. On the other
hand, Eck made some concessions, mostly verbal, about the doctrine of
justification and other points.

That with this mutually conciliatory spirit an agreement failed to
materialize only proved how irreconcilable were the aims of the two
parties. [Sidenote: September 22] The Diet voted that the Confession
had been refuted and that the Protestants were bound to recant. The
emperor promised to use his influence with the pope to call a general
council to decide doubtful points, but if the Lutherans did not return
to the papal church by April 15, 1531, they were threatened with
coercion.

[Sidenote: League of Schmalkalden]

To meet this perilous situation a closer alliance was formed by the
Protestant states at Schmalkalden in February 1531. This league
constantly grew by the admission of new members, but some attempts to
unite with the Swiss proved abortive.

On January 5, 1531, Ferdinand was elected King of the Romans--the title
taken by the heir to the Empire--by six of the electors against the
vote of Saxony. Three months later when the time granted the Lutherans
expired, the Catholics were unable to do anything, and negotiations
continued. [Sidenote: July 23, 1532] These resulted in the Peace of
Nuremberg, a truce until a general council should be called. It was an
important victory for the Lutherans, who were thus given time in which
to grow.

The seething unrest which found expression in the rebellion of the
knights, of the peasants and of the Anabaptists at Muenster, has been
described. One more liberal movement, which also failed, must be
mentioned at this time. It was as little connected with religion as
anything in that theological age could be. [Sidenote: Luebeck, 1533-35]
The city of Luebeck, under its burgomaster George Wullenwever, tried to
free itself from the influence of Denmark and at the same time to get a
more popular {119} government. In 1536 it was conquered by Christian
III of Denmark, and the old aristocratic constitution restored. The
time was not ripe for the people to assert its rights in North Germany.

[Sidenote: May 1534]

The growth of Protestantism was at times assisted by force of arms.
Thus, Philip of Hesse restored the now Protestant Duke Ulrich of
Wurttemberg, who had been expelled for his tyranny by the Swabian
League fifteen years before. This triumph was the more marked because
the expropriated ruler was Ferdinand, King of the Romans. If in such