Luther- theme 4

• Did Charles use the wrong tactics to eradicate Lutheranism?
• At the 1521 diet of worms Charles said he was determined to eradicate Lutheranism
• 2 opposing sides:


  • Charles did try to eradicate Lutheranism
  • Charles was hamstrung by circumstances beyond his control
• Charles' attempts to eradicate Lutheranism

  1. 1521- he declared luther an outlaw by the edict of worms

  2. 1520s and 1530s = he repeatedly requested that the pope call a council to address the prince's 102 grievances

  3. 1530 at Augsburg, 1541 at Regensburg = attempted to end the schism

  4. he threatened Lutheran princes and cities with war unless they recanted

  5. between 1546 and 1547, he declared war on the schmalkaldic league – defeated protestant forces at the battle of muhlberg
• Circumstances that hampered Charles


  • Authority was weak – depended on the princes to implement
  • Vast size of his inheritance meant that he had conflicting priorities
  • Had to defend his territories against attacks from the French and the Ottomans = these threats had to be given priority
• There were times when Charles had choice and could have decided to solve the Lutheran problem – instead he decided to pursue foreign interests
• Charles' tactics were also flawed – his decision to rely on a general council to resolve the German situation was naïve – when it was called in 1545 it was too late and focused on eradicating Protestantism
• Charles largely believed that it was possible to reconcile differences between Lutheranism and Catholicism and end the schism by persuading the Lutherans to re-join a moderate catholic fold
• Charles failed to follow through immediately with his threats of war = chose to prioritise other things and made concessions to them
• The failure of negotiations, 1521-1541
• Tactics Charles pursued 1521-1541


  1. He relied on the princes to enforce the edict

  2. He requested the pope call a general council

  3. He tried to negotiate doctrinal compromises between the groups
• In 1521, the princes collectively refused to enforce the edict of worms until the pope called a council to reform the church in Germany and address their 102 grievances
• In 1523, the diet of Nuremberg reiterated their demands for a general council = they were concerned about the financial exploitation, and Rome was practising simony to uneducated people= they wanted to see these problems resolved before they would help Charles
• By 1526, the religious crisis was now causing serious instability and mounting tension in Germany
• Germany was dividing into 2:

  • 5 catholic princes: George the bearded of ducal saxony who had formed the league of Dessau
  • 8 Lutheran princes: John the Steadfast of electoral saxony and Phillip of Hesse had formed the league of torgau
• Ferdinand opened the diet of Speyer in 1526 as Charles was busy with Spain and France – he wanted to enforce the edict of worms against Lutheranism which would eradicate heresy and therefore instability
• The diet of Speyer in 1526 rejected Ferdinand's proposition to enforce the edict of worms
• Reasons the diet rejected enforcing the edict of worms:


  • Some princes had already converted
  • Catholic princes doubted their ability to eradicate Lutheranism peacefully but lacked the means to apply force
  • Applying force would cause civil war and Germany had just emerged from the peasants revolt so there was little appetite for conflict
  • Unity was needed against the Ottomans – can't have the Lutherans not there
• The princes reiterated the view they adopted in 1521 and 1523 – they hoped to undermine Lutheranism peacefully by tackling the issues that had won luther so much support – anti-clericalism and anti-papalism
• The princes now wanted A NATIONAL COUNCIL
• Addressing the causes of anti-clericalism and anti-papalism would not change the doctrinal appeal of Lutheranism
• In the meantime the diet passed the recess of Speyer = said that each prince should enforce the faith 'as he would have to answer to God and to the emperor' = made conversion to Lutheranism relatively risk-free
• The recess of Speyer was proposed because in 1526 the Ottomans invaded Hungary and defeated the armies of king louis of Hungary at the Battle of Mohacs = this meant that the Ottomans were now in reach of the empire = the princes needed peace for a united front against the Ottomans
• The recess of Speyer only had the effect of encouraging closet Lutherans to be more open about their beliefs
• In April 1529, the 2nd diet of Speyer revoked the recess of Speyer and declared the edict of worms compulsory = it also banned Zwinglianism and made it a capital offence for anyone that was found performing adult baptism
• Reasons for the new hard-line approach at the 2nd diet of Speyer:

  • The majority of princes were Catholic and were alarmed at the rapid spread of heresy
• In response, the Lutheran minority withdrew from the Diet= 14 cities and 6 princes published a protestation (where we get the word Protestants) = it declared that the diet had no right to annul a decision.
• Phillip of Hesse feared a Catholic attack- he aimed to negotiate a united front between Lutherans and Zwinglians at his Marburg castle= this failed leaving them in a vulnerable position.
• Ferdinand could not impose the Edict of Worms by force as in May (1529) an Ottoman army was bound for Vienna, they reached it in sep, and the Ottomans retreated after a 3 week long siege= this 1529 Ottoman invasion thwarted Hapsburg attention from the Lutheran problem.
• In 1530 in Augsburg, Charles failed to negotiate with Lutherans as he rejected Melanchthon's Augsburg Confession.
• Charles tried to negotiate again at Regensburg in 1541 as the pope didn't agree to call a general council
• People from both sides were open minded for reconciliation at the Colloquy of Regensburg in 1541
• Charles could no longer fund a military attack on Lutherans- overtaxing had already led to revolt in the Netherlands. Any use of force may also cause civil war which wasn't needed as they needed a united front against the Ottomans so reconciliation was deemed necessary
• Charles had the advantage of using the Phillip of Hesse scandal against the Protestants = he could demand concessions against them
• The Colloquy of Regensburg in 1541


  1. They debated for two months

  2. They agreed on the first 5 of 18 points of the Regensburg book and even bridged the divide over how to achieve salvation

  3. Their doctrine of 'double justification' said that faith was fundamental to salvation and the value of good works depended on that faith (pleased Protestants) but good works were still crucial (pleased Catholics)

  4. Other issues were left uncompromised
• The Colloquy of Regensburg failed when those present could go no further and because Luther and the Pope (who weren't there) refused to accept 'double justification'
• This made up Charles' mind that war on the Lutherans was necessary
• However, Charles failed to follow up on this decision immediately as he granted the Lutherans an 18 month reprieve = he had decided to focus on the damage being done to his Mediterranean coastlands by Muslim pirates based in Algiers = A FAILURE AS THAT COULD HAVE WAITED
• The German princes held great power – 7 of them elected the emperor
• Charles needed the princes' help to tackle Lutheranism as he had weakened his position further by the 1519 cap as he couldn't bring foreign troops into Germany and because he was largely absent