The famous Augsburg world was signed after the spread of new Christian teachings began in Europe. The system, established in 1555, lasted 60 years, until the outbreak of the Thirty Years War.
Reformation
In 1517, a significant event took place in the German city of Wittenberg. Martin Luther, a monk from the Order of the Augustinians, hung out paper on the door of the local church with 95 theses. In them he condemned the rules prevailing in the Roman Catholic Church. Shortly before that, it became possible to buy indulgences (absolution) for money.
Corruption and a departure from the principles of the gospel have hit hard on the prestige of the Catholic Church. Martin Luther became the founder of the Reformation - the process of struggle for reform in the Christian world. His followers began to be called Protestants or Lutherans (this is a narrower term, in addition to Lutherans among Protestants, for example, there were also Calvinists).
The situation in Germany
The Reformation Center became Germany. This country was not a single state. Its territory was divided between many princes who were subordinate to the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. The power of this supreme monarch was never monolithic. Princes often conducted independent domestic politics.
Many of them supported the Reformation and became Protestants. The new movement has become popular among ordinary people in Germany - the townspeople and peasants. This led to a conflict with Rome, and eventually with imperial power (emperors remained Catholics). In the years 1546-1547. the Schmalkalden war broke out. She ruined the country and showed the inefficiency of the old order. There was a need to find a compromise between the warring parties.
Lengthy preliminary negotiations
Before the parties signed the Augsburg Peace, many negotiations took place, which stretched out over several years. Their first success was that among the princes and electors there were those who agreed to be mediators between Catholics and Protestants. The Holy Roman Emperor Charles V of Habsburg at this time quarreled with the Pope, which gave even more chances for a successful outcome of the enterprise.
The Augsburg peace was made possible also because the interests of Catholics were represented by the German king Ferdinand I. This title was largely considered formal, but it was carried by the brother of Emperor Karl, who was his right hand. The protestants at the talks were Elector Moritz of Saxony.
The rulers of both branches of Christianity became neutral princes. Among them were the sovereigns of Bavaria, Trier, Mainz (Catholics), as well as Württemberg and the Palatinate (Lutherans). Before the main negotiations at which the Augsburg Peace was signed, a meeting of the rulers of Hesse, Saxony and Brandenburg also took place. It agreed on the position, which also suit the emperor. At the same time, Charles V refused to participate in the negotiations. He did not want to make concessions to the Protestants and opposition princes. Therefore, the emperor delegated his authority to brother Ferdinand. At this time, Karl was in his Spanish possessions (the Habsburgs controlled vast territories throughout Europe).
Reichstag meeting
Finally, on February 5, 1555, Augsburg received the Reichstag of the Empire, where all parties and participants in the conflict met. Ferdinand I was the chairman. Negotiations took place in several curiae in parallel. The electors, free cities and princes separately agreed among themselves. Finally, in September, the Augsburg Peace was signed by Ferdinand on terms in which there were many concessions to the Protestants. Emperor Karl did not like this. But since he could not sabotage the process so as not to start a war, he decided to abdicate several days before the signing of the treaty. The conclusion of the Augsburg Peace took place on September 25, 1555.
Terms and Significance of the Augsburg Peace
For several months, delegates agreed on the conditions prescribed in the document. The Augsburg religious world secured Lutheranism an official status in the Empire. However, there are serious reservations in this wording.
The principle of religious freedom was established. It extended to the so-called imperial estates, which included privileged members of society: princes, electors, imperial knights and residents of free cities. However, religious freedom did not affect the vassals of the princes and the inhabitants of their possessions. Thus, the principle "whose land is that of faith" triumphed in the Empire. If the prince wanted to turn to Lutheranism, he could do it, but this was not possible, for example, among the peasants who lived on his land. However, the Augsburg religious world allowed the emotion of a ruler to emigrate to another region of the empire, where an acceptable faith was established.
At the same time, Catholics made concessions from the Lutherans. The conclusion of the Augsburg Peace led to the fact that the Abbots and bishops who decided to convert to Protestantism lost their power. So the Catholics were able to keep all the church lands assigned to them until the meeting of the Reichstag.
As you can see, the significance of the Augsburg world was enormous. For the first time, the warring parties managed to resolve the conflict through negotiations, not war. The political division of the Holy Roman Empire was also overcome.