Christian Union
Quick Summary
The Christian Union was a league formed by five Roman Catholic Swiss cantons—Uri, Schwyz, Unterwalden, Lucerne, and Zug—in 1529. This alliance was created to counter the spread of Protestantism, particularly from the canton of Zurich, which had embraced the Reformation. The conflict between the Protestant and Catholic cantons is known as the Kappel Wars.
The first war in 1529 saw Zurich advance on the Christian Union, but it ended with an armistice and an agreement that allowed religious freedom in shared territories. However, tensions persisted, leading to the Second Kappel War in 1531. In this conflict, the Catholic cantons defeated Zurich, and the Protestant leader Huldrych Zwingli was killed. The subsequent peace treaty largely upheld Catholicism in disputed areas, resulting in a lasting religious division within Switzerland. This division is still evident today, with distinct Protestant and Roman Catholic regions.12
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- Kappel Wars
…Unterwalden, and Zug, formed the Christian Union, which allied itself with Austria to prevent Zürich from spreading Protestantism over the common lordships (territories ruled by the Swiss confederates jointly). Zürich thereupon launched an expedition against the Christian Union, but the fighting was negligible, and an armistice signed at Kappel on…
Read More…Unterwalden, and Zug, formed the Christian Union, which allied itself with Austria to prevent Zürich from spreading Protestantism over the common lordships (territories ruled by the Swiss confederates jointly). Zürich thereupon launched an expedition against the Christian Union, but the fighting was negligible, and an armistice signed at Kappel on…
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SwitzerlandThe Reformation…had joined to form the Christian Union, but little fighting occurred in this first conflict, thanks to the compromise symbolized by the famous Kappeler Milchsuppe, a soup of milk and bread shared on the front by the two opposing armies. In the conflict’s aftermath, Zwingli insisted on and used economic…
Read More…had joined to form the Christian Union, but little fighting occurred in this first conflict, thanks to the compromise symbolized by the famous Kappeler Milchsuppe, a soup of milk and bread shared on the front by the two opposing armies. In the conflict’s aftermath, Zwingli insisted on and used economic…
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