Page 369 - Stati inu obstati, revija za vprašanja protestantizma, letnik XI (2015), številka 21-22, ISSN 1408-8363
P. 369
SYNOPSES, ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
UDC 94(497.4:497.5)
327(497.;497.5):284.1
Vincenc Rajšp
The connection between the Slovene and Croatian Reformations
The connection between the Slovene and Croatian Reformations is illuminated by
extensive historical literature but the research to date has dealt with both movements
from a standpoint that led to conclusions and evaluation concerning their significance
for national development. Much attention was paid to the importance of the reformers’
activities in the sphere of language and literature, and to the personalities who were
active, but because there were disagreements, these also play a truly important role in
the evaluation.
In the Slovene lands the provincial authorities were on the side of the Reformation,
shielding it and within the scope of legal possibilities making possible the organization of
the Protestant Church by paying the priests, etc. The Protestants in Croatia did not have
such support from the authorities. It is true some nobles supported them, e.g. Nikola IV
Zrinski and Juraj Zrinski as well as the Croatian Ban Peter Erdödi. But even his power
was fairly limited. Among Croatians living under the Venetian Republic, which had a
clearly defined state policy concerning the Church, the Protestant Reformation had very
restricted possibilities for establishing itself.
The Carniolan Provincial Estates contributed in various ways to spreading the Ref-
ormation in Croatia. During the years 1561–1564 the main connecting factor in ex-
tending the Reformation in the Slavonic south was the printing of Croatian books in
Urach. Although the Carniolan provincial authorities could not take on the considerable
financial burden of printing such books (they did finance the work of Primož Trubar),
they nevertheless played an important part in getting them printed. They confirmed
Trubar’s orthodoxy and the linguistic accuracy of his Slovene translations, which were
then translated into Croatian. They also helped significantly by organizing the checking of
the translations. The first committee sat on 18 August 1559 in Metlika and granted Štefan
Konzul a positive evaluation for the translations. The Carniolan Estates thus established
that the Croatian books did not disagree with the Augsburg confession, which was one
of the basic conditions for printing. Lastly, they performed a significant role in supplying
and circulating Protestant books.
Carniola also helped in maintaining the Reformation among the soldiers defending
the territory against the Turks. Army preachers worked among the garrisons in Koprivni-
ca, Ivanić-Grad, Petrinja, Sisak, Senj, Ogulin, and Karlovac – after its foundation in 1579,
when it became the main centre of defence against the Turks.
The main persons in this cooperation, Primož Trubar, Peter Pavel Vergerij, Ivan Un-
gnad, Štefan Konzul, Anton Dalmatin, members of the Carniolan Provincial Estates, the
Croatian supporters of the Reformation Peter Erdödi and Nikola IV Zrinski, and others,
must be given a historically just evaluation, which will be objective only if it includes the
367
UDC 94(497.4:497.5)
327(497.;497.5):284.1
Vincenc Rajšp
The connection between the Slovene and Croatian Reformations
The connection between the Slovene and Croatian Reformations is illuminated by
extensive historical literature but the research to date has dealt with both movements
from a standpoint that led to conclusions and evaluation concerning their significance
for national development. Much attention was paid to the importance of the reformers’
activities in the sphere of language and literature, and to the personalities who were
active, but because there were disagreements, these also play a truly important role in
the evaluation.
In the Slovene lands the provincial authorities were on the side of the Reformation,
shielding it and within the scope of legal possibilities making possible the organization of
the Protestant Church by paying the priests, etc. The Protestants in Croatia did not have
such support from the authorities. It is true some nobles supported them, e.g. Nikola IV
Zrinski and Juraj Zrinski as well as the Croatian Ban Peter Erdödi. But even his power
was fairly limited. Among Croatians living under the Venetian Republic, which had a
clearly defined state policy concerning the Church, the Protestant Reformation had very
restricted possibilities for establishing itself.
The Carniolan Provincial Estates contributed in various ways to spreading the Ref-
ormation in Croatia. During the years 1561–1564 the main connecting factor in ex-
tending the Reformation in the Slavonic south was the printing of Croatian books in
Urach. Although the Carniolan provincial authorities could not take on the considerable
financial burden of printing such books (they did finance the work of Primož Trubar),
they nevertheless played an important part in getting them printed. They confirmed
Trubar’s orthodoxy and the linguistic accuracy of his Slovene translations, which were
then translated into Croatian. They also helped significantly by organizing the checking of
the translations. The first committee sat on 18 August 1559 in Metlika and granted Štefan
Konzul a positive evaluation for the translations. The Carniolan Estates thus established
that the Croatian books did not disagree with the Augsburg confession, which was one
of the basic conditions for printing. Lastly, they performed a significant role in supplying
and circulating Protestant books.
Carniola also helped in maintaining the Reformation among the soldiers defending
the territory against the Turks. Army preachers worked among the garrisons in Koprivni-
ca, Ivanić-Grad, Petrinja, Sisak, Senj, Ogulin, and Karlovac – after its foundation in 1579,
when it became the main centre of defence against the Turks.
The main persons in this cooperation, Primož Trubar, Peter Pavel Vergerij, Ivan Un-
gnad, Štefan Konzul, Anton Dalmatin, members of the Carniolan Provincial Estates, the
Croatian supporters of the Reformation Peter Erdödi and Nikola IV Zrinski, and others,
must be given a historically just evaluation, which will be objective only if it includes the
367
