Thirty Years' War

The 1552 Peace of Passau aimed to address issues between Protestants and Catholics in the Holy Roman Empire, setting the stage for further religious conflicts and the Thirty Years' War.

The Peace of Augsburg was a treaty signed in 1555 between Charles V and the forces of Lutheran princes, officially ending the religious struggle between Catholics and Lutherans in the Holy Roman Empire. It allowed princes to choose the religion in their principality.

During the 1590s, Maurice took advantage of Parma's distraction in France to reform his armies with new strategies and discipline. He introduced tactics like continual volley fire and countermarch, drawing inspiration from the ancient Roman army. These innovations laid the foundation for modern warfare.

In May 1617, Ferdinand became king of Bohemia and gained control of its electoral vote. His conservative Catholicism and erosion of Protestant rights led to the Bohemian Revolt in May 1618.

In 1618, a significant event known as the Defenestration of Prague took place, where Protestant nobles threw two Catholic members of the Bohemian government out of a window in Prague Castle. This event marked the beginning of the Bohemian Revolt and the Thirty Years' War.

Following the battle, Prague experienced weeks of plundering and pillaging. Several months later, twenty-seven nobles and citizens were tortured and executed in the Old Town Square, with twelve of their heads impaled on iron hooks and hung from the Bridge Tower as a warning. These brutal acts contributed to catalyzing the Thirty Years’ War.

Matthias died on 20 Mar 1619, leading to Ferdinand automatically becoming the King of Bohemia. He was later elected as Holy Roman Emperor.

The Bohemian rebels formally deposed Ferdinand as King of Bohemia and replaced him with the Palatine Elector Frederick V.

In the Battle of White Mountain on November 8, 1620, Ferdinand II and the Catholics regained power, defeating the Protestants. This battle marked a turning point in the Thirty Years' War.

In 1622, a Catholic army led by Marshal Tilly and Spanish troops defeated a Protestant army at the Battle of Wimpfen. The Protestant army, led by Georg Friedrich, Margrave of Baden-Durlach, was outnumbered by the Catholics.

The Battle of Höchst in 1622 saw a Catholic army defeating a smaller Protestant Union army under Christian of Brunswick. Despite managing to cross the Main river, Brunswick lost a significant portion of his men and baggage.

In the Battle of Stadtlohn on August 6, 1623, a Spanish army under Gonzalo de Córdoba defeated a German Protestant mercenary army led by von Mansfeld and Christian of Brunswick. The battle resulted in a decisive victory for the Spanish forces, with the Protestants suffering heavy casualties.

Von Arnim besieged Stralsund, the only port with facilities large enough to build a fleet, leading to Gustavus Adolphus sending troops commanded by Alexander Leslie to lift the siege.

In June 1629, the Treaty of Lübeck was signed, where Christian retained Schleswig and Holstein but relinquished Bremen and Verden, effectively ending Denmark's reign as the predominant Nordic state.

The Battle of Magdeburg lasted from November 1630 to May 20, 1631, during the Thirty Years' War. It was a brutal siege and massacre of the Protestant city of Magdeburg by Catholic forces.

Imperialist forces besieged Magdeburg from November 1630 to May 1631, resulting in a brutal sack of the city. The massacre of inhabitants and the city's destruction led to widespread devastation, giving rise to the term 'magdeburgization' to signify total destruction and pillaging.

The Battle of Breitenfeld took place on September 17, 1631, during the Thirty Years' War. It was a significant Protestant victory over the Imperial forces, marking a turning point in the conflict.

In 1632, Regensburg was attacked and plundered during the Thirty Years' War.

40,000 Swedish troops led by Gustavus Adolphus defeated 25,000 Catholic League troops under Count Tilly near the city of Rain. The Swedish army used a strategic feint attack to catch the Catholic army off guard and successfully crossed the River Lech to storm the hill where the Catholic troops were entrenched.

In July 1632, Wallenstein and Maximilian united their forces, compelling Gustav to retreat to Fürth near Nuremberg. Gustav summoned reinforcements from all over Germany, leading to a battle of attrition with the allies suffering from lack of supplies.

