixteen eighteen, but
Speaker 1: the Landgrave of Hessen sixteen oh three and the Elector
Speaker 1: of Brandenburg sixteen thirteen were the only important rulers to
Speaker 1: openly embrace this new faith. They called themselves the Reformed,
Speaker 1: since the term Calvinist had connotations of being an elie
Speaker 1: legal group. Their aim was to complete Luther's Reformation by
Speaker 1: erraticicating any remnants of papal superstition in both ritual and doctrine.
Speaker 1: The high altar and clerical vestments were banished from Calvinist churches,
Speaker 1: while paintings and sculptures were smashed to demonstrate that these
Speaker 1: cultic objects had no power. Ministers adopted sober academic dress,
Speaker 1: appearing as professionals qualified to preach and teach. Long standing
Speaker 1: elements of doctrine were simply rejected, such as exorcism at
Speaker 1: infant baptism and the concept of the real presence during
Speaker 1: the mass. Calvinists hated the notion that Christ was physically present, since,
Speaker 1: of course, this entailed that his body was being turned
Speaker 1: into excrement as the wine and wafers passed through the
Speaker 1: digestive systems of the congregation. Communion instead was now transformed
Speaker 1: into a commemorative ceremony, while the parishioners shared a man
Speaker 1: around a table and many East Frisians drank beer instead
Speaker 1: of wine. Calvinism also emphasized predestination to an extent far
Speaker 1: beyond any previous Christian group. The concept of predestination had
Speaker 1: been created by Saint Augustine in the fifth century of
Speaker 1: the Common Era, but Calvinism rejected the Catholic interpretation, which
Speaker 1: held only that God might choose some people as elect
Speaker 1: i e. The Saints, but that God did not condemn
Speaker 1: common people to hell. Calvin argued that God was all powerful,
Speaker 1: and not only could God designate the elect and the retrobrate,
Speaker 1: but God definitely did so. Calvin told his followers not
Speaker 1: too dwell on this, but to trust in God and
Speaker 1: to live according to the Ten Commandments. Calvinism spread rapidly
Speaker 1: throughout the latter sixteenth century, but nowhere throughout the entire
Speaker 1: Empire was Calvinism the majority, giving the faith a very
Speaker 1: international flare. There was no geographic center, at least no
Speaker 1: obvious geographic center for Calvinism. It could flourish in one
Speaker 1: principality and be totally rejected next door. The emergence of
Speaker 1: all these new faiths by the later sixteenth century certainly
Speaker 1: suggests that society had become religiously divided. Many aspects of
Speaker 1: life were becoming separated by these invisible lines, even within
Speaker 1: one small community. Nowhere could these differences be more obvious
Speaker 1: than in the keeping of time. Pope Gregory the thirteenth
Speaker 1: decreed that the date should be set back ten days
Speaker 1: on the fifteenth of October fifteen eighty two, and henceforth
Speaker 1: the new year was to start on the first of January,
Speaker 1: not March twenty fifth, in order to bring the calendar
Speaker 1: in line with new scientific calculate relations. The Habsburgs and
Speaker 1: German Catholics adopted the new Gregorian calendar by fifteen eighty four,
Speaker 1: but while Protestant scientists like Johannes Kepler favored reform. The
Speaker 1: clergy rejected anything from Rome at all, and the credulous
Speaker 1: believed that the papists were actually just trying to steal
Speaker 1: ten days of their lives. The discrepancy became obvious in
Speaker 1: the Empire, where Lutherans and Catholics lived together officially since
Speaker 1: the Peace of Augsburg. Nine tenths of the Augsburg population
Speaker 1: were Lutherans, but the peace had made the city formerly
Speaker 1: bi confessional. After extremely protracted negotiations, the magistrates of Augusburg
Speaker 1: imposed the new calendar, but not until fifteen eighty six,
Speaker 1: two years after the Catholics had adopted it. The Protestants
Speaker 1: also continued to observe quote unquote their Sunday, because remember,
Speaker 1: we moved it ten days and went to services in
Speaker 1: churches across the frontier. Still, I think there's a limit
Speaker 1: to these divisions. There were plenty of religiously mixed marriages,
Speaker 1: Protestants and Catholics drank at the same tavern without coming
Speaker 1: to blows. In fact, there's plenty of evidence that society
Speaker 1: was more religiously divided in the early eighteenth century than
Speaker 1: it was in the seventeenth To unpack how religion was
Speaker 1: supposed to work in the Empire. We need to first
Speaker 1: return to the piece of Augsburg in fifteen fifty five.
