Martin Luther posted his Ninety-five Theses criticizing indulgence sales on October 31, 1517, in Wittenberg, sparking the Protestant Reformation. Luther's challenge to papal authority and Catholic doctrine, amplified by printing technology, fractured Western Christendom and triggered religious wars, political realignments, and social transformations across Europe. The Reformation emphasized individual conscience, vernacular scripture, and direct relationship with God.

Luther's German Bible translation standardized the German language and demonstrated vernacular scripture's power, influencing German poetry's development. Protestant emphasis on individual faith and scripture reading encouraged literacy and personal engagement with texts, fostering conditions for more introspective poetry. Religious division inspired polemical verse while persecution experiences shaped metaphysical poetry in England, with poets like Donne and Herbert exploring faith, doubt, and divine relationship in psychologically complex ways.