Modern World History

Unit 5
Renaissance and Reformation
 Renaissance
A)Crusades led to interaction
between Western (Christian)
and Eastern (Islamic) worlds
1. Western Europeans gained
wealth and knowledge
from Byzantine Empire
2. Knowledge of architecture,
shipbuilding, sailing and
philosophy
 Renaissance
B) Exposure to Muslim culture
led to changes in European
culture
1. Europeans produced items
such as pasta, paper, colored
glass
2. Intellectual studies
influenced by translations of
ancient Greek philosophical
and scientific work
 Renaissance
B) Exposure to Muslim
Culture
3. Theologians used
the work of Aristotle
and other philosophers
4. Advancements in
medicine were
influenced by new
learning
 Renaissance
C) Humanism
1. School of thought that
examined the works of
ancient Greece and Rome,
and emphasized the
importance of humans and
their values (as opposed to
scholasticism or following
the teachings of the Catholic
Church)
 Renaissance
C) Humanism
2. Started in Italy (primarily as
an elitist movement), spread
to Germany, Spain, and
England
3. In Germany it became
Christian humanism focused
on the direct reading of the
Bible rather than rely on
Church interpretation
 Renaissance
C) Humanism
4. Famous humanists
include:
• Francesco Petrarch
(father of humanism)
• Giovanni Boccaccio
who wrote the
Decameron
 Renaissance
Essential Knowledge
• What is humanism and how did it
impact Western Europe?
• What individuals were the leading
forces behind humanism, and how
did each contribute to its
development and spread?
STOP
 The Protestant Reformation
A) Causes
1. Corruption in the church
led people to mistrusting
its leaders
• Materialism/consumerism
of clergy
• Simony or the sale of
Church appointments
• Sale of indulgences (buying
forgiveness)
 The Protestant Reformation
A) Causes
2. Kings resented the
power that church
leaders had in their
countries
• Had power in civil
matters
• Had power through
taxation
 The Protestant Reformation
Essential Knowledge
• What factors led to the emergence of
the Reformation movement?

STOP
 The Protestant Reformation
B) Martin Luther (founder of the
Protestant Reformation)
1. Lutheranism

• 1517 protested corruption in church

(indulgences)
 The Protestant Reformation
B) Martin Luther and Lutheranism
• Excommunicated from the church for
refusing to recant his beliefs
• Followers adopted the Lutheran faith
based off of his teachings
 The Protestant Reformation
C) Luther inspired other Protestant
Reformers
1. Ulrich Zwingli of Switzerland
who promoted no official
change of religion, Bible is the
supreme authority not the pope
2. John Calvin of Switzerland
promoted Calvinism a stricter
interpretation of the Bible
3. John Knox of Scotland inspired
by Calvin
 The Protestant Reformation
Essential Knowledge
• What contributions did Martin
Luther, Ulrich Zwingli, John Calvin,
and John Knox each make to the
Reformation?

STOP
 The Protestant Reformation
D) Political changes in the HRE
1. Inspired German
nationalism
• German princes rebelled
against Holy Roman
Emperor Charles V
• 1530 Charles V calls the
Imperial Diet to halt the
spread of religious division
 The Protestant Reformation
D) Political changes
• 1555 Peace of Augsburg issued
to stop religious wars
1. Establishes religious
toleration
2. Allows the ruler of the state
to choose the religion
3. HRE states (princes) gain
autonomy
 The Protestant Reformation
Social unrest
• Harsh economic
conditions led peasants
to revolt across Europe
in the 14th and 15th
centuries
• Nobility, clergy, and
middle classes paid
little or no taxes
 The Protestant Reformation
Social Unrest
• German Peasants’ War
1525
1. Crop failures led
German peasants to
revolt
• Peasant’s sought an end to
death taxes, new rents,
and noble seizure of
village common lands
 The Protestant Reformation
German Peasants’ War
1525
2. Martin Luther originally
supported the movement
• He saw it as bringing
social, economic, and
political rights to all
citizens of Germany, free
from the Catholic Church
 The Protestant Reformation
German Peasants’ War
1525
• Encouraged the nobility
to suppress the rebellion
after peasants turned
violent (more than
100,000 die)
• Power of the nobility
strengthened as a result
 The Protestant Reformation
Essential Knowledge
• How did Martin Luther impact
German politics and nationalism?

STOP
 The Protestant Reformation
E) Creation of the Church of
England (Anglican Church)
1. King Henry VIII
• Pope Clement VII denied
him a divorce from
Catherine of Aragon
(daughter of Ferdinand
and Isabella of Spain)
 The Protestant Reformation
E) The Church of England
1. King Henry VIII
• Henry VIII created the
Church of England
• Gains greater political control
• Took over Catholic Church
holdings in England makes
him wealthier and allows him
to reward loyal nobles
 Henry VIII handouts Questions
1) Describe the relationship
between Pope Leo X and Henry
VIII when he was a young man?
2) Why did that relationship
deteriorate?
3) What was his response (what
did he create and why did he
create it?)?
4) Why did Henry execute the
majority of his wives? Why did
this prove to be a mistake?
 The Protestant Reformation
E) The Church of England
• Edward VI continued to
support the Church of
England
• Mary I (daughter of
Catherine of Aragon) tried to
reestablish the dominance
of the Catholic Church
 Why is each significant? Write your answers down on
a separate sheet of paper!
1) The crusades when speaking of the Renaissance
2) Socrates, Plato, Aristotle when speaking of the Renaissance
3) The 2 types of Humanism
4) Who was Machiavelli?
5) What was Protestant Reformation?
6) List several types of corruption exhibited by the church.
7) List 2 causes of the Protestant Reformation.
8) Who was Martin Luther?
9) Who was John Calvin?
10) Peasant Revolt
11) Henry the VIII and the Church of England
12) Mary I (daughter of Catherine of Aragon and Henry VIII)
13) Elizabeth I (daughter of Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII)
 The Protestant Reformation
E) The Church of England
• Elizabeth I reverted to
Protestantism, strengthened
Anglican Church, took decisive
action against catholic plots staged
against her and defended England
against the Spanish to preserve
Protestantism
 Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