Speaker 1: What you might find interesting is that the section in
Speaker 1: that peace treaty concerning religion is actually one of the
Speaker 1: smallest sections. Religious reform was just lumped into a larger
Speaker 1: section on imperial tax, quota's, currency regulation, and the operation
Speaker 1: of the courts. Yet the article on religion, Article twenty
Speaker 1: nine did require the emperor to accept the religious provisions
Speaker 1: of treaty, and Ferdinand confirmed it when he became emperor
Speaker 1: in fifteen fifty eight. Now there was no statement on
Speaker 1: any specific doctrine at all. The state was still envisioned
Speaker 1: as broadly Christian, but now not of any one faith. Instead,
Speaker 1: lawmakers intentionally blurred religious distinctions in order to maintain the
Speaker 1: fictional idea of a single Christendom, an idea that had
Speaker 1: long ceased to function in reality. The peace was intended
Speaker 1: to bring Lutherans and Catholics under the same legal framework,
Speaker 1: not the same doctrinal one. In theory, the public peace
Speaker 1: called on the emperor to forswear violence and become a mediator.
Speaker 2: Spoiler alert, that's not going to happen.
Speaker 1: Contrary to popular imagination, the peace of Augsburg never included
Speaker 1: that famous provision about the princes being totally free to
Speaker 1: choose their own faiths. The phrase quote he who rules
Speaker 1: decides the religion end quote only surfaced in the debates
Speaker 1: about the treaty circa fifteen eighty six, but thirty three
Speaker 1: years after the treaty was passed. The other key article
Speaker 1: to remember because it's relevant to the Thirty Years War
Speaker 1: is Article nineteen. Article nineteen fixed the year of fifteen
Speaker 1: fifty two as the year when Lutherans could retain any
Speaker 1: Catholic assets seized up to that point. They could not
Speaker 1: if the asset had been taken after fifteen fifty two.
Speaker 1: The other part of the treaty that undercut the whole
Speaker 1: he who rules decides the religion thing was the inclusion
Speaker 1: of the right for the peasantry to move if they
Speaker 1: did not agree with their ruler's religious preferences. Rulers could
Speaker 1: not find people who left or seize the property, and
Speaker 1: this nifficantly curtailed the ability of secular rulers to push
Speaker 1: the Reformation and to push new faiths. The piece was
Speaker 1: clearly ambiguous and often contradictory, but it would be wrong
Speaker 1: to conclude with other historians that it merely quote put
Speaker 1: a temporary end to open confessional warfare in Germany end quote.
Speaker 1: No major war continued for sixty three years after the peace,
Speaker 1: and even where Central Europeans did come to blows after
Speaker 1: fifteen eighty three, these disputes were totally localized and were
Speaker 1: largely free of the brutality that was accompanying prolonged violence
Speaker 1: in both France and in the Netherlands. Of course, there
Speaker 1: was the fear of the Ottomans, which was one reason
Speaker 1: for preserving the peace, though the Turkish menace spilled over
Speaker 1: in a major war only after fifteen ninety three, which
Speaker 1: we'll get into at a time when confessed tensions were
Speaker 1: growing rather than actually receding. The primary factor behind the
Speaker 1: Peace of Augsburg's longevity was its comparatively satisfactory settlement of
Speaker 1: the religious and political difficulties. Its strength can be seen
Speaker 1: by the fact that it is going to provide the
Speaker 1: basis for the internal settlement at the Peace of Westphalia,
Speaker 1: which is going to finally end the Thirty Years War.
