Comparing Martin Luther And King Henry VII

The Reformation was a time of change for Europeans in the 16th Century. People’s lives were changed drastically, especially when it came to religion. In fact, many later time periods’ impacts, including the Renaissance, were greatly influenced by the Reformation. The two main figures that had the most influence in bringing about this era of change were Martin Luther and King Henry VII. Even though they both had completely different objectives for this change, these two men had the greatest impact when it comes to the development of life in the 1500s. Many of the events, causes, and effects that took place during the Reformation were in large part due to Martin Luther and Henry VII. The Roman Catholic Church, one of the largest powers of the early

Many of the clergymen, the Pope included, were involved in things that were sins in Luther’s eyes - affairs, gambling, and acts of violence. However, Luther began his steps towards change when he arrived in the Vatican and witnessed a friar named Johann Tetzel convincing peasants to buy indulgences from him. An indulgence was a piece of paper that guaranteed the owner a sure passage to heaven. Luther was appalled and shocked to discover that the Church was selling these indulgences and that the Pope was allowing it! Luther believed that to get to heaven, you needed faith, not some piece of paper that you bought from a friar. It was this that drove Luther to write and post his 95 theses, a list that contained 95 things that Luther believed the Church was at fault for. However, King Henry VII had a