“Cuius regio, eius religio” is a saying which arose out of the turmoil of the century of the Protestant Reformation. “Whoever’s kingdom - his religion” would be a reasonable translation. Kings and queens and princes in those days were not only members of the Church but deeply involved in its affairs. The idea that there could be two competing religions in their territory was unthinkable. It would be divisive and so they sought to choose for their subjects whether they would all follow the Old Religion or the New, as they came to be called. They passed laws which provided for severe sanctions for those who followed the 'wrong' religion, including the death penalty.