1.4 Religious Wars and State-Building Notes PDF

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Comprehensive lesson notes from Mr. Macri...

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CHY4U Summary of Course Text 1.4 Religious Wars and State-Building Learning Goals  Explain the causes and effects of the religious wars  Explain how artistic expression changed  Explain the difficulties women faced The Peace of Augsburg  In 1555, the Peace of Augsburg had seemingly settled the religious division in Europe – each state would decide if they were Catholic or Lutherans, and would not suffer wars of conversion.  Yet, for political reasons more than religious, Europe none the less plunged into war. The Thirty Years War (1618-1648)  In 1618, Europe entered into a thirty-year period of devastating warfare in which most of the continent was involved.  The Thirty Years War was incredibly destructive, seeing most of Germany destroyed.  Firearms replaced lances and armed infantry replaced archers.  On the surface, this war was fought for religious reasons, but ultimately, they were politically motivated; for instance, France did not want a strong and united Germany, regardless of religion.  Women not only lost their husband and male relatives, but also fell victim to rape and violence.  The Thirty Years War finally ended with the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648, which reaffirmed the religious compromise made a century earlier at Augsburg; it allowed both Calvinism and Lutheranism to be legal religions. Religious Wars in France  The period in Europe from the Peace of Augsburg in 1555 to the Peace of Westphalia in 1648 has been called the age of religious wars.  During this period, Calvinism became very popular in France.

 French Protestants were called Huguenots, and although they were a minority in France, they still clashed with the Catholic monarchy.  The French nobility, who were mostly Huguenots, wanted more independence from the Catholic monarchy; civil war began in 1562.  On August 24, many Huguenots were present in Paris for a royal wedding between a Catholic and a Huguenot. It was hoped this wedding would end the war; instead, Huguenots were massacred in Paris and across France.  The St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre made the civil war in France even worse, and it was followed by fifteen years of rioting and violence. England Becomes a Major Power  Elizabeth I (1558-1603), daughter of Henry VIII, ushered in a golden age for England, now the most powerful Protestant state in Europe.  The country began the process of developing as a major sea power and an empire.  Elizabeth I ensured compromise between Catholics and Protestants desires, allowing her to foster peace and stability in her realm.  However, her international support of Protestant causes angered the Catholic Philip II of Spain, who wanting to conquer the Netherlands, and teach England a lesson.  In 1588, he ordered the Spanish Armada (a huge fleet of ships) to attack England, but due to bad weather and superior English seamanship and boats, the English won the day.  The defeat of the Spanish Armada seriously weakened Spanish sea power and allowed England a greater place on the world stage. Witchcraft  Much to the detriment of women, in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, both Protestants and Catholics beloved in the existence of witches.  In England alone, nearly one thousand women were executed as witches.

 The accused were most often socially marginalized women; they were single mothers or the mothers of suspected prostitutes, and they were likely to depend on charity. Literature and Art  The Europe of the wars of religion produced some of the most splendid art and literature of the West.  The Themes often dealt with the nature of the human personality and the goals we ought to pursue in the quest for a good life.  A reflection of the age, the art was far less calm than the art of the Renaissance.

Michel de Montaigne  The French essayist Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) wrote at the time of the French wars of religion and Europe’s encounters with the New World.  He challenged the current notion of what is barbarous (see page 48), and adopted a position of moral skepticism toward his times.  Montaigne pleaded for modesty, tolerance, and respect for others. Mannerism  In 1520, a new artistic style, called Mannerism, was developed in Italy and Spain. It lasted until the end of the century.  This style focused on distortion and exaggeration. In Mannerist paintings, the human figures are often elongated and the colours are sometimes harsh and vivid.  The work attempts to evoke a strong emotional response. The Baroque  Mannerism was succeeded by the Baroque, which lasted into the eighteenth century.  The Baroque originated in southern Europe, and is often associated with the Catholic Reformation.  This artistic style is about movement, ornamentation, sometimes even excessive, and a powerful appeal to the senses.

Citation Haberman, Arthur, and Adrian Shubert. "Relgious Wars and StateBuilding." In The West and the world: contacts, conflicts, connections. Toronto: Gage Learning, 2002. 57-69....