The Thirty Years’ War

Tushar JoisEuropean History APKinbergDecember 22, 2012

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Timeline of the War Click on a box to go to that topic, or click anywhere to continue in chronological order.

The Peace of Prague

Rudolf II promises

toleration for Bohemian Protestants

16

09

16

18

The Battle of White Mountain

16

20

16

25

Bohemians rebel

against Emperor

Ferdinand II

King Christian IV of Denmark

enters the War

16

26

Albrecht von Wallenstein raises an army of

mercenaries

16

29

The Edict of

Restitution is issued

16

31

Sweden enters the war

16

32

The Battle of Lützen

16

35

16

44

The Battle of Rocoroi

16

48

The Peace of Westphal

ia

France, Holland, and Savoy enter

the war

LegendBohemian PhaseDanish PhaseSwedish PhaseFrench-International Phase

(Chambers 437)

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Pre-War Religious Policy

The Peace of Augsburg – 1555 Each prince is allowed to choose

Roman Catholicism or Luthernaism for their territory - cuius regio, eius religio▪ Dissenters were allowed to emmigrate▪ Free cities – practice one of the two

Calvinists and others were ignored▪ Formed a delicate peace between

Protestants and Catholics Ecclesiastic Reservation: all clergy

who converted after 1552 were to forfeit their positions (“Augsburg”)

Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor Considered by most to be a crazed

lunatic, because of his intense pursuit of alchemy▪ Hapsburgs tried to give the authority to

Matthias Both then began to compete for the

favor of the nobility▪ Rudolf conceded Austria, Hungary to

Matthias, but kept Bohemia Rudolf needed to retain the support

of the Bohemian estates▪ 1609- Issued a Letter of Majesty that

granted toleration to Protestants Rudolf soon became fed up with the

restrictions on his power, and raised an army▪ Could not overcome both Matthias,

Bohemian nobility; deposed in 1611▪ Matthias, a moderate, become Holy

Roman Emperor (Sommerville)

Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor, 1592 (Heintz)

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The Bohemian Revolts

Delicate peace between Protestants and Catholics shatters when Holy Roman Emperor Matthias dies Successor: Ferdinand

II (formerly Archduke of Styria)▪ Ardent Catholic: limited

religions freedoms, persecuted Protestants and Jews (“Thirty,” Gale)

Protestant nobility decided that something had to be done 23 May 1618: Nobles throw two

of Ferdinand ’s confidants out the window of Hradcany Castle, Prague▪ The men survive this

“defenestration of Prague,” but it sends a message to the Catholic rulers (“Thirty,” Arts 344)

August 1619: Estates of Bohemia depose Ferdinand, elect Elector Frederick V of the Palatinate, as a rival king▪ Leader of the Calvinists of

Germany and married to the daughter of King James of England, so he is expected to draw significant support (Asch 30)

Hradcany Castle (ŠJů)

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Preparations for Battle

The Hapsburgs were better prepared in the early stages Frederick received no

assistance from King James, due to a reluctant aristocracy ▪ The Dutch (who were fighting the

Spanish Hapsburgs already) were only able to provide a money subsidy and a few thousand men, led under Christian Anhalt

Maximilian of Bavaria lends his Catholic League force [Thirty-thousand men] to Ferdinand▪ Army is thirty-thousand strong, led

by Count von Tilly

Portrait of Johann t'Serclaes von Tilly (De Jode).

Part 2/2

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The Battle of White Mountain The two armies prepared for battle near White Mountain

(Bílá Hora), Prague Anhalt’s position was fortified and defensible

▪ Due to the lack of training, Anhalt’s men were massacred by Tilly’s well-trained army

Frederick V, now the “Winter King,” went into exile▪ Result gave the Spanish time to reconsolidate its holdings, namely

the fort at Breda (“Thirty,” Gale)

The Battle of White Mountain (Dahlstrom).

