The Thirty Years War 16181648

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The Thirty Years War1618-1648

• The FIRST continent-wide war in modern
  history!!!!
• Culmination of religious wars from the 16th
  century!!!!
• And it ends with . . .
• Peace of Westphalia 1648

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Why another War?

• Peace of Augsburg 1555 solved nothing
• granted rights to Lutherans, but other Protestant
  religions left out
• an issue for Palatinate Elector (Frederick IV)
  Calvinist
• Whose who of Protestantism
• majority of 300 German states Lutheran
• Bohemia Protestant
• Austria supposed to be Catholic, but strong
  Protestant influence
• Swiss Catholic Calvinist
• Hungary Protestant
• Transylvania Calvinist
• Bavaria Catholic

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Why another War?

• War between emperor and princes
• It seems the emperor isnt really an emperor
  (i.e. no power!), HRE too divided
• Instead we have a Protestant Union(1608, led by
  Frederick IV, Prince of Palatinate) and a
  Catholic League(1609, led by Duke Maximilian of
  Bavaria) determined to hold the other at bay
• PU supported by Dutch, English Henry IV of
  France
• CL founded in Bavaria backed by Spain
• Austrian Habsburgs would like a strong central
  government (nation-state) must push out
  Protestantism

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Why another War?

• Twelve Years Truce (Netherlands/Spain) to expire
  1621
• Spanish Army still strong although Armada KAPUTT!
• Spain wants to control Scheldt River remove
  Dutch from East Indies BUT Dutch refuse to leave
  East Indies they control Antwerp
• Spain wants to expand into the Rhineland some
  Swiss cantons BUT French are strongly opposed
  (again they are protecting the Protestants)
• consolidate Habsburgs position in Europe after
  failure in Netherlands

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Other Problems in the HRE

• Cultural decline in HRE
• Lutherans distrust world outside Germany
• decline in university attendance as universities
  become platform for religious/political reform
  debates
• witch-hunts most prevalent in Eastern Europe
• trade in decay due to Dutch control serfdom
  alive and well Commercial Revolution doesnt
  effect the middle class in East as in West

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What kind of war?

• not just a religious war
• German civil war of religion
• German civil war of constitutional issues
• International war between France (Bourbons)
  Habsburgs, Spain Dutch, kings of Denmark
  Sweden and prince of Transylvanian become
  involved
• all of these groups found allies within Germany
• majority of battles fought on German soil
• generals were soldiers of fortune with their own
  designs on land, wealth power

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Four Phases of the War

• Bohemian (Czechs) (1618-1625)
• Danish (1625-1629)
• Swedish (1630-1635)
• Swedish-French (1635-1648)

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Habsburg Family Tree Part II

• Maximilian I -- m. Mary of Burgundy
• (1493-1519)
• Philip___________m. Joanna of Spain (daughter of
  Ferdinand Isabella)
• Charles V (Sp/HRE) Ferdinand I
• (1516-1556) (1556-1564) HRE
• Philip II (Sp)
• (1556-1598) Maximilian II Charles of Styria
• Philip III (Sp) (1564-1576)
• (1598-1621) Rudolf II Matthias Ferdinand II
• (1576-1612) (1612-1619) (1619-1637)

RII M kings of Hungary, Bohemia/ FII king
of Bohemia
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Phase I Bohemian Phase 1618-1625

• HRE Matthias (Ferdinand Is grandson) dying,
  successor to Empire
• Logical choice cousin, Ferdinand II
• BUT electors are mainly Protestant and Ferdinand
  is Catholic
• Ferdinand ALSO king of Bohemia! (as of 1617)
• Bohemians (Czechs / Germans) together with
  Slovaks mainly Protestant vs. Catholic king

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Bohemia revolts 1618

• Defenestration of Prague Habsburg governors
  thrown out the window (land on dung survive)
• Ferdinand II (as King of Bohemia) sends in troops
  to restore order is deposed by Bohemians
• Matthias (HRE) dies Ferdinand II should reign
  as HRE
• Bohemians elect Frederick V of the Palatinate
  as HRE
• So War Ferdinand and Catholic League vs.
  Frederick and Protestant Union
• Ferdinand crowned as HRE (1619) and defeats
  Frederick at Battle of White Mountain 1620

