4.29 Europe: a.d. 1501 to 1600  (Page 9/29)

The Turks, under Suleiman, defeated and killed the Hungarian king in 1526 and overran the nation with an army of 150,000 men. There followed a period of division of the country with a narrow western area remaining as Royal Hungary under the Austrian Habsburg, Ferdinand, and the remainder of the country choosing John Zapola

The Reformation came into Hungary through German immigrants. By 1550 it seemed that all Hungary would become Protestant, but rivalry between Lutheranism and Calvinism tore the movement in two and Catholicism again became supreme.

Czechoslovakia

In 1526 Emperor Charles V's brother-in-law, King Ladislas of Bohemia (and also of Hungary), was defeated by the Turks at Mohacz and he drowned in the Danube while trying to escape. He was succeeded by Charles' brother, Ferdinand. In general Bohemia had weak kings in this century, with the nobles refusing financial support to the throne. The aristocracy as a whole, however, extended its power and peasantry sank back into serfdom. On the religious scene we must recall that through the Hussite movement, Bohemiawas actually Protestant even before the time of Luther and by 1560 2/3 of the population was definitely so. In the following year, however, the Habsburg Ferdinand introduced the Jesuits and the tide turned back to the Catholic Creed. The accession of Archduke Ferdinand (later emperor) began the long Austrian and Habsburg domination of Bohemia.

Switzerland

As the century opened Switzerland gained some territory from Italy south of the Alps and fought against France, but the Swiss were finally defeated at Marignana, in 1515. The country was still having difficulty "pulling itself together". The Swiss were great fighters, as evidenced by their extensive use over all of Europe as mercenary forces, but they still did not always pull together as one nation. In 1533 Geneva, which had previously been a part of Savoy, became independent and in 1536 Swiss armies took Vaud from Savoy. (Ref. 8 ) The Alps continued to be for the most part untamed and horses that had returned to the wild state were distributed throughout the mountains.

This country was host to two great religious reformers, one the native Zwingli of Zurich and the other John Calvin, born French, but active in theology in Switzerland by 1534. Zwingli had a humanist education, became a Catholic priest in 1506 and by 1508 was attacking the principles of indulgences, clerical celibacy and the Mass. By 1517 he called for a religion based entirely on the Bible, and in 1521 he proclaimed openly for the Reformation, which was already well under way in Germany. Zwingli differed from Luther only in believing that the Mass was entirely symbolic. Eventually he became the head of both the new church and the city-state of Zurich. The local contests with surrounding Catholics became actual battles and Zwingli was killed in one of them. Five Catholic Cantons had banded together against Zurich and the Reformation movement and the resulting conflict greatly weakened the Swiss Confederation for the remaining part of the century. Anabaptism arose among members of Zwingli's circle, crystallizing as a distinct variety of Protestantism in 1525, when Conrad Grebel and George Blaurock re-baptized their group and called themselves "Brethren". After 20 years of persecution, the sect received its permanent doctrine from Menno Simons. Their three fundamental principles were:

• adult Baptism
• separation from the world
• literal observance of Christ's Commandments