30 Years War (1618-1648)
Swedish, French, and Post War
Summary
A religious war in Central Europe fought during the 17th century. The war began as a battle among Catholic and Protestant states that formed the Holy Roman Empire. The 30 years’ war was one of the greatest and longest wars of the early modern period, with many shifts in power throughout. The final two phases of the war - the Swedish and French phases - were much more continental and political than the previous phases of the war. The Swedish phase marked a more modern warfare, with mobile artillery being used by the Swedes and funding coming from the French. The reason that France, a catholic country, was able to help in this war as because this part of the war was more political. Gustavus Adolphus died, which marked the end of the Swedish phase. The Swedish then funded the French who were now fighting. The French phase was the largest, bloodiest, and most continental of the war. At this point of the war, it was getting old to people. No one knew who was winning and everyone was just tired of being involved. The war was ended in 1648 by the Peace of Westphalia, which weakened the Holy Roman Emperor, made the Dutch Netherlands independent, let Brandenburg gain territory, gave Alsace to France, and made Switzerland independent. In general the Holy Roman Empire was weakened. The balance of power was shifted to the French. After the war, Calvinism also was adopted as a religion, and freedom of practice of religion was enforced, as people didn’t want to kill each other because of religion anymore. Therefore, the 30 years war was the last major religious war, and the end of violence accompanying the reformation.
Cause
The cause of the 30 Year War is Emperor Ferdinand II of the Holy Roman Empire decision to force the citizens to adhere to Roman Catholicism, even though the Peace of Augsburg had been established. This lead to the overall cause of the Thirty Years War. It was the Edict of Restitution that spurred the Swedish to join the war. This law threatened Protestants throughout Europe, so Sweden decided to fight back.
Course
- Edict of Restitution (1629): Threatens Protestants all around Europe, spurs Sweden to take action
- Gustavus Adolphus invades Catholic states (1630): Sweden joins the Protestants and fights against the Catholics
- Gustavus Adolphus killed (1632): Died during the Battle of Lutzen
- Swedes are vanquished (1635): Albrecht von Wallenstein gives 50,000 soldiers to Ferdinand II in order to stop Swedes
- French enter the conflict (1635): Although Catholic, French were unhappy with the Habsburgs of the Holy Roman Empire
- French monarch Louis XIII dies (1643): The throne goes to 5-year-old Louis XIV, creating a vacancy in leadership
- Swedes capture Prague Castle (1647): Swedes capture Prague Castle from the Holy Roman Empire, also the last significant fighting
- Peace of Westphalia (1648): Ended the 30 Years War
Key Figures
Gustavus Adolphus
King of Sweden from 1611 to 1632, brought Sweden into the Thirty Years War, regarded as one of the greatest military commanders
Cardinal Richelieu
First Minister of France, provided funds for the Swedes, made alliances with Protest rulers to check the power of the Habsburg family
Ferdinand II
Holy Roman Emperor, member of the House of Habsburg, actions against Protestants started the war
Albrecht Von Wallenstein
Bohemian military leader and nobleman, provided troops to Ferdinand II in order to stop the Swedes, became a supreme commander of the armies of the Holy Roman Empire
Louis XIII
King of France, died during the Thirty Years War which created a vacancy in leadership
Outcome
There is no clear winner of the 30 Years War. Both France and the Holy Roman Empire suffered major losses, but France benefited the most out of the war. The Peace of Westphalia was signed to end the war. Important details include Dutch Netherlands and Sweden gain independence, France obtains more land, and all territories would recognize the Peace of Augsburg.
Main Significance
The Peace of Westphalia stopped all religious wars in Europe. This brought close to a period where millions of Europeans died over religion. Kings and princes would now have the right to determine the religion of their own state. Additionally, the Holy Roman Empire lost its power and France became the dominant European power.
Primary Source
Above is a section of the Treaty of Westphalia. It was written primarily to end all religious wars in Europe. It describes how rulers would have the right to determine the religion of their land, Dutch Netherlands and Switzerland would gain independence, and France would gain more land. Different denominations such as Calvinism and Lutheranism were also permitted as a result of the treaty.
Link to transcript: http://avalon.law.yale.edu/17th_century/westphal.asp
Sources
https://www.history.com/topics/reformation/thirty-years-war
http://www.hyperhistory.com/online_n2/civil_n2/histscript6_n2/thirty.html
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/thirty-years-war-ends
https://home.wlu.edu/~patchw/His_101/timeline_wars.htm
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-worldhistory/chapter/the-thirty-years-war/