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Reformation And Peasants War

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The Real Relationship Between the Reformation and Peasants’ War After a long period of growing social and religious unrest, situations arose that led to two separate movements, and eventually to changes within Europe. The first of these movements shattered a Latin- Christian religious and ecclesiastical tradition which had endured for over a thousand years within the Holy Roman Empire. The second “shook the social and political foundations of central Europe,” and was the “largest peasant insurrection in European history and the most massive popular rebellion prior to the French Revolution.” (Baylor ix) These movements were very controversial in their beginnings and still are today. One widespread belief is that Martin Luther was directly and …show more content…

Some of the worsening conditions on the peasants included the lords raising the taxes and prices of fees such as rent. As populations grew, prices rose and wages dropped, making everyday necessities much harder to get. Due to the fact that the church was strongly tied into both the economy and government, it would be easy to connect the Protestant Reformation to the peasants’ cause. Which led them to misinterpret Luther’s 95 theses as support, despite Luther’s intentions of only reforming the church. The peasants even stated that the need for a religious change was not one of their main causes. The Peasants’ War began in June 1524 when peasants in Stühlingen refused to fulfill obligations that they regarded as unfair and their protests led to a series of rebellions over the coming months. "They wanted to do away with all human law and be subject to only godly law." (Baylor 35) The peasants eventually drew up a list of grievances and demands for reform, known as the “Twelve Articles,” which became the most widely influential program of the Peasants’ …show more content…

He published the 95 theses protesting against various clerical abuses such as the sale of indulgences. When the Rebellion arose Luther originally said that both sides were wrong and needed to come to a peaceful agreement in “Admonition to Peace: A Reply to the Twelve Articles." Luther later published "Against the Murdering and Robbing Hordes of Peasants," which was his most notorious pamphlet. In this article, he took a strong stance against the peasants and condemned them as traitors who had violated their oaths of obedience. Luther made it clear that he did not condone the rebellion and he was not to be faulted for the peasants misconceiving his works as an encouragement to rebel. Luther also tried to steer the reformation from violence and even took criticism for his harsh words against the

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The peasants disliked quite a few things and in 1524-1526 they expressed the ideas of them being equal with their lords (masters), and to be led and taught about the Lutheran religion. Document One states, “The peasants are blinded, led astray, and made witless.” meaning that they had no guide or source of the Lutheran teachings. The peasants wanted to be with the lords in church to get a proper knowledge of Lutheranism,. However, the lords did not want them to cause trouble in their church

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Luther’s radical new ideas regarding religion excited the peasants of the German states and his ideas stated in documents such as his 95 theses acted as a catalyst for the revolts that erupted in the lower class between the years 1524 and 1526. Peasants believed the cause of these revolts were the mistreatment they received from their lords and ruling princes. Their acts of revolution were largely based on new radical ideas surrounding religion, and some even saw it as God’s will. A third cause cited by the peasants was a need for their release from serfdom.

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The peasant revolts in the German states from 1524-1526 were caused primarily by the extended manipulation of many Lutheran ideals, as well as grievances toward their lords and superiors, while the responses of this revolt were solely condemning of those participating. The compassionate doctrines of the recently introduced lutheran doctrines provided much justification for the Peasant revolts of the 1520’s. Documents one and three demonstrate this idea of Lutheranism. Document one is of Leonhard von Eck, the Chancellor of Bavaria as he reports to the Duke of Bavaria.

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How did the Protestant Reformation shape society in 16th century Western Europe? When looking back at the Protestant Reformation, what caused society to struggle in 16th century Western Europe? The Protestent Reformation changed how people saw religion from the words of the Pope and Council, but also showed how the printing press spread the word of the Bible. The lower levels of hierarchy and the towns outside reach of the Bible were given the word of God and this shaped what is now known as Christianity. From the words of Martin Luther, a German priest, the Pope and Council altered God’s words, but how did this cycle back into the hardships the people faced in these times? Martin Luther, a German priest, author, and professor, brought up a valuable question.

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The peasants viewed this ignorance of their rights as people unacceptable, given their new found of idea of worth, which they interpreted from Luther’s teachings. Such a response from the lords was yet another step towards a revolt, indirectly having been started by Luther inspiring the peasants to want more. The upheaval of peasants against their oppressing social structure is also seen in the French Revolution of the late 18th century. The feudal system had been gradually disappearing in parts of Europe, replaced with early capitalist structures. The peasants living in these parts of Europe had attained a higher

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753 Words | 4 Pages

In the early 1500s there were both economic and religious causes of German peasants revolts along with negative and positive responses to these rebellions. Germany in the early 1500s was fragmented by religion and social class. Revolts among the lower classes became relevant after the Renaissance, the posting of Martin Luther’s 95 theses in 1517, and after the Edict and Diet of Worms in 1521. Since the idea of humanism and the formation of the Protestant branch of religion, the peasants of Germany were dissatisfied with their religious and economic lives which led to revolts. As a result, several world leaders opinionated their different views which consisted of wether the rebellions in Germany were harmful or beneficial to the community.

