The Reformation began in 1517 when Martin Luther posted 95 theses at the castle church of Wittenberg calling for a disputation on the abuses of the traffic in indulgences by Tetzel, the business-wise commissary of the Archbishop of Mainz. The break with Rome occured following a famous disputation in Leipzig (1519), at which Luther denied papal primacy, the tradition of the Church and the infallibility of councils.

The Reformation was a many sided movement, but in the main, it was a revolt of the northern nations against the dominion of Rome. The princes perceived that, if the Church in their territories became merely national, they would be able to dominate it. Therefore Luther's theological innovations were welcomed by rulers and peoples alike throughout the greater part of northern Europe.