Exiles and innovators: a survey of heretics in sixteenth-century Europe

The links between exile and innovation have often been studied in the case of the twentieth century, but much less in the case of early modern Europe - an age of some political exiles and many religious ones. This essay focuses on what has been called 'the Reformation of the Refugees' in the early sixteenth century. Were these exiles innovators? At a time when novelty was frequently condemned, these early Protestants were certainly accused of innovation, though they replied that all they wanted was to return to the practices of the 'primitive church'. I argue that they did innovate, and in this survey I assess the scope of this innovation. The radicalization of individual refugees has often been discussed, but overviews are less common, including the emphasis on the role of cities in this process. The cities in which these exiles found a refuge, especially Strasbourg and Basel, encouraged debates in which new ideas were forged, exemplifying the way in which displacement could lead to changes of mind.