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Italy in the early modern period was one of the wealthiest areas of Europe. Italy had a very advanced and sophisticated culture. Many Italians were appalled by the corruption of the Church and there had been several movements that challenged the supremacy of the Papacy in Italy since the early middle ages. However, despite these factors, the Reformation did not have any lasting impact on Italy. Indeed, there was only a very brief Italian Reformation and by 1600 Protestantism was effectively extinct in Italy. Catholicism was actually strengthened by the failed Italian Reformation. Protestantism failed to establish itself on the Peninsula for three reasons: the enormous political power of the Catholic Church, the states’ support for the Counter-Reformation and the Inquisition, and the popular attachment to Catholicism.
====Background====
It has been widely stated that Italian society in the Renaissance was largely secular. This has been challenged by Burckhardt among others.<ref> Burckhardt, Jakob. <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/014044534X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=014044534X&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=739a244a93ecac84fd03204f26d1d881 The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy]</i> (London, Penguin, 1992), p. 34</ref> The elite was largely secular and the humanist class of scholars was more interested in the classics than the bible. However, the majority of the country was religious. Italians went to mass and took part in religious festivals. The morals and the beliefs of the population were very much influenced by the Catholic Church.<ref> Payton James. <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0830838805/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0830838805&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=e3192d7e1d35bcb5be45193113f6297d Getting the Reformation Wrong: Correcting Some Misunderstandings]</i> (IVP, 2010), p. 79</ref> This is remarkable given the corruption and the decadence of the Papacy.
There was a long history in Italy of ‘heresy’. Many Italians especially, in the Northern Cities had joined groups that were not happy with the Catholic Church and had developed their own doctrines and practices. They had all being suppressed. In the 1490s, Girolamo Savonarola (1452–1498), a Friar launched a religious revival in Florence. This included the famous ‘Bonfire of the Vanities’. Savonarola was soon so influential that he was able to expel the de Medici and establish a theocracy in Florence. Later Savonarola was burned at the stake. In the early days of the Protestant Reformation, many expected that Italy would reject the Catholic Church. Yet this did not prove to be the case.<ref>Weinstein, Donald <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0300111932/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0300111932&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=16d43feac92430a71f0cdedd193111a4 Savonarola the Rise and Fall of a Renaissance Prophet]</i> (New Haven, 2011), pp 45-134</ref>
====Italian Reformation====
[[File: Inquisition 2.jpg |thumbnail|250px|left|Contemporary portrait of Savonarola]]
In the 1520s, there were the first reports of Lutherans as they were known in Italy. They were influenced by the works of Luther and they were sympathetic to his aims. The all believed that the Church was in need of Reform and challenged the authority of the Pope. The individuals were all influenced by humanism and sought a more personal relationship with God, in order to secure salvation. Many of the early ‘Protestants’ at first did not seek to set up another church, rather they sought to reform the Church. When it became apparent that the Catholic Church was not willing to engage in meaningful reforms they increasingly sought separation from the Church.<ref> Caponetto, Salvatore. <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0940474581/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0940474581&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=5a0196d80d532efda3904652eff6086e The Protestant Reformation in Sixteenth-Century Italy, Anne C. Tedeschi]</i> (Thomas Jefferson Truman State University Press, Kirksville, 1999), p. 56</ref> Some Italian humanists translated some of the works of Luther and they were transmitted in clandestine networks. There were soon small groups of Lutherans in many Northern Italian cities, especially in the North. A small group of intellectuals also was later discovered to be in Naples.
The Reformation became more radical and many new groups emerged. These included the Calvinists and Anabaptists. The influence of these doctrines was mainly among the upper class. There were many communities of foreign traders in the Italian cities and especially in Venice. It seems that there was a large community of Anabaptists and Lutherans in Venice. Later a group who adhered to Nontrinitarians grew and gained a following among the educated.<ref> Caponetto, p. 134</ref> It appears that many foreign Protestants, especially French Huguenots fled to the cities of Italy to escape persecution at home. According to one Pope, groups of Protestants had been active in many areas of Italy. However, the influence of Protestantism was confined to small groups and not many common people outside urban areas accepted the movement or its doctrines. Indeed by 1600 there was no Protestant presence in Italy apart from some foreign mercenaries, diplomats and traders and the . The Catholic Church was actually stronger than in 1500. Many Italian Protestant had been forced into exile and they contributed greatly to the Reformation in Eastern Europe.<ref> Caponetto, p. 134</ref>
====Persecution====One of the reasons for the failure of Protestantism to make any inroads in Italy was because of persecution by the Catholic Church, usually with the support of the local rulers. The Church in Italy was corrupt but it was also powerful. Since the early middle ages, the Inquisition had not been very active. In general, the humanists had been able to hold many unorthodox views and opinions. The threat of Protestantism meant that the Inquisition was reformed and became much more active.<ref> Burman, Edward, <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/075093722X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=075093722X&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=af2dfafe7050e8affa7882857fef9494 The Inquisition: The Hammer of Heresy]</i> (London, Sutton Publishers, 2004), p 67, 78</ref> The Inquisition was a series of institutions that were dedicated to ensuring religious conformity and to the eradication of any heretical beliefs. Soon the Inquisition was searching out for Protestants and arresting them. Those who were suspected of holding views that were sympathetic to Protestantism were deemed to be heretics. They were placed often in special prisons, tortured and tried in Church courts. Protestants, if found guilty of heresy , could be sentenced to death. Many Protestants were executed in brutal ways.
