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Protestant Iconoclasm Practice

Type Object Region Europe Time c. 1520–1580

Protestant iconoclasm, the removal or destruction of Catholic images, sculptures, relics, and decorative art, intensified in the 1540s across Switzer…

Timeline

  1. c. 1523–1535Zurich · ZurichAfter the 1523 Zurich disputation, Zwinglians pushed for the removal of church images and relics; in the 1520s, German cities also saw acts of destruction involving the public and municipal authorities.
  2. c. 1541–1550London · LondonIn the 1540s, England under Henry VIII and Edward VI issued purification decrees, dismantling monastery and church decoration; the Low Countries and Schmalkaldic League regions also experienced large-scale destruction amid political-religious conflict.

Sources