UPDATED: August 25, 2019

TRIPLE CRISIS PROTESTANT REFORMATION (1521)– HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE IMPERIAL DIET GUIDE TRITONMUN XX – OCTOBER 26TH, 2019

MODEL UNITED NATIONS AT UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO

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BACKGROUND GUIDE TABLE OF CONTENTS

Head Chair Letter…………………………………………………………………………… 2

Position Paper Guidelines …………………………………………………………………. 3

Historical Context………...………………………………………………………………… 4

The Beginning of the Reformation.……...………………………………………………. 6

Martin Luther & The 95 Theses.………………………………………………………… 8

Diet of Worms & The Reformation………...……………………………………………. 11

The Holy Roman Imperial Diet...…………………………………………………………… 13

What is it? & Where does it Fit in?.……………………………………………………. 13

The Holy Roman Empire & The Benelux………….…………………………………….. 15

Conclusion...…………………………………………...…………………………………… 19

Questions to Consider…………....……………………………………………………… 20

Suggested Sites.…………………………………………………………………………. 20

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LETTER FROM THE HEAD CHAIR

Greetings Delegates and welcome to TritonMUN XX! The year is 1521, the Church is all powerful, but everything is about to change. In this committee, you will have the chance to represent one of the great Estates of Europe during the Protestant Reformation. How you handle the great changes sweeping the land is entirely up to you. In this committee you will have a chance to change history. The fate of your Estate relies upon your decision making. My name is Ethan Christensen and I will be your head chair for this conference. I am a third year at UCSD studying Political Science with a focus in public law and minors in Psychology and Law and Society. After college I look to attend law school and then work as a public lawyer somewhere in California. I am a member of student government here at UCSD and currently serve as the VP of Finance and Resources for Associated Students. This is my third year in Model UN and my 6th TritonMUN. I have served as the USG of Logistics in the past, and now consistently chair Crisis Committees. This year I am also the President of our Model UN club at UCSD. I am thrilled to see all the ideas you come up with this year. I keep finding myself drawn back into crisis because of the creativity and fun we can have. Throughout the committee I’ll be looking for creative solutions and effective debate of said ideas. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out and I can answer them. I can’t wait to work with all of you!

Thank you, Ethan Christensen Head Chair | Holy Roman Imperial Diet

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POSITION PAPER GUIDELINES

TRIPLE CRISIS – PROTESTANT REFORMATION (1521)

HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE IMPERIAL DIET

POSITION PAPER GOOGLE FORM LINK:

https://tinyurl.com/positionppr-holyromanempire

TRITONMUN POSITION PAPER GUIDELINES • Position Papers are due at 11:59 PM on October 14, 2019 o Requests for extensions must be sent by the advisor to TritonMUN by October 7th. • Position Papers can be submitted by one of two ways: 1. The Google Form link listed at the beginning of your Background Guide (The Advisor Logistics Packet has a Google Form link that can be used by advisors) 2. Email to: [email protected] o Note: It is highly preferable that delegates submit their Paper using the Google Form, the email is available in case of technological problems and for those without a Google Account. Additionally, all Position Papers submitted after the deadline (this includes extensions) must be submitted by a Google Form. • For committees with one topic (all Fall Committees) there should be two pages for the topic with an additional page for citations, for a total of 3 pages. • Papers should be single-spaced in Times New Roman 12 pt. font and include no pictures. • Please include the following sections for each committee topic: o Background o Past Actions by the Committee o Position of your Country/Person o Possible Solutions • At the top of each paper, include your country/person, name, committee, and topic.

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HISTORICAL CONTEXT

Before understanding what the Protestant Reformation was, it is first critical to understand the sheer power of the Catholic Church up to that point. The church’s power was far reaching, but highly concentrated in Europe during the Middle Ages. At this time the Catholic

Church, a sect of Christianity, was the only church in Western Europe. The relationship between the Church and the people was mostly symbiotic; the people donated money and land to the church, and in turn the church provided services, religious and otherwise, for the people1. As long as the church had the unwavering support of the people, it was near unstoppable.

