"THE MEDIUM AND THE MESSAGE’ Evangelical Propaganda and the German ReformationMarshall MeLuhan phrase ‘The Medium is the Message’. By this he meant that the form of the medium (be it writ ete) embeds itself in the message, and that ‘one has to study the medium itself more than its content or message. The mature ‘of the media should therefore be a hey focus for study influencing as it does the cculture and society in which it was pro- duced. Pethaps nowhere in Early Mode History is this trucr than the writ coined the [ 1964, the Canadian academic propaganda, wooduts and images associ ated with the German Reformation. This essay seeks to explore and to analyse a number of aspects of this medium, Firstly, its origins and methods of production and distribution will be evaluated, including the debunking of a few myths about printing and the Reto ation. Secondly, several examples of Reformation illustrations and images will be analysed, in order to show the com plexity of meaning such woodeuts eould possess. We will also review briefly how images and illustrations changed from 1517 to the middle of the Leth century By touching the surface of this Faseinat: 1 ve may begin to ing area of propagan assess the overall importance of visual propaganda to the German Reformation, both in terms of its impact and for the reformers themselves, The Media Reformation As most students of the German Refor- mation are well aware, it was the first major historical event where both the written tet and the vis image played key roles. In this sense it perhaps truly deserves to be called the first modern historical movement in terms of its media, Pro- paganda and the writ ten word have subse quently come to be part and parcel of milestone events such as the French Revolution, the world wars and the October Revolution in Russia. Part of Mactin Luther's ge aspect aside from some of his theology, pethaps his most original f 66 part of Martin Luther’s genius, perhaps his most original aspect aside from some of his theology, was his ability to recog- nise the power and importance of the visual 9 vas his ability to ecognise the power and importance of the visual, Ever the effec tive teacher, he shrewd ly noted that images had @ 6 potential, ‘Above all for the sake of the children and the simple folk, who are easily moved by wees The German Reforma: tion was undoubtedly a turning point in Euro pean History, since it split Europe into two religious camps (Catholic and Protestant) and introduced new religious ideas such as the priest- hhood of all believers and salvation by But it was also a war of es, with the Protestant oF faith alone. words andl im evangelical side having the upper hand in terms of both volume and creativity What form exactly did these publications take? The Power of Print Vast numbers of cheap pamphlets, called flugschrifien. were produced by German printers. These usually contained graphic moting Protestant ideas or attacking aspects of the Catholic Church. Good use way made of the twin technologies ied by writen text pro of woodcuts, to mass produce images, and the printing press, first used by Johann Gutenberg at Mainz in 1454, which enabled large numbers of pany phlets to be produced easily and cheaply ‘One block could, for example, pro duce around 3,000 copies. By 1500, there were already 64 print ing presses in the « lands perhaps rightly referred to printing as God's highest. and Precise numbers ate impossible to pro vide, but historians have noted that while perhaps there were around 20 mil lion printed books in Europe in the per: Luther, perhaps rightly, referred to printing as ‘God’s highest and extremist act of grace’99 THE UNPREDICTABLE PAST od 1450-1500, by 1550 that figure was nearer 200 million, Whereas in 1518 150. different titles were published Germany, by 15 that had grown to 990, suggesting the revolution in output stimulated by Luther and his ideas. Some have estimated that by 1600, around one mil lion copies of Luther’ translation of the New Testament had been distributed. So, from the evidence above, we can certainly conclude that not only was the Reformation the first historical phe- nomenon to make massive use of the printed medium, but also that the quan: tities involved were very substantial. Yet ‘we now have to debunk or at least modi Fy some of the myths concerning this printed propaganda, Protestant Myths The first one to tackle is that of the intended audience. Despite Luther's words about the visual ha ing a special appeal to children and ‘simple folk’, many broadsheets presupposed a literate audience, Most woodeut images were accompanied by a fair amount of often quite compley and substantial written text, and as Seribner notes, ‘even the most sophisticated audience can appre | message’. Just as today’s ‘quality’ newspapers appeal using words and images. so t00 did. 16th-century pamphlets. It would be misleading to sec the use of images