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The Danish Enter

King Christian IV of Denmark stops Tilly’s advance into Northern Germany in 1625 Had this power as the Duke of

Holstein – a prince of the empire▪ Wanted to secure parts of

northern Germany for his family and descendants

▪ Mobilized the Imperial Circle of Lower Saxony (Reichskreis) for the Protestant cause

Counted on support from the Netherlands and England▪ Crushed at Lutter am Barenberge

[1626] by an Imperial Army led by Albrecht von Wallenstein (Asch 30-31)

The Lower Saxon Reichkreis (Map of)

Christian IV of Denmark (Isaacsz).

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Albrecht von Wallenstein

Well-educated Bohemian nobleman and military entrepreneur At the beginning of the Bohemian

rebellion, Wallenstein moved to Vienna▪ Raised an army of armored cavalry

(cuirassiers)▪ Won various distinctions and estates from the

emperor for his raw fighting power Wallenstein exploited the political

uncertainty of the time▪ Won back his original estates, and

consolidated them into his own Duchy of Friedland

▪ Used pillaging as a form of bloodless warfare, one that targeted specific towns to undermine the enemy – “Total War”

1626, Ferdinand II commissioned him to raise an army against the Danes Recruited over thirty-thousand men in

less than a year (Asch 31)

A portrait of Albrecht von Wallenstein (Van Dyck)

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The Edict of Restitution

Wallenstien defeated the Danish forces led by Ernst von Mansfeld Forced Demark from the war Ferdinand soon recalled Wallenstein

due to fears of his military power (“Thirty,” Arts 344)

Ferdinand released the Edict of Restitution when Denmark left the war It returned all lands taken from the

Church since the Peace of Augsburg (1555)▪ Enforced Ecclesiastic Reservation

Its ratification frightened the rest of Europe as it brought into view the scope of Ferdinand’s ambitions▪ A de facto ban on Protestantism (“March”)

A reproduction of the Edict of Restitution (Luca)

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Gustavus Adolphus

To undermine the Spanish Hapsburgs, France provided subsidies to allow Sweden to enter the war, as a proxy against the Austrian Hapsburgs Brandenburg and Saxony,

previously neutral states, backed Sweden because of the Edict and because of Tilly’s advance through Germany

Gustavus Adolphus, king of Sweden, enters the war early 1631 Military Genius

▪ Three-ranked cavalry which fired once but used sabers

▪ Used barrage fires, rotating salvos to give the artillery an active presence in the fighting

▪ Improved logistical systems to pay for his large stranding army

Needs to assert the control of his dynasty, the Vasas▪ Ousted the older, Catholic

dynasty in 1590 (Asch 32)Gustavus Adolphus at the Battle of Breitenfeld (Walter).

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The Battle of Lützen

Adolphus wins a decisive victory over Tilly at the Battle of Breitenfeld in 1631 Sweden’s advance

into Southern Germany forced the emperor to call Wallenstein to command the army

16 November 1632: Lützen Wallenstein accidentally

scatters his army into smaller scouting regiments, thinking Adolphus has entered winter quarters▪ Finds out about Swedish advance,

and begins to reform army Wallenstein sets fire to Lützen

to delay the advance, makes a cavalry charge▪ Adolphus responds with a cavalry

charge of his own that gets him killed

Swedes rally behind Lt. Axel Oxenstierna and defeat Wallenstein’s army▪ Both sides suffer severe casualties,

but a decisive Swedish victory (“November”)

The Battle of Lützen (Wahlbrom)

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The Peace of Prague

Wallenstein was assassinated on emperor's orders for his incompetence Spain sent a new army to Germany commanded

by one of Phillip IV’s brothers, the Cardinal Infante Ferdinand▪ Rendezvoused with an army commanded by the future

Ferdinand III

The combined forces crushed the Swedes at Nördlingen▪ Forced the moderate Lutherans of Saxony to the peace

table Result: The Peace of Prague

Did not revoke the Edict of Restitution; Suspended it for forty years▪ North, East Germany relatively safe, but no settlement in

the Palatinate, Wüttemberg

Increased the emperor's power▪ Commander-in-chief of all forces of the empire; only

