498 1521-32. apart from the empire, and some of them had been National reform. Nobles’ war. wretchedly poor and insignificant. Maximilian himself could not compete on equal terms with the leading European monarchs. Charles, however, was by far the most in1port-
- mt sovereign of his time. Ile was king of Spain and the
GERMANY Two Sicilies, with the resources of the New World at his I command, lord of the Low Countries and of the county of Burgundy, co-regent with his brother Ferdinand of the great Austrian inheritance ; and now he had been made king of Germany with a right to the imperial crown. To such a potentate it naturally seemed possible to restore the splendour of Charles the Great, and he early set before himself this ideal. But the protection of the church had always been looked upon as the chief function of the empire ; he could not, therefore, desert it at the very time when it seemed to be in need of his services. He reserved to him- self the same right as his predecessors to resist it in the realm of politics; in the realm of faith he considered that he owed it his entire allegiance. Moreover, he intended to complete the task at which his grandfather had worked in vain, the subjection of northern Italy; and in order to realize this scheme it was of high importance that he should in no way needlessly offend the pope. Hence, i11 1521, in the diet of Vor1ns, without really examining the positions of Luther, Charles issued an edict denouncing him and his followers, and placing him under the ban of the empire. Alarmed lest the e111peror’s great power should be too freely applied in Germany, the electors had before his appointment exacted a promise that he would respect German liberties and institute the reforms which had been vainly demanded of Maximilian. At the diet of Vor1ns steps were taken to give effect to these conditions. .Au administrative council was nominated for the government of Germany while Charles should be away ; and the imperial chamber was so effectually re—established that, with the aulic council (which was at first subordinate to it, but ultimately became independent), it lasted till the destruction of the empire. A matricula was dra.wu up settling the number of troops to be raised for common purposes by each state; and this also was in force while the empire existed. Having made these arrangements, Charles invested his l-rother Ferdinand with the sole authority in the Austrian territories, and then left Germany, to begin soon after his long struggle with Francis I. of France. While Charles was absent carrying on his wars with Francis, great disturbances took place i11 Germany. One of the most remarkable of Luther’s friends was Ulrich von Hutten, a young noble, who, although penetrated by the enthusiasm of the Renaissance, was emphatically a man of action. His class, the nobles, had ever chafed against the supremacy of the princes; and it occurred to him that the Reformation might be made the means of effecting a total change in the constitution of the empire. As no general reform either in church or state could be effected while the nation was cut up into a large number of principalities, his plan was to combine against the princes all who were (lis- contented with the existing order, and to place the emperor at the head of a united country. Then the nobles would obtain their due, peace would be secured throughout the 11nd, and papal authority might be easily put down. The scheme was a great one, and Hutten inspired with his enthusiasm Francis vo11 Sickingen, an energetic and popular llhenish baron who could at any time attract a large army t.» his standard. A force of 12,000 men was soon collected, and the enterprise was begun in 1522 by an attack on the elector of Treves, who, being a spiritual prince, would not, it was supposed, receive the sympathy of the reforming party. For a moment it seemed as if this dream of a new empire might be realized ; but it was too la.te to make so vast a change. Several princes united, and in 1523 [H1s'roav. Sickingen was defeated and slain, while Hutten, who had devoted pen and sword to his cause, died in loneliness and misery on an island in the Lake of Ziirich. This war was followed by another of a still more serious Peasant The peasantry of Germany had grievances con1-“‘31‘- nature. pared with which those of the nobles were imaginary, for they were treated as if they had no right to expect any ray of brightness in their dreary lot. Extravagant hopes were kindled among them by the Reformation, and in a few years, notwithstanding all L11ther’s efforts to dissuade them, widespread conspiracies were formed. In 15:24 war broke out in the greater part of southern and central Germany, and the peasants, aided by a few valiant knights like Glitz von Berlichingen, were at first triumphant. But they soon became so violent that Luther himself urged they should be sternly punished ; and in 1525, after a vast amount of con- fusion and bloodshed, the rising was completely suppressed. By these two wars the authority of the princes was made greater than ever; the peasantry suffered if possible 1nore severe oppression, and many even of the immediate nobles were compelled to submit to a yoke which they detested. Notwithstanding the injurious impression caused by the struggles of the peasantry and of the barons, the Reforma- tion made rapid progress, and those who remained loyal to the church became so alarmed that at the diet of Spires in 1526 they clamourcd for repressive measures. The adminis- trative council at the head of Germany in Charles’s absence was, however, not unfriendly to the Reformers, and the diet ended by dccreeing that, until the questions in dispute should be authoritatively settled, each state should have religious freedom. This proved to be a most important edict. As yet no religious body had been organized to compete with the Catholic Church ; now the leading states in which the ideas of the Reformation prevailed began, under the guidance of Luther and Melanchthon, to carry out measures which they had i11 vain hoped the church itself, by means of a general council, would undertake. The Catholics saw clearly the significance of what was done; and at another diet held in Spires in 15:29 they obtained, i11 opposition to the previous edict, a new decree, forbidding further changes in religion. The supporters of Luther formally protested; but the Catholics maintained their ground. In the following year the emperor, who was no longer an untried youth, but a sovereign famous for skill in council and success in war, came to Germany for the express purpose of making an end of heresy. At the diet he held in Augsburg the Lutherans submitted a smu- mary of their doctrines in the Augsburg Confession, which had been drawn 11p, with the sanction of Luther, by Melanchthon, and which was afterwards regarded as their chief standard of faith. Charles made no real effort to comprehend the controversy; he was resolved, whether the heretics had right on their side or not, that they should submit, and he had at first no doubt that he would awe them into submission by an unwonted display of power and splendour. To his surprise the Lutheran princes, while perfectly respectful, continued firm, and not only declined to attend mass, but held Lutheran services in their own quarters. Paying no attention to the edict of Spires of 1526, be renewed that' which he had issued at Worms in 15:21; and it seemed more than probable that if it were not obeyed he would soon have recourse to arms. But fresh difficulties with France, and a threatened invasion of the Turks, who had besieged Vienna in 1529, forced him to mask his designs. In 1532 he granted the religious peace of Nuremberg, which conceded temporary toleration to the adherents of the Augsburg Confession, and this peace was repeatedly confirmed in the following years. Meanwhile, the Lutherans, both princes and cities, had increased their power by forming the League of Smalkald, Progres of the Refor- mation Diet 01 Au gs-
bu rg.