§ 123.9. =The Attitude of Frederick the Wise to the Reformation.=--Frederick the Wise, A.D. 1486-1525, has usually been styled “the Promoter of the Reformation.” Kolde, however, has sought to represent him as favouring Luther because of his interest in the University of Wittenberg founded by him, the success of which was largely owing to Luther, and because of his patriotic desire to have German questions settled at home rather than in Rome. This author supposes that after the Diet of Worms Frederick took no particular interest in the Reformation, beyond watching to see how things would turn out. To all this Köstlin has replied that Frederick’s whole attitude during the Diet of Worms betrayed a warm and hearty interest in evangelical truth; that his correspondence with Tucher of Nuremberg, A.D. 1518-1523, supports this view; that in one of these letters he addresses his correspondent with evident satisfaction as a good Lutheran; that in another he incloses a copy of Luther’s _Assertio omnium articulorum_; that at a later period he forwards him a copy of Luther’s New Testament, and expresses the hope that he will gain spiritual blessing from its perusal. He himself found it his greatest comfort in the hour of death, partook of the communion in both kinds after the reformed manner, which takes away all ground for the suspicion that he yielded only to the importunities of his brother John and his chaplain Spalatin. And even though Frederick, as late as A.D. 1522, continued to increase the rich collection of relics which he had previously made for his castle church, this only proves that not all at once but only bit by bit he was able to break away from his earlier religious tendencies and predilections. § 124. DETERIORATION AND PURIFICATION OF THE WITTENBERG REFORMATION, A.D. 1522-1525. During Luther’s absence, the Reformation at Wittenberg advanced only too rapidly, and at last ran out into the wildest extravagances. But Luther hastened thither, regulated the movement, and guided it back into wise evangelical ways. This fanaticism arose in Wittenberg, but soon spread into other parts. The Reformation was at the same time threatened with danger from another quarter. The religious movement came into contact with the struggle of the German knights against the princes and that of the German peasants against the nobles, and was in danger of being identified with these revolutionary proceedings and sharing their fate. But Luther stood firm as a wall against all temptations, and thus these dangers were avoided.