At first glance, the relationship appears to be a fair balance of power. However, when one truly observes what the Catholic Church could do, it becomes clear they held all the cards. In

Medieval Europe, religion wasn’t treated the same way it is today. In the world of medieval

Catholicism everything in the Bible was 100% true. This meant that Jesus, God, the Flood, the

Book of Genesis, the Garden of Eden, and most importantly, Heaven, were all real2. Catholic beliefs hold that the mortal life is only a tiny chunk of your existence as the soul lives on for eternity in either Heaven or Hell. Reaching Heaven was the entire point of most people’s existence. However, the priests convinced the people of Europe that the church alone held the ability to control whether you went to Heaven or Hell.

1 https://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/schools/ks3/reformation 2 https://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/the-counter-reformation/the-roman-catholic-church-in-1500

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Figure 1 Modern Image of the Oldest Catholic Church in Northern Europe, Built in the Middle Ages

Unfortunately for the people, there was a catch. The Catholic Church not only held the

power to “determine” who went to Heaven and who didn’t, but also the ability to interpret the

word of God and the criteria for entering Heaven. The Gutenberg Printing Press had only been

invented in 1450, and only just begun to print out Bibles. Prior to this point, the only bibles being

produced were those painstakingly hand copied by monks3. As such, very few members of the

public owned their own copy of the Bible, instead relying on their church to have one. On top of

this, literacy in Europe was already incredibly low, but even those Bibles people had access to

weren’t even written in the more commonly read German, but rather in Latin4. This way, even if

people had personal access to the Bible, they still required a Latin-literate translator to read it to

them. Of course, the church often took up this task. In order to increase its power, the church

would read and translate the Bible to the people of Europe, changing parts to read however the

3 https://www.history.com/topics/inventions/printing-press 4 https://brewminate.com/the-growth-of-literacy-in-western-europe-from-1500-to-1800/

6 church leadership wanted5. Catholic priests also told churchgoers that only the priests held a direct connection between mortals and God himself. Furthermore, the church controlled most of the important aspects of one's life. Birth, death, marriage, communion, everything happened at the church. With all of this, the Catholic Church was able to rapidly seize control of every aspect of society6.

With their power, the Catholic Church convinced people to donate money, give lands, volunteer service, and fully dedicate their lives to the Church as an institution. People were instructed to pay a “tithe”, or a chunk of their money, equal to one tenth of their annual income.

On top of their tithe, churchgoers were also told to give donations to the church at the end of every service. Catholics in Europe were even “asked” to work church lands multiple days during the week. By the early 1500s, the Catholic Church was so rich it owned 1⁄3 of all land in

Europe7. On these lands the Catholic church expanded from a religious institution to a political powerhouse. With its wealth the church-built schools, hospitals, libraries, poverty centers, and of course, more parishes. Between the physical wealth and the religious power of the church, it quickly grew to dominate all of Europe until it was far stronger than any government.

THE BEGINNING OF THE REFORMATION:

The Protestant Reformation wasn’t the first revolt against the church, but it was by far the most successful. The post reformation Church never had the same grasp on society it had held for centuries prior. Although a series of events can be traced back to the beginning of the

5 https://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/the-counter-reformation/the-roman-catholic-church-in-1500 6 https://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/schools/ks3/reformation 7 http://www.unamsanctamcatholicam.com/history/historical-apologetics/79-history/501-church-owned-land- middle-ages.html

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Reformation, one specifically is often cited as the turning point. This was the church’s decision

to sell indulgences.

Essentially, an indulgence was a way

of sending yourself or a loved one to

Heaven. The church had decreed that

upon death the soul entered purgatory

to await a final decision. Either it

would go to Heaven and be spared for

Figure 2 A Catholic Man Purchasing an Indulgence eternity or be sent straight to Hell.

According to the Bible, the only way to reach heaven was to repent for your sins and pray to God

for forgiveness. This changed with a man named Friar Tetzel8. Friar Tetzel decided to turn a

profit on dead souls and told the Catholics of Europe that they could guarantee their loved ones

went to Heaven if they purchased a slip of paper known as an indulgence. The indulgences were

absurdly expensive as well, sometimes costing up to half a poor family’s annual wages9.

Few questioned the church's actions. Few actually owned or read a Bible, and thus relied

exclusively on the Priests’ teachings. They had no idea they were being scammed and instead

believed this was the actual word of God. Everything changed when one man, an intellectual

who could read the Bible for himself, decided to speak out about this injustice.

