In 1530, Holy Roman emperor Charles V called an imperial council in Augsburg, hoping to resolve religious dissention in the empire introduced by Martin Luther, whose 95 Theses, criticized the church's practice of offering promises of forgiveness from sins in exchange for money. Luther's allies in the town of Wittenberg presented the emperor with their theological positions. Another faction, aligned with Swiss reformer Ulrich Zwingli, offered more radical reforms. The Roman church responded with a defense of traditional doctrines, but by then, hope of a simple resolution to religious concerns...