VERBESSERUNGSPUNKTE, far-bes'er-rungz punk'te: Certain requirements introduced into Hesse by the Landgrave Maurice in 1605 for the amendment of religious conditions and the cessa tion of sectarian strife, and summarized as follows: (1) dangerous and unedifying controversies on the person of Christ must end, and ubiquity must be held to mean concretely that Christ is The everywhere, not abstractly that the Articles. humanity of Christ is everywhere; (2) the Decalogue must be taught according to the words of Christ, and the images ', surviving from Roman Catholicism must be re moved; and (3) in the Lord's Supper the bread must be broken after institution. On the death of Landgrave Philip in 1567, Hesse was divided among his four sons, but by his will ecclesiastical organiza tion and doctrine were to remain unchanged. At first this was observed, but in 1575, at the instance of his wife, a Württemberg princess, Louis, who had received Upper Hesse and Marburg as his in heritance, called AEgidius Hunnius (q.v.) to a pro fessorial chair; and at the general convention at Treysa (1577) it became evident that a new, ultra Lutheran tendency was gaining ground. It was here decided, however, that, until final. decision, the use of the new phrases concerning the doctrine of the two natures of Christ should be discontinued; that their personal union was to be discussed only in the concrete; that the dogma of the Communicatio Idiomatum (q.v.) should not be set forth; and that all polemics should be prohibited. The gen eral synod held at Marburg in 1578, however, de ferred decision, and with the last general synod (1582) ecclesiastical harmony had become impos sible. Louis and his brother William, landgrave of Hesse-Cassell adhered to views diametrically op posed, the latter inclining more and more to Re formed tenets and appointing many of the Philip pists expelled from Saxony to high positions in the church. Under Maurice, successor of William in 1592, things took a new turn. Heartily weary of fruitless dogmatic controversies and desirous of a new reform, especially with regard to added em phasis on soteriological and practical preaching, the

new landgrave, a man highly endowed, energetic, eloquent, and well trained even in theology, was led to reactionary measures which caused him to seek to banish Lutheranism. Since the general synods had ceased (1582), important church affairs had been referred to the chancery and thus to the sovereign. The authority of the superintendents, moreover, had lately been considerably reduced, and in 1599 Maurice established at Cassel a consistory combined with the chancery to examine, install, and supervise pastors, this being replaced, in 1610, by an independent consistory at Marburg. Until the death of Louis in 1604, Maurice could proceed but slowly, hindered by the attachment of the ignorant populace to the images and the defense of the patronage on the part of the nobles, though in the mean time he sought to place his sympathizers in places of high ecclesiastical authority. When, however, his uncle Louis died and Maurice received the Marburg half of Upper Hesse, he sought first to reform this stronghold of Lutheranism, and, ordering controversies to cease, forbade (June 18, 1605) the teaching of the doctrine of Ubiquity (q.v.). When the Marburg theologians protested, he not only admonished them to obey the conclusions of the convention at Treysa and succeeding general synods, but also issued for strict observance the Verbesserungspunkte already noted.

The theologians, readily perceiving that these articles were but the entering wedge of a much more comprehensive reformation, again protested, but in vain. After fruitless efforts to win over their four leaders, Johann Winckelinann, Balthasar Mentzer, Heinrich Leuchter, and Konrad Dietrich, the landgrave deposed them. Open