Saxony and Bavaria could keep separate armies – with permission

Overall a failure▪ Most Germans, princes resented its terms; did not buy out

the Swedes with land (Asch 31)The Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand (De Crayer)

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International Intervention

Early 1640s: Europe was on the brink of total socioeconomic devastation None of the combatants were willing to withdraw

▪ They wanted compensation for their protracted exertions

The French had intended their involvement in the war to be passive The result of Nördlingen threatened French interests

▪ The French Prime minister, Cardinal Richeleu, declares war on the Spanish Hapsburgs

French Commander: Louis II de Bourbon Duc d’Enghien▪ Young man of great promise (“Thirty,” Gale)

England, Holland, Savoy also enter the war on the Swedish side

Spanish in a disadvantageous position Naval defeats against the Dutch Catalonia, Portugal declare independence Result: Spain no longer able to fund central

European warfare▪ The new emperor Ferdinand III all on his own

A portrait of Louis II de Bourbon Duc

d’Enghien (Teniers).

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The Battle of Rocoroi

25,000-man Spanish army led by Francisco de Melo advances into France in 1643 Enghien proceeds to confront the

invading force with his 23,000-man army▪ Both armies meet at the city of

Rocroi

19 May 1643: Rocroi Both armies position themselves

in the almost exact same way▪ Infantry in the center, guns forward,

cavalry on each flank (Enghien had a cavalry reserve in the rear)

Battle opens with a successful French calvary charge▪ Spanish charges are warded off by

the reserves The well-prepared French broke

the Spanish line and scattered them▪ After that it was merciless slaughter ▪ Ended Spanish ambitions in central

Europe (“Thirty,” War)

The troop positions at Rocroi (Map showing)

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The Peace of Westphalia

Earlier peace talks have failed Pope Urban VIII (1636), Ferdinand III

(1640)▪ They did not include all parties involved

All convened in Westphalia Imperial negotiators arrived in July

1643▪ The French, other countries’ delegations

arrived in 1644 Negotiations did not start untill 1645

▪ The delegates were bickering about protocol

Negotiations ended 24 October 1648▪ France’s and Sweden’s military dominance

gave them the most land from the peace

The Peace of Westphalia (full text) Granted Calvinists of the empire a

degree of toleration▪ Calvinism was added to the religions of the

Peace of Augsburg ▪ The principle of cuius regio, eius religio:

“Whose realm, his religion” No major losses or gains of land, but

there were certain conditions…▪ The Spanish could never recapture the

United Provinces▪ There could never be an absolute ruler over

all of Germany▪ The Catholics must acknowledge that

Protestantism is here to stay (Sommerville)

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The delegates at the Congress of Westphalia (Ter Borch)

Land Transfers France managed to weaken the

emperor’s power; they gained land west of the Rhine and some land along the Spanish border

Sweden acquired West Pomerania, giving it access to the river Oder, and Bremen, the prosperous port city; they also received land from their previous conquests in north-eastern Europe

Brandenburg-Prussia received East Pomerania some scattered bishoprics

The Emperor was forced to recognizes the independence of Switzerland and the United Provinces, along with constitutional limitations of his reign Effectively made all German states

sovereign The Palatinate was split: the Lower

Palatinate was returned to the descendant of Frederick V, Karl Ludwig, and the Upper Palatinate was retained by Bavaria

The Hapsburgs were the main losers (Sommerville) (Territorial)

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Further Research Links

The Western Tradition: The Wars of Religion

Hank’s History Hour: The Thirty Years’ War Podcast

A good student-made summary video BBC Audio Documentary A college level website for reviewing i

mportant events from the war Directory Listing of all websites regardi

ng the Thirty Years’ War

All links used under a fair use license

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Works Cited

Asch, Ronald G. "Thirty Years' War (1618–1648)." Europe, 1450 to 1789: Encyclopedia of the Early Modern World. Ed. Jonathan Dewald. Vol. 6. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2004. 28-34. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

