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Martin Bucer: Difference between revisions
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==Historical context== | ==Historical context== | ||
[[Image: | [[Image:440px-Saxony_and_cities_Bucer.jpg|thumb|upright=1|Map showing the two partitions that made up Saxony in green and pink. Saxony had long been divided into two principalities, one of which, with its capital at Wittenberg, was an [[Electoral Saxony|electorate]]. Charles V transferred the electorate and much of its territory to Albertine Saxony in 1547 after the defeat of the [[Schmalkaldic League]] and [[John Frederick I, Elector of Saxony]]. Hesse was to the west of Saxony. Important cities that Bucer visited are shown in red.]] | ||
In the 16th century, the [[Holy Roman Empire]] was a centralized state in name only. The Empire was divided into many princely and city states that provided a powerful check on the rule of the [[Holy Roman Emperor]]. The division of power between the emperor and the various states made the [[Protestant Reformation|Reformation]] in Germany possible, as individual states defended reformers within their territories. In the [[Electorate of Saxony]], [[Martin Luther]] was supported by the elector [[Frederick III, Elector of Saxony|Frederick III]] and his successors [[John, Elector of Saxony|John]] and [[John Frederick I, Elector of Saxony|John Frederick]]. [[Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse]]—whose lands lay midway between Saxony and the Rhine—also supported the Reformation, and he figured prominently in the lives of both Luther and Bucer. The Emperor [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles V]] had to balance the demands of his imperial subjects. At the same time, he was often distracted by war with France and the [[Ottoman Empire]] and in Italy. The political rivalry among all the players greatly influenced the ecclesiastical developments within the Empire. | In the 16th century, the [[Holy Roman Empire]] was a centralized state in name only. The Empire was divided into many princely and city states that provided a powerful check on the rule of the [[Holy Roman Emperor]]. The division of power between the emperor and the various states made the [[Protestant Reformation|Reformation]] in Germany possible, as individual states defended reformers within their territories. In the [[Electorate of Saxony]], [[Martin Luther]] was supported by the elector [[Frederick III, Elector of Saxony|Frederick III]] and his successors [[John, Elector of Saxony|John]] and [[John Frederick I, Elector of Saxony|John Frederick]]. [[Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse]]—whose lands lay midway between Saxony and the Rhine—also supported the Reformation, and he figured prominently in the lives of both Luther and Bucer. The Emperor [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles V]] had to balance the demands of his imperial subjects. At the same time, he was often distracted by war with France and the [[Ottoman Empire]] and in Italy. The political rivalry among all the players greatly influenced the ecclesiastical developments within the Empire. | ||
