4.3.1

The Counter-Reformation in Europe

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The Counter-Reformation in Europe

In response to the Protestant Reformation, Catholics were driving a ‘Counter-Reformation’.

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Aim of the Counter-Reformation

  • The Counter-Reformation aimed to reform the Catholic Church from within.
  • Reformers such as Girolamo Savonarola (a monk) had tried to reform the Church.
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Creation of religious orders

  • New religious orders were formed in the Catholic Church. They wanted to bring the Catholic Church back to its original spirituality and move away from its corruption.
  • The Society of Jesuits were one of the most famous religious orders.
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The Jesuits

  • The Jesuits were founded in 1534. The Pope approved the order in 1539.
  • The Jesuits focussed on education and wanted to use it to fight the Protestant Reformation.
  • The Jesuits set up schools and universities to train priests.
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The Council of Trent

  • The Council of Trent was held in 1545 and continued until 1563.
  • The council, organised by Pope Paul III, aimed to reform the Catholic Church.
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The Council of Trent’s Reforms

  • Reforms included:
    • Better training for priests (creating schools called ‘seminaries’).
    • Abolishing indulgences.
    • Punishing corrupt clergymen.
  • The Council of Trent rejected the doctrine of Protestantism and refused to compromise between it and Catholicism.

Jump to other topics

1The Medieval World: 450-1450 AD

1.1Anglo-Saxon England

1.2The Contest for the English Throne

1.3Conquering the Holy Land, 10-96-1396 AD

1.4King John

1.5The Magna Carta & Parliament

1.6The Black Death

2Worldviews

3The Empire of Mali

4The Renaissance & Reformations, 1500-1598 AD

5The British Empire, 1583-1960 AD

6The Peasants' Revolt

7Religion in the Middle Ages

8Slavery, 1619-1833 AD

9The English Civil War, 1642-1660

10The Industrial Revolution, 1750-1840

11US Independence, 1775-1783

12The French Revolution, 1789-1815

13The British Empire, 1857–1930

14Suffrage

15World War 1, 1914-1918

16The Inter-War Years, 1919-1939

17World War 2, 1939-1945

18The Cold War, 1947-1962

19Civil Rights in the USA, 1954-1975

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