Speaker 1: In terms of how religious conflict drove the Thirty Years War,
Speaker 1: the problem concerns what contemporary forces call the three dubia,
Speaker 1: which sounds like dubious, and it should because it means
Speaker 1: uncertain terms.
Speaker 2: In the treaty.
Speaker 1: The biggest of these dubia or uncertain terms was the
Speaker 1: fate of ecclesiastical lands. Now, these estates, the territories of
Speaker 1: the archbishops, bishops and prelates, had largely escaped incorporation into
Speaker 1: Lutheran territorial churches. Prior to fifteen fifty two, the electors
Speaker 1: of Brandenburg and Saxony were on their way to incorporating
Speaker 1: three bishoprics a piece, but this stemmed from long term
Speaker 1: territorial ambitions pre dating the reformations. The more immediate threat
Speaker 1: actually came from the Catholics. Charles the Fifth himself annexed
Speaker 1: Utrech and asserted protectorates over other bishoprics close to his
Speaker 1: existing territory.
Speaker 2: France seized Metz, Toul and Verdun. Overall losses were relatively.
Speaker 1: Small, considering that the Imperial Church still had three electorates
Speaker 1: and around forty prince archbishops and bishops, as well as
Speaker 1: eighty abbeys and convents. The Catholic character of these lands
Speaker 1: was protected by ecclesiastical reservation, but Ferdinand's separate declaration permitted
Speaker 1: nobles in these territories to practice Lutheranism anyway. Protestant penetration
Speaker 1: of cathedral chapters continued, especially since Lutheran princes and nobles
Speaker 1: were not about to abandon the social and critically political
Speaker 1: advantages that could be gained by service in the Imperial Church.
Speaker 1: The fact that Luther had been prepared to accept the
Speaker 1: idea of Protestant bishops by the fifteen forties provided theological
Speaker 1: underpinnings for all of these princely and what were actually
Speaker 1: secular ambitions to just take over church lands. Luther argued
Speaker 1: that the ecclesiastical reservation was never part of the peace
Speaker 1: since they had objected to it, and it did not
Speaker 1: preclude a Catholic chapter from electing a Protestant as their bishop.
Speaker 1: The Emperor dodged this issue by recognizing Protestants as administers
Speaker 1: rather than acknowledging them as bishops. Basically, we're talking about
Speaker 1: a name game here. The territories remain parts of the
Speaker 1: Imperial Church, and their rulers just exercised any rights over
Speaker 1: them as princes rather than clerics. This prevented complete secularization
Speaker 1: and preserve the possibility that maybe in the next election,
Speaker 1: the territory would return to Catholicism. It also suited the
Speaker 1: Protestants who didn't want to actually annex these lands outright,
Speaker 1: because that could extinguish their distinct representation in imperial institutions.
Speaker 1: If you annexed a bishop brick that formerly had an elector,
Speaker 1: then it wouldn't have an elector anymore, because that district
Speaker 1: wouldn't exist, And that was the problem. Matters are going
Speaker 1: to become pressing in this field only after fifteen eighty two,
Speaker 1: because the number of ecclesiastical territories that fell under Protestant
Speaker 1: administration started to threaten the Catholic majority in the reichs
Speaker 1: Dog and in other administrative units. The secondary of uncertainty
Speaker 1: were all those ecclesiastical properties that were within the territory
Speaker 1: of a Lutheran prince but had not been incorporated into
Speaker 1: territorial church property by fifteen fifty two. Princes were always
Speaker 1: trying to take advantage of these lands and properties in
Speaker 1: some way. Now generally I'm talking about monastic land here,
Speaker 1: just so you know now. And the third issue was
Speaker 1: the subject's religious freedoms themselves. There were more Catholic territories
Speaker 1: with Lutheran minorities than vice versa. Thus, and not surprisingly,
Speaker 1: Catholics believed that Article nineteen meant that rulers could expel
Speaker 1: the centers whenever they wanted, whereas Lutherans interpreted Article nineteen
Speaker 1: as the individual having the right to leave and or.
