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Course and Causes of the Reformation

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02 November 2021

The Reformation in Europe: Causes, Origins, Course and the Rise of Capitalism

Christianity is one of four religions that are considered Abrahamic, this is to say that they were

guided by Abraham, a symbol of spiritual guidance unified by the identity of a single God. This

single God or energy was known by many different names, his message was passed by ordained

being termed as Prophets. According to Ira M Lapidus, Islam, Judaism and Christianity are

unified by their scriptures, however, they consider different forms of God to be supreme, thus

branching into three distinct forms. The main cause of the conflict was the religious scriptures of

each religion and their interpretations by different groups: The first to experience a split were

Orthodox Judaism and Islam. The second, as stated by the Harvard review on Religion was

within Islam between the Shias and Sunnis, based on sectarian laws, beliefs, practices and

leaders.

Thirdly, was the split between Judaism and Christianity based on the idea of the theological

placement of prophets, angels and planets. The last split to occur was the reformation with the

Catholic Church. The Catholic Church was adopted at the fall of the Roman Empire by

Constantine the Emperor of Byzantium, Rome. He gave up the title of Pontifex Maximus, the

Preist of the Pagan order and adopted Christianity. The Catholic Church was guided by the

original teachings of the Bible in Latin and headed by the Pope. In the Middle Ages, the Church

played a central role in the lives of people. This could be seen in Italian cities such as Pisa, where

a cemetery, a Baptistry, a Cathedral and a bell tower popularly termed as the leaning tower of

Pisa form the centre of the city, a hub of commercial activities and community gatherings. As a
result of this power, the Pope enjoyed sovereignty over several territories known as the Papal

States, from where he collected revenue and controlled the moral life of the individual.

This led to several conflicts between monarchies, newly emerging nation-states and republics at

the beginning of the Renaissance. This led to the reformation, which began in Germany and

swept throughout Europe in the 16th century.

Causes and Origins Behind the Reformation:

As stated by Alister E McGrath, the ideas of the reformation, its root cause is often

overshadowed by its politico-religious and social nature. He went on to enumerate the major

cause of reformation being the clergy itself. This led to a larger call for reform or a change in the

organisation of the Catholic church.

Role of the Clergy. The call for reformation began in Germany, where the absence of clergymen

from their theologically and socially relevant offices led to the mass replacement of the clergy by

the administrative and ruling elite. Grath then goes on to throw light on the important role of the

Church in the middle ages with the example of Pisa. Other than the city of Pisa, Grath points to

the appointment of Duke Amadeus VIII, of Savoy who had his son elected to the Papacy, thus

securing a political and ecclesiastical office, within the same family increasing its sphere of

influence. Another example quoted by scholars is the election of Pope Alexander VI, a man who

was well known for low morals and wielding immense political power.

The morality of the Clergy and Rise of Humanism: Some scholars such as Erasmus and Alberti

treated the Reformation as a plea towards administrative, legal and moral restructuring based on

the ideas of humanism, as defined by Grath as a “ Complex movement involving a new interest
in the cultural achievements of the Antiquity”. In his work on political developments, Niccolo

Machiavelli points out in his chapter An exhortation to liberate Italy from the Barbarians, states

that the lack of moral standards at the level of the Church and Clergy led to the decline of moral

standards within the broader society. This was supported by the political aspirations of the Pope,

thus giving rise to corruption at the highest levels. They imposed taxes on worship such as

Kultunssteuer in Germany or the Tithe in France. A fee also had to be paid for confessions and

other types of duties to ‘purify and protect’ the community.

The Rise of the Educated Middle Class: In the later part of the Middle Ages, as Stephen Lee

points out there was a sharp depopulation, in various regions of Europe, that led to the rise in

wages and an increase in investments in education. This led to the decline in the power of the

Pope, due to the rise of humanism, secularising the nature of the state, this would be to imply, the

separation between religion and state machinery. On picking up the example of Zurich under

Zwingli, scholars have noticed how Protestant reformers allied themselves with civic bodies and

thus distanced themselves from the eclastical universe.

As suggested by Howard Louthan “ fuelled the need to reconstruct a convincing narrative of the

Christian past that could robustly withstand the most rigorous Humanist critiques” The late

Gothic and Early renaissance period saw the rise of the ‘Christian Humanism’ when defined

refers to the ideals and rationality of secular humanism, however, differs in the understanding

towards its separation from the Church. A group of Northern thinkers aimed to associate

Humanism with these ideas originating in Classical antiquity while, for others, the Humanist

approach could be traced to the New Testament of the Bible.

