to extraordinarj'- efforts against the further spreading of Protestantism. Unfortmiately, palatine Thurzo died soon, and the Catholics found a leader of rare ability in the Jesuit Pazmany, who succeeded in causing within a short time more than fifty of the first noble famiUes to return to the Catholic Church. They, in turn, com- pelled hundreds of thousands of their subjects to leave the Protestant churches. At the diets the Roman Cath- olics agam obtained the ascendency ; the resolutions of 1608 were, it is true, several times confirmed, but the government did not respect the decrees of the diets, and the persecutions of Protestants continued. For a time the Reformed prince Bethlen, of Transylvania, ex- torted by his victories from king Ferdinand II promises of redress, but none of these promises were kept. At the Diet of 1637, the Protestants, mider the name of the Evangelical Estates {Stiitus ef Ordines Evavf/dici), pre- sented their grievances in writing; but the Diet con- tented itself with a new confirmation of former laws, and gave to the Jesuits the first landed property in the kingdom. The discontent of the Protestants was sup- ported by Eacoczy, prince of Transylvania, who invaded Hungary at the head of 10,000 men, and finally com- pelled Ferdinand III to conclude the peace of Linz, 1615, in which the Protestants again obtained the free exercise of their religion, the use of bells, and the per- mission to build towers and to keep their own cemeter- ies. But the Catholic clergy refused to recognise the provisions of this treaty, and soon the reign of Leopold I brought on the sorest trials for Protestantism. The complaints of the Protestants regarding the constant violations of their rights were not listened to ; they were ordered not to bring their grievances before the Diet, but before the courts. Several Protestant noble- men entered, therefore, into a conspiracy for the separa- tion of Hungary from Austria, but the plot was discov- ered, and all who had taken part m it sentenced to death. The Jesuits used this as a pretext for the most violent measures against Protestants. Archbishop Szelepczen- yi summoned the evangeUcal ministers of the mountain towns before his coiurt at Pressburg, where they were charged with being accomplices of the Turks, with se- ditious sermons, revolutionary sj-mpathies, abuse of the Catholic host, opening of the prisons, sale of Catholic priests to the Turks. The preachers were all sentenced to death ; but the emperor pardoned them on the con- dition that they should renounce their titles of preach- ers and pastors, not discharge the duties connected with such a title, keep no schools, not preach either secretly or publicly, and sign a declaration acknowledging their guilt. Whosoever shoiUd refuse to sign this declaration must leave Hungarj^ Avithin thirty days. In the next j-ear all the evangelical preachers, even those who lived under Turkish dominion, were summoned to Pressburg. The latter did not come ; but those living under the scep- tre of Leopold made their appearance, 250 of the Confes- sion of Augsburg and 57 of the Helvetic Confession. The majority signed the demanded declaration ; those who re- fused were imprisoned ; the most obstinate, about 29 in number, were sent to the galleys. The Swedish govern- ment, the dukes of Saxony, Brandenburg, and Lunebiu-g, remonstrated with the emperor in favor of the prisoners, biit not until about a year later did they recover their liberty. A great massacre of Protestants was soon after (1657) committed at Eperies by the imperial general Ca- raffa, who pretended to have discovered a wide-spread conspiracy, and caused the execution of a large number of prominent men, among whom were many of the lead- ers of the Protestants. The peace of Carlovics, in 1G09, restored to Hungarj' all the districts, with the only ex- ception of that of Temesvar, which for more than a hundred years had been imder the ride of the Turks. At liome, the continued discontent of the people led to a new insurrection, headed by Francis Eacoczy, which was suppressed in 1711 by the peace of Szathmar, This peace again reaftirmed the rights which had been granted to Protestants. New complaints of disturb-
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