A) French Religious Wars (1562-1598)

1. Wealthy French influenced by
Calvinism convert, call themselves
Huguenots
• Popular Calvinism manifested itself in
iconoclasm (destruction of religious
relics) which led to further unrest
between Catholics and Protestants
 The Protestant Reformation
F) Catholic Reformation/Counter-
Reformation
1. The Council of Trent 1545-
1563
• Reaffirmed basic doctrines of
the Catholic Church
• Prohibited abuses (simony and
indulgences)
 The Protestant Reformation
1. The Council of Trent
• Required that the clergy
reject materialism and
subscribe to a simpler life
• Index of forbidden/ listed
books Catholics were not
allowed to read including
the Protestant bibles
 The Protestant Reformation
G) Results of Protestant
Reformation
• End of religious unity
in Western Europe
• Increasing number of
religious/civil wars
• Increase in the
strength of civil rule in
Western Europe
 Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

A) French Religious Wars

2. Civil War
• Weak Catholic monarchy sought to suppress
the growing power of the Huguenots
• Saint Bartholomew’s Day Massacre (Aug 24,
1572): Thanks Charles IX 
• Thousands of Protestants killed sparking a
15 year civil war
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

Essential Knowledge
• What factors led to the French Wars
of Religion?

STOP
 Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

A) French Religious Wars

3. Stability of the crown
becomes more important
than religion
B) Henry IV becomes king
• He was a protestant leader
who converts to
Catholicism for the sake of
peace (and his life)
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

A) Henry IV becomes
king
• He is considered a
politique (a religious
moderate who
believed only a
monarchy could save
France)
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe
A) Henry IV becomes king
• He issues the Edict of Nantes 1589
ENDS THE FRENCH WARS OF RELIGION!
• This is a peace offering to Huguenots
• Grants religious toleration
• Does not end political disenfranchisement (later
revoked)
• French monarchy moves towards absolutism under
Henry’s successors
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

Essential Knowledge
• How did the reign of Henry IV show
the importance of politics over
religion?

STOP
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

B) Territorial conflict in Europe

1. Rise of Austria and Prussia
• HRE weak after Peace of Augsburg
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

B) Territorial conflict in Europe

1. Thirty Year’s War (Religious aspect)
• Catholic Emperor Ferdinand (Austrian
Hapsburg) tries to dominate the Protestant
states of the HRE—successful in 1st half of
war
• Armies took advantage of peasants
• King of Sweden supported Protestants
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

B) Territorial conflict in Europe

2. Thirty Year’s War (territory and
religion) (1618 to 1648)
• Emperor was trying to take over more
land for the Austrian Hapsburgs
• Neighboring countries intervened with
the hope of gaining land
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

B) Territorial conflict in Europe

3. Thirty Year’s War (Power)
• France sided with the Protestants
even though the king of France was
Catholic in order to weaken the
power of the Austrian Hapsburgs
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

B) Territorial conflict in Europe

4. Thirty Year’s War (Conclusion)
• The Peace of Westphalia was the
first modern state treaty
• All nations of Europe has an equal
right to negotiate with others
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

B) Territorial conflict in Europe

4. Thirty Year’s War (conclusion)
• HRE (Germany) lost 4 million people
• Economy was ruined
• HRE weakened while Austria and Prussia
gained power
• France became one of Europes most
powerful nations
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

France under Louis XIV 1638-1715

• Powerful monarch
• Goal was to expand France’s borders
• Tried to seize land from neighboring
states
• Won battles early causing more desire
for land
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

France under Louis XIV

• European nations joined together to
stop France 1680
• France suffered financial, social, and
political costs
• Citizens suffered from high taxes and
poor harvests
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

France under Louis XIV

• War of Spanish Succession 1700-1713
1. Louis XIV tried to unite the thrones of Spain
and France under his grandson
2. England and other nations allied to stop this
3. France and Spain lost American and
European colonies
4. Thrones could not unite
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

Essential Knowledge
• Explain Louis XIV’s attempts to
acquire territory and Europe’s
response.

STOP
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

Eastern Europe
• Economies were agriculturally based
• Less advanced than Western Europe
• Social and political systems were led by
powerful nobles
• Majority of the population were
peasants
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

Eastern Europe
• Austria and Prussia become the most
powerful city-states of Germany as HRE
breaks down
• Austria is ruled by the Hapsburgs
• Hapsburg Empire covered Austria, Hungary,
Bohemia (part of southern Germany)
• Ruled over several ethnic groups
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

Eastern Europe
• Prussia dominates the northern part
of Germany
• Kings built a strong state with a
powerful army
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

War of Austrian Succession

• Maria Theresa inherited the throne of
Austria
• Frederick the Great of Prussia invaded
Austrian territory
• Maria Theresa lost the land but kept
her throne
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

Seven Year’s War 1756-1763

• Austria allied with France and Prussia allied
with England
• Fighting occurred in Europe and in colonial
territories (French and Indian War)
England/Prussia won
• No territories exchanged in Europe
• England gains French colonial holdings
Religious and Political Conflict in Europe

Essential Knowledge
• Compare the economies and political
systems of eastern and Western
Europe.

STOP