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Outcomes of Phase I

• Spain dig-in in Rhineland prepare to take on
  French and Dutch
• Ferdinand II reestablished as king of Bohemia
  confiscates 50 of nobles estates
• some goes to churches, monasteries orders
• some goes to mercenaries new aristocracy
• Jesuits re-Catholicize Bohemia
• missions, schools, court proceedings, executions
• Protestantism expunged in Austria
• Protestant Union dissolved in 1621

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Phase IIDanish Phase 1625-1630

• Danish Lutherans vs. Habsburg power!
• Denmarks King Christian IV (a.k.a. Duke of
  Holstein) vs. Ferdinand II
• religious as well as political agenda
• some Dutch, English, French backing
• Ferdinand wins under gen. Wallenstein who
  plunders Germany and Danes (Spanish cousins of
  HRE help)
• Wallenstein actually reaches Baltic Danish Pen.

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Results of Phase II

• Germany is completely engulfed by the Counter
  Reformation
• Palatinate, northern Lutheran states, Bohemia
  Austria re-Catholicized
• Resurgence of Habsburg power leads to fear of
  loss of independence among German princes
• 1629 HRE issues Edict of Restitution All
  Catholic states properties pre Peace of
  Augsburg (1555) are restored as Catholic
• Prohibited Calvinist worship

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Results of Phase II

• Terror sweeps Germany, France, Denmark Sweden
• Germans fear for Protestantism
• as do Danish, who are also dealing with
  Wallenstein
• French (Cardinal Richelieuregent for child-king
  Louis XIII) dealing with internal conflicts,
  cant take Ferdinand II alone, so...
• engage Swedes, by ending their conflict with
  Poland and paying them 1 million livre/year for
  40,000 troops (Dutch pay 50,000 florins a month)

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Phase IIISwedish 1630-1635

• Swedish King Gustavus Adolphus great ruler
• united Sweden
• conducted overseas operations
• increased land holdings by acquiring areas of
  Poland Russia
• creates Europes most modern army
• 1630 lands in Germany to take over fight for
  Protestantism
• in the meantime...Richelieu has turned Catholic
  states against Ferdinand II HRE (fear of
  centralization)

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Phase III Swedish 1630-1635

• Glorious Victories for Swedes (military backing
  from Saxony)
• 1631 Breitenfeld
• 1632 Lützen (GA dies in battle)
• Oxenstierna (GAs Chancellor) picks up fight
• penetrates Bohemia as far south as the Danube
• Internal Discord
• Wallenstein upset with power of Spanish and gives
  up fight enters into begins private peace talks
  with Swedes Saxons assassinated by one of his
  own for this act of treason

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Phase III Swedish 1630-1635

• Internal Discord (cont.)
• Saxons (ind. of Swedes) enter into talks w/
  Emperor
• 1634 Battle of Nordlingen is victory of HRE over
  Swedeswho are driven out of S. Germ.
• 1635 Peace of Prague annuls Edict of
  Restitution, many other German states sign treaty
  pull support of Swedes
• Swedes left isolated in Germany
• French/Spanish not ready to give up the fight

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Phase IV French-Swedish /International Phase
1635-1648

• Richelieu not happy the Habsburgs won again so
  he has King Louis XIII declare war on Spain
  (Habsburg Philip IV helping HRE)!
• Portugal Catalonia declare independence from
  Sp.
• Netherlands, Savoy also enter on Swedish side!
• Battles go both ways, Richelieu, Ferdinand II,
  Louis XIII, Wallenstein all die early 1640s
• Germany grows to resent this foreign invasion
• Exhaustion, negotiations lead to Peace of
  Westphalia 1648

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And the final results???

• Germany devastated! Some areas 2/3 population
  dead
• HRE once a leader now stagnates
• borderlands fall away, Netherlands Switzerland
  no longer belong
• no laws may be made, taxes levied, soldiers
  recruited, war waged or peace treaty signed
  without approval of imperial estates
• Germany sinks back into feudal chaos 300
  independent states (Staatensystem)
• Habsburgs weakened Austria losses power over
  HRE/ Spain losses Portugal Catalonia
• Europe enters Balance of Power
• Religious Wars END!!! permanent split in
  Christendom
• FRANCE begins to rise!