Case Study: The Wars of Religion?
Reading:
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For this case study you are to analyze Chapter 13 Religious Violence (Pgs. 418 - 422) and review the sources provided below. You are expected to be able to answer the guiding question in full depth with specific historical evidence and supporting details.
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Introduction
Religious conflicts inevitably merged with and exacerbated long-standing political tensions between the monarchies and nobility across Europe, dramatically escalating these conflicts as they spread from the Holy Roman Empire to France, the Netherlands, and England. Economic issues such as the power to tax and control ecclesiastical resources further heightened these clashes. All three motivations - religion, political, and economic - contributed to the brutal and destructive violence that raged through Europe.
Religious conflicts inevitably merged with and exacerbated long-standing political tensions between the monarchies and nobility across Europe, dramatically escalating these conflicts as they spread from the Holy Roman Empire to France, the Netherlands, and England. Economic issues such as the power to tax and control ecclesiastical resources further heightened these clashes. All three motivations - religion, political, and economic - contributed to the brutal and destructive violence that raged through Europe.
Key Concept:
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Guiding Question - Skill: Contextualization
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Directions: Using evidence from your textbook and research on the internet create an argument that proves that the religious violence of the 16th century was in fact a result of political discord. Describe specific details to support your argument and your opinion of the evidence.
French Wars of Religion (1562-1629)
1562-63 – The first war starts after the Edict of Toleration in January 1562. Catholic violence at Vassy in March signals start of first war. Ends in March 1563 with the Treaty of Amboise. 1567-68 – Second war starts when Huguenots (Huguenots is the name given to French Calvinist Protestants) sieze several fortified towns. This war ends in March 1568 with the Edict of Longjumeau. 1568-70 – Third war starts in September 1568. It ends with the Edict of St Germain in August 1570. (The above are often referred to as the “Early Wars”) 1572-74 – The St Bartholomew’s massacres of Protestants, in Paris and then elsewhere, starts the fourth war of Religion.It ends with Peace of La Rochelle. 1574 Charles IX dies; Henri III becomes king of France. 1575-76– Duke of Alencon’s escape from the royal court in February starts the fifth war. The Peace of Monsieur (ratified by the Edict of Beaulieu) ends the war. In 1576 the militant ‘Catholic League’ forms (also called the ‘Holy League’). 1577 – March – September. This sixth war ends with Peace of Bergerac 1580 – there is a brief seventh war that ends in November with the Treaty of Nerac and Peace of Fleix 1584 – Duke of Anjou dies and Protestant Henri of Navarre becomes heir to French throne. The Guise family signs a treaty with Catholic Spain, the Treaty of Joinville. |
1585-89 – Wars of the Three Henrys:
1585 – Henry III bans Protestantism with the Treaty of Nemoours
1588 – Henry III forced to surrender to the militant Catholic Guise Family and the Catholic League. Henry signs the Edict of Union which places Henri de Guise in charge of all troops and declares it illegal for a non-Catholic to be ruler of France. In December Henry III arranges the assassination Of Henri de Guise and also of his brother, Cardinal Louis de Guise who was also the archbishop of Reims.
1589 – Henry III allies with the Huguenots and, unsuccessfully, lays siege to Holy League-controlled Paris. Later that summer Henry III himself is assassinated and names Henri of Navarre his successor.
1593 – Henry IV converts to Catholicism, is crowned the following year in Chartres. and enters unapposed into Paris.
1595-98: War between Henry IV and the Catholic League + Spain:
1595 – Henry IV declares war on the Catholic League’s allies, Spain.
1598 – May: War with Spain ends through the Peace of Vervins.
April: Henry IV signs the Edict of Nantes which, to a large extent, ends the French Wars of Religion.
1629 – The Peace of Alais or the Edict of Grace formally ends the French Wars of Religion. It was negotiated by Cardinal Richelieu and Huguenot leaders. It was similar to the Edict of Nantes but took away some Protestant rights while granting them amnesty and guaranteeing tolerance for their religious practices.
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1685 – Revocation of the Edict of Nantes by Louis XIV (Protestant persecution, which had occurred during Louis XIV’s reign, now intensifies).
1585 – Henry III bans Protestantism with the Treaty of Nemoours
1588 – Henry III forced to surrender to the militant Catholic Guise Family and the Catholic League. Henry signs the Edict of Union which places Henri de Guise in charge of all troops and declares it illegal for a non-Catholic to be ruler of France. In December Henry III arranges the assassination Of Henri de Guise and also of his brother, Cardinal Louis de Guise who was also the archbishop of Reims.
1589 – Henry III allies with the Huguenots and, unsuccessfully, lays siege to Holy League-controlled Paris. Later that summer Henry III himself is assassinated and names Henri of Navarre his successor.
