In the early 1500s, Martin Luther began to oppose and reform against the Holy Roman Catholic Church because he disagreed with many of their ideas and beliefs. For instance, the Church believed that the only way to be saved was through elaborate ceremonies while Luther thought that a strong inner faith in God was all that was needed for redemption. The Emperor at this time, Charles V, was very powerful and held a strong faith in the Catholic way of life. He, of course, disagreed with Martin Luther and felt that he was hurting the public by tempting them with new ways of prayer.

In 1521, Charles gave the reformist a trial in hope of getting him back down. During this trial, called the diet of Worms, Luther was asked to explain his views and ordered to recant. Martin Luther was strong, though, and would not back down to the Emperor or the Church. After seeing that Luther could not be weakened, Charles banned him from the German town and named him an outlaw.

At this time, France took arms against Charles, so his attention was drawn away from Martin Luther and other internal affairs. After the war, Charles began to see another religious problem: the spread of Ottoman Turks. Because the Protestants and Turks were overrunning his country, it became obvious to Charles that he had to give in a little to restore peace. In 1532, the Peace of Nuremberg granted Protestants some liberties. Then in 1552, the Peace of Passau was released, which allowed the Lutheran states to exercise their religion. In 1555 the Peace of Ausburg reaffirmed this treaty.

Emperor Charles V held strong religious beliefs that he wanted his people to obey, and was willing to contend for them. There is only so much a man can take, though, and the emperor had to retreat. So he gave the Protestants what they wanted, and gave himself a break, by retiring the thrown to his brother Ferdinand in 1558.

Word Count: 332