"Augsburg, Peace of." The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia. Columbia University Press, 2011. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

Chambers, Mortimer. The Western Experience. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2007. Print.Dahlstrom, C.A. The Battle of White Mountain. N.d. Giclee Print. Mary Evans Picture

Library/Alamy, n.p.De Crayer, Gaspar. Kardinal-Infant Ferdinand Von Österreich. Digital

image.File:Kardinal-Infant Ferdinand Von Österreich.jpg. Wikimedia Commons, 5 Feb. 2012. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

 De Jode, Pieter, II. Portrait of Johann t'Serclaes von Tilly. Digital image. File:Johann Tserclaes Tilly.jpg. Wikimedia Commons, 24 Apr. 2010. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

Heintz, Joseph, D.ä. Porträt Des Kaisers Rudolf II. Digital image. File:Joseph Heintz D. Ä. 002.jpg. Wikimedia Commons, 19 May 2005. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

Isaacsz, Pieter. Christian IV. 1612. Oil on panel. Museum of National History, Frederiksborg Castle.

Luca, Stefano. Edict of Restitution (copy). Digital image. File:Editto Di Restituzione (1).JPG. Wikimedia Commons, 27 Mar. 2008. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

Map of the Imperial Circles after the Transaction of Augsburg (1548). Digital image.File:Map of the Imperial Circles (1560)-EN.svg. Wikimedia Commons, 29 July 2010. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

Map showing the Battle of Rocroi. Digital image. File:Battle Rocroi.png. Wikimedia Commons, 10 Feb. 2008. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

"March 6, 1629." A Global Chronology of Conflict: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East. Ed. Spencer C. Tucker. Vol. 2: 1500-1774. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2010. 579. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

"November 16, 1632." A Global Chronology of Conflict: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East. Ed. Spencer C. Tucker. Vol. 2: 1500-1774. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2010. 585-586. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

Teniers, David, The Younger. Le Grand Condé. Digital image. File:Grand-conde.jpg. Wikimedia Commons, 25 Jan. 2012. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

Ter Borch, Gerard. Ratification of the Peace of Münster between Spain and the Dutch Republic in the Town Hall of Münster, 15 May 1648. 1648. Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, Amsterdam. File:The Ratification of the Treaty of Munster, Gerard Ter Borch (1648).jpg. Wikimedia Commons, 19 Mar. 2009. Web. 22 Dec. 2012

Territorial_Changes_1648_166. Boston: McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2007. PDF."The Thirty Years' War and Its Aftermath." Arts and Humanities Through the Eras. Ed.

Edward I. Bleiberg, et al. Vol. 5: The Age of the Baroque and Enlightenment 1600-1800. Detroit: Gale, 2005. 341-344. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

"Thirty Years War (1618–1648)." Gale Encyclopedia of World History: War. Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale, 2008. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

ŠJů. Pražský hrad, od Velké strahovské zahrady. Digital image. File:Pražský Hrad, Od Velké Strahovské Zahrady (01).jpg. Wikimedia Commons, 14 Oct. 2010. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

Sommerville, J.P. "30 Years War." Seventeenth Century Europe. University of Wisconsin–Madison, n.d. Web. 22 Dec. 2012. <http://faculty.history.wisc.edu/sommerville/351/351-05.htm>.

Van Dyck, Anthony. Albrecht Eusebius Wenzel von Wallenstein, Duke of Friedland and Mecklenburg. Digital image. File:Albrecht Von Wallenstein.jpeg. Wikimedia Commons, 8 Oct. 2012. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

Wahlbom, Carl. Battle of Lützen (1632). Digital image. File:Battle of Lutzen.jpg. Wikimedia Commons, 6 Aug. 2009. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

Walter, Johann. Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden at the Battle of Breitenfeld. Digital image.File:Gustave Adolphe at Breitenfeld-Johann Walter-f3706497.jpg. Wikimedia Commons, 4 Aug. 2010. Web. 22 Dec. 2012.

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