The '''Counter Reformation''' (about 1560 to around 1610 or as late as 1648for some historians) was a partially successful effort by the [[Roman Catholic Church]] to roll back the [[Protestant Reformation]]. Using new agencies like the [[Jesuits]], and removing much of the corruption and complaints that had weakened the Church and given the Reformers many arguments, the Church managed to hold or reclaim most of Southern and Eastern Europe, including Spain, Italy , Austria and France, and large parts of Poland, Hungary and Germany. By strengthening Catholic theology and reigning in objectionable practices, it hoped to either reabsorb or neutralize the Protestant movement while renewing the faith of the Catholic Church.
* Luebke, David, ed. ''The Counter-Reformation: The Essential Readings'' (1999) [http://www.amazon.com/Counter-Reformation-Essential-Readings-Blackwell-History/dp/0631211047/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1243342762&sr=1-11 excerpt and text search], 9 essays by scholars
* O'Connell, Marvin R. ''Counter-reformation, 1550-1610'' (1974)
* Pollen, John Hungerford. "The Counter-Reformation." in ''The Catholic Encyclopedia.'' Vol. 4. (1908) [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04437a.htm old but detailed; strong Catholic viewpoint]
* Wernham, R. B. ed. ''The New Cambridge Modern History, Vol. 3: Counter-Reformation and Price Revolution, 1559-1610'' (1968), essays by scholars