Enforce-. riot was the result, and the citizens meat in were awed into submission only by Cassel. force of arms. After an eloquent appeal from Maurice, all pictures were removed from the churches by his order, and early in August the Lord's Supper was administered according to Reformed usage. In Dec., 1605, with a view to more sweeping measures, Maurice convened the superintendents and provincial governors at Cassel. This convention proposed, (1) the issuance of a mandate authorizing superintendents and civil officials to introduce the Verbesserungspunkte; (2) the admission to the .Lord's Supper of those also who did not accept the Hessian teaching; (3) the introduction of a new liturgy and a new catechism based on the Lutheran; and (4) the establishment of a consistory in Marburg to consolidate the reforms. Notwithstanding all this, opposition only increased, nor did even the deposition of ten clergy in Upper Hesse act as a deterrent. On Jan. 16, 1607, therefore, the landgrave convened diocesan synods at Cassel, Eschwege, Marburg, and St. Goar, where there was a strong sentiment in favor of the Verbesserxcngspunkte, and, on Apr. 12, a general synod at Cassel. This busied itself with the reform and the harmonizing of worship and doctrine, resolving upon the universal introduction of the catechism ordered in 1605, and now revised (Kinderlehre für chrisLliche Schulen und Kirchen in, Hessen, 1607). It also ordered a hymnal, and a creed of six articles was adopted which officially published adhesion to

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the Reformed Church (Christliches and richtiges Glaubensbekenntnis, Cassel, 1607). Immediately after the synod Maurice proceeded to enforce its enactments, but was met with repeated opposition in the refractory districts, specially at Schmalkald, where it lasted ten years, and the images could only be removed by the military. To secure the fruits of the Reformation Maurice in the following years gave much attention to education; and his repre sentation at the Synod of Dort (1618) led to the introduction of the Heidelberg Catechism. Political an& military struggles went hand in hand with this religious strife, and led in many parts, especially in Upper Hesse, to a Lutheran reaction. Louis of Darmstadt, the co Reaction. heir of Upper Hesse, laid claim to the entire principality on the ground that Maurice had violated the religious provisions of the will of Philip. He allied himself more closely to the Lutheran estates and the emperor and fought on their side in the Thirty-Years' War. He invited the professors expelled from Marburg to Darmstadt, and, to offset Marburg, he founded, in 1605, a gym nasium at Giessen, and in 1607 a Lutheran unijeh city, while in 1607 he also required all the clergy to be bound by the unaltered Augsburg Confession and the Schmalkald Articles. In 1623 the inherited domain of Maurice was declared by imperial judg ment to be forfeit, and the electors of Cologne and Saxony, aided by the troops of Tilly, carried the sen tence into effect. The Reformed professors and pastors were deposed, and two years later the Lu theran university was transferred from Giessen to Marburg. In 1627, Maurice, broken by his re verses, abdicated in favor of his son, William Y., and the latter, in the same year, was forced to cede to Louis George II., the successor of Louis V., Upper Hesse, Schmalkald, and Katzenelnbogen, where the Reformed preachers were suppressed and Luther anism was introduced. After the defeat following the death.of Gustavus Adolphus, Lower Hesse was placed under the administration of George II., while William died a fugitive. The widow regent, how ever, Ameba Elizabeth, defeated George in several battles, and by the treaty of Apr. 14, 1646, con firmed by the peace of Osnabrück, Hesse-Cassel re sumed possession of the Marburg half of Upper Hesse, Schmalkald, and Katzenelnbogen. This peace guaranteed the status quo in religious mat ters, the districts named remaining Lutheran. A Lutheran university was established at Giessen in 1650, and a similar Reformed institution at Mar burg in 1653. On Dec. 27,1657, Landgrave William VI. issued for entire Hesse-Cassel a ,church order which was essentially Reformed, though with all possible consideration for his Lutheran subjects; but in Upper Hesse this order enjoyed leas general usage than the Darmstadt church order of 1562.

(Carl Mirbt.)

Bibliography: G. von Rommel, Geschichte von Hessen, vols. vi.-vii., Cassel, 1837-39; H. Heppe, Die EinJikhrung der Verbeaserungspunkte in Hessen, ib. 1849; idem, Kirchengeschichte beider Hessen, 2 vols., Marburg, 1876; A. F. C. Vilmar, Geschichte des Confessionsstandes der eaangetischen Kirche in Hessen, pp. 164 sqq., 2d ed., Frank fort, 1868; E. Hofaommer, Die kirchlichen Verbeasernnga punkte des Landgrafen Moritz . . . son Hessen, Marburg, 1910.