should be obeyed by the Catholics.

The Protestant princes were still dissatisfied. In order to procure
their assistance Charles was obliged to yield to further demands,
notably, to permit them to suppress the monasteries in their
dominions. But, fortunately for the Catholic Church, the agreement
embodied in the /Ratisbon Interim/ was rejected by the more extreme
Protestant Party led by Luther himself, and the danger of grave
misunderstanding was removed.

During the following years the Lutheran movement continued to advance
by leaps and bounds. Duke George of Saxony, one of its strongest
opponents, died in 1539, and his successor invited the Lutheran
preachers to assist him in the work of reform. Henry, Duke of
Brunswick, was driven from his kingdom by the League of Schmalkald and
forced to seek refuge in Bavaria. The Bishoprics of Hildesheim and
Naumburg were captured by force, and it required all the efforts of
the Pope and of the Emperor to prevent Cologne from being handed over
to Luther's followers by its prince-bishop (Hermann von Wied).
Lutheranism provided almost irresistible attractions for the lay
rulers, who desired to acquire wealth and power at the expense of the
Church, as well as for the unworthy ecclesiastical princes who were
anxious to convert the states of which they were merely administrators
into hereditary dominions.

But though outwardly the movement prospered beyond expectation all was
far from well within. The fundamental principle enunciated by Luther,
namely, the rejection of all religious authority, opened the way for
new theories and new sects. Quite apart from the controversies between
the followers of Luther and Zwingli, which shall be dealt with later,