HomeGroupsTalkMoreZeitgeist
Search Site
This site uses cookies to deliver our services, improve performance, for analytics, and (if not signed in) for advertising. By using LibraryThing you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your use of the site and services is subject to these policies and terms.

Results from Google Books

Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.

The Reformation: A History of European…
Loading...

The Reformation: A History of European Civilization from Wycliffe to Calvin, 1300 - 1564 (Story of Civilization series, Volume 6) (The Story of Civilization) (original 1957; edition 2014)

by Will Durant (Author)

Series: The Story of Civilization (Volume 6)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
1,6591110,507 (4.09)15
An engrossing volume on the European Reformation by Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Will DurantThe sixth volume of Durant's acclaimed Story of Civilization, The Reformation chronicles the history of European civilization from 1300 to 1564. In this masterful work, listeners will encounterthe schism within the Roman Catholic Church and the formation of early Protestantism;the theology of Martin Luther and his societal impact;the rise of Humanism and the life of Desiderius Erasmus;the royal monarchies of England, France, Spain, and Italy;the imperial conquests of Christopher Columbus and the discovery of the Americas;the Bohemian revolution of Eastern Europe, the unification of Russia, and the rise of the Ottoman Empire;the teachings of John Calvin; andthe Counter-Reformation of the sixteenth century.… (more)
Member:Ardashir
Title:The Reformation: A History of European Civilization from Wycliffe to Calvin, 1300 - 1564 (Story of Civilization series, Volume 6) (The Story of Civilization)
Authors:Will Durant (Author)
Info:Blackstone Audio, Inc. (2014), Edition: Unabridged
Collections:Your library, Audiobooks
Rating:
Tags:None

Work Information

The Reformation by Will Durant (1957)

Loading...

Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book.

No current Talk conversations about this book.

» See also 15 mentions

Showing 1-5 of 10 (next | show all)
Mr. Durant writes so plainly. One doesn't have to struggle to understand what his prose is meaning to convey. Nor does one have to struggle against the fear of falling asleep by the numbing academic language of a typical erudite book on this period. ( )
  Huba.Library | Feb 3, 2024 |
The Reformation was the outgrowth of and the downfall of the humanism of the Renaissance, together both movements ended the Middle Ages while dividing Europe civilization in the process. The Reformation is the sixth volume of Will Durant’s The Story of Civilization as he explores how the rest of Europe outside of Italy transitioned from the Middle Ages to the Early Modern Era as Christendom divided and as Europeans expanded their footprint across the world.

This volume is unique in Durant’s series as it was originally supposed to be combined with The Renaissance but given the length and depth of the research would have resulted almost twice the size of the longest book in the series. This volume is a continuation of The Age of Faith outside of Italy as well as paralleling the events through the end of the Council of Trent. After setting the stage for Luther’s protest in the first third of the book, Durant then turned to the period from Luther’s thesis to the death of John Calvin in which northern Christianity split away from Rome and developed into different sects aiming for reform, the final third of the book was Durant looking at Islam and Jewish developments followed by cultural accomplishments and then the Catholic Counter-Reformation. This volume was a change from previous volumes as Durant concentrated most of the text on a 50-year period instead of the ebbs and flows of history and society over the course of centuries. The fact that most of this period centered around religion, Durant is able for the most part to keep his contempt for belief at bay though he does go a little off in the Epilogue in synthesizing the developments of the Renaissance and the Reformation. Yet throughout the book, Durant notes that the religious developments were a reaction the pagan influences of the Renaissance along with the budding of nationalism that would be supercharged once the church came under the purview of the state.

The Reformation is a unique book as Will Durant must literally dedicate the majority of his writing towards religion instead of culture, yet he is able to hide his contempt to look how the reforming of Christianity influenced and was influenced by centralizing of various nation-states as Europe entered the Early Modern Era. ( )
  mattries37315 | Jan 21, 2024 |
This book was definitely...tough to get through for me. It's mainly due to its size and content, but it was very nice learning about the Reformation. Some of the information is a bit dated, but it definitely does its job as a history of the Reformation. Will Durant goes into great detail about how this period of history and how it affected Europe's social and religious landscapes. He used the information he had access to, and he relayed that information so well. I definitely recommend this as a read if you can get through 900 pages. ( )
  historybookreads | Jul 26, 2021 |
Will Durant began as a philosopher, and his "History of Philosophy" was a big hit for several decades. He felt that he had not placed his early work in a wide enough context and began reworking his material by adding essays on literature, and the physical sciences, and eventually adding a more detailed political framework. It evolved over twelve volumes into a decent attempt at a history of European civilization since the Greek explosion. This is the most theological volume of the series, but highly intriguing and remarkably free sectarian bias. There are epigrams of considerable power on nearly every page. So, as I was dealing with Toynbee's "A Study of History" I began with the Durant volumes as an exploration in depth of what AJ called "Western Christian" Civilization. I still dip into this series from time to time, and, if you desire to follow the whole process of "Western" Civilization, one can do a good deal worse. ( )
  DinadansFriend | Jul 22, 2021 |
Probably because of the subject matter, this was my favorite of the series, although the same caveats apply. ( )
  HenrySt123 | Jul 19, 2021 |
Showing 1-5 of 10 (next | show all)
no reviews | add a review

» Add other authors (3 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Will Durantprimary authorall editionscalculated
Durant, Arielsecondary authorall editionsconfirmed
You must log in to edit Common Knowledge data.
For more help see the Common Knowledge help page.
Canonical title
Original title
Alternative titles
Original publication date
People/Characters
Important places
Important events
Related movies
Epigraph
Dedication
First words
Religion is the last subject that the intellect begins to understand.
To the Reader: The prospective reader deserves a friendly notice that The Reformation is not quite an honest tile for this book. An accurate title would be: "A History of European Civilization Outside of Italy from 1300 to 1564, or Thereabouts, Including the History of Religtion in Italy and an Incidental View of Islamic and Judaic Civilization in Europe, Africa, and Western Asia."
Quotations
Last words
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
Disambiguation notice
Publisher's editors
Blurbers
Original language
Canonical DDC/MDS
Canonical LCC
An engrossing volume on the European Reformation by Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Will DurantThe sixth volume of Durant's acclaimed Story of Civilization, The Reformation chronicles the history of European civilization from 1300 to 1564. In this masterful work, listeners will encounterthe schism within the Roman Catholic Church and the formation of early Protestantism;the theology of Martin Luther and his societal impact;the rise of Humanism and the life of Desiderius Erasmus;the royal monarchies of England, France, Spain, and Italy;the imperial conquests of Christopher Columbus and the discovery of the Americas;the Bohemian revolution of Eastern Europe, the unification of Russia, and the rise of the Ottoman Empire;the teachings of John Calvin; andthe Counter-Reformation of the sixteenth century.

No library descriptions found.

Book description
13th printing
Haiku summary

Current Discussions

None

Popular covers

Quick Links

Rating

Average: (4.09)
0.5
1
1.5
2 4
2.5
3 14
3.5 2
4 24
4.5 4
5 28

Is this you?

Become a LibraryThing Author.

 

About | Contact | Privacy/Terms | Help/FAQs | Blog | Store | APIs | TinyCat | Legacy Libraries | Early Reviewers | Common Knowledge | 203,238,780 books! | Top bar: Always visible