Reformation Europe 1517-59

Fontana History of Europe

by G.R. Elton

This is G.R. Elton's classic account of the Reformation, revealing the issues and preoccupations which seemed central to the age and portraying its leading figures with vigour and realism.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, European History, Christianity, Religion, 16th Century, Theology

288 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1963

About the author

Sir Geoffrey Rudolph Elton FBA (born Gottfried Rudolf Otto Ehrenberg) was a German-born British political and constitutional historian, specialising in the Tudor period. He taught at Clare College, Cambridge, and was the Regius Professor of Modern History there from 1983 to 1988.

An strong advocate of the primacy of political and administrative history, Elton was the pre-eminent Tudor historian of his day. He also made very significant contributions to the then current debate on the philosophy of historical practice, as well as having a powerful effect on the profession through, among other things, his presidency of the Royal Historical Society.

Reviews

[Jan-Maat]

All credit is due to Fontana books for their, now elderly series on European History with each volume generally dealing with a fairly decent fifty years or so, but the series is dated. While the events don't change, interpretations develop, new evidence comes to light and they get to be understood in different contexts.

GR Elton was a specialist on Tudor England with a particular interest what he termed the Tudor revolution in government, associated with Thomas Cromwell. Coming from this background Elton handles the political and religious content of the volume well.

The section on culture is weak, I find it hard to believe, given his comments, that he had actually read Gargantua and Pantagruel.

Given it's age I'd prefer to recommend something more up to date to the curious reader, like the Penguin histories currently in print. It is not as wide-ranging as others in the series - I think Europe Unfolding does best, but again unfortunately choice is limited.

[Ainsley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes, it's about Renaissance Europe. Yes, it's written by a very reputable author. Yes, it is easy to understand and written for the layman. Yes, you should read it.

[Rafa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Historia con mayúsculas. Magnífico relato de una época que cambió Europa y la Cristiandad tal como era entendida hasta entonces.
Con una narración fluida y un estilo claro, el autor es capaz de transmitirnos hasta los conceptos más abstractos del pensamiento de unos hombres que transitaron en este apasionante momento de la historia.
Imprescindible para todos aquellos que quieran comprender la Reforma, sus orígenes y sus efectos.

[Matthew Mercer · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5/5. A serviceable, textbook history of the Protestant Reformation. Very much a capital “P” political history of Great Men and their Great Ideas. At its best when in the thick of the theological debates and exploring various strands of Christianity (Calvinism best Protestantism?).

Unfortunately, not only useless but actively harmful historiography when it comes to the 1525 Peasant War, arguably the most important event of the era (although the author clearly disagrees). Elton is able to proclaim that “The Reformation was a revolution” because of how Luther re-centred the omnipotence of God in Christian theology, but he looks on an actual revolution in the Peasant War with contempt. According to wikipedia, Elton was a big fan of Margaret Thatcher, which is not surprising to me after reading his work.

He treats the peasants themselves with smug condescension (saying “people will always find a reason to revolt if things aren’t *perfect*” and “the lords had it pretty tough too”(!) as the most laughable examples), without any attempt to explore or in fact even mention the actual conditions of life of the peasantry or why they revolted. In Elton’s world, the peasants were no more than “irrational,” anarchic masses led blindly by radical preachers.

Conservative elitism aside, the key problem with him as a historian is that he is completely incapable of explaining how or why Protestantism became the expression of the class interests of the peasantry against the vested power of their lords and the Catholic Church - which, like it or not, is exactly what happened. For Elton, if you became a Protestant, it must be simply because you agreed with the theology - ‘nuff said.

He saves his worst venom, and worst historiography, for the radical preachers. He holds figures like Thomas Müntzer in complete disdain. At best, they were “megalomaniacs,” at worst they were literally mentally “insane,” and therefore it is simply not even possible to understand and explain them or their views - this latter claim, as far as I’m concerned, is an admission of defeat on Elton’s part concerning his own ability as a historian in this area (which incidentally also repeats a couple times for non-peasant related figures).

So I guess I’m pretty sour on this book, as a Peasant War and Thomas Müntzer fan. But, all things considered, if you really want to read a general overview of the Reformation, warts and all, you may still get a lot out of this book. I did. So enjoy I guess?

[zed · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tedious hardly describes this book. It took all of my will power to finish. Why 2 stars then some may ask. Because at a bare minimum parts were interesting and the reformation is a very interesting time in European history that even an overblown tome such as this can hardly ruin.

Elton writes in a style that to be blunt neither excites, enthrals, let alone holds the attention. To make matters worse there is almost a sense of proselytising that is annoying to the point that I came close to stopping and just putting the book away forever. But on I went and with that reached the most inane sentence I have read in a history book of some note for a very long time.

"In the face of the long and ramifying controversy, sadness is the only proper feeling: sadness at the willingness of historians to worship the graven image set up by the sociologist" WHAT? Yes I am taking a specific sentence and not giving context. Be that as it may it came at the end of a chapter Elton spent an entirety on ranting about Marxist theory towards the Reformation and protestant capitalism. I suppose that this was first released in 1963 at the height of the cold war and Elton being of German extraction was writing for the conservative west hence his view. No issue with that but one surely has to see the mote in one own eye when accusing others of being sociologist when what`should have been a riveting chapter on Calvin became a theological treatise. For the sadness of a historian being a sociologist I give you the sadness of an historian being a theologist.