Among these scholars, Erasmus the Prince among humanists pioneered Christian Humanism. In

the view of Erasmus, the Bible did not demand repentance for sins. He advanced a moderate

approach as compared to theologians of the time, who encouraged the levying of taxes as

mentioned earlier. Karl Marx and Engels also throw light on the aspect of the rise of Bourgeoise

to proliferate reformation ideals.

Taking from the work of Friedrich Zimmerman and Munter, Engels explains the role of the

Reformation as a paradigm of sociological factors. This is to say that the reformation was

primarily a challenge to the Catholic feudal order and the spirit of anti-capitalism within the

Biblical faith. This interpretation was echoed throughout the 1970s in the works of Hauser and

Ernest Belfort Bax in their respective works. This interpretation was further detailed by Max

Weber and Emile Durkheim in understanding Calvinism, Protestantism and the rise of Capitalist

economies in Europe.

Course of Reformation

Protestantism spread through the reformation. There is a considerable debate regarding the

reformation as some scholars question the Great Schism. Scholars believe that the Catholic

Church began to centralise and failed to adapt to the feudal order of an anti-Ecclasstical nature,

this adversely affected the Papal revenue system. In nature, the existence of a curial bureaucracy
was a major obstacle to the reformation of the Catholic Church. Criticism against the theological

ideology of the Church was brutally suppressed. People who held such views were often termed

as ‘heretics’. These heretics were often burned at the state or drawn and quartered as an

expression of God’s punishment. Women were often labelled as witches and treated brutally,

often under false accusations. St Francis, Hus of Bohemia and Albigensians called for a revival

of Biblical austerity of antiquity. The heavy payment of sacramental dues also led to a rising

sentiment of anti-clericalism and opposition to the scholastic school of thought s propounded by

Thomas Aquinas. Elton highlighted that in the 16th century, European society was based on

feudatory relationships, that were hierarchical.

This led to the rise of the Bourgeoise, which in turn was controlled by the Church. The city

centres of the reformation emerged due to the active roles of the bourgeoise. However, at the

turn of the century, they were either hostile or indifferent towards the reformation. London,

Antwerp, Paris and Amsterdam.

The sociological explanation is that the reformation reflects the rise of an educated elite over the

spiritual functions of the clergy that were overridden by the administrative ones. This led to the

rise of absolutist monarchies in France, England and Spain won greater power of the church.

Germany

The Reformation took hold in Germany, scholars believed that this was due to the rise of

sacramental taxes, growing poverty. However, as Lee and Burner point out, Germany at the time

was a prosperous nation, that held a large number of resources and a large market share in terms
of GDP. In Germany, two movements took a grip of the society, thus, it can be divided into the

first and second phases of the Reformation respectively.

Lutheranism

In the first phase, Lutheranism spread, between 1519 and 1556. Martin Luther was a monk from

the Bavarian region in the first phase of his clerical career. He critiqued the rise of the worldly

Church and argued along the lined of John of Hus and Wycliffe’s understanding of theology. He

supported the Augustinian scholastic view that was initially proposed by St Augustus, popularly

known as ‘nominalism’ on the eve of the reformation, as explained by William of Ockham and

Gabriel Biel, the nominalist scholars were optimistic about human abilities while other scholars

such as Gregory of Rimini and Hugolino of Orvieto who were relatively pessimistic of the

Human abilities. The two schools within the Augustian school.

These involve the ‘via moderna’ and the ‘schola Augustiana moderna’ the New and Modern

Augustian schools. Hus and Wycliffe further, called for a return of scriptures. While others such

as Erasmus and Savanarola denounced the worldly nature of the Church, especially the immoral

nature of the clerical authorities. Martin Luther believed in reducing the Schism between man

and God, as per the nominalist philosophy. The Bible, thus have to be made available to the

general public, to attain this goal, the Latin Bible was translated by Martin Luther into multiple

languages and weaponised the printing press to spread his message.

The Printing Press by Guttenberg in Germany in the early part of the German reformation

allowed for the printing and circulation of ‘Pamphlets’ among the masses. This gave rise to the

vernacular language, spoken by a small community of people to communicate, that changed

from one German to the other. A good example of this can be seen in Germany: The German

spoken in Bavaria, South Germany, in areas such as Munich is different from that spoken in the

region of Bohemia, heavily influenced by the reformation. Other than this, the mass production

of manuscripts in printed form led to the reduction in prices and resources required to bind, print

and maintain a book. Though, still afforded only by the rising middle class of the society as they

could read, as Burns points out the reading of these Pamphlets at public meetings gave rise to the

popularisation of the Lutheran sect.

