Adopting a New Religion: The Case of Protestantism in 16th Century Germany

Davide Cantoni

Munich Reprints in Economics from University of Munich, Department of Economics

Abstract: Using a dataset of territories and cities of the Holy Roman Empire in the sixteenth century, this article investigates the determinants of adoption and diffusion of Protestantism as a state religion. A territory’s distance to Wittenberg, the city where Martin Luther taught, is a major determinant of adoption. This finding is consistent with a theory of strategic neighbourhood interactions: introducing the Reformation was a risky enterprise for territorial lords and had higher prospects of success if powerful neighbouring states committed to the new faith. The actual spatial and temporal patterns of expansion of Protestantism are analysed in a panel dataset.

Date: 2012
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Published in Economic Journal 560 122(2012): pp. 502-531

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Related works:
Working Paper: Adopting a New Religion: The Case of Protestantism in 16th Century Germany (2015)
Journal Article: Adopting a New Religion: the Case of Protestantism in 16th Century Germany (2012)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:lmu:muenar:20004

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