8 https://www.ncronline.org/news/people/peddling-purgatory-relief-johann-tetzel 9 https://www.history.com/topics/reformation/reformation

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MARTIN LUTHER & THE 95 THESES:

Martin Luther grew up in a wealthy family

in the Holy Roman Empire (modern day Germany).

As a child, Luther's family moved to Mansfield

where his father served in the local government on

what is essentially a city council10. Seeking a

similar life for his child, his father sent Martin to

law school at the University of Erfurt. On July 2nd,

1505, lighting struck Martin as he was heading

home. As he lay on the ground in fear he begged Figure 3 Image of Martin Luther for salvation and life. Legend has it he cried out

“St. Anne help me! I will become a monk.”11 This moment forever changed the course of not only Martin’s life, but the world as a whole.

After he survived, he held true to his promise. Martin enrolled in the Monastery of Erfurt only days later and devoted his life to the worship of God. However, his intelligence, ability to read and translate, and his independent thought set him apart from the other monks in the monastery. Although he was a devout Catholic, he quickly grew to believe that Catholicism wasn’t about a worship of the Church, but rather a worship of God alone.

He especially took issue with the practice of selling indulgences. Martin believed in Sola

Fide, something preached by Paul the Apostle. Sola Fide directly translates to only faith and was the idea that salvation can only be achieved through one's faith, not their actions12. As such,

10 https://www.biography.com/religious-figure/martin-luther 11 https://www.luther.de/en/blitz.html 12 uther.de/en/95thesen.html

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Martin thought that indulgences were not only wrong, but also sacrilege. Luther watched as

fewer and fewer people repented for their sins, opting instead to simply purchase an indulgence.

In Luther’s mind, this degraded the value of faith, and thus the value of God.

His anger truly exploded when Pope Leo X offered an increased number of indulgences

to fund the creation of the St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome13. Built from this frustration, Luther

wrote his famous 95 Theses. These theses decry the church's decision to sell indulgences as

fraudulent, offensive, and unnecessary. He also challenges the Pope’s ability to free people of

sin, claiming the Pope can only free people from punishment he administered. Finally, he

questioned why the Pope would need money from the people to build the Basilica when he was

rich enough to fund it himself14. This was seen as a direct challenge to the papal authority, and in

many ways it was.

Luther also claimed that the common conception of purgatory was false. Based on his

reading of the Bible, there was no clear evidence of what happened to a soul between death and

Heaven. Again, this was a direct challenge to the pope’s legitimacy as Pope Leo X claimed

purgatory was real to sell indulgences. Martin Luther had effectively poked the beehive and

stirred great controversy within the Catholic Church, and thus Europe as a whole.

His ideas were rapidly spread and people all across the continent began to question the

authority of the Church for the first time in generations. Whether or not it was intention, Luther’s

work was rapidly creating a populist uprising against the church15.

13 https://www.christianity.com/church/church-history/timeline/1501-1600/infamous-indulgence-led-to- reformation-11629920.html 14 https://www.luther.de/en/95thesen.html 15 https://www.luther.de/en/anschlag.html

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Luther’s teachings spread

further and faster than any prior

revolutionaries. One of the key pieces

to this was his usage of new

technology. A massive part of

Figure 4 Martin Luther Famously Nails his 95 Theses to the Church Door Luther’s argument was that people should have the right to read and interpret the Bible themselves. As such, he used the newly invented Gutenberg Printing Press to begin creating Bibles at an astounding pace16. Luther’s

Bibles weren’t written in Latin however, but instead the rural German languages that more people could read. Even though literacy was low, at least a few people in every town could read this tongue. Suddenly individuals had access to a direct translation of the Bible and could form their own beliefs about what was written. As people across the nation realized the church’s teachings about purgatory, indulgences, and everything else were mostly lies, the popular revolution grew stronger and stronger.

Obviously the Pope was furious with Luther. In 1518 he personally condemned the 95

Theses as anti-Catholic. By 1519 Pope Leo X started two official papal investigations into the writings of Luther to determine whether or not his work was truly heretical. The first found that it was heresy while the second determined it was indeed offensive, but not heretical. Pope Leo X decided to side with the investigation that supported his position the most, officially declaring

Luther’s work to be heretical17. In 1520 the Pope posted the bull (written public announcement)

Exsurge Domine. In this post the Pope announced 41 errors in Luther’s work, decried him as a

16 https://www.history.com/topics/reformation/reformation 17 https://lutheranreformation.org/history/the-diet-of-worms/

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heretic, and demanded he return to Rome and recant within 120 days or face excommunication18.