Luther gained importance through several public lectures at the Wittenberg University and other

public meetings. He also authored and commented on the 45 doctrine theses, that led to a multi

doctrinal conflict within the reformers according to Helen Parish, this led to the development of

internal factions and regal support to legitimise the sect. Emperors often provided their patronage

as various scholars point out to expand their princely liberties and crown authority.

For Example, Charles V supported Lutheranism from its inception. However, when in 1519 and

1556, it questioned his absolute monarchy, he withdrew support and banished Martin Luther.

While he lost favour in parts of Germany due to the state-imposed exile, Martin Luther gained

support in other dominions of the Hapsburg Empire, West France and the Ottoman Empire.

Scholars such as CS Dixon, however, suggest that this acceptance of Lutheranism was a

compromise reached by Germany and other states to avoid conflict, especially after the

Augsburg Confession of 1530.

In this Confession, Martin Luther confessed to the misrepresentation of theology and he had to

apologise for his actions. ` Of its 21 articles, the first one was that they dissent in no articles of
faith from the Catholic Church. It was used as the basis of the reformation, to prove reformation

as a communion under one kind of people on the priestly class. Succeeding this, the Thirty years

war of 1618-48, that further divided Europe based on a religious sect. This changed the course of

the reformation, in France, Switzerland and Scandinavia. Post the Augsburg Confession, Martin

Luther was supported by local peasantry, especially from West and South Germany, in the latter

part of the 15th and sixteenth centuries.

Another allegation by the Catholics against Martin Luther was that he caused a disturbance in the

Twelve Articles Agreement, according to which, the peasants of Swabia elected to depose their

pastor, an end of feudalism and small tithes, a release from serfdom, free access to natural

resources i.e. fish and game animals, the investigation and release from tenurial services, new

rent assessments based on measurement and production rather than being pegged. Law would be

separated from religion, return to expropriated common fields, abolition of the death penalty and

‘Divine Law’.

This was supported by Martin Luther as a return to the scriptures, rise of Lutheranism. The

Lutheran view led to the consolidation of the sect with the peasants and the lower classes of

Germany. However, his identification with the peasants further labelled him as a revolutionary

for challenging what the Catholics saw as the divinely ordained social order. The Evangelical

Church also posed a challenge to the Lutheran order. Luther was in an advantageous position if

he could join the Anabaptists. However, some scholars suggested that he avoid this route as a

moral decision to stand alongside the peasants.

1525, marked the year when Lutheranism was well established within the European continent.

The Holy Roman Empire began to disintegrate due to internal administrative confrontation and

external factors and threats from newly emerging empires. This also set a new precedent that

while Catholicism was tolerated in the Lutheran States such as Denmark, Saxony, Brandenburg

etc. Lutheranism was not to be tolerated in Catholic states such as Spain, Hapsburg Empire.

The Diet of Augsburg was called by Charles V, to reconcile the differences between the

Catholics and Protestants. The Schmalkaldic League supported the Lutherans, risking war with

the Catholic empire, which was powerful and large. However, in 1541, Charles V failed in this

endeavour of reconciliation. The position of the German Protestants was strengthened due to

Luther’s efforts, the thirty years war and Ecclesiastical reservation led to the support of

Lutheranism by the Calvinists of France.

The Lutheran movement was a pioneer against the Catholic church. Especially in Scandinavia

and some other parts of Northern Europe. This was for a variety of reasons, firstly, he was

opposed to the Catholic Church that was the conservative part of the nation. Secondly, after the

failed reconciliation of the Lutheran sect, as opposed to the idea of the unified Church. Thirdly,

the idea of the distinction between the centre and Church in terms of authority and power. They

were also opposed to Luther’s views on the Augustinian doctrine. Martin Luther was also

opposed to the idea of political progression and democratic movements.

 Anabaptism

In the latter part of the Lutheran movement, it was said to be the radical off-shoot of the

movement. They were part of the radical reform movement, they went in an opposite direction to

the Lutheran movement in their approach. This is to say that they introduced new processes

within the old institution, thus changing it completely, as opposed to Lutheranism that

maintaining the premise of the faith, updated its approach to doctrines.

The most striking feature of the Anabaptist movement was their position opposed to the Baptism

of infants, a step considered crucial to the Christian faith. In their process of radical reform, they

posed a challenge to an already weakened protestant movement, causing a schism between the

Lutherans and Calvinists.

The Anabaptists suggested that the Church was a ‘voluntary association of worshippers, this was

said that they were not bound by a common cause or sentiment as portrayed by Lutheranism.