1593 – Henry IV converts to Catholicism, is crowned the following year in Chartres. and enters unapposed into Paris.
1595-98: War between Henry IV and the Catholic League + Spain:
1595 – Henry IV declares war on the Catholic League’s allies, Spain.
1598 – May: War with Spain ends through the Peace of Vervins.
April: Henry IV signs the Edict of Nantes which, to a large extent, ends the French Wars of Religion.
1629 – The Peace of Alais or the Edict of Grace formally ends the French Wars of Religion. It was negotiated by Cardinal Richelieu and Huguenot leaders. It was similar to the Edict of Nantes but took away some Protestant rights while granting them amnesty and guaranteeing tolerance for their religious practices.
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1685 – Revocation of the Edict of Nantes by Louis XIV (Protestant persecution, which had occurred during Louis XIV’s reign, now intensifies).
Timeline of the Eighty Years’ War.
Pre-revolt 1500: Birth of Charles V. Charles inherited the hereditary estates of the duke of Burgundy including Franche-Comte, Mechelen, Flanders, Namur, Hainaut, Holland, Zealand, Branbant, part of Limburg and Luxemburg
1523 Lutheran books were starting to be published in Dutch . Other heretics also gained ground in the Netherlands including the Anabaptists and other more fringe movements. The first protestant martyr in the world was burnt in Antwerp in 1523. About 30 martyrs were burnt by 1530 along with many books. Charles V executed at least 2,000 Netherlanders for religious deviation during his reign, mostly Anabaptists.
1536-8 Period of intense religious persecution as a reaction to the Anabaptist ‘Kingdom of Munster’
1544-5 Following peace with France at Crépy Charles V and the French King agreed to join forces against heresy. This included intensifying persecution and forcibly repatriating any heretics who fled across their mutual border. Charles V then launched a period of intense religious persecution in the Netherlands. Many communities were destroyed and those that survived were more uniform, disciplined and determined. Following this persecution the Anabaptists and Calvinists began to dominate the reform movement in the Netherlands.
1548: The ‘Augsburg Transaction’The Imperial Diet, meeting in Augsburg on 26 Jun 1548, agreed to let Charles V form the Low Countries into a single administrative unit. The new entity was physically compact although unity was marred by the presence of the independent principality of Liege in the geographical centre. Cambrai was an exception as it formally remained part of the Holy Roman Empire until 1678. The Hapsburg Netherlands were free from imperial legislation and jurisdiction although they continued to pay taxes and send troops in emergencies.
1555 Charles V abdicated and power transferred to Philip II
Calvinist began to establish churches under the cross, i.e. in hiding, in the Netherlands
1558: Battle of Gravelines Spanish under Count Egmont routed a French invasion at Gravelines on 13 Jul 1558. This battle effectively ended the latest war with France although the peace was only agreed the following year.
1559 The States-General of the Netherlands voted the “Nine Years’ Aid” in Jan 1559
Henry II of France died in Jul 1559 and was succeeded by his sickly and indecisive son, Francis II. Francis ruled for only 18 months.
Philip II’s “novelties” began to appear, which together threatened local liberties and hence were the underlying cause of the revolt to come (Parker, 1977):
1567 On 17 Apr the duke of Alva took leave of Philip II at Aranjuez, Spain to take command of the Netherlands.
1567 Alva secretly created a ‘Council of Troubles’on 5 Sep 1567 which continued in operation until 1576. It was initially secret because some of the Grandees implicated in the troubles (Orange, Hoogstraten, Hornes) were in Germany. Alva asked Margaret of Parma to summon the missing Grandees were summed to Brussels, although he didn’t explain why.
Winter 1567-8The Council of troubles was active with collecting evidence, making arrest and executing sentences. During its lifetime the council tried over 12,000, condemned 9,000 of those to loss of goods, and executed over 1,000. 60,000 people fled into exile – mostly to England and the protestant areas of Germany.
21 Jul 1568: Battle of Jemmigen Alva led his Spanish veterans against Louis of Nassau. Louis deployed his men on the Jemmigen peninsula with their backs to Eems. The Spanish won and butchered the rebels. Few escaped given the width of the river, over 3 km wide at that point. The river carried news of the defeat to Emden in the estuary in the form of the rebel’s broad brimmed hats.
The defeat deprived the Sea Beggars of a base. They returned to privateering, i.e. piracy in the name of a sovereign, in this case Orange. The prizes were sold to colonies of Dutch exiles in England.
May 1571 Under pressure from Philip II Alva said he would support Mary Queen of Scots in her bid for the English crown once he heard Elizabeth I was dead.
7 Jul 1571 The Spanish Council of State agreed a scheme where following Elizabeth I of England’s arrest by Catholic conspirators by the duke of Norfolk a Spanish force of 10,000 men would cross from the Netherlands.