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The Reformation caused many who were born into lower classes to question the social caste system as Luther had questioned the church, which eventually lead to the Peasant Revolt of 1524. This Revolt spawned The Twelve Articles of the Swabian Peasants, which stated, “It has been customary for men to hold us as their property [as serfs]. But since Christ redeemed us all, it accords with Scripture that we should be set free.” This shows the peasants were slaves of that time as they were “held as property” by the people in power, however, even with the peasants best efforts they were “shut down” swiftly by the lords and princes. At the beginning of the Revolution, Martin Luther gave his sympathies to the peasants, but once the peasants began to pillage, burn, and kill he decided to side with the princes and lords.

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Martin Luther was a german theologian who brought on the reformation by demanding changes in the Catholic Church (“Martin Luther”). Martin grew with a father that was a miner and grew up working and being very religious (“Martin Luther”). One year later he followed out his promise by leaving everything behind and being ordained a monk (Martin Luther, World History Ancient and Medieval Eras). Many people believe Martin spoke badly about the church because he was corrupted by temptation. Martin Luther was ordained a monk in 1507 and did this hopefully find inner peace however, temptation made

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"95 Theses," a paper which spoke against the pope using Indulgences for the Sacrament of Reconciliation. His paper spoke of how the Bible should be the main guide for Christians and that faith rather than good deeds was the way to Heaven. He nailed the paper to the door of the Church, making the topic up for debate. Within years Luther had gathered enough followers to begin their own churches in Germany.

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The 95 Theses, which were courteously written to the Pope, denounced the sale of Papal Indulgences and attracted the attention of German aristocrats who were tired of paying so much to the Church. Due to the printing press, Luther’s 95 Theses were printed quickly and translated into many different languages so that his writing became available and popular throughout Germany. The Pope responded to Luther’s accusations by mandating that Luther recant. Luther then realized that the Church was far more corrupt than he thought, so he announced that the Pope and Catholic Church had been wrong in the past and were wrong again at that time.

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“The Twelve Articles of Peasantry” lists of eleven demands of the peasantry to the ruling nobles about changes they wanted to see in their lives. The articles advocate for fairer treatment and more rights for the peasants. The articles are justified as laying a foundation for Christian scripture and teachings, “as a basis for their doctrine and life.” The articles conclude by saying that, “if one or more of the articles herein set forth shall prove to be out of keeping with the word of God, we shall retract them.” Martin Luther, the leader who began the reformation, wrote a reply to “The Twelve Articles of Peasantry” in his “an Admonition to Peace.”

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134 Words | 1 Pages

Martin Luther, a German professor and monk, made a large impact on society in the fifteen hundreds. His new ideas of Christianity changed the concept of how religion was viewed and practiced in the 16th century. Within his Ninety-five Theses, he questioned the authority of the Roman Catholic Church and brought to light the corruption surrounding the church while stating how Christianity should be practiced in different ways rather than what is being taught. It is important to understand his stances on religion to explain how different groups reacted to his ideas. While some parts of Europe accepted his ideologies into practice, others reject Luther for many different reasons.

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The opposition Luther took against the Church soon had an instant impact on peasants. Individuals began to form opinions on both political and religious fields, but they had failed to interpret the beliefs of Luther correctly.

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1085 Words | 5 Pages

The Protestant and English reformation were both reforms that took place in the 16th century against the Roman Catholic Church. Comparatively these reformations are alike and different in some sense. For example, Two leaders led these reforms and went against the church’s beliefs for different purposes. For personal reasons , King Henry VIII went against the church, whereas Martin Luther knew the church could not offer him salvation amongst other reasons. Before becoming a monk, Martin Luther was once a law student .

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489 Words | 2 Pages

These ideas prompted many Catholics into finally correcting the church themselves and seeking Reformation. Martin Luther became the leading figure of the Reformation because he had openly challenged the authority of the Pope and attacked the practice of indulgences in his “Ninety-Five Theses” letter. Several other prominent Theologians such as John Calvin and Huldrych Zwingli seized upon Luther’s beliefs and Reformation swept across 16th century Europe, leading eventually to

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