as purely or even mainly appealing to the lower strata of German society. Literacy rates in Ger- many are reckoned around five per cent at this time (though higher in urban cet tres and the South West), so the market for many of these pamphlets was necessari- ly quite small. Nevertheless, as Andrew Pettegree comments, ‘woodcuts were a refined rather than plebeian pleasure’ Secondly, one needs to be aware that Luther's ideas did not ereate a German religious printing industry out of nowhere. There was already a lucrative trade in using woodcut technology to produce commemorative illustrations or mementoes of pilgrimages. A fairly large quantity of devotional works, such as Misromy Review Decesmen 2009 29THE UNPREDICTABLE PAST Figure 2: Luther as a saint. prayer books, psalters and saints’ lives, were already bei well before 151 printed in Germany Hence a commercial infrastructure and technology already existed in much of Germany ~ ¢ take advantage of the mew markets ‘opened up by Luther. Pettegree notes how much development hhad occurred in the German printing. and publishing industry between 1490 and 1520. This included the incorpor tion of a ttle page. displaying the year of uly to publication, and the emergence of a sys tem of privilege’. The latter was effectively 4 foreeunner of copyright whereby a printer or author could apoly for the 6 6Business instinct and religious commitment could work well together 99 exclusive right 0 publish a work or class of literature for a set period of years within a particular territory. This, in turn, enabled pub: lishers to invest lange sums in the latest technology without Fear of piracy The book market was already moving beyond just the academic or learned community, into a wider if still fairly elite market. The German printing culture was also much freee to seize on the commercial opportunities offered by the excitement and demand generated by the ideas of Luther and his followers. The lack of a strong centeal political authority meant that individual printers found it easier to respond to these demands. The main Lutheran printers operated in major cen 30° DECKMNER 2009 Histom Review tres of Protestant ideas such as Nurem beng, Strasbourg and of course Wittenbe itself. Therefore, the same weak central political authority which made it easier for Luther himself to survive with the support of a friendly prince, Frederick the Wise, despite the hostility of the Holy Roman Emperor and the Papacy also helped sympathetic printers. Another area regarding printed mat ter to be clarified is that of oral transmis sion, Put simply, some have argued that although literacy rates were very low, this mattered less since many written pieces were read out publicly in market squares ‘or taverns, enabling a_much wider audience to be reached. Undoubtedly there is truth here, and the power of visual propaganda was certainly not ricted 10 the privileged literate However, one should beware of reading too much into this. Wher pamphlets were read aloud in the market place it was more the case of the pamphletseller advertising his wares, offering as it were free samples to entice potential pur chasers. It is most unlikely he would be ‘engaging in lengthy and detailed expla: ration and teaching, Sermons were a much more important part of the oral transmission of Reformation ideas than illustrated material. Luther alone, for instance, preached over 2,000 sermons. to large congregations, We should not, however, underesti mate the strong connections between preachers, and. pub: lishers and printers. Luther was very much personally responsible for the Wittenberg printing oom, persuading as as 1519 Mel: chior Latter to set up a branch of his pros: peous Leipzig printing operation in Wit tenberg. In 1523, Hans Lufft moved there too and, in association with the engraver Lucas Cranach and Luther himself, set up the most important printing and publishing concern in Wittenberg Cranach, it should be noted, was already 1 successful local businessman having the local monopoly on sweet wines and spices for his apothecary trade, and in part he saw books as his next business venture, and therefore a sound investment Business instinet and religious commit ment could work well together. One should never forget that the publishing. trade in that time too was commercially orientated to a large extent. Protestant Purposes We must also address the impact and purpose of written and visual propaganda. A commonly held belief is that the main purpose of propaganda is to chany ples belief or attitudes. Yet the reality is her more subtle. Given the one-sided natute of much Protestant propaganda, with often grotesque portrayals of the ther side, one could hardly envisage Lutheran propaganda positively influ cencing devout Catholics. Rather, the maim targets were existing believers, the faithful who needed to be shored up in their beliefs, together with the waverer or