Speaker 2: Worship as they wanted.
Speaker 1: These questions grew worse in the fifteen seventies as Catholic
Speaker 1: rulers actively worked to stem the growth of Lutheranism within
Speaker 1: their territories. The fundamental problem here with the Peace Treaty
Speaker 1: the Peace Treaty of Augsburg is that it gave Utheran's
Speaker 1: legal equality but left Catholics the political majority. The Emperor
Speaker 1: was seen as a mediator, not an adjudicator, and no
Speaker 1: Lutheran was ever going to appeal to the Pope to
Speaker 1: settle their dispute, so how Lutherans were supposed to deal
Speaker 1: with legal persecution remained a bit of an unknown. The
Speaker 1: Catholic position on the three Dubia was set out in
Speaker 1: fifteen sixty six by Pope Pious the Fifth, who interpreted
Speaker 1: the piece as a tactical, momentary concession the lesser evil
Speaker 1: of toleration to avoid the greater evil of civil war
Speaker 1: at a time when the Ottomans were right outside Christendom's
Speaker 1: eastern flank. This perspective was repeated by Catholic commentators, including
Speaker 1: Pope Pious the Twelfth on the anniversary of the Piece
Speaker 1: all the Way in nineteen fifty five. However, this position
Speaker 1: was open to both moderate and militant interpretations. Some saw
Speaker 1: the piece as a fixed concession that left the Lutheransas
Speaker 1: dissenting minority within a common legal framework. They were to
Speaker 1: be tolerated for the greater good, but they weren't fully equal,
Speaker 1: so they could never be given.
Speaker 2: Additional political rights.
Speaker 1: Many moderates went further, asserting that fifteen fifty five simply
Speaker 1: set limits to Lutheranism, while allowing those who saw the
Speaker 1: they would say, error of their ways to return to
Speaker 1: the full faith. Change was possible in this model, but
Speaker 1: only in the Catholic direction. More militants drew on the
Speaker 1: Jesuit interpretation of the doctrine of lesser equal to argue
Speaker 1: that fifteen fifty five had merely suspended the original ban
Speaker 1: on Luther and his followers, which was pronounced in fifteen
Speaker 1: twenty one. They derived some support for this interpretation from
Speaker 1: Article twenty five that stated that the piece was supposed
Speaker 1: to last only as long until the Theologians could resolve
Speaker 1: their differences to Catholics. These matters had been settled by
Speaker 1: the tried indeed decree of fifteen sixty four. Thus, both
Speaker 1: moderns and militants found support and could see what they
Speaker 1: wanted in the Imperial Law for the claims that they
Speaker 1: were simply following the letter of the law of the
Speaker 1: Piece of Augsburg. Protestants also based their position on the Piece,
Speaker 1: and likewise clung to the hope that Christendom would be
Speaker 1: preserved and that the schism was only temporary. However, to them,
Speaker 1: fifteen fifty five represented the start, not the limit, of
Speaker 1: the project to convince all Christians to embrace Luther's reform.
Speaker 1: Calvinists believed they should be included too, since their faith
Speaker 1: had sprung from the very Confession of Augsburg. Certainly, the
Speaker 1: idea of resistance was present in Catholic thought, but given
Speaker 1: its position as a minority, that impulse was very much
Speaker 1: stronger in the Protestant ideology. Yet, generally speaking, early modern
Speaker 1: European thinkers never supported the idea of armed resistance. The
Speaker 1: shedding of blood was per se against the Ten Commandments.
Speaker 1: Theologians supported the idea that obedience was important and that
Speaker 1: doing so in a tyrannical situation was a test of faith. Lutherans,
Speaker 1: for example, rejected the argument that Saint Bartholomewsday's massacre in
Speaker 1: France had been an attack on all Protestants. To them,
Speaker 1: it looked more like a French domestic political issue. Now
Speaker 1: next week we turn specifically to Austria, which, as the
Speaker 1: home base for the Habsburgs, plays a decisive role in
Speaker 1: the conflict to come. As always, if you've enjoyed the show,
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