Luther opted to not return and instead burned the Pope’s public notice.

Thus, on January 3, 1521 when Luther’s time ran out, he was officially excommunicated

from the church. Typically, the church had the power to send troops to find and execute Luther,

but his life was spared by the protection of his Prince, Elector Fredrick III the Wise of Saxony.

Prince Fredrick decided that Luther should stand trial, and sheltered him until his trial came.

DIET OF WORMS & THE REFORMATION:

Luther’s trial came on April 17th, 1521 in the form of the Diet of Worms (Diet meaning

meeting and Worm a city in Germany). When he reached Worms he was greeted by the joyous

shouts of the townspeople. The Roman Emperor Charles V, however, was unmoved. When

Luther arrived, he was intensely questioned by the Empire, theological doctors, Priests, and

Princes19. Luther’s heretical writing was read aloud, and he affirmed that the writing was his.

Finally, Luther was asked to renounce his errors. Defiance would make him an outlaw to the

church and state, but renouncing would delegitimize everything Luther had worked toward.

He asked for a night of prayer to consider. When returning the next day Luther stood in

defiance and claimed that his beliefs were bound by God. In his interpretation of the Bible and in

God’s teachings, Luther had done nothing wrong. For him to admit guilt would be to go against

God. Luther claimed that unless one of the other theologians present could prove him wrong with

direct text from the Bible, then he wasn’t going to yield. No one could prove him wrong. Instead,

he was told all heretics rely on scripture, and the institution of the Catholic Church was used to

determine sinner from saint. The Diet of Worms declared Luther a heretic20.

18 https://www.papalencyclicals.net/leo10/l10exdom.htm 19 https://lutheranreformation.org/history/the-diet-of-worms/ 20 https://www.luther.de/en/worms.html

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In the following days the Diet had to determine what to do with Luther. Not seeking to be cruel or evil, they allowed him a short period of time for safe passage back to his home in

Wittenberg. Shortly after Worms his work was declared illegal, he was declared an outlaw, and once his travel time was up, he was to be hunted and handed over to the Empire. During his travel home Luther’s Prince established a fake kidnapping so that Luther could be taken into hiding without incriminating his Prince21. He spent this time translating the rest of the Bible into

German and continuing to practice his worship. No matter Luther’s intent, a Reformation was beginning, and the people were ready to carry the torch.

Figure 5 Martin Luther at the Diet of Worms in 1521

21 https://martinlutherjl.weebly.com/kidnapped.html

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THE HOLY ROMAN IMPERIAL DIET

WHAT IS THE HOLY ROMAN IMPERIAL DIET & HOW DOES IT FIT IN?

By the Middle Ages, Rome

had basically fallen. What was once

the greatest empire in the world was

now a loose coalition of states, held

together by the power of the

Catholic Church. Even still, the

power of the church was enough to

keep the Holy Roman Empire

breathing. By the 1500’s the Empire Figure 6 Image of the Imperial Diet Organization and Seating was divided into the Imperial

Estates, semi-sovereign governments with the power to vote in the Imperial Diet. Each estate

was led by either a member of the clergy or a secular prince. The only person higher than these

Estate leaders was the Holy Roman Emperor himself22.

The Imperial Diet can be thought of as a meeting between the Estates. It was not held

regularly, and did not have continued attendance from the members, but instead was called to

order by the Emperor to solve critical issues the Empire faced as a whole. The Diet wasn’t really

a legislative body, but rather a chance for Estates to meet and negotiate trade, treaties, and other

controversies. In 1489 a Diet was called to create reforms and a new voting system was created.

22 www.jstor.org/stable/4436777

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Each Estate would still retain their ability to cast a single vote, but voting was divided into three distinct colleges. The first, and most powerful, was the electoral college. This was composed of seven total members, three of which who were prince-bishops, and four who were secular princes. Each prince held one vote within this college. Below this was the second College composed of princes, noble courts, and families. Each member retained a vote, but there was also a system in which certain groups from the same Estate could cast a collective vote. The third college was the College of Cities. This was a collection of electors from powerful cities across the Empire. The intention was for cities to have the power to bring a unique perspective to the diet. Unfortunately, this third college was so weak it was essentially useless until changes to it were made in 1582. For the sake of this committee we will be operating on the rules of the First

Electoral College. Every member of the committee will have a single vote, treating everyone as if they are Prince-Electors. There will be no city, family, group, or estate-based vote23.