They were considerably more puritanical in their approach towards the religion, thus they

opposed any kind of ornamentation in architecture or in language as it caused a diversion from

the cause of God. They led the Church with an iron-clad control on their members and set an

example by multiple martyrdoms. Though they were often martyrs, their philosophy was

primarily, a non-violent one, this implied that they opposed the use of the sword or public office

to reach an objective. Conrad Gabrel in Zurich, was from a higher social class, than the

movement in general. Most scholars point out that the Anabaptists were largely from the lower

classes of society and rose out of oppression and poverty. Due to their background, many of them

felt that private property was a social evil and regarded communal property such as common

lands as a socially acceptable practice.

The Anabaptists further split into smaller groups as a result of the peasant wars, thus becoming

less socially acceptable in terms of acceptance and strength. In the Netherlands, the Anabaptists

were divided into the Mennonites under Menno Simons, who organised the Anabaptist

movement in the Netherlands in line with the Lutherans and Calvinists. They relied largely on

the old testament and were opposed to the idea of private property and polygamous marriages.

Anabaptism, further split into factions under John of Leyden and Thomas Muntzer, as a result of

the Munster rising. They were treated with a high degree of suspicion and hostility by

communities due to their extreme views on the level of reforms, often being killed or drowned

throughout England and Europe.

However, they emerged during the struggle for a semi-democratic government in England,

headed by George Fox, commonly addressed as Quakers, in the seventeenth century, these

religious leaders spread to the United States of America as prisoners and went on to become one

of the most influential parts of the American social fabric.

Switzerland

Though, largely unaffected by the violence or conflict within the reformation, Switzerland was

the basis of Zwinglian ideology. It is important to note that Zwingli was separate from the

German Reformation movement, this implies that he was neither Lutheran nor Anabaptist.

However, he failed in his attempt to remain non aligned due to the nature of this conflict and had

to propagate the religion along sectarian lines, either Protestant or Catholic. Within the emergent
Protestant faith, Zwingli aligned himself with the Lutherans. The impact of his short movement

was as some scholars suggest nothing short of a revolution. He, Ulrich Zwingli has been

described as a humanist by many of his contemporaries, his ideology matched that of Erasmus

and other early humanists at their core.

To Jean Wirth, Zwingli was an acculturative reformer, who depended upon the support of the

elite in society to impose a rigorous reform movement. He went on to assert that Zwingli’s

sphere of influence only broadened in 1523. The Reformation of Switzerland was concentrated

in and around Zurich as a result of Zwingli’s activities. However, it led to the reduction in

monastic charity while monasteries themselves were converted into schools, hospitals and other

buildings for communal welfare. The authority of the Bishop also decreased significantly, as the

powers of administration and judiciary were passed from the Church to a civic body assigned for

these conflicts.

There were many similarities between the Lutheran and Zwinglian movements that came to be

recognised after the murder of Zwingli at the Battle of Kappel in 1531. They both rejected the

ritual aspects of the Church and called for a revival of scriptural practices. The two leaders, it is

recorded met at Marburg in 1529, to unify and strengthen the reformation. Zwingli also carried

the idea of the Lord’s Supper and the Brotherhood of reformation thinkers, similar to Luther.

Other than Zwinglianism, the Church of Geneva in Switzerland, followed Calvinist practices,

thus is to imply, they placed man at the centre of the Church and adopt a humanistic approach.

This was the model for other nations including the Netherlands, Scotland, Poland, Bohemia etc.
The course of Calvinism, Outside England

John Calvin was a Protestant leader, who trained and educated at the Genevan Academy in 1559.

It was his strong conviction that France would someday emerge as a truly ‘Christian Nation’. By

this, he implied the removal of ostentatious ritual ceremonies, with the Pope at the centre and

return to the Scriptural purity preached by the Protestant leader. He established the idea of

Calvinism that refuted the idea of sacred images and sculptures of Saints, Jesus and the Apostles.

He, however, accepted the idea of the Lutheran views, as a whole. Calvinists also opposed arts in

all its forms, music, art and architecture.

France

France saw many different theological movements throughout the course of the reformation.

However, the most powerful stream of Protestant thought was Calvinism. It was opposed to the

Ruling class, who were the Bourbon dynasty, at the time associated with the Hapsburg dynasty

and thus within the Catholic Holy Roman Empire.

