How would a surviving Latin Empire handle an alt-Protestant Reformation?

Exactly what it says on the tin. How would a surviving Latin Empire handle an alternate Protestant Reformation that occurs around the 1500's.

I honestly think that the Latin Empire actually would have a significant draw towards embracing a reformation. By the time any kind of reformation occurs, the Latin Empire will have probably solidified its grasp across at least Greece, if not parts of anatolia. By this time, the Latin Empire would probably be chafing under papal influence since due to the bullion crisis in Europe the pope will probably clamp down a bit on his Crusader subjects so that they continue to grant him fresh bullion from the East, at least until/if the Americas are discovered and colonized like otl. Thus this reformation would allow a Latin emperor to liquidate a lot of Papal meddling quickly and centralize his state. I feel like Latin Imperial protestantism would be far different than OTL protestant sects, even if protestantism arises in another reformationist hotbed like Aquitaine or Bohemia.

What say ye, AH.com?
 
I feel like, even if the Latin Empire were under those pressures from the Papacy, it wouldn't become Protestant at all. Lutheranism most definitely wouldn't spread to the balkans (since it is primarily centered on northern Europe and areas under German influence), but it is possible that Calvinism would spread to the region like it did to Hungary and southern France. The biggest issue is that there is a disconnect between the religion of the people of the Empire and the rulers of it; the rulers of the Latin Empire are Catholic, while the majority of the people in it would be Eastern Orthodox (and, some cases, Muslim, if they expanded into Anatolia a bit more). The Orthodox Greeks and Bulgars of the Latin Empire have no reason to really be interested in the Protestant Reformation, so even if pro-Protestant sentiment spread to the Latin Empire, it would never become Protestant. Rather, it's very likely that it could have a relationship more like the relationship between France and Protestantism, with Catholicism promoted while Protestant interests were furthered internationally. This also ties into the religious disconnect as well, since the rulers of the Latin Empire would be inclined to promote Catholicism in the balkans.

Basically, the Latin Empire just wouldn't become Protestant, though it may have some Calvinist influence. Much more likely is Latin support of Protestant interests, but even then, the vast majority of Protestants and Catholics and the conflict between them is much farther north.

In all honesty, it would be really interesting to see how the continued existence of the Latin Empire may have affected the religious and political situation in Hungary, since there would be no Ottomans to take over Hungary and contribute to a Habsburg takeover and the religious history between Catholicism and Calvinism in the pannonian basin.
 
I do agree with Marsworms' analysis. Switching to Protestantism would seriously undermine their political position within Europe, alienating both Rome and Constantinople. Rome meanwhile would have limited cause to antagonize the Latin Empire as they will be the front line against Islam. If anything it seems they'd be more likely to switch to Eastern Orthodox than a Protestant sect. That way they could free themselves from Roman meddling while still maintaining the religious authority of an established church.

Even if there was a significant Calvinist influence among the masses it seems unlikely that the ruling class would switch as it would be a political and diplomatic disaster that could leave the Latins isolated between a now hostile Europe and the Islamic sphere.
 
Last edited:
I agree that switching to a more Magisterial form of Protestantism is really out of the question. However, I wouldn't say that the Latin Empire would be the buffer if it survived into the 15th century. Armenia (in Cilicia at least) seemed to flip flop between Oriental Orthodoxy and Catholicism, and with a more successful Latin Empire, the Armenians might commit to remaining Catholic, which could lead to them asking for papal assistance to reconquer Armenia proper. While becoming protestant would alienate the Latin Empire from a lot of European allies, it would allow it to truly centralize the administration, which would mean that it would be able to protect itself far better. I guess the likelihood of conversion would depend on how far east the "Christian Line" was.

Also, how could the Protestant Reformation be different with a more successful Latin Empire or Crusader States in general?
 
Also, how could the Protestant Reformation be different with a more successful Latin Empire or Crusader States in general?

A big question is going to be whether or not continued Catholic control of the Holy Land and the Eastern Mediterranean in general means the papacy has more funds to work with. If it does, there might not be a sale of indulgences. If there's no sale of indulgences, that might not completely butterfly away an alt-Reformation, but at the very least it might not be as aggressively sola fide as Luther et al. proved to be. That in turn might make it more palatable to Catholics, though anything with iconoclastic tendencies is not going to go over well in the East.
 
Top