uncommitted. Existing believers night well purchase such pamphlets to show their loyalty to the cause, as well as reading them for personal eneichment oF edueation Propaganda and the biased image also served to ereate oF perpetuate a certain view, for example of Luther as a saintly and godly man, and the papacy as Antichrist and corrupt. It also served to portray myths as firm facts, and in often. graphic terms, for instance the Protestant view of the origins of the Papacy. This is termed by Seribner as turning connotation into denotation, Finally, by presenting vivid depictions, it also worked to stir supporters into action by reminding Lyracevs a Figure 3: Luther fighting the DeviIre 4: The Pope-Ass. them of how foul and evil their opponents were, and how righteous was their own cause. In this sense, the visual side of the Reformation worked to h, rather than to reduce them, Most i used a sense of contrast: light and dark Christ and Antichrist, true and false iden divisions wiges religion. In summary, pamphlets, images and illustrations are better understood as adges of identity and confirmers of existing belie, than as agents of conversion. Interpreting Images. Yet how exactly should the madern reader approach the interpretation or decoding of these images? Although at first glance. most of the images that grace textbooks on this topic appear easy to understand they often need to be viewed ai of levels and require a complex under: standing of culture and popul This in turn strengthens the argument for secing them as being intended not just for the ordinary German peas antisan. Firstly, one needs to take account of the change and development in the umber beliefs images. To begin with, Luther is shown just as monk (Figure 1), yet almost immediately by 1520 he is depicted as an especially godly man with saintly or prophet-like qualities sueh as the nimbus (halo), and as inspieed by the dove of the Holy Spirit (Figure 2) By 1521 he is portrayed more aggre sively as a crusader against evil, fighting the Devil (Figure 3). Yer this last image already introduces the viewer to more complex ideas. Note how Luther is shown as solid and vertical, clutching a book, the Bible: he is upright and firmly facing the reader. This perhaps suggests in who is resolute but composed, prepared to look you in the eye and whose beliefs come from Seripture alone. By contrast, the Devil is portrayed asa crouching demon breathing fire dressed in a monks clothes, This sug gests that not only was Luther con- fronting evil itself with his teachings, but that the Devil had infiltrated the Church. By having Luther standing over him, the implication is that ultimate vie- tory will be Luther's. Other later images would go on to portray Luther variously as a great teacher and as a Get nationalist hero with Hercules-like qualities A mote complicated depiction is that of the Papal Ass (Ligure 4) produced by Luther's associate Philip Melanchthon in a 1523 pamphlet, At first glance it ppears simply as a erude depiction of the papacy as an unnatural and therefore But there is rather more to it than that. It as published alongside another image, the Monk-Calf as part of an inflammatory pamphlet by Luther entitled Of Tivo Wondegil Popih Monsters The pamphlet described xi insttution the recent appearance of two bizarre ereatures: the Pope-Ass and the Monk-Calf, Both had been created by God to demonstrate through living allegory His displeasure with the Catholic Church. The Pope-Ass (a human body with an ass head) showed God's anger that the church should have the Pope as its head. The Monk-Calf (Figure 5), « plump mon: strosity with huge ears, de wansteated God's displeasure atthe practice of hearing confessions. The specific elerence to the Papal Ass, however, goes hack to the alleged discovery for teal of such a monster in 1496 in the River Tiber in Rome following a serious lood, The oj nal depiction of the monster was actualy directed against the worldly Borgia pope Alexander VI well before Luther’ day. At the time it was widely seen as an omen directed against this notoriously debauched and corrupt Pope. What Luther and Melanchthon did was effec tively to reeyele the image so as to make their own points about omens and signs THE UNPREDICTABLE PAST. in more recent times, How did they interpret the image? The whole creature stood naturally ‘enough for the papacy, and the ass head for the pope, implying the Chureh had no need of an earthly head. The right hand is an elephants foot, signifying how the papacy trod underfoot all who dis agreed with it, The human left hand si nifies the secular power of the pope. something acquired only by human means such as war or intrigue. ‘The right foot is that of an ox, signifying those priests and Catholic theologians who ‘oppress the soul, The left foo isa grifin’s claw, representing the servants of the pope's secular power and their grasping greed. The female