Session 3: Renaissance and Religious Turmoil The Spread of Protestantism

Class Objectives Identify John Calvin and his contributions to the Reformation Explain the major beliefs of Calvinism including predestination. Analyze the causes of the English Reformation Explain the major beliefs of the Anglican Church. Compare the reigns of Mary I of England and Elizabeth I of England. Identify Huguenots and the Edict of Nantes and their roles in the French Reformation.

John Calvin and the Reformed Church The ideas of reforming the Catholic Church spread from the German states to Switzerland. By the mid-1500’s, a reformer named John Calvin, set up a theocracy in Geneva and published his teachings known as “The Institutes of the Christian Religion.” Calvin hoped to create a pure religious society and forbade many acts such as gambling, drunkenness, swearing and dancing. Calvinism soon swept across Europe taking hold not only in Switzerland, but the Netherlands, Scotland and eventually the American colonies.

Activity In a group, read pages 360-361 in the History Alive textbook you have been given. Fill out the sections on Calvinism on your graphic organizer. Be sure to define predestination. You will have 10 minutes to complete this, and will be checked during your note check next class.

Henry VIII and the Anglican Church King Henry VIII, the second Tudor monarch, had married Catherine of Aragon who had not produced a male heir. (Catherine was the mother of Mary I) Henry asked the pope to grant a divorce so he could marry his mistress Anne Boleyn. (she didn’t produce a male heir either and had her head removed…mother of Elizabeth I) The pope refused Henry’s request due to Catherine being the aunt of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. With the support of the English parliament, Henry officially broke with the Catholic Church and created the Anglican Church.

Activity In a group, read pages 362-363 in the History Alive textbook you have been given. Fill out the sections on the Anglican Church on your graphic organizer. You will have 10 minutes to complete this, and will be checked during your note check next class.

Religious Power Struggle Henry VIII eventually had a male heir with his third wife Jane Seymour, but the child Edward VI was sickly and died not long into his reign. In 1553, Henry’s eldest daughter, Mary I, a Catholic attempted to reestablish Catholicism and had many protestants executed. When Mary’s sister Elizabeth I, a Protestant, took the throne in 1558, she declared the Anglican Church to be the religion of England, and had many Catholics executed, although was much more tolerant of religious dissenters.

The French Reformation In France, Henry of Navarre became King Henry IV. Henry was born and raised a Protestant, but he converted to Catholicism to gain popularity in France. French Protestants (Calvinists) called Huguenots were worried that they would face persecution and that war would break out. In order to keep the peace in France, Henry issued the Edict of Nantes which offered some religious freedom for Protestants.

Check for Understanding Who was John Calvin? What kind of religious society did he want? What were his followers called? How does one gain salvation in Calvinism? What it the ultimate authority? How do their services differ from Catholicism? Why did Henry VIII make a break with the Catholic Church? Who were Henry’s children and who were there mothers? What was the major difference between Elizabeth and Mary? Who were the Huguenots? How did Henry IV protect them? Why did he protect them?

Next Class Session 4: Renaissance and Religious Turmoil- The Catholic Counter Reformation Note Check: Session 3 TEST: Renaissance and Religious Turmoil Monday September 19, 2011