Home

Reformationera

Reformationera refers to the period of sweeping religious transformation in Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries, characterized by the protest against papal authority, the emergence of Protestant churches, and the restructuring of political power around confessional lines. The movement began with calls for reform within the Catholic Church, intensified by Martin Luther’s Ninety-Five Theses of 1517, and spread rapidly through printed works, sermons, and political alliances.

In German-speaking lands the Lutheran Reformation took hold; in Scandinavia the crown supported reform and established

It led to the decentralization of religious authority, confessional states, and wars such as the Thirty Years'

Scholars often define the era by different dates and regions, but it broadly marks a transition from

state
churches;
in
England
Henry
VIII's
break
with
Rome
led
to
the
Church
of
England;
in
Switzerland
Zwingli
and
Calvin
developed
Reformed
doctrine;
the
Netherlands,
France
(Huguenots),
and
parts
of
Eastern
Europe
were
involved
as
well.
The
Catholic
response
was
the
Counter-Reformation,
culminating
in
the
Council
of
Trent
and
the
rise
of
the
Jesuits.
War;
Peace
of
Augsburg
(1555)
and
the
Peace
of
Westphalia
(1648)
helped
stabilize
religious
borders.
The
era
spurred
political
centralization,
literacy,
and
education
as
churches
and
states
promoted
reform;
monastic
lands
and
church
wealth
were
redistributed
in
several
regions.
medieval
to
modern
Christianity
and
much
of
early
modern
European
politics.