Protestantism was a late arrival to France, the french protestants were termed as Huguenots

emerged as a politically inclined and active group of reformers. The politically active role of the

Huguenots, led to the Concordat of Bologna, under which the Papacy provided some concessions

to the French monarchy. The King was appointed the head of the Church of France and could

appoint bisops according to his judgement. It also placed a mechanism to make the clergy

accountable to the king. Along with that, the Concordat also allowed for state-church relations, ie

the fixing of the state and the Church for taxation and funding purposes. Later, this fabric would

lead to two different taxes on the French, the Tithe and Tailles, resulting in an overexploitation of

the serfs and eventually leading to the French Revolution. As Greengrass points out, there was a
clear relation between the Protestants and rebellions that have shaped the course of French

History. Due to its reverential nature, Calvinism took root in the French nobility and aristocratic

classes, while the Huguenots, constituted a tenth of the serf population.

From 1559-1685, the french region was under a relatively weak monarch, Catherine de Medici,

the widow of Henry de Valois popularly known as Henry II, who was killed during a jousting

accident. The Religious Wars, were an an ideological set of conflicts between the Catholics and

Huguenots. The Queen attempted to broker peace between the warring sides by approaching the

Bourbon Family and the Guis Family, however, failed due to ideological differences. The Edict

of Nantes, issued by Henry of Navarre, finally brought ensuing peace as the Protestants were

granted limited tolerance in France. However, this was not due to religious factionalism alone,

but weak monarchy and powerful aristocracy.

Other Regions

In the regions of the Netherlands, Calvinism spread due to the interaction of French traders. The

links were strengthened by the commercial activities and those of guilds. Further, the proximity

of the Dutch to the Lutheran centres led to the rise of Calvinism in the Netherlands. In Germany

too, Calvinism was the successor to the Lutheran reformation. Due to the trade links between

these regions and the rise of a German speaking aristocratic rule, Calvinism gained traction in the

regions of Poland, Bohemia, Lithuania and Hungary. Calvinism also led to the rise of the

Presbyterians of Scotland the Dutch reformed Church.

Presbyterians

The Calvinist movement of France was supported in the highlands of Scotland by the Stuarts.

Mary Queen of Scots, was born in England, however, was brought up in Calvinist France and her
son, Edward VI, of the Stuart dynasty, patronised Patrick Hamilton and gave rise to the

Presbyterian sect of the Calvinists. However, preacher Charles Beaton was burnt at the stake for

his preachings that were seen as blasphemous in their nature as they supported the Calvinist

anti-idolatry movement. However, another preacher John Knox was considerably more powerful

than the earlier set of preachers. He played a crucial role in fermenting and consolidating a

rebellion against the existing order.

England

The English reformation was the direct outcome of temporal power. It has been the sole debate

among historians and theologians alike. To GR Elton and Peter Clark, the English Reformation,

in its first phase, was a political manoeuvre and thus, dissimilar to the Lutheran reformation of

Germany or the Calvinist reformation of France. However, AG Dickens and Claire Cross point

out that the reformation was not only linked to temporal power but also to the activity of the

Lollards in the period contemporary to Wycliffe.

They opposed the ideas of miracles and magic executed by Jesus Christ. It was Colette and

Linacre point out the role of Christian Humanism as compared to Secular Humanism regarding

the reformation.This close scrutiny of the Reformation’s ideology led to the development of in

words of Arvind Sinha, an atmosphere of academic critique. The tree of Commonwealth, a book

dating back to 1510, led to a call for reformation. Further, Thomas More, Stephen Gardiner and

Edward Fox called on the Pope Clement VII, in order to narrow the developing schism within

the Church, especially with the rise of England. Another school of scholarship believed that the

Protestant reformation of England was imposed for personal gain, but was contradictory in the

nature of state, as Henry VIII himself was opposed to the ideas of Martin Luther.
However, it was in the annulment of his marriage with Catherine of Aragon. In order to allow a

divorce, he moved the Parliament for the Reformation act of 1534, this Parliament was dubbed

the reformation Parliament for its role of ratifying this role. It was passed under the guidance of

Oliver Cromwell, who was know for his revolutionary temperament and actions. He rallied the

Parliamentarians against the Catholic order by recounting the miseries, losses and the harsh

treatment of the Church for sins. HE thus passed the ‘Six Articles of Faith’ that broke England

away from the Church of Rome and enstated Henry as its leader. AG Dickenson however,

highlights that the break away for the cause of divorce was neither supported by the Protestant

Church and neither did it smoothen its existence.

After the death of Henry VIII, there was a power vacuum as the head of the Church of England

as well as the king was dead. He did not leave any immediate successors. His son, still a minor

may have ruled under the shadow of a regent, however, nobles worried about the fate of the

Church. Henry’s two daughters Elizabeth and Mary, were suitable successors however, at the

time not acceptable as one’s mother was divorced and the other killed.

