The Emperor Charles V, trying to settle the conflict, called a diet in worms (1520), invited Luther there and gave him a letter of protection. Luther rode on, cheered along the road by enthusiastic crowds of supporters. The diet issued the edict of Worms, in which it condemned Luther’s views and decided to burn his polemical writings. Luther fled to Wartburg, where he and Melanchthon and Agricola began translating the Bible. A little later, Luther returned to Wittenberg, which had since become the center of the reformation. Later, Zurich and Strasbourg were added to the list of cities-strongholds of the reformation.

The Dragon Of The Apocalypse. Caricature of the Pope (1522)

Many electors joined the reformers. Charles V, engaged in a war with France, could not at first interfere. There were riots and troubles in Germany, which Luther severely condemned. Protestant princes confiscated Church lands. Pogroms of churches, destruction of Catholic utensils, expulsion of priests loyal to Rome became more frequent. Widely spread expectation of the end of the world and the establishment of the millennial Kingdom of Christ.

Rallying his supporters, Luther carried out a number of Church reforms: removed the icons, canceled the mass, made a new catechism. Pastors were now appointed by princes (later — elected), their main occupation instead of rituals was preaching. Some of the reformers who disagreed with his position formed Autonomous denominations: Calvinists (Switzerland, France, southern Germany-Zwingli, Calvin), Anabaptists (Saxony, Thomas munzer). Dissensions on various issues continued incessantly among the Lutherans, especially the German and Swiss. In 1529, Luther and Zwingli met for reconciliation, but did not achieve the goal; Zwingli denied the presence of Christ at the time of communion, and Luther believed it.

Around 1527, the reformation spread to all of Scandinavia (Gustav VAZ in Sweden, Frederick I in Denmark), and soon, in a special form of Anglicanism, to England and Switzerland. In Scotland, the Presbyterian Church was formed, as well as various radical Puritan communities.

In 1529, the Emperor Charles at the Reichstag secured the confirmation of the edict of Worms (which was suspended in 1526); the anti-Catholic princes protested (from this moment the word “Protestants” came into use) and concluded a military Alliance (Schmalkalden, 1531). In 1530, the Protestants accepted Melanchthon’s canonical “Augsburg confession” (28 articles); it was planned as a compromise common platform with the Catholics, but the Vatican rejected this program. A year later, Melanchthon compiled the “Apology of the Augsburg confession”, already without regard to the Catholics, commented on and supplemented in detail.

51 of the 65 “Imperial cities” became Protestant. From the German lands, the reformation won in Saxony, Prussia, Pomerania, württemberg, Brandenburg, Mecklenburg. In Switzerland, a civil war broke out (1531), during which Zwingli was killed, but in many cantons Protestantism persisted.

Charles, this time engaged in a war with the Turks, made concessions and concluded a truce (1532), by which the Protestants were allowed to profess Lutheranism, but not to preach it. However, the sermon continued, despite the ban.

Alarmed at Rome launched a counter-offensive. In 1540, the Jesuit order and the Roman Inquisition were founded. The Trident Ecumenical Council (1545-1563) cursed the reformers; active preachers and even ordinary “heretics”were executed. However, the reformation expanded. The greatest success, in addition to the already named countries, it had in the Netherlands, in the Baltic States, in France. Even Poland, Italy, and Spain had their Protestants. The cult of the “new martyrs of faith” expanded, starting with Jan HUS.

In the 1530s, the Anabaptists (“re — Baptists”), a radical wing of the reformation, appeared. They demanded baptism only at a conscious age, rejected infant baptism, considered state power an absolute evil, and declared themselves God’s chosen ones. A number of ideologues demanded the division of property, the rejection of the institution of marriage, and so on. This anarcho-utopian community was mercilessly fought by both Catholic and Protestant authorities. Munzer worked with them for some time, although his ideology did not coincide with the Anabaptist one. Other features of Anabaptists-uncompromising antitrinitarianism, aversion to military service. In 1534-1536, the Anabaptists organized a commune in Munster (Westphalia) with common property and polygamy. Moderate circles of Anabaptists gave rise to modern Baptists, Mennonites, Quakers, etc.

In 1546, Luther died. The Emperor Charles V, having got along with the Turks, drew mercenaries to Germany and defeated the Protestants in several battles. This reaction restored the majority of the princes against Charles, and with the assistance of France the Emperor was banished. After two military campaigns, Charles, almost captured, resigned and went to the peace of Augsburg (1555), on the principle of “whose country, that and faith” (cujus regio, ejus religio)