In 1521 it was an Imperial Diet who convened in Worms to decide the fate of Martin

Luther. As we have already discussed, the Diet decided he would be excommunicated and sent home to be hunted later. Each member had their own beliefs about Luther. Obviously, he is greatly disliked by the Prince-Archbishops, but some of the secular leaders, including his own

Elector Prince Fredrick, still support his ideas24.

THE HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE & THE BENELUX

The structure of the Holy Roman Empire was much different, and more complex, than the typical late-Medieval kingdom. Where a kingdom was organized in a straightforward hierarchical structure, the political structure of the H.R.E was much more complicated. Firstly,

23 www.jstor.org/stable/4436777 24 https://lutheranreformation.org/history/the-diet-of-worms/

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the H.R.E was organized into 10 administrative circles; Swabia, Bavaria, Upper Saxony, Lower

Saxony, Westphalia, Austria, Rhine, Saxony, and Burgundy25 (see second map below for a

diagram of these circles). Each of these circles acted as common defense points in relation to the

collection of taxation, as well as in mustering defensive forces.

25 http://www.holyromanempireassociation.com/structure-of-the-holy-roman-empire.html

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As to the specific political situation of the Holy Roman Empire in 1521, the rule of King

Charles V had just begun. Being selected as the successor for his grandfather, Emperor

Maxmillian I who died in 1519, Charles V came to inherit the Kingdoms of Aragon and Castile

(all of Spain), as well as holding the region of Burgundy, in addition to his Emperorship of the

Holy Roman Empire. A devout Catholic and a close ally of Pope Leo X, Charles V fought throughout his life for the preservation of the Holy Roman Empire. Diplomatically, he was quite hostile with French Monarch Francis I, due in large part to wars fought over claims to land in

Northern Italy. Additionally, Charles V was hostile with Sultan Sulieman the Great of the

Ottoman Empire, due to religious differences, and Ottoman expansion into Europe. In terms of allies, Charles V was friendly with Henry VIII, due to the English Monarchs still intact marriage to his aunt, Catharine of Aragon. Internally, Charles V is closer to some of the noble families within the territory of Burgundy, due to his own historical ties to the region. As for personal possessions of the Hapsburg family, the red and grey area below should illustrate the family holdings within the H.R.E in 1521.

Figure 7 Map of lower level titles personally held by the Hapsburg Family

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CONCLUSION

WHERE DOES THAT LEAVE US?

We will begin committee at the end of the Diet of Worms in 1521. Assume Martin Luther

has been sent home and the decision to brand him an outlaw, as well as the banning of his works,

is already happening. Although the Imperial Diet isn't primarily a legislative institution, we will

operate as one for committee. Each member will hold one vote, and majority decisions will be

binding to all members. It is the task of this committee to decide what to do next. The entire

Empire is in a massive power struggle against the people. For centuries it has relied on the power

of a church that is now under question. Should the Catholic Church fall, the Holy Roman Empire

very well may fall too. Each of you is responsible for your Estate first though. Consider carefully

how each decision made will affect not only the Empire, but the people of your region. It is your

task to save your Estate, your Empire, and decide how to proceed.

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QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER

1. What should you do about Martin Luther and his work?

2. How should you handle the popular uprising against the Catholic Church?

3. Is the closeness between the Catholic Church and the Empire beneficial? Should it be

changed? Should you strengthen ties to the Catholic Church as an institution or separate

further?

4. What legislation can you enact to keep the Estates together? Do you seek a stronger bond

under the Empire, or do you seek greater separation between the Estates?

SUGGESTED SITES

• http://www.holyromanempireassociation.com/structure-of-the-holy-roman-empire.html

• https://lutheranreformation.org/history/the-diet-of-worms/

• https://www.papalencyclicals.net/leo10/l10exdom.htm

• https://www.history.com/topics/reformation/reformation

• https://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/schools/ks3/reformation