body and breasts rep. resent the papal entourage (cardinals, bishops ete) who lead unashamed yet shameful lives just as the Papal Ass bears its naked belly. The scales elsewhere on this hideous b represent the secular princes who cling to each other and both ced abuses (shown by the breasts and the belly) while abo protecting the beast by their own worldly power Finally, at the rear, the old man’s head represents the decline and end of @ papacy that will gow old and pass away The dragon spewing out fire refers to the bulls and books produced by the papacy to ty to discredit the reformers, It should also be noted that the castle on the left has been identified as Castel ngclo, a fortification built by Alexander VI, while the square building tolerate the Figure 5: The Monk-Calf, Misrom Revtew Decent 2009 31THE UNPREDICTABLE PAST ‘on the right is the Tor di Non o what we fon the ps by Luthe contemp: papacy Spreading the Word Tivo Kinds of Preaching ~ the -al and the Catholic (Figuee 6), produced around 1547. They draw on the old technique of contrast, seen nowadays for example in ‘before and after’ advertisements, The Exangelical pact is unsurprisingly portrayed entirely of text read in order: Behold the La of God, Tam the way", and finall le listening to I laymen including n Frederick oned for Luther preachin, (depleted with o the preacher has playing cards and dic Falling from his garments, orf erence ti vices, Finally another ordered and simple Niches ua, 6 Some images vewwand taches the Were undoubtedly funinentas of sean to Inform monkish li Proestant faith with its focus on preach- as well as to th ner quite a complex the Bie ts persuade or va reinforce belief 9 gy sn hist cis (th alone. . in the s0 much forthe p the meaning m the German Refor The contrast with the Catholic religion on help many could not b cluttered and certainly mation, one picture, the emph prior kn tpreed of the church a: 32 DeceMMER 2009 Hisro¥ ThFigure 6: “Two Kinds of Preaching ~ the Evangelical [let] and the Catholic (above). without some of the more comple imagery briefly mentioned above, one still get the general impression and meaning of such images Verdict So what final eon: clusions can we take away from a brief survey of Reformation images and propaganda? Firstly, one should be wary of certain assumptions about whe these images and pamphlets were aimed at, and not see them purely as a tool for converting 66 What the Reformation did was to open up new and exciting opportunities for printers and engravers who worked closely with its leaders for mutual benefit 9 9 the ‘simple folk’, Addition, be wise to see the propaganda a wider and already established commer cial enterprise in Ger many. What the Reformation did was to open up new and exciting opportunities for printers and engravers who worked closely with its lead ers for mutual bene fit. The purpose of such publications also needs to be revised They were less tools of persuading staunch Catholics to abandon Rome, and about creating and sustaining powerful images and Protestant truths both about THE UNPREDICTABLE PAST Luther and his Catholic opponents, S plicity not subtlety was their strong, point. Yer any of the illustrations were ite complex, often building on ‘existing popular and familiar images, but setting them in new surroundings and a fresh context In the case of the propaganda and visual material of the German Reforma- tion, medium and message were indeed intertwined. Perhaps ironically so, since a belief system which downplayed the and the mysterious in role of the visu church services in favour of the written word, made very elfective use of different rther Readi Pettogree Andrew, Reformation and the Culture of Persuasion (CUP, 2005) Scribner Robert, For the Soke of Simple Folk. (Clarendon Press, 1994) hetp://germanhistorysuitelOl.corm/a rriclecfmireformation_prinding and _propagandatfixzz0Lni6njPP Simon Lemieux is Head of History and Polities at The Portsmouth Grammar School. He has written articles for History Review on a wide range of topics.2009 LIA W D WARD St Hugh’s College, Oxford and History Review This year there were fewer entries than usual, but competition at the upper end of the range of 77 essays remained severe. The judges did regret a tendency which has become more noticeable over recent years: too many essays strive to balance the conflicting views of histor ns on a topie rather than to adsance the author's own argument. But those who did wel in this competition put their own cases with vere and eonvietion, ‘The Prize was awarded to Emily Parton of Hartogate Grammar School, an edited veesion of whos ay is published below econd award was made to Jessiea Anand of Oxford High School, for her essay on Laudianism, HOW FAR WAS THE RISORGIMENTO LED BY A DESIRE TO CREATE CULT URAL UNITY? Emily Parton asks a key question about Ita the question of whether cultural | tunity was the dising force behind the