The
Protestant Reformation in Switzerland was promoted initially by
Huldrych Zwingli, who gained the support of the magistrate (Mark Reust) and population of
Zürich in the 1520s. It led to significant changes in civil life and state matters in Zürich and spread to several other
cantons of the
Old Swiss Confederacy. Seven cantons remained Roman
Catholic, though, which led to inter-cantonal wars known as the
Wars of Kappel. After the victory of the Catholic cantons in 1531, they proceeded to institute
counter-reformatory policies in some regions. The schism and distrust between Catholic and
Protestant cantons would define their interior politics and paralyse any common
foreign policy until well into the 18th century.