==State Support==Protestantism was ‘Foreign====[[File: Inquisition 3.jpg |thumbnail|300px|left|Contemporary portrait of Martin Luther]]It is widely held that Protestantism Italy was reliant on divided politically but the support peoples of Italy had a distinct sense of being part of the nobility an Italian society and monarchs for its success culture. They resented any foreign interference in Northern Europetheir country. In Germany, Scandinavia, and England the elite largely supported the Reformation. Without the support of the elite16th century, many Italians hated the Reformation would have more than likely have failedfact that their country had been turned into a battleground mainly by foreign armies. Luther The fact that Protestantism was reliant on the support of the Duke of Saxony something foreign and other nobles. Calvin was dependent on alien meant that the urban patriarchs’ in Geneva for his Reformation. In Italy, the local Protestants did not have the support Italians population from all levels of the elitesociety rejected it. Much of the Peninsula They saw it as something that was dominated by the Spanish Monarch, especially the south of Italyun-Italian. They were intolerant of any sign of It has been often stated that many Italians rejected Protestantism and they were enthusiastic supporters because of the Inquisition.<ref>Burckhardt, p. 112</ref> Any Protestants apprehended on Spanish controlled territory was likely to be handed over to the InquisitionSack of Rome in 1527. The Spanish helped the Inquisition to destroy Imperial Army after defeating a small group French army mutinied and many of Protestants associated with the University of Naplessoldiers were German Lutherans. The various rulers of the city-states in Italy co-operated with the Inquisition partly out of respect for the power of Spain They besieged Rome and also out of a genuine dislike of Protestantism. The local elites like the common people saw later captured it as a ‘foreign creed’ and did not belong in Italy. There was some support for Protestants in Ferrara several months occupied it and the Republic of Venice was not willing to allow the inquisition to operate on its territoriescommitted many atrocities. The relative toleration that Protestants found in Ferrara and Venice was short-lived and Protestantism was unable to find any sympathetic government in Italy. After 1550, Lutheran soldiers openly mocked the Counter-Reformation, a movement that sought to reform the Church Papacy and counter the threat sacraments of Protestantism did much to end the appeal of ProtestantismCatholic Church.<ref>BurckhardtKonstam, pAngus. 112<i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1855325047/ref> The various governments supported the Counter=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1855325047&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-Reformation and this allowed the Catholic Church to grow strong. 20&linkId=c61e74bf6eadc15c9eb3170185cbbc85 Pavia 1525: The clergy was better educated and more disciplined. The Catholic Hierarchy cracked down on many abuses, and tried to suppress any form of corruption such as simony. The Counter-Reformation, because Climax of the support of the states in Italy was able to retain the loyalty of all classes of Italians.Italian Wars]<ref/i> Caponetto(Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 1996), p. 134189</ref>
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====State Support====[[File: Inquisition 3.jpg |thumbnail|300px|left|Contemporary portrait of Martin Luther]]It is widely held that Protestantism was reliant on the support of the nobility and monarchs for its success in Northern Europe. In Germany, Scandinavia, and England the elite largely supported the Reformation. Without the support of the elite, the Reformation would have more than likely have failed. Luther was reliant on the support of the Duke of Saxony and other nobles. Calvin was dependent on the urban patriarchs in Geneva for his Reformation. In Italy, the local Protestants did not have the support of the elite. Much of the Peninsula was dominated by the Spanish Monarch, especially the south of Italy. They were intolerant of any sign of Protestantism and they were enthusiastic supporters of the Inquisition.<ref>Burckhardt, p. 112</ref> Any Protestants apprehended on Spanish controlled territory was likely to be handed over to the Inquisition. The Spanish helped the Inquisition to destroy a small group of Protestants associated with the University of Naples. The various rulers of the city-states in Italy co-operated with the Inquisition partly out of respect for the power of Spain and also out of a genuine dislike of Protestantism. The local elites like the common people saw it as a ‘foreign creed’ and did not belong in Italy. There was some support for Protestants in Ferrara and the Republic of Venice was not willing to allow the inquisition to operate on its territories. The relative toleration that Protestants found in Ferrara and Venice was short-lived and Protestantism was unable to find any sympathetic government in Italy. After 1550, the Counter-Reformation, a movement that sought to reform the Church and counter the threat of Protestantism did much to end the appeal of Protestantism.<ref>Burckhardt, p. 112</ref> The various governments supported the Counter-Reformation and this allowed the Catholic Church to grow strong. The clergy was better educated and more disciplined. The Catholic Hierarchy cracked down on many abuses, and tried to suppress any form of corruption such as simony. The Counter-Reformation, because of the support of the states in Italy was able to retain the loyalty of all classes of Italians.<ref>Caponetto, p. 134</ref> ====Conclusion====The Italian Reformation was a failure. Despite widespread contempt and disillusionment with the Papacy and the Church, the Reformation was only able to secure the allegiance of a few scattered number of intellectuals and upper-class Italians. Various states of Italy were bitterly anti-Protestant and refused to give any support to those who were sympathetic to the ideas and teachings of Calvin and Luther. Any Protestant who was in Italy in the sixteenth century ran the risk of persecution and even death. The Catholic Church was violently opposed to the Reformation and it permitted the inquisition to imprison and torture those who were even suspected of ‘heresy.’ An unknown number of Italian Protestants were executed on the orders of the Inquisition. Protestantism was also genuinely unpopular among many members of the elite and the ordinary people viewed it with suspicion because it was seen as a foreign creed. The Sack of Rome in 1527 shocked Italy and it reinforced among Italians the negative perceptions of the Reformation. Lutheranism was seen as barbaric and violent and the destruction of Rome confirmed that in their minds. Finally, despite the perceptions of widespread corruption, non-elites were happy with the form of Catholicism as practiced in their local community, which was often a mixture of paganism and Christianity and saw no reason to convert to a ‘foreign’ religion.{{MediawikiMediaWiki:Renaissance HistoryAmNative}}====References====
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