- Mit einem Anhange ungedruckter Akten und Briefe, Hamburg, 1880. Ranke, III. 102–116.
Janssen, III 130–146.
Under these discouragements the second Diet of Speier was convened in March, 1529, for
action against the Turks, and against the further progress of Protestantism. The Catholic dignitaries
appeared in full force, and were flushed with hopes of victory. The Protestants felt that "Christ was
again in the hands of Caiaphas and Pilate."^943
The Diet neutralized the recess of the preceding Diet of 1526; it virtually condemned
(without, however, annulling) the innovations made; and it forbade, on pain of the imperial ban,
any further reformation until the meeting of the council, which was now positively promised for
the next year by the Emperor and the Pope. The Zwinglians and Anabaptists were excluded even
from toleration. The latter were to be punished by death.
The Lutheran members of the Diet, under the well-founded impression that the prohibition
of any future reformation meant death to the whole movement, entered in the legal form of an
appeal for themselves, their subjects and for all who now or shall hereafter believe in the Word of
God, the famous protest of April 25, 1529, against all those measures of the Diet which were
contrary to the Word of God, to their conscience, and to the decision of the Diet of 1526, and
appealed from the decision of the majority to the Emperor, to a general or German council, and
impartial Christian judges.^944 The document was signed by the Elector John of Saxony, Margrave
George of Brandenburg, Dukes Ernest and Francis of Braunschweig-Lüneburg, Landgrave Philip
of Hesse, Prince Wolfgang of Anhalt, and the representatives of fourteen imperial cities, including
Strassburg and St. Gall of the Zwinglian persuasion. They were determined to defend themselves
against every act of violence of the majority. Their motto was that of Elector John the Constant:
"The Word of God abideth forever." They deserve the name of confessors of the evangelical faith
and the rights of conscience in the face of imminent danger.^945
The protest of Speier was a renewal and expansion of Luther’s protest at Worms. The protest
of a single monk had become the protest of princes and representatives of leading cities of the
empire, who now for the first time appeared as an organized party. It was a protest of conscience
bound in the Word of God against tyrannical authority.
The appeal was not entertained. The Emperor, who soon afterwards concluded peace with
the Pope (June 29, 1529), and with the King of France (Aug. 5), refused even to grant the delegation
of the Protestant States a respectful hearing at Piacenza (September), and kept them prisoners for
a while.
From this protest and appeal the Lutherans were called Protestants; with good reason, if we
look at their attitude to Rome, which remains the same to this day. It is the duty of the church at
all times to protest against sin, error, corruption, tyranny, and every kind of iniquity. But the
designation, which has since become a general term for evangelical Christians, is negative, and
admits of an indiscriminate application to all who dissent from popery, no matter on what grounds
(^943) Words of Jacob Sturm, the ambassador of Strassburg, from the middle of March.
(^944) The great Instrumentum appellationis is given by Müller, Walch, Jung, and in substance by Gieseler, l.c. April 25 (a Sunday) is the
date of the legal completion of the protest (Ranke, III. 113). The dates of the preparatory steps are April 19 and 22.
(^945) Janssen denies the right of such protest, and dates from it the schism of the German nation. "Von dem Tage zu Speier an," he says,
III. 144, "beginnt die eigentliche Spaltung der deutschen Nation." Fortunately, the schism has been healed in 1870 by Providence, without
the aid of the Pope and against his wish and will.