Risorgimento has been dehated since the movement culminated in the 1861 unification of Italy. The question of what constitutes cultural unity has also. been controversial, In context of this ‘essay ‘cultural unity’ will be identified tusing Mazzin’s definition from his L844 work The Duties of Man, where ‘guage, custom, tendencies and capa are the fundamental components of 3 unified national culture Contemporary opinion From com -mentators such as Tivaroni, saw cultural unification was the true aim and success of the Risorgimento, Recent re-evaluation by revisionists such as Mack Smith and B seemingly more pressing than delivering a nation unified linguistically o intellectually ‘They sce the Risorgimento as having far more extensive and less high-minded aims, such as the need to gain economic and political independence, excluding foreign powers that for so long hadl con trolled the peninsula, The desire 1 reduce papal control in secular life com bined with the hope that a unified taly would spell the end of Austrian control, ‘many judging that Italy was little more than a Viennese mandate. One key ele- s, however, has stressed issues ment of the Risorgimento that must not be overlooked, and that in the long term had one of the most telling legacies on Italy was the desive of Piedmont tw extend its control across the pe The ultimate outcome of the unification in 1861 was the imposition of Piedmontese systems of government and economy on the whole nation, hardly surprising since the ‘Brain’ of the Risorgimento, Cavour, was Prime Minister of Piedmomn Sardinia 34 Deciamen 2009 Histone msiew Cultural Unity or Disunity? How far Haly was culturally unified prior to the later Risorgimento must. be explored. A consciousness of cultural disunity had been growing, the Austrian Metternich famously dismissing Italy as being little more than a "geographical expression’. In the cen nee, Mi ng manifested itself within the ‘unity nostalgia’ movement. Publications of the time, such as the Florentine Antologia or the Milanese Annas, promoted ideas of an Italian nation with a cohesive economic, social, judicial and cultural heritage These moderate publications often avoided blatant poli the censorship present in the northern res of learning, and P stich as Flo states under direct Austrian control Even 0, Autologia was forced out of publication in 1831, demonstrating the ‘oppression of Viennese rule Historians’ views on this issue have varied widely: Prior to unification historians such as Troya and Balbo attempted to present a type of glorified national history ‘hist also outlining their views on how Italy should be unified. Their focus of the eon temporary situation. Troya, for example, chose to explore the Italy of the Middle study was often a long way fro Ages. and so gave little discussion of Italy's immediate past: an exploration of the Napoleonic era would have been too political a subject to broach. Following Unification itself history took on a eliferent role, justifying the Risorgimento and the northern territories’ combination as the Kingdom of Htaly. Tivaroni's A Critical History of the Ualian Risongimento was the first real appeaisal of the movernent though it falls short of delivering a true assessment, instead attempting to glorify those involved. He comments. that although King Victor Emmanuel, Garibaldi, Marzini and Cavour may have had a ‘divergence in secondary ideology” their differences complemented each ‘other Tivaroni was ane of the frst expo: nents of Italy's cultural Risorgimento, exploring the idea that unification had reignited the ‘national consciousness’ However, he once again extends the ‘cept of Italy’ dislocated eultural heritage, something modem historians dispute. Harry Hearder in his History Review anticle ‘A. Geog {questions the bel hical Expression? at Ttaly was as cul turally dislocated as Metternich implied in 1847, arguing instead that ‘aly’ was ‘a cultural expression of long standing’. He discusses how linguistically unified Ktaly has been since the early thirteenth century when St Francis of Assisi wrote his Ceatico delle Creature, which is notably: still readable to Halians today, his Umbrian dialect being closer in fact to modern lualian than Chaucerian is tw modern English. Minor differences inelude the use of ‘so! instead of ‘sono" and ‘frat in place of ‘fratell’. Dante further cen- " in his Dolee Stile Nuovo, or ‘New Sweet Style used in all his works, becoming the written language of the whole Italian peninsula, Yet many historians neglect these developments, instead choosing to focus solely on Man- zoni's second edition of | Promessi Sposi, published between 1840 and 1842, where he altered certain linguistie forms, choosing to adopt the ‘Tusean variants he Felt would be most palatable to later gen ised Ha erations of writers. Manzoni is too often charged with having ‘invented’ modern, Italian, giving rise to the belief that the