This is not for the laymen delving into the newly found world of the reformation. It is not popular history y any stretch and must surely be aimed at the individual who is well read on the subject and looking to delve into past thoughts when the world was full of east west tensions and just maybe the historian thought that this mattered when telling history.

I have no idea if Fontana originally released the History of Europe series as popular history but if this is indicative popular history they did not.

[Erik Graff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some years ago, running out of bookshelf space, I took virtually all paperbacks up to a little book-exchange place called The Book Nook in Sawyer, Michigan, just across the Red Arrow Hwy from my brother's place. It wasn't just one trip, it was every trip, pretty much every weekend for a whole summer. My strategy was to build up credits and use them either to get decent hardcovers or as gifts. The owner, a grey-headed woman reminiscent of my beloved third grade teacher, liked me a lot, saying that the stuff I brought "elevated" her store. Of course, my books didn't sell too well, not like Stephen King, but they were good for display. For years she had the official two volume biography of Cde. Kim Il Sung posted prominently in her front window.

Now, with my own place and more bookshelves, I regret this wholesale looting of the shelves for the loss of such as Elton's Reformation Europe, a quite good general survey of the history of the period concentrating on its religious dimension.

[Guishe Vega · Rating 4 out of 5]

Se concentra en los años que Lutero removió los cimientos de la cristiandad.
Una mirada profunda y completa. Densa, nada novelada, pero que revela mucho del catolicismo
Y de los malíes que nos aquejan hoy en día

[Gerald Greene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent summary of the reformation and its effects on society and economies.

[Dean · Rating 4 out of 5]

G.R. Elton’s The Reformation of Europe is a very insightful exploration of the Reformation, particularly the rise and spread of Lutheranism and Calvinism. The author demonstrates a deep understanding of the subject, and the book is well-structured, offering engaging analysis of key topics throughout. One aspect I particularly appreciated was the balanced discussion of both the advantages and disadvantages of the Reformation, which helped illuminate the complexity of this period. Elton strikes a good tone for the general reader, although at times the level of detail can feel overwhelming, especially for someone like myself who is not particularly familiar with this period. Despite this, I found the book an enjoyable and valuable read, as the Reformation is often overlooked in its influence on both the Church and the power dynamics of European states.

[Christopher Trend · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my old A Level History book. It was interesting reading it again as it fits in with a course I am currently undertaking.
G R Elton shows how the Reformation impacted Europe and vice versa. He gives a thorough account of both the theological aspects of that era but also the social, economic & political.
It helps with the understanding of Europe as it is today.

[Pedro · Rating 2 out of 5]

Demasiada propaganda politica e interesses religiosos para ser uma leitura agradável. Têm interesse pela forma errada como vê outras correntes históricas, mas não tem nada de novo em termos de documentos.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book approached The Reformation from a historical context, rather than get caught up in the religious differences. There was certainly a lot going on in Europe during this period. I liked the last chapter, referencing the important art works from the period.

[Ian O'Brien · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a new release, nonetheless an excellent meat & potatoes history read without demanding too much prior knowledge of religious doctrine... or Latin for that matter.

[Stephen Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good treatment of this period early in the Reformation.

[Xolrax · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.2

[Chandler · Rating 4 out of 5]

some absolutely BONKERS prose in this. He'll be contrasting, idk, the emotive and the rational styles of Luther and Calvin, quote Luther, and add in parentheses "and who can say him nay?"

who can say him nay?? love this.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

The last time I was read this book was in 1975. I was studying history at La Trobe University and we were working on the Reformation. The book was required reading. I found a copy in a second hand book shop and couldn't resist buying it. It has brought back happy memories of the past. Looking at some of the reviews, people were critical because Prof Elton was accused of leaving things out. Personally, I feel a book belongs to the writer and if they choose to leave things out, they can do so. I very much enjoyed rereading the book. I enjoyed the portrait of the Emperor Charles who was a hard working, persistent person. I had forgotten much of what I used to know about the first half of the sixteenth century and it was a pleasure to rediscover it.

[Mohamad Ballan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although it is quite dated, it remains a useful read for anyone seeking a traditionalist account of the Reformation. It focuses primarily on political events and key personalities rather than providing comprehensive details about the social, intellectual and economic context in which the Reformation took place.

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, yes, learnt a lot. Slightly annoyed at lack of coverage of major historical events the book assumes you know about anyway (eg the Peasants' War and the Knights' War in Germany); but there is an enjoyable ex cathedra tone on the other hand.

[ADD · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting; however, a laborious text. The final chapter was a mixture of summarization of impact of the Reformation and author's cynicism. Informative, but not as enthusiastically engaging as other European history books I have read.

[Julaine]

Source: Terry Cheeseman

[Al · Rating 2 out of 5]

Informational read; a textbook in every sense of the word.

[Daniel Petrides · Rating 4 out of 5]

The classic on the period.

[Willem]

Fantastic.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting but not fascinating. A little on the dry side.

[Steve Clark]

Edition: Reprint