The Battle of Lützen occurred on November 16, 1632, during the Thirty Years' War. It was a fierce battle where the Protestant forces, led by King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden, defeated the Imperial army but suffered a great loss with the death of Gustavus Adolphus.

Captain Devereux killed Wallenstein in Eger when he attempted to contact the Swedes, following suspicions of switching sides.

The Battle of Nördlingen on September 2, 1634, was a decisive victory for the Imperial and Spanish forces, leading to a shift in the focus of the Thirty Years' War to the Rhineland and Bavaria.

The Battle of Nördlingen took place on September 5-6, 1634, during the Thirty Years' War. It was a decisive victory for the Imperial-Spanish forces over the Protestant coalition, solidifying Habsburg control over the region.

The Battle of Nördlingen on 6 September 1634 during the Thirty Years' War saw a combined Imperial-Spanish force defeat the Swedish-German army, leading to far-reaching territorial and strategic consequences.

The Peace of Prague in September 10, 1634, marked a significant turning point in the Thirty Years' War, ending the primarily inter-German religious conflict and reshaping the alliances.

On February 8, 1635, the Treaty of Alliance was signed in Paris, committing the Dutch Republic to invade the Spanish Netherlands simultaneously with France later that year. The treaty outlined the partitioning of the Spanish Netherlands between the two invaders.

The Peace of Prague in 1635 marked the end of the Catholic League, leading to the cessation of its existence. This event signified a significant shift in the political landscape of the time.

From June 24 to July 4, 1635, the Siege of Leuven was a disaster for the combined Franco-Dutch forces, as the Cardinal-Infante's offensive forces overwhelmed the Dutch. The Spanish forces managed to recapture several towns, including Limbourg, Gennep, Diest, and Goch.

The Battle of Wittstock took place on October 4, 1636, where a Swedish army under Baner defeated a combined force of Imperialists and Saxons. Despite being outnumbered, the Swedish forces emerged victorious, inflicting heavy casualties on the enemy.

In October 1639, the Dutch fleet under Maarten Tromp won a significant victory at the Downs, cutting off the Spanish Road and impacting the supply routes of the Spanish armies in Flanders.

The French conquered the fort at Arras from the Spanish after a siege lasting from June 16 to August 9, 1640, marking a turning point in the war favoring France over Spain.

The Second Battle of Breitenfeld on October 23, 1642, was a pivotal event in the military campaigns of the period. The battle had strategic importance and impacted the forces involved.

The Battle of Rocroi took place on May 19, 1643, during the Thirty Years' War. It was a decisive victory for the French against the Spanish army, marking the decline of Spanish military dominance in Europe.

The Battle of Freiburg occurred from August 3 to August 9, 1644, during the Thirty Years' War. It was a series of engagements where the French forces under Turenne defeated the Bavarian army, securing French control over the region.

The Treaty of Münster was a peace agreement between Spain and the Dutch Republic, confirming Spain's recognition of Dutch independence and meeting Dutch demands. It was part of the broader peace negotiations of the Thirty Years' War.

Delegates to the peace conference, except for Zeeland and Utrecht, affirmed the peace agreement on oath on May 15, 1648, finalizing the Treaty of Münster despite some provinces' initial opposition.

The Peace of Westphalia was signed on October 24, 1648, marking the end of the Thirty Years' War. It consisted of a series of treaties that brought peace to the Holy Roman Empire and Europe, establishing new political and religious norms.

The Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659 ended the fighting between France and Spain that continued after the Thirty Years' War. It marked a significant step towards peace in Europe.

Simplicius Simplicissimus, written by Hans Jakob Christoffel von Grimmelshausen in 1668, is considered one of the earliest examples of the Picaresque novel. It provides a realistic portrayal of a soldier's life during the Thirty Years' War.

The experience of the Thirty Years' War was used to justify the creation of the German Empire in 1871 by German nationalists. The war highlighted the dangers of a divided Germany.