Bern, Geneva, or Rome? The struggle for religious conformity and confessional unity in early Reformation Switzerland Item Type text; Dissertation-Reproduction (electronic) Authors Bruening, Michael Wilson Publisher The University of Arizona. Rights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. Download date 07/10/2021 08:18:14 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/280155 INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the micronim master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand comer and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. ProQuest Information and Learning 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 USA 800-521-0600 BERN, GENEVA, OR ROME? THE STRUGGLE FOR RELIGIOUS CONFORMITY AND CONFESSIONAL UNITY IN EARLY REFORMATION SWITZERLAND by Michael W. Bruening A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY hi Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In the Graduate College THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA 2 0 0 2 UMI Number: 3073199 ® UMI UMI Microform 3073199 Copyright 2003 by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest Information and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. 80x1346 Ann Arbor. Ml 48106-1346 THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA GRADUATE COLLEGE As members of the Final Examination Committee, we certify that we have read the dissertation prepared by Michael W. Bruening entitled Bern, Geneva, or Rome? The Struggle for Religious Conformity and Confessional Unity in early Refonnation Switzerland and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy I •ant-Nunn/o\t^ui^X ;I . ' Alan Bernstein // Helen Nader Date Date Final approval and acceptance of this dissertation is contingent upon the candidate's submission of the final copy of the dissertation to the Graduate College. I hereby certify that I have read this dissertation prepared under my direction and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement. <r-7)7><. Dissertation Directs Date Susanf5n<i3n Kcirant-NunnTf^rani-—Niinn ' J STATEMENT BY AUTHOR This dissertation has been submitted in partial fultlllment of requirements for an advanced degree at The University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to borrowers under rules of the Library. Brief quotations from this dissertation are allowable without special permission, provided that accurate acknowledgment of source is made. Requests for permission for e.xtended quotation from or reproduction of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the head of the major department or the Dean of the Graduate College when in his or her judgment the proposed use of the material is in the interests of scholarship. In all other instances. howe\ cr. pemiission must be obtained from the author. SIGNED 4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I owe a debt of gratitude to the many people who have had a hand in making the completion of this dissertation possible. First. I would like to thank the staff members of the various libraries and archives 1 used for their assistance in providing invaluable source material, particularly those at the University of Arizona library, especially the interlibrary loan department. Calvin College library, the Princeton University Firestone library, the Princeton Theological Seminary library, the Bibliotheque nationale de France, the Bibliotheque de la Societe de Thistoire du Protestantisme fran(;ais in Paris, the Bibliotheque cantonale et universitaire de Lausanne, the Archives de la ville de Lausanne, the Archives cantonales vaudoises. and the Staatsarchiv des Kantons Bems. Second. I would like to thank the people who have provided financial support to assist my research: The Institut d'Histoire de la Reformation in Geneva and the Meeter Center for Calvin Studies at Calvin College in Grand Rapids both provided research grants to work at their institutions. Dr. Morris Martin and Mrs. Ora DeConcini-Martin provided a very generous grant to pursue my archival studies in Europe. And finally, the History Department and the Division for Late Medieval and Reformation Studies at the University of Arizona provided financial assistance throughout my years in graduate school. The individuals who have offered lively academic conversation and advice, including my many colleagues in the Division for Late Medieval and Reformation Studies who have become close friends over the years, are unfortunately too numerous to mention in tolo. A few people stand out in my mind, however, and merit specific mention and thanks. Carlos Eire first got me e.xcited about Reformation history as an undergraduate at the University of Virgina and was the first person to suggest studying Pierre Viret. My graduate advisor at Virginia. Erik Middelfort. offered invaluable encouragement and support after a relatively lackluster first year of graduate studies. Tom Brady read parts of this dissertation and made many valuable suggestions. Bernard Roussel warmly welcomed me to Paris, introduced me to the libraries there, and offered me the first opportunity to present my research "en la langue de Rabelais." Jonathan Reid, my friend and colleague at Arizona, likewise helped to smooth the transition to Paris through his and his wife Laura's generous hospitality and has offered excellent advice and a critical eye in reading parts of this dissertation. Sadly, the person I need to thank the most is no longer with us. My original Dokturvuter. Heiko Oberman. died shortly after 1 had started writing this dissertation. 1 can only hope that the outstanding training and guidance he provided me comes through in this work and that it would have made him proud. Susan Karant-Nunn stepped into his very big shoes admirably and saw this dissertation to its completion. She, Alan Bernstein, and Helen Nader read the text in its entirety and made many valuable corrections and suggestions. Any mistakes remain my own. Finally. 1 want to thank my parents for their constant love and support over the years. And my deepest thanks and love go to my wife. Jeanine, who has lived with this dissertation through our entire courtship and marriage and has always offered her own unflagging support and critical eye in reading and correcting the entire text. 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT 7 INTRODUCTION 9 "Turning Swiss" 9 Notes on Terminology and Usage 25 CHAPTER I: CROSSROADS OF THE REFORMATION: BERN AND THE EARLY REFORMATION IN THE SUISSE ROMANDE. 28 The Reformation in Bern 28 The Missionary Efforts of Guillaume Farel under Bern's Protection 41 Conclusion 67 CHAPTER 2: BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY: ICONOCLASM. THE PRINTING PRESS, AND THE REFORMATION IN THE COMMON LORDSHIPS 69 Pierre Viret of Orbe: The Early Ministry of a Native of Vaud 69 Iconoclasm in the Suisse romcinde 79 Religious Coexistence and the Slow Path to Reform in the Common Lordships 92 Deception and Confrontation in the Reformers' Use of the Printing Press to Reach a Wider Audience 99 Conclusion 120 CHAPTERS: CONQUEST AND RESISTANCE 123 Bern's Conquest of Vaud 123 Religious Resistance and the Lausanne Disputation 143 Conclusion 173 CHAPTER 4: THE STRUGGLE FOR RELIGIOUS CONFORMITY 175 Enforcing the Edicts of Reformation 175 Catholic Clergy in a Protestant Land 185 Lay Resistance to the Reformation 210 Conclusion 234 CHAPTER 5: THE STRUGGLE FOR CONFESSIONAL UNITY 237 The Institutional Matrix 241 Prelude to Crisis: Initial Efforts towards Ecclesiastical Discipline and the Growing Rift between Bern and Geneva 252 The Crisis of 1558 274 Conclusion 296 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS - Continued APPENDICES 302 Appendix A: The 1558 Order of Discipline 302 Appendix B: Unpublished Correspondence on Ecclesiastical Discipline 320 WORKS CITED 353 Archival and Manuscript Sources 353 Primary Sources 354 Secondary Literature 358 Abbreviations 367 7 ABSTRACT The Reformation in French-speaking Switzerland outside of Geneva has received relatively little attention from historians. Unlike the movement in Geneva, the Reformation in its neighboring lands progressed in a completely different manner and was ultimately imposed on the people by the magistrates of Bern. Before 1536. Protestant reformers such as Guillaume Farel and Pierre Viret hardly touched most areas of the Pays de Vaud. which was governed by the Catholic duke of Savoy. Instead, they concentrated their efforts on areas within the jurisdiction of or allied to Protestant