IV.

Conflicts Among Protestants

During 1525 a radical Protestant group called the Anabaptists challenged Zwingli's rule in Zurich. In a disputation, held before the council on January 2, 1526, Zwingli defeated the Anabaptists, whose leaders were then banished from Zurich.

In 1529 friends of Martin Luther and Zwingli, concerned over doctrinal and political differences that had developed between the two Protestant leaders, arranged a meeting between them. At this meeting, held in Marburg and known since as the Marburg Colloquy, Luther and Zwingli clashed over the question of consubstantiation versus transubstantiation, and the conference failed to reconcile the two leaders.

Meanwhile, Zwingli carried his crusade to cantons other than Zurich. In all, six cantons were converted to the Reformation. The remaining five, known as the Forest Cantons, remained staunchly Catholic. The antagonisms between Catholic and Protestant cantons created a serious split within the Swiss confederation.