Edward VI was made King, however died due to illness a few months later. In his will, he

removed both his older sisters as they lost their royal lineage due to the fates of their mothers.

Instead he chose Lady Jane Grey as the Queen of England. However, Jane Dudley proved too

weak for the Elizabethan forces who ceased the throne after a short power struggle. Her reign

was marked by open conflict between the Papal states and Spanish Army. This posed a threat to

the Tudor line, thus, she was instructed for a marriage alliance with Spain for the strength and

survival of the Tudor dynasty.

It has been recorded by court historians, that she refused as this would curtail the freedom of the

English people and cause a situation of colonisation and a puppet government. Some scholars

have suggested that the failure to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict led to the invasion of

the Spanish Armada, while others suggest that it was the Spanish conquest of colonisation and

new territories that led to the invasion of England. Queen Elizabeth was victorious and was

treated like a hero. However, the domestic challenge to the Church also posed a significant

hurdle to establish peace within the Kingdom. She however, took no decisive action on the

matter and on her death, in the absence of an heir the Stuart Kings of Scotland took over

England.

As discussed earlier on, Scotland was heavily influenced by Calvinist ideals and thus, the

Anglican Church for a brief period stepped away from Anglicanism in terms of tolerance and

doctrinal diversity. Instead, they adopted a simpler and restricted existence. Popularly known as

Puritanism, the Church denounced all forms of art, thus refusing to patronise artists, scholars,

and authors.

This adversely influenced the literature of the phase. It is worth highlighting that the Globe

theatre was shifted across the river Thames in the Puritanism phase away from the centre of

London. This had been done earlier in the reign of Elizabeth I, for safety concerns especially

after the great fire. However, it was done to drive away sin in Puritanism .

They also imposed prohibitions in order to maintain control on individuals. The Puritans played

a crucial role in governance and administration, thus moving away from the ‘secular’ humanist

perspective of the early Reformation period. The Stuarts were succeeded by George I who

established the House of Hanover. The Hanoverians were Protestant and so were the succeeding
house of Saxcouthburg and Gotha, that was renamed the House of Windsor in 1917, after the

First World War. Christopher Hill suggests that religion has played an important role in the

English succession in order to claim and later consolidate the position of the King. However, it

was the Anglican Church settlement of 1559, that led to peace between the Catholics and

Protestants of England.

CONCLUSION

The Reformation was followed by the Counter Reformation, a movement that aimed to challenge

the grounds of criticism offered by the reformers. Especially, the allegations of institutional

denegration and corrupption within the ranks of the Church. It called for an internal regeneration

or rebuilding. This movement of the Counter reformation was led by Spain, an unshakeably

Catholic Nation, the two primary leaders were : firstly, Jimenaz de Cisneros, who spread his

message through gospel and hymns. He approached the counter reformation with a combination

of Humanism and Piety. In the opinion of NS Davidson, the Council of Trent met with an agenda

to strengthen Catholicism and ban the activities of the Protestants.

The second leader of Ignatius Loyola, his approach to the counter reformation was diverse from

Cisneros’ as he relied on prayer and service to the poor and needy around him. They set a

twofold objective of the Counter reformation: firstly, to eliminate the evils that had led to the

reformation at the turn of the century, ie, eliminate the worldly nature of the Church. Secondly,

Initiate a process of spiritual and materialistic regeneration of the Catholic Church.

 The Counter Reformation, however, could not undo the effects of the Reformation that had

swept through Europe. The results of the reformation, can broadly be categorised into :

(a) Cultural and Educational Reforms: The Cultural evidence of the Reformation was most

evident in the shift of architectural styles. The Middle Ages saw the Gothic style of

architecture that was characterised by sharp arches, spires and stained glass panels, each

of which told a story from the Old testament of the Bible. Architecture scholars such as

Lucy Worsley throw light on the aspect that these stained glass panels were cautionary

tales for the unlettered masses who could see the fearsome images of those who

committed sin. This style originated in France in 1192 ( 12th century), a textbook

example of this type of architecture was the Cathdral of St. Denis, Notre Dame etc. It was

known for its imposing and large structure that was often supported by a fan-vaulted and

interlocked ceiling.

The Reformation saw the extravagant interiors of many of these Gothis Cathedrals being

white washed and ornate decoration being removed in order to reveal a simpler

Romanesque architecture, that was influenced by the ideas of the Classical antiquity. An

example of this type of architecture is St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, England. The

Dome of the Cathdral was influenced by the dome of Brunellechi situated in Florence,

that adorns the Cupula de Santa Maria del Fiore.

