# Canonical recap data for Diet of Worms (1521)
# Source: https://recap.at/1521/diet-worms
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: diet-worms
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1521/diet-worms"
title: Diet of Worms
aliases:
- Reichstag zu Worms
- Worms Reichstag
- Imperial Diet of Worms
- Luther's Trial
subtitle: Martin Luther defied Emperor Charles V and papal authority, cementing the Protestant Reformation and fracturing Western Christian unity permanently.
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1521-01-01
datePrecision: year
year: 1521
decade: 1520
country:
name: Germany
slug: germany
summaryShort: The Diet of Worms of 1521 was an imperial diet of the Holy Roman Empire called by Emperor Charles V and conducted in the Imperial Free City of Worms. Martin Luther was summoned to the diet in order to renounce or reaffirm his views in response to a Papal bull of Pope Leo X. In answer to questioning, he defended the vie
summaryLong: The Diet of Worms of 1521 was an imperial diet of the Holy Roman Empire called by Emperor Charles V and conducted in the Imperial Free City of Worms. Martin Luther was summoned to the diet in order to renounce or reaffirm his views in response to a Papal bull of Pope Leo X. In answer to questioning, he defended the views that had been criticized and refused to recant them. At the end of the diet, the Emperor issued the Edict of Worms, a decree which condemned Luther as "a notorious heretic" and banned citizens of the Empire from propagating his ideas. Although the Reformation is usually considered to have begun in 1517, this edict is the first overt schism associated with it.
lede: In April 1521, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V summoned Martin Luther to the German city of Worms to defend his religious writings before the imperial court. Luther's refusal to recant his critiques of the Catholic Church became a defining moment for the Protestant Reformation, effectively splitting Western Christianity.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/%D0%9B%D1%8E%D1%82%D0%B5%D1%80_%D0%B2_%D0%92%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%BC%D1%81%D0%B5.jpg/1280px-%D0%9B%D1%8E%D1%82%D0%B5%D1%80_%D0%B2_%D0%92%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%BC%D1%81%D0%B5.jpg"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "Diet of Worms"
importance: 82
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts:
- label: Date
  value: April 1521
- label: Location
  value: Worms, Holy Roman Empire (modern-day Germany)
- label: Presiding Authority
  value: Emperor Charles V
- label: Central Figure
  value: Martin Luther
- label: Years Since 95 Theses
  value: 4 years (October 31, 1517)
- label: Papal Bull Against Luther
  value: Exsurge Domine, issued June 1520 by Pope Leo X
- label: Luther's Response
  value: Refused recantation; declared conscience bound to Scripture
- label: Subsequent Imperial Decree
  value: Edict of Worms (May 1521) declared Luther a heretic and outlaw
timeline:
- date: 1517-10-31
  title: Luther's 95 Theses
  description: Martin Luther posts his critique of indulgences at Wittenberg, sparking broader questioning of papal authority.
- date: 1520-06-15
  title: Exsurge Domine Issued
  description: Pope Leo X issues the papal bull threatening Luther with excommunication unless he recants within 60 days.
- date: 1520-12-10
  title: Luther Burns the Bull
  description: Luther publicly burns the papal bull at Wittenberg, escalating confrontation with Rome and signaling he will not submit.
- date: 1521-01-28
  title: Luther Excommunicated
  description: Pope Leo X formally excommunicates Luther, making him a heretic in the eyes of the Church.
- date: 1521-04-17
  title: Luther Appears Before the Diet
  description: Luther is brought before Emperor Charles V and the imperial diet. When asked if his writings are his and if he will recant, Luther requests time to consider.
- date: 1521-04-18
  title: Luther's Final Answer
  description: "Luther declares he cannot recant, stating his conscience is bound by Scripture and reason. He allegedly ends with: 'Here I stand, I can do no other.'"
- date: 1521-05-25
  title: Edict of Worms Enacted
  description: Emperor Charles V issues the Edict of Worms, making Luther a heretic and outlaw throughout the empire. His writings are banned; harboring him becomes a crime.
- date: 1521-05-26
  title: Luther's Disappearance
  description: Luther is intercepted en route from Worms and taken into protective custody by Frederick the Wise, elector of Saxony, at Wartburg Castle to prevent his arrest or assassination.
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diet_of_Worms"
  title: Diet of Worms (1521)
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
impactStatement: The Diet of Worms marked the point where religious dissent became political defiance. Luther's stand against Charles V and papal authority crystallized the Reformation from theological debate into institutional schism, reshaping European Christianity and politics for centuries.
categories:
- election
taxonomy:
domain: religious
eventTypes:
- schism
- ideological_manifesto
canonicalClasses:
- conflict
- transformation
- mobilization
impactRadius: civilizational
velocity: cascading
predictability: forecastable
intentionality: planned
domainCoupling: multi_domain
lifecycleClass: birth
metaDescription: Martin Luther defends his faith before Emperor Charles V at the 1521 Diet of Worms, refusing to recant and triggering the Protestant Reformation.
wikidataQid: Q536822
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20260528173931/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diet_of_Worms"
  capturedAt: 2026-05-28
  label: Diet of Worms (1521)
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diet_of_Worms"
peoplesVoice:
- source: Emperor Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
  voiceType: official
  context: Charles's formal pronouncement after Luther refused to recant, signaling the Diet's judgment.
  excerpt: A single friar errs in his opinion which is against all Christendom. Therefore I am resolved to stake my lands, my friends, my body, my blood, my life on it.
  sentimentLabel: dismissive
  significance: 88
  attribution: Edict of Worms, May 26, 1521; Imperial records
  publishedAt: 1521-05-26
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Girolamo Aleandro, Papal nuncio and cardinal
  voiceType: official
  context: Aleandro's dispatch to Rome after witnessing Luther's refusal to submit to papal authority at Worms.
  excerpt: This man will inflame the whole of Germany and shake the Church's authority to its foundations if the Emperor does not act decisively.
  sentimentLabel: shocked
  significance: 72
  attribution: Synthesized from period accounts - Papal correspondence and nuncio reports, April-May 1521
  publishedAt: 1521-05-01
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Hans von der Planitz, Saxon diplomat and observer
  voiceType: media
  context: Planitz's contemporaneous account of the Diet's proceedings, written to Duke John of Saxony.
  excerpt: Luther spoke with such clarity and firmness that even his enemies could not deny the force of his conscience. The whole assembly was electrified.
  sentimentLabel: supportive
  significance: 68
  attribution: Synthesized from period accounts - Correspondence and diplomatic dispatches, April 1521
  publishedAt: 1521-04-20
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Duke George of Saxony, German prince and Catholic ally
  voiceType: skeptic
  context: George's reaction to the Diet's failure to bring Luther to heel, expressing frustration with the outcome.
  excerpt: Luther has made himself master of the passions of the mob. Rome sleeps while heresy spreads like plague through the Empire.
  sentimentLabel: skeptical
  significance: 55
  attribution: Synthesized from period accounts - Court correspondence and ducal records, May 1521
  publishedAt: 1521-05-15
  originalLanguage: en
