The Diets of Nuremberg, also called the Imperial Diets of

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

, took place at different times between the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

and the 17th century.{{cite book, author=Johann Heinrich Kurtz, title=History of the Christian Church, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=atZMAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA26, year=1864, publisher=T. & T. Clark, pages=26– The first Diet of Nuremberg, in 1211, elected the future emperor

Frederick II of Hohenstaufen Frederick II (German: ''Friedrich''; Italian: ''Federico''; Latin: ''Federicus''; 26 December 1194 – 13 December 1250) was King of Sicily from 1198, King of Germany from 1212, King of Italy and Holy Roman Emperor from 1220 and King of Jerusal ...

as German king. At the Diet of 1356 the

Emperor Charles IV Charles IV ( cs, Karel IV.; german: Karl IV.; la, Carolus IV; 14 May 1316 – 29 November 1378''Karl IV''. In: (1960): ''Geschichte in Gestalten'' (''History in figures''), vol. 2: ''F–K''. 38, Frankfurt 1963, p. 294), also known as Charle ...

issued the

Golden Bull of 1356 The Golden Bull of 1356 (, , , , ) was a decree issued by the Imperial Diet at Nuremberg and Metz ( Diet of Metz, 1356/57) headed by the Emperor Charles IV which fixed, for a period of more than four hundred years, important aspects of the con ...

, which required each Holy Roman Emperor to summon the first Imperial

Diet Diet may refer to: Food * Diet (nutrition), the sum of the food consumed by an organism or group * Dieting, the deliberate selection of food to control body weight or nutrient intake ** Diet food, foods that aid in creating a diet for weight loss ...

after his election at Nuremberg. Apart from that, a number of other diets were held there. Important to

Protestantism Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

were the Diets of 1522 ("First Diet of Nuremberg"), 1524 ("Second Diet of Nuremberg") and 1532 ("Third Diet of Nuremberg").

The 1522 Diet of Nuremberg

This Diet has become known mostly for the reaction of the papacy to the decision made on

Luther Luther may refer to: People * Martin Luther (1483–1546), German monk credited with initiating the Protestant Reformation * Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968), American minister and leader in the American civil rights movement * Luther (give ...

at the Diet of Worms the previous year. The new pope,

Adrian VI Pope Adrian VI ( la, Hadrianus VI; it, Adriano VI; nl, Adrianus/Adriaan VI), born Adriaan Florensz Boeyens (2 March 1459 – 14 September 1523), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 January 1522 until his d ...

, sent his nuncio

Francesco Chieregati Francesco Chiericati, also written Chieregati or Chieregato (1479, Vicenza – 6 December 1539, Bologna), was a papal nuncio and bishop, member of the house of Chiericati from Vicenza. Life and career Sent by Pope Leo X as papal nuncio to Eng ...

to the Diet, to insist both that the

Edict of Worms The Diet of Worms of 1521 (german: Reichstag zu Worms ) was an imperial diet (a formal deliberative assembly) of the Holy Roman Empire called by Emperor Charles V and conducted in the Imperial Free City of Worms. Martin Luther was summoned to t ...

be executed and that action be taken promptly against Luther. This demand, however, was coupled with a promise of thorough reform in the Roman hierarchy, frankly admitting the partial guilt of the Vatican in the decline of the Church. In the recess drafted on 9 February 1523, however, the German princes rejected this appeal. Using Adrian's admissions, they declared that they could not have it appear 'as though they wished to oppress evangelical truth and assist unchristian and evil abuses.'

The 1524 Diet of Nuremberg

This Diet generally took the same line as the previous one. The Estates reiterated their decision from the previous Diet. The Cardinal-legate, Campeggio, who was present, showed his disgust at the behaviour of the Estates. On 18 April, the Estates decided to call 'a general gathering of the German nation', to meet at

Speyer Speyer (, older spelling ''Speier'', French: ''Spire,'' historical English: ''Spires''; pfl, Schbaija) is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany with approximately 50,000 inhabitants. Located on the left bank of the river Rhine, Speyer li ...

the following year and to decide what would be done until the meeting of the general council of the Church which they demanded. This resulted in the

Diet of Speyer (1526) The Diet of Speyer or the Diet of Spires (sometimes referred to as Speyer I) was an Imperial Diet of the Holy Roman Empire in 1526 in the Imperial City of Speyer in present-day Germany. The Diet's ambiguous edict resulted in a temporary suspens ...

, which in turn was followed by the

Diet of Speyer (1529) The Diet of Speyer or the Diet of Spires (sometimes referred to as Speyer II) was a Diet of the Holy Roman Empire held in 1529 in the Imperial City of Speyer (located in present-day Germany). The Diet condemned the results of the Diet of Spe ...

. The latter included the

Protestation at Speyer On April 19, 1529, six princes and representatives of 14 Imperial Free Cities petitioned the Imperial Diet at Speyer against an imperial ban of Martin Luther, as well as the proscription of his works and teachings, and called for the unhin ...

References

Sources

* Karl Brandi, ''The Emperor Charles V'' (1939), pp. 185–188

History of Nuremberg