The evolution in the styles of architecture also threw light on the change in people’s

thinking, especially in the context of magic, Black Magic, Wizardry and Witchcraft.

Magic was considered to be healing, when used for the correct causes and could curse the

life of an individual or control them when used for evil. A Witch, was a woman magician
who was treated with suspicion and came to symbolise the superstitious mentality of the

masses. Who, often used terms such as Magic and the Will of God to explain the

misfortunes they may have suffered for example, floods, plague, drought etc. In England

especially, under the protestant, Catholics were targets of ‘Witchhunts’, killing innocent

civilians, while under Catholic rule, Protestants suffered a similar fate. Many renaissance

Historians suggested a startling static that more than half of the people prosecuted for

witchcraft and Black Magic were women. They were paralyse by a set of fears and

anxieties as per Caro Baroja.

Jeffrey Burton Russell in his anthropological study mentions that the ideas of witchcraft

and wizardry were Pagan and pre-Christian notions that were translated into Christian

Europe. Cohn, however, points out that the idea of Black magic was not that of

PreChristian Europe, but was a fear placed in the minds of the people by the clerical class

in order to gain control over them. Matthew Hopkins assets that Witcraft has a German

origin while, Bouvot suggests that it had a French origin. Though debated, the idea of

witchcraft and wizardry continues to baffle historians and laypeople alike for its many

implications.

In the period of the reformation, Music and Literature especially plays became important

tools of communication in the more moderate pockets of Protestantism. New forms of

Music such as the Sonata, Opera and hymns began to be composed for performance in

Church, public squares and Musical Theatres. Especially in Germany, Italy, parts of

France till the rise of Calvinism and England in the 18th and later 19th centuries.
 In terms of literature, the depiction of crusades, the image of King Arthur, the white

Stallion, Knights, Musketeers, traders, storms (tempest) and utopian fantasies became

popular stories of Holy wars and conflict became more popular in the collective memory

and imagination of the masses. Echoes of similar themes can be seen in the works of

William Shakespeare, in his works The Tempest, Merchant of Venice, Taming of the

Shrew etc. While Alexander Dumas, focuses on the tales of musketeers and more crusade

like themes.

In terms of Art, the depiction of people and life became more animated, less biblical and

turned towards realism. An example of this can be seen in the works of Reformation

artists such as Jan Van Eyck, who though they painted people, they lacked perspective,

the play of light and shadow and changing facial expressions. HOwever, in the works of

painters such as Vermeer, the interaction of light and shadow, linear perspective and other

such concepts are visible. This is because art was no longer to hold a merely sacred

message but by being commissioned by patrons, it was an article of pleasure and

represented an aspect of their life.

In terms of education, the Protestant reformation gave rise to the Jesuit missionaries,

whose role was to spread the message of protestantism, by travelling and preaching their

message to various parts of the world. The Jesuits often used theatre as a tool to create a

lasting impression on the minds of people and aimed to portray Jesus as the main aspect

of life throughout Bavaria and Europe. However, there is reference towards the visit of

Jesuits to India under Mughal Emperor Akbar, that throws light on the sphere of

influence that these individuals may have carried.

 (b) Socio-Economic Outcomes :

The social outcomes can be seen in the rise of the Bourgeoisie, an educated Middle class in

Reformation Europe. It can also be seen in the changing fabric of social institutions such as

Family and Marriage. The institution of Marriage was considered sacred in the Roman Catholic

order as was considered in many other religious practices. This implied that once entered it could

not be broken. Further, it was an obligatory relationship upon two adults, i.e. children above the

age of puberty. These norms were broken by the Protestant leaders who adhered to celibacy and

Henry VIII, during his divorce and the establishment of Anglicanism.

However, in the case of women, the question of social mobility was limited. It is recorded that

Martin Luther curtailed the rights of women by calling them nails hammered into the wall of a

house, thus bound to it and unable to move. Women were also considered as impure and thus

disallowed from monasteries as they break monastic vows and raise it to the ground. This

narrative was countered by women reformers such as Marguerite of Navarre and MAry of

Hungary.

