THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY By Ulrike Zitzlsperger*

1. General Publications of the year 2012 confirm two trends in research that have become ever clearer in recent studies concerned with the 16th century. One is the edition of new sources that are of parti­ cular interest in relation to cultural history. These include translations of popular contemporary works, and at the same time, though the century is predominantly characterized by the rapid spread of printed material, the importance of handwritten texts. The other trend aims at an increasingly productive reconsideration of long- and short-term historical developments that, among other things, widen our perspective on both popular and learned writing of the time. One of the most impressive and helpful scholarly monographs of 2012 is Joachim Whaley, and the , i: Maximilian I to the Peace of Westphalia 1493–1648, OUP, xxi + 722 pp. In this landmark study, W. provides a historical overview in which he evaluates narratives and interpretations, that are revealing about the thinking of the period but also in view of some modern views and theories. Chapter by chapter, he tests the validity of perceptions and the sense of identity Germans began to develop in the 16th c. — not least in opposition to wider European aspirations and claims. By questioning patterns of established thought, W. manages time and again to add new insights to the interface of subject areas such as theology, politics, the economy and social issues. Certain dates serve as ‘watersheds’ in this process and structure the approach to the period as a whole. Following on from an overview of ‘Germany and the Holy Roman Empire in 1500’, the is seen as a catalyst within a wider political and social framework, at a time when views of the Empire and the realization of a much striven- for coherent community had effectively begun to diverge (‘The Reform of the Reich and the Church, c. 1490–1519’). Among the issues considered here are religious renewal and the laity, the role of and the importance of the print revolution. W. concludes that Luther’s ideas and what diverse social groups made of them ‘set the German territories collectively in motion in a way that no cause had ever done before’. The third chapter pursues the role of Charles V in the and the subsidiary role the German Reich played within his ambitious political framework. The year 1525 marks a turning-point: while the events of that year — not least the peasants’ revolts — emphasized the importance of maintaining power-structures, at the same time political particularism became ever more evident. ‘Mastering the Reformation, c 1526–1555’ considers the co-existence of and Catholicism in their respective territories until it becomes clear that Charles V’s attempts at a universal monarchy had failed for good: ‘The reform process begun in the late fifteenth century’, W. concludes, ‘had ended in a monarchy fettered by German liberty’. The chapter ‘Managing the Peace, 1555–1618’, after outlining the implications of the so-called Confessional Age, focuses on institutional developments (Reichstag, Kreise, Courts, and Legislation) at a point in time when the desire for peace in the Reich is all-encompassing. ‘The German Territories and Cities after 1555’ questions the role of the year 1555 in German historiography while the concluding chapter ‘The Thirty Years War, 1618–1648’ re-assesses what used to be considered a development nothing but catastrophic for Germany. W. suggests that * The author wishes to express her gratitude to Prof. W. E. Yates for his continued advice. The Sixteenth Century 309

German constitutional conflicts were ultimately to blame for the events in the first part of this century. His study will be as useful to the established scholar as it is to the novice seeking to understand the influences and concerns that shaped the century and ultimately the perception of the Empire. W. carefully considers the Reich amidst international developments on the one hand, while on the other he productively resists the notion of decline that has long been associated with German politics and culture in the course of the 16th century. Also of note here is the publication The Holy Roman Empire, 1495–1806: A European Perspective, ed. R. J. W. Evans and Peter H. Wilson, Leiden — Boston, Brill, 416 pp., which focuses, albeit within a wider framework in terms of time and space, on trans-national developments and historical turning-points.

2. Reformation, Confessionalization, Counter-Reformation and Humanism In Lutherjahrbuch, 79, the following articles are of particular interest: Christopher Spehr, ‘Der Gottesdienst bei . Facetten eines theologischen Grundbegriffs’ (9–38); Angelika Michael, ‘Luther und die Bilder. Von Bildern, die man sieht, und solchen, die man nicht sieht’ (101–38); Ferdinand Ahuis, ‘Johannes Bugenhagen und England’ (159–82) and Austra Reinis, ‘Catechism and “Querelle des Femmes” (1556–1689). Lutheran “Haustafel” Sermons as Contributions to the Debate about Women’ (183–211). Archiv für Reformationsgeschichte, 103, includes two contributions of relevance for 16th-c. Germany, Debra Kaplan, ‘Sharing Conversations: A Jewish Polemic against Martin Luther’ (41–64) and Damaris Grimmsmann, ‘Heinrich Bullingers Deutung der Türkengefahr und des Islam’ (64–92). Basler Kirchenordnungen 1528–1675, ed. Emidio Campi and Philipp Wälchli, Zürich, Theologischer Vlg, xxxiv + 636 pp. includes 112 critically edited documents and an introduction. The edition responds to the growing interdisciplinary interest in these sources and the range covers diverse, often telling aspects of religious and daily life, such as ‘Verbot des Täufertums’ (1528); ‘Almosenordnung’ (1530); ‘Verbot des Zutrinkens’ (1534); ‘Nachtruhe, Boykott der Juden, Sittenmandate’ (1561) or ‘Verbot der Fastnacht in der Stadt’ (1599). Die Jeverschen Pastorenbekenntnisse 1548 anlässlich des Augsburger Interim, ed. Rolf Schäfer, Tübingen, Mohr Siebeck, xiii + 611 pp., is a unique publication in that it combines 21 statements by local pastors who had been encouraged to expound their beliefs in view of the of 1548. Their statements were written in Latin and German and reflect Protestant beliefs outside the immediate remit of cities and universities of the time. Timothy J. Wengert, Defending Faith. Lutheran Responses to ’s Doctrine of , 1551–1559, Tübingen, Mohr Siebeck, xiv + 469 pp., details the ‘war of words’ () that united Lutherans against Osiander. Only five years after Luther’s death, the debate triggered nearly 100 individual contributions, among them those of Joachim Mörlin, and Philipp Melanchthon. As a whole, W. argues, these writings contribute to the shaping of an ‘ecclesial identity and theological consciousness’. Akten und Briefe zur Kirchenpolitik Herzog Georg von Sachsen, iv (1535–1539), ed. by Heiko Jadatz and Christian Winter, Vienna, Böhlau, 808 pp., concludes the edition as a whole with about 2000 documents. As one of Martin Luther’s strong opponents, Herzog Georg der Bärtige of Saxony played a central role in the conflict between Protestants and Catholics. Die evangelischen Kirchenordnungen des XVI. Jahrhunderts, vol. 10: Hessen III: Die Grafschaften Nassau, Hanau-Münzenberg und Ysenburg, ed. Eike Wolgast, Tübingen, Mohr Siebeck, xiv + 741