What was counter reformation and how successful was it?

Answer 1

The Counter-Reformation was introduced to re-claim "lost souls" from the Protestants. Whether the Counter-Reformation can be judged a success depends on a definition of "success". It did give:



1. Greater clarity with regards to doctrine - an unequivocal set of rules.



2. The superstitions of the Medieval Church were under control.



3. New orders were established and went into the community to do "good work" and to help the sick and poor. A spiritual commitment applied to all tasks, which was a good example to lay people.



4. Greater importance put on communion, which enabled the faith to be cultivated and spread.



5. Popes were more open to constructive change and recognised the corruption of the old church. More churches were built.



6. The power of the popes was unquestioned after Trent - this was good if they were pro-reform.



7. The Counter-Reformation proved to the outside world that the Catholic Church had recognised its past failings and was willing to reform itself rather than blind itself to its faults.



8. Ideas of the new Catholic Church spread by groups like the Jesuits.



9. Good support (in general) by Catholic lay rulers after 1555. The Council of Trent was accepted everywhere and though Philip II controlled the Catholic Church in Spain he was an ardent Catholic.



10. The power of Spain in the C16 meant that the Catholic Church had very strong backing.



Though all failings had not been removed, the Catholic Church was in a much healthier state in 1600.



The Roman Catholic Church existed in Spain, Italy, Spanish Netherlands (at this time), Austria, Bohemia, Hungary Bavaria, Poland, France and various south German states.



However, the states that had adopted Protestantism remained.



If the Counter-Reformation had been introduced to re-claim souls lost to Protestantism in Europe then it failed. However, to balance this, it had gained millions of new followers in the Americas and the Far East as a result of the work done by the Jesuits. Though its geographic extent in Europe had shrunk by 1600, its ability to deliver to those regions it still controlled was good.



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Answer 2

Elizabeth B explains what it is very well. I would disagree with her response to its success, however, as it really had a negative effect on many countries. The counter-reformation in Spain, for example, resulted in an increase in intolerance and the closing of the border to new ideas, which resulted in centuries of economic and political decline. In America, it was often used as an excuse for enslavement of the native people, who were killed by disease and overwork. France suffered from over a century of religious war that killed millions, and the counter-reformation played an important role in this. In many countries, such as England, it had little to no effect at all. Medieval superstition was stamped out on a dogmatic level, but many early modern historians have written on how superstition remained in reality for most common people. Only the Enlightenment succeeded in reducing, though not in stamping out, superstition. As far as successfully reorganizing the Church hierarchy and refocusing their priorities, it had some success arguably, but I'd have to say that, on the whole, it was a pretty big bust.

Answer 3

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No, but the were not exactly a failure, either. The Counter-Reformation, was a continuous effort on the part of the Catholic church to extinguish the Protest movement in Europe. It started with the Council of Trent in 1545, a council set up by Pope Paul III to try and reconcile with leading members of the Protestant movement. The council achieved essentially nothing, since the Catholic church found nothing wrong with the way they had been practicing religion since the middle ages and the Protestants refused to recant their "heresy". During this time, a particular zealous order was founded by Ignatius Loyola, who found the Jesuits. Although the main purpose of the Jesuits was to fight corruption in the Catholic church, re-new Catholic faith amongst the followers, and founded religious schools for the emerging middle classes, they also had a dark side. Some bishops employed the Jesuits to find "evidence" of heresy and witchcraft among key Protestant citizens. For instance, the Prince Abbot of Fulda Balthasar von Dernbach used the Jesuits to help condemn almost 300 women and girls in a two year span of time in Fulda alone. The Counter-Reformation had hot and cold phases from 1545 until 1618 (73 years), when the 30 Years' War began. There were several causes leading up to the 30 Years' War, but the most famous was the Bohemian Revolt. The Bohemians were primarily Protestant, and the current Holy Roman Emperor, Matthias had no hier. It was obvious that his throne was going to go to Ferdinand, who promised the Jesuits that he would re-Catholicize the entire Holy Roman Empire. The Bohemians had known that Matthias had tolerated their religious views, but they were worried about Ferdinand, who happened to by the Crown Prince of Bohemia. On a visit to Prague, Bohemian Protests threw Ferdinand out the window, and this revolt kicked off the 30 Years War. The 30 Years' War raised armies that had never been seen up until this time, and it was technically the first "World War" in Europe, since it involved a multitude of German countries, Bohemia, Switzerland, Austria, Hungary, France, Spain, Denmark, the Netherlands, Sweden and even England (politically). The armies traveled light and plundered and burned towns and villages wherever they went, regardless of whose side they were on - both sides plundered and murdered friend and foe. The war finally ended on May 15, 1648 with the Peace of Westphalia (Treaty of Osnabrück), which allowed each person to follow their own Christian faith, making Germany the second European country to have forced religious tolerance between Catholics and Protestants (England was the first). Was that really the end of it? Almost. Every year the Catholic and Protestant Churches get together in meeting called a Synode, in which they try to find a way back to each other as brothers in Christianity. They almost reached a reconcilliation under Pope John-Paul, only to have Pope Benedict (a German) to fall back, and maintain that Catholic Church still doesn't need to make any concessions; it's the Protestant Church that does. ... oh, well.... For Historians and Protests the Counter-Reformation is over. But for Benedict XVI, well... not quite.

Answer 4

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What was counter reformation and how successful was it?

Answer 5

Successful. Protestantism did not spread to other regions of Europe afterwards.