Chronology/Timeline – Due April 10 Europe, 1500 – 1815 – His 252

Spring 2018

Sample Chronology: The Lollards and Hussites: Calls for Reform Before the Reformation, with 20th-century Regrets

Simple form: 1381 John Wycliffe dismissed from Oxford for demanding reform of the

Western Church. Wycliffe’s teaching lead to the creation of the Lollard movement. Lollardy declared heresy

1381 Peasants’ Revolt in England. Official blame directed at Wycliffe and Lollardy

1405 – 1409 Jan Hus preaching reform in Prague based largely on the teachings John Wycliffe. Hus declares for the “Antipope” Alexander V

1409 Alexander V turns on Hus, declaring his teachings heretical 1415 Brought to the Council of Constance under safe conduct, Hus is

tried, condemned, and burned at the stake

1419 – 1434 Crusades against the Hussites in Bohemia fail to root out the Heresy. Hussites granted concessions and officially allowed to practice their faith

1517 At the time of Martin Luther’s calls for reform, over 90% of the population of Bohemia practiced the Hussite forms of worship

1999 Pope Jean-Paul II expresses “deep regret” for the way Jan Hus was treated by the Church

A good chronology/timeline does two things:

• Develops a coherent sense of change across time. • Helps a reader to organize related cause/event/effect information

Project Objectives: • Give students the opportunity to construct (and share) a good chronology for the

causes, events, and consequences of key moments in European history. Requirements:

• Pick an event from the events list. • Develop an outline or annotated timeline to explain the cause – event – effect

relationships in the chronology • Presentation of a finished product in a standard presentation format – Word Document,

Web Site, or PowerPoint (Your choice!) – Suitable for loading on the course Blackboard Site and sharing in class.

• Due April 10

Sample Annotated Chronology: . 1381 — John Wycliffe dismissed from Oxford

A) Wycliffe became the focal point for the creation of a movement known as Lollardy, a dissident, anticlerical reform group

B) Wycliffe and the Lollards pursued two primary aims: make scripture the center of church authority and rid the church of clerical abuses

C) In pursuit of his aims, Wycliffe completed an English translation of Bible in 1382 D) Wycliffe enjoyed considerable support from the English nobility as a champion of secular

governments. This support explains the continued strength of Lollardy in England . 1381 — The Peasant’s Revolt in England

A) The Peasants Revolt, also known as the Wat Tyler Rebellion was clearly caused by oppressive tax collection measures.

B) The radical clergyman John Ball preached in support of Wat Tyler and the rebellion. C) There is no evidence that Wycliffe or any of the Lollardy positions promoted the rising,

but popular suspicions fell on the Lollards. The Great Rising of 1381 helped create the political sense that radical religion and peasant risings go together.

. 1405 – 1409 — Jan Hus preaching reform in Prague based largely on the teachings John Wycliffe. A) Hus was clearly influenced by the Wycliffe teachings. In the period shortly after 1400,

Hus began teaching an anticlerical, scripture-based message at the university in Prague. B) The Council of Pisa was called in 1409 to end the Great Schism, but ended by electing

Alexander V as a third sitting pope. C) Hus gave his support to Alexander V and asked for support in return. Alexander refused

and began the persecution of the Hussites. Alexander to be declared an anti-pope at the Council of Constance.

. 1415 – Council of Constance declares Hus a Heretic and executes him A) In the effort to end the Great Schism, the Council of Constance adopted a very strong

position in “conciliarism,” and participants at Constance wanted exercise conciliar authority.

B) The Council took on a number of issues that ranged beyond doctrine and the traditional roles of Church Councils. Among those broader exercises of authority, the condemnation and execution of Hus as a heretic ranks as one of the most important.

. 1419 – 1434 – Crusades declared against the Hussites. A) The “Hussite Wars” involved at least five major military campaigns against Hussite

factions in Bohemia. These were conducted by various political leaders of central Europe.

B) In the last phases of the Hussite Wars, the more radical forces were defeated and the Hussite moderates (the Utraquists) negotiated a settlement (Compact of Basel) that guaranteed protection and the right to the practice of key rites.

. 1517 – The Hussite practices were well established in Bohemia, with over 90% of the population practicing the Hussite rites. A) While the Compact of Basle was honored through much of the 16th century, its

protections were seriously eroded following the Council of Trent and by the later 16th Century Bohemia was a particular focus for Counter Reformation efforts at conversion.

B) Ferdinand II made the extermination of the Utraquist faith a key goal in his program to become Holy Roman Emperor

C) Ferdinand II’s Victory over the Bohemian forces at the Battle of the White Mountain sparks the Thirty Year’s War

.

. 1999 – Pope Jean-Paul II expresses “deep regret” at the treatment of Jan Hus at the Council of Constance A) Jean-Paul II received significant pleas from the clergy of Eastern Europe to recognize

the clear illegality of the actions taken at the Council of Constance. B) As an extreme expression of the conciliar movement at the end of the middle ages, the

Council of Constance represented a very strong weight counterbalancing claims of papal authority. Jean-Paul II’s comments seem to offer something of a statement of papal disapproval for conciliar excesses.