The European Age of Religious Wars (1517 -1648)

European Religious Divisions – 16th 17th century The Thirty Years’ War was a series of conflicts that began early in the 17th century in the Holy Roman Empire and finally involved much of Europe. It started as a conflict between Protestants and Roman Catholics but soon became a struggle for political power between nations.

Four Phases of the 30 Years’ War: 1. Bohemian Phase (1618-1625) 2. Danish Phase (1625-1630) 3. Swedish Phase (1630-1635) 4. French Phase (1635 – 1648)

Historical Background By 1600, Protestants outnumbered Catholics in Bohemia but the Protestants were fragmented into denominations or sects. Holy Roman Emperor Rudolph II issued a Letter of Majesty granting some limited freedoms and tolerance to Protestants but Rudolph died before Protestants fully enjoyed the limited freedoms. Catholics prohibited Protestants from building churches in towns where Protestant churches did not already exist. Ferdinand II was to be the new King of Bohemia and Protestants feared for the worst.

Holy Roman Empire 1618 The war began in Bohemia. There in 1618 the Protestant nobility refused to recognize Ferdinand II, soon to be Holy Roman emperor, as their king. Instead they chose Frederick V, the Palatine elector. This brought on a war involving the member states of the Holy Roman Empire. Ferdinand the Catholic

Defenestration of Prague Some Protestants set up a meeting with Catholic officials in Prague on May 23, 1618 but the meeting went badly; the Protestants seized two Catholic officials and tossed them out of the window. This event is known as The Defenestration of Prague. The word defenestrate comes from Latin word for “window” and means “out the window.” They survived the fall, Protestants saying because they landed in a heap of horse manure, and Catholics saying that angels saved them. This was the spark that ignited the 30 Years’ War.

Battle of White Mountain German and Spanish forces under the count of Tilly defeated the Bohemians in 1620 at White Mountain. Bohemia became an Austrian crown land, and Ferdinand was crowned king. At this point Ferdinand could have made peace, but he insisted that Protestantism be wiped out. This attitude aroused the Protestant rulers of England, Holland, and Denmark. They sent an invading army under King Christian of Denmark. Count of Tilly Christian IV of Denmanrk

Albrecht von Wallenstein Between 1625 and 1629 the Danish army suffered a series of losses and was finally driven out of Germany by a general called Albrecht von Wallenstein. His men roved the country, robbing farms and torturing people. Wallenstein Palace

Edict of Restitution Neutral Protestant rulers were aroused to join the battle when Ferdinand signed the Edict of Restitution. This document forced all Protestants to give up any Catholic property acquired since 1555. Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden invaded Germany in 1630, but was killed in battle 1632.

France tries to defeat the Habsburgs At this point France, under the guidance of Cardinal Richelieu, entered the war on the Protestant side in a political rather than religious move Richelieu saw a chance to defeat the Spanish and Austrian Hapsburgs. He sent troops under Turenne and Condé, and the tide turned against Ferdinand.

Peace of Westphalia For the next 14 years fighting by French, Spanish, Swedish, and German troops went on in Germany, Italy, Flanders, and the Pyrenees. In 1648 Ferdinand III, who had succeeded his father, saw that further warfare was useless and signed the Peace of Westphalia on October 24. Word of the peace arrived as the French were preparing for the siege of Prague.

Consequences of the War The Thirty Years’ War marked the end of one era and the beginning of another. It began an era in which nation-states struggled for territorial and political power. It ended the dominance of the powerful Hapsburg family and began the era in which France was the strongest nation in Europe. It ended an era of Spanish military domination. It also ushered in an era in which states completed the long process of centralizing their governments, becoming what we recognize today as modern nations.

Les misères et les malheurs de la guerre Jacques Callot (1592 – 1635) The war reduced the population of Germany by more than half in some places. Education and agriculture were halted. There were not enough people left to rebuild and to replant. Religious unity was not established. Inflation was rampant and trade declined.

Loss of German Lives in 30 Years’ War

German Peasants’ War (1520s) Other Wars of Religion German Peasants’ War (1520s) Europe's largest and most widespread popular uprising prior to the French Revolution of 1789. The fighting was at its height in the spring and summer of 1525. Peasants were inspired in part by the teachings of Martin Luther, although he did not agree with the uprisings.

2. War of German Princes against Emperor Charles V (1520s-1555) (Catholic) Charles defeated a group of Protestant princes at Mühlberg in April 1547. Nevertheless, only eight years later he was forced to allow the Peace of Augsburg, which acknowledged the legitimacy of Lutheranism within the Holy Roman Empire.

3. Civil War In France (1562-1598) French noble families of the House of Guise and the House of Bourbons were also involved. Foreign monarchs supported different sides. Finally King Henry IV (who had converted from Calvinism to Catholicism to satisfy the majority of the French people who were Catholics) signed the Edict of Nantes, granting religious rights to Huguenots. St. Bartholomew ´s Day Massacre 1572 The French Wars of Religion were a series of wars that took place in France over a span of 36 years, between 1562-1598. They were mainly fought between the French Catholics and the French Protestants or Huguenots.