Third Revolt
(1576-1609)The Third Revolt had a new cause and occurred in new areas (Parker, 1977). It started in Brussels which had been loyal in the first two revolts and spread to Hainaut and Artois, provinces that had been little affected by earlier unrest. Most participants were Catholic. The cause was the mutinous Spanish troops wrecking havoc in the southern Netherlands.
Pre-revolt 1500: Birth of Charles V. Charles inherited the hereditary estates of the duke of Burgundy including Franche-Comte, Mechelen, Flanders, Namur, Hainaut, Holland, Zealand, Branbant, part of Limburg and Luxemburg
1523 Lutheran books were starting to be published in Dutch . Other heretics also gained ground in the Netherlands including the Anabaptists and other more fringe movements. The first protestant martyr in the world was burnt in Antwerp in 1523. About 30 martyrs were burnt by 1530 along with many books. Charles V executed at least 2,000 Netherlanders for religious deviation during his reign, mostly Anabaptists.
1536-8 Period of intense religious persecution as a reaction to the Anabaptist ‘Kingdom of Munster’
1544-5 Following peace with France at Crépy Charles V and the French King agreed to join forces against heresy. This included intensifying persecution and forcibly repatriating any heretics who fled across their mutual border. Charles V then launched a period of intense religious persecution in the Netherlands. Many communities were destroyed and those that survived were more uniform, disciplined and determined. Following this persecution the Anabaptists and Calvinists began to dominate the reform movement in the Netherlands.
1548: The ‘Augsburg Transaction’The Imperial Diet, meeting in Augsburg on 26 Jun 1548, agreed to let Charles V form the Low Countries into a single administrative unit. The new entity was physically compact although unity was marred by the presence of the independent principality of Liege in the geographical centre. Cambrai was an exception as it formally remained part of the Holy Roman Empire until 1678. The Hapsburg Netherlands were free from imperial legislation and jurisdiction although they continued to pay taxes and send troops in emergencies.
1555 Charles V abdicated and power transferred to Philip II
Calvinist began to establish churches under the cross, i.e. in hiding, in the Netherlands
1558: Battle of Gravelines Spanish under Count Egmont routed a French invasion at Gravelines on 13 Jul 1558. This battle effectively ended the latest war with France although the peace was only agreed the following year.
1559 The States-General of the Netherlands voted the “Nine Years’ Aid” in Jan 1559
Henry II of France died in Jul 1559 and was succeeded by his sickly and indecisive son, Francis II. Francis ruled for only 18 months.
Philip II’s “novelties” began to appear, which together threatened local liberties and hence were the underlying cause of the revolt to come (Parker, 1977):
- Spanish garrisons
- New bishoprics
- Persecution of heretics by a special Inquisition
1567 On 17 Apr the duke of Alva took leave of Philip II at Aranjuez, Spain to take command of the Netherlands.
1567 Alva secretly created a ‘Council of Troubles’on 5 Sep 1567 which continued in operation until 1576. It was initially secret because some of the Grandees implicated in the troubles (Orange, Hoogstraten, Hornes) were in Germany. Alva asked Margaret of Parma to summon the missing Grandees were summed to Brussels, although he didn’t explain why.
Winter 1567-8The Council of troubles was active with collecting evidence, making arrest and executing sentences. During its lifetime the council tried over 12,000, condemned 9,000 of those to loss of goods, and executed over 1,000. 60,000 people fled into exile – mostly to England and the protestant areas of Germany.
21 Jul 1568: Battle of Jemmigen Alva led his Spanish veterans against Louis of Nassau. Louis deployed his men on the Jemmigen peninsula with their backs to Eems. The Spanish won and butchered the rebels. Few escaped given the width of the river, over 3 km wide at that point. The river carried news of the defeat to Emden in the estuary in the form of the rebel’s broad brimmed hats.
The defeat deprived the Sea Beggars of a base. They returned to privateering, i.e. piracy in the name of a sovereign, in this case Orange. The prizes were sold to colonies of Dutch exiles in England.
May 1571 Under pressure from Philip II Alva said he would support Mary Queen of Scots in her bid for the English crown once he heard Elizabeth I was dead.
7 Jul 1571 The Spanish Council of State agreed a scheme where following Elizabeth I of England’s arrest by Catholic conspirators by the duke of Norfolk a Spanish force of 10,000 men would cross from the Netherlands.
Third Revolt
(1576-1609)The Third Revolt had a new cause and occurred in new areas (Parker, 1977). It started in Brussels which had been loyal in the first two revolts and spread to Hainaut and Artois, provinces that had been little affected by earlier unrest. Most participants were Catholic. The cause was the mutinous Spanish troops wrecking havoc in the southern Netherlands.