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PROPAGANDA IN THE PROTESTANT REFORMATION by Courtney Suzanne Kriewald A SENIOR THESIS m GENERAL STUDIES Submitted to the General Studies Council in the College of Arts and Sciences at Texas Tech University in Partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of BACHELOR OF GENERAL STUDIES Approved r • I YM. BELL Depa ent of History Chairperson of Thesis Committe$-- DR. MICHAEL PARKINSON School of Mass Communications Chairperson of Thesis Committee Accepted DR. MICHAELSCHOENECKE Director of General Studies DECEMBER 2000 M^'f^^^ ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 1 would like to thank Dr. Gary Bell and Dr. Michael Parkinson for their guidance .39 and encouragement, and the General Studies program director and adviser. Dr. Michael T ,^ Schoenecke and Ms. Linda Gregston. Also, I would like to thank Tim Head, Courtnie Smith, my sister, Lesley Kriewald, and my parents, Kay and Dennis Kriewald, for their positive attitude, even when my thesis was in pieces. TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii LIST OF FIGURES iii CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION 1 The Significance of the Printing Revolution to the Protestant Reformation 1 II. VISUAL PROPAGANDA AND ORAL TRADITION IN THE PROTESTANT REFORMATION 8 III. THEMES OF PROTESTANT PROPAGANDA 16 Malevolency of the Roman Catholic Church 16 Protestant Martyrs 19 IV. THE PROPAGANDA AND PUBLIC RELATIONS TECHNIQUES OF THE PROTESTANT REFORMATION 28 The Successes of the Protestant Reformers 28 The Failures of the Roman Catholic Church 35 V. Bibliography 39 LIST OF FIGURES 1.1 Martin Luther 6 1.2 Johann Gensfleisch zum Gutenberg 7 2.1 Title page to Verhor und Acta vor dem Byschoff'von Meysen 13 2.2 Title page to Die Luterisch Strebkatz 13 2.3 The Abbot on the Ice 14 2.4 The Monk and his Maid 14 2.5 Luther Leads the Faithful from Egyptian Darkness 15 3.1 The Spiritual Wolves 25 3.2 Title page to Das new Testament Deutsch and an illustration in Czech edition of Luther from Vom Ambeten des Sakraments 26 3.3 Title page to Am anazaignng wie D. Martinus Luther zu Worms 27 4.1 Ignatius Loyola 38 IV CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION A public relations campaign is defined as a "connected series of operations designed to bring about a particular result; ... the term encompasses such related activities as publicity, promotion, special events, advertising, and organizational behavior, all coordinated to sway public opinion and/or behavior" (Kendall 520-21). Although the notion of an organized public relations campaign is a fairly new idea, there have been several examples of public relations campaigns throughout history. The movement to abolish slavery or the movement for women's rights are just two examples of what could be considered public relations campaigns. But perhaps one of history's best examples of a successful public relations campaign is the Protestant Reformation. The Protestant Reformation effectively challenged the dominant institution of sixteenth century Europe, the Roman Catholic Church, and established numerous Protestant religions. To this day, millions of people are followers of the faiths that arose follow ing the challenge to the established Church. The Significance of the Printing Revolution to the Protestant Reformation It is important to note that what is commonly considered the event that spurred the Protestant Reformation — Martin Luther posting his ninety-five theses to the door of Castle Church in Wittenburg, Germany on October 31, 1517 — is not the true beginning of the Reformation (Ozment x). Before Luther, there were several reformers who challenged the authority and questioned the practices of Catholicism (Figure 1.1). Jan Hus in Czechoslovakia, Ulrich Zwingli in Switzerland, and John Wyclif in England all rebelled against the Catholic Church before Luther. But the early reformers lacked an effective channel of communication to spread their message of reform. The reason Martin Luther successfully spread his ideas was because a medium that could reach a large number of people in far away places quickly and efficiently was available — the medium of the pnnted word. Wyclif's and the other early Reformers' ideas spread slowly because it took so long to produce hand-written copies. However, Luther's ideas flooded Europe within months because they were printed (Lindberg 36). The printing press opened the door for Luther and other reformers to end the dominance of the Roman Catholic Church. The pnnting revolution is undoubtedly one of the greatest developments in human history. The creation of printing was not only a monumental event in the history of communications, but it also contributed to the transformation of society. For the first time in history, books were not restricted to monasteries, to the learned upper class, or to universities; the average person could possess a book. The new access to the printed word resulted in the spread of literacy and learning to an entire class of people previously unexposed to literature of any sort. There are three important developments that led to the printing revolution — inexpensive paper, an ink of good quality, and the moveable-type pnnting press. Without these, printing would have never been possible. In 1295, Marco Polo introduced to Europe linen rag paper from China. The materials that had been used previously for printing — papyrus from the swamps of the Nile and parchment made from sheepskin — were not only expensive, but were difficult to produce. The inexpensive linen rag paper made printing on a large scale financially feasible. Once a suitable paper was developed. Europeans still lacked quality ink. However, it was found that mixing carbon with an oily solution produced ink that adhered to linen paper and was suitable for mass printing (Lindberg 36). The critical invention that spurred the printing revolution was not made, however, until the 1440s. In Germany, Johann Gensfleisch zum Gutenberg (Figure 1.2) invented the mov cable metal-type printing press (Steinberg 21). Before then, woodcuts, engravings, and drawings were mass produced, but no written tracts were available to a large number of people. The press made the printing of large amounts of text and numerous copies of text possible for the first time. Inspired in part by the presses wine makers used to squeeze grapes and the presses goldsmiths used to mint coins, Gutenberg's printing press was durable, and the metal type could be rearranged so that the press could be reused (Clair 12). By 1450, Gutenberg's press was perfected enough to use commercially. Although Gutenberg's personal venture into the printing industry failed, other financially successful printers credited Gutenberg for spreading the technique and making the art of printing possible (Steinberg 22). The printing industry initially flourished in Germany, along the Rhine River, w here printers established their businesses in commercial centers, and later in universities (Buck 96). Strassburg, Mainz, and Cologne were the earliest centers for printing within Germany (Clair 23-26). The Germans, the first printing masters, soon spread their art to other countries in order to reach untapped markets. Those with the skill and the financial backing emigrated, and by the end of the fifteenth century, more than two hundred European cities and towns had printing presses (Lindberg 23. 36). It did not take fifteenth-century Europeans long to realize the potential of Gutenberg's printing press. Not only did printing represent technical mastery over a machine, but it was clear that the printed word had the power to influence human thought. Information could be spread easily and consistently to people all over Europe. Europeans were introduced to new ideas, and creative endeavors unrelated to typical problems or scholarship were undertaken (Buck 93). Furthermore, in the new age of printing, books served as a means of transmitting opinions, where as previously books served to preserve and transmit knowledge (Lindberg 37). And what may be the most important characteristic of a culture with access to printed material, established orders and institutions could be challenged through widely distributed tracts and books. The Protestant Reformation "'was the first movement of any kind, religious or secular, to use the new presses for overt propaganda and agitation against an established institution'" (Taylor 98). The leading Reformers, as well as their opponents, used the new printed medium in order to spread information and ideas "to wide audiences now exposed and subjected to an informational transmission capability unknown in any era previous to the sixteenth century" (Buck 95). In particular, Martin Luther became a master at using the printed word to change the course of religious history. Luther certainly recognized the potential of printed material in challenging the Catholic Church. In 1520, Luther published three treatises — To the Christian Nobility, On the Freedom of a Christian, and On the Babylonian Captivity of the Church — that were so widespread that the treatises eventually became signature works of the Reformation movement (Edwards 5). Luther also wrote books and translated the Bible into German so that the more of the laity could read God's word. By the time of Luther's death in 1546, there were an estimated one million copies of his Bible in circulation (Lindberg 37). In effect, Luther was the first best-selling author. But Reformation wnters, including Luther, did not limit themselves to books and theses. Pamphlets and brief printed tracts Hooded Europe dunng the early years of the Reformation (Lindberg 37). Known ixs flugbldtter, meaning Hying leaves, and flugschriften, meaning Hying writings, the short printed pieces were perfect for distributing a revolutionary message (Lindberg 37, Edwards 15). The pamphlets were relatively inexpensive to produce and were easily concealed and distributed (Edwards 15). Furthermore, the pamphlets were available to all sixteenth-century Europeans. The laity could judge Church doctrine and papal decrees for themselves, a direct threat to the authority of the Church, which would rather have members of the clergy interpret Church law for the laity (Edwards 57-58).

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