The Reformation and Counter-Reformation: The History of the Religious Movements that Divided Europe in the 16th Century

The Protestant Reformation, despite often being associated with the symbolic figure of Martin Luther nailing his 95 Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg on October 31, 1517, cannot be reduced to a single, abrupt, and exceptional event. Rather, it must be traced to a much longer process of spiritual, social, and intellectual transformation that unfolded over the late medieval period. This historiographical perspective acknowledges the deep-rooted need for a Reformation, tran...