The 1517 Nuremberg printing of
Luther's
Ninety-five Theses,
The
Ninety-five Theses is a list of propositions for an academic disputation written in 1517 by
Martin Luther. The
Theses is retrospectively considered to have launched the
Protestant Reformation and the birth of
Protestantism, despite various proto-Protestant groups having existed previously. It detailed Luther's opposition to what he saw as the
Roman Catholic Church's abuse and corruption by Catholic clergy, who were selling plenary indulgences, which were certificates supposed to reduce the temporal punishment in
purgatory for sins committed by the purchasers or their loved ones.
Charlemagne (742 or 747 – January 28, 814) (also
Charles the Great), son of King Pippin the Short and Bertrada of Laon, was the king of the Franks from 768 C.E. to 814 C.E. and king of the Lombards from 774 C.E. to 814 C.E. Charlemagne was crowned
Imperator Augustus in
Rome on Christmas Day, 800 by
Pope Leo III and is therefore regarded as the founder of the
Holy Roman Empire (as
Charles I). Through military conquest and defense, he solidified and expanded his realm to cover most of Western Europe. He is often seen as the
Father of Europe and is an iconic figure, instrumental in defining European identity. His was the first truly imperial power in the West since the fall of Rome.