Although the economic impact of the Reformation has been dealt with at length in the earlier part

of this essay, it is important to point out certain scholars and perspectives that are divergent from

the aforementioned ones. Firstly, MJ Kitch proposes that the ideal hypothesis provided by Max

Weber is flawed as it was based on the flawed notion that the economic development and his

contention regarding Calvinism.ON the contrary, Felix Rachfahl, points out, though largely

agreeing with the understanding of Max Weber that the society was led to capitalism through the

church, thus denounced the theory as being too narrow. HM Robertson, highlighting inter

religion trade of Classical Antiquity, goes on point out the factual omission by Max Weber in
calling the emergence of capitalism, Christian in nature. Lujo Brentano and P. Gordon Walker in

their respective theses claim firstly, that Weber narrowly defined the essence of capitalism,

missing its broader connotations and secondly, discussed the role of inflation and the industrial

revolution almost two centuries later. Lastly, Stephen Lee and E Geoffrey, ascertain that Firstly,

the Calvinists were too small and isolated in terms of ideology that their outreach would have

been reduced. Secondly, thus these two aspects could not be connected and presented as a

continuous narratives.

(c) Political Outcomes :

The Political aftermath of the Reformation could be seen in the nature of states and the theory of

Kingship. Initially, states were under feudal vassalage systems, that were a decentralised form of

governance. However, after the breakdown of Feudal Vassalage as a result of transition, the

theory adopted was that of an absolutist monarchy. Gianfranco Poggi points out that an increase

in the rate of commercialisation, increased cash flow and a rise of the educated burgeoisie class

led to the development of the absolutist monarch. This was a peculiar development to Western

Europe that was aided by central governance structures. Absolutism was also strengthened by the

‘vertical imposition of culture’. It is highlighted by Otto Hintze, that Absoutism was primarily

effected by the geographical location, social and economic relations and diplomatic relations

with other nations. This while some went onto Absolutism, others such as England moved

towards demcratisation. Another determining factor, especially to Tilly is the economic resource

investment in the bureaucratic structure of the government.

EK Trimberger, Wallerstein, Brustein and other Marxist historians present the view that the rise

of Absolutist monarchies is a direct outcome of the rise of capitalism. While Perry Anderson,

systematically attempts to draw the narrative of social changes with in the society and the rise of

absolutist states. He argues that, “ Absolutism, was a deployed and recharged apparatus of feudal

domination” Political concentration of power thus, led to an absolutist monarchy, replacing one

that relied on the parcelization of power and politico-legal coercion in the favour of absolute

coercion. Further, he gave importance to the revival of Roman Law, in this he saw the rise of the

Roman Empire, that transitioned to Republicanism and used Christianity as a weapon to maintain

sovereignty.

Anderson, expected a similar trajectory for Pre-reformation Europe, however, the reformation

was used a crutch to strengthen the monarchy and gave rise to the absolutist state. Historians

John Martin and Tashele Tibebu, however, dissent Anderson’s understanding on the following

grounds. Firstly, the lack of explanation in the theory of continuity from the phase of

parcelization of power from Anderson. Secondly, Absolutism is not a mechanism to provide for

or promote the connection of production relations and the formation of this governance system.

Thirdly, Martin asserts that Anderson does not account for the feudal crisis in his explanation.

Further, it also fails to account for the diversity between the Eastern and western models of

Absolutism. Anderson’s theory in the long run is considered to be a spoke in the race towards

capitalism, rather than an impeding factor.

Maurice Aymard and other Historians such as Louis Althusser, VG Kiernan and Boris Porchnav,

point out firstly, that, territorial expansion was an impeding factor in the development of

absolutism, secondly, it was a mechanism important to dominate the powerful feudal lords.

While the third and fourth perspectives account for, absolutism and feudalism to be instruments

of mass suppression.

Further, the Reformation resulted in the breakdown of the unity within the Catholic Church into

small factions, each with its own leaders and leading principles. These principles, often

dominated the region that they were prevalent in, thus, resulting in breaking away frm the

Church of Rome and establishing a parallel Church. Each time, withdrawing a source of income

for the Catholic Church, weaking it financially. The financial strain led to the gradual decline of

the Church and rise of regional factions. It has been analysed by many historians that Martin

Luther and Lutheranism was widely responsible fot the opening up and liberalisation of the

European society.

It can be argued that the birth of nation states was in the reformation. It was the reformation that

gave the nation states their five characteristic features as it united the masses. Firstly, it gave

many small principalities a unified territory, by shared heritage, that was constructing using local

myths and legends, the shared identity as attached to the reform movement, a shared culture,

belonging to the same Church, locals began to share in cultural activities such as lent and

Christmas, Shared identity as members of a similar community of believers and shared language,

unified by the vernacularisation of the Bible.

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Works Cited

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Machiavelli, Niccolo The Prince Columbia UP, 1998. Print.

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Diarmaid MacCulloch, Reformation, Europe’s House divided

Ralph and Burns. World Civilisations: Their History, their Culture

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Sinha, Arvind. Europe in Transition