[77] Banér defeated the Saxons at Chemnitz in April 1639, then entered Bohemia in May. [104], Between 1629 and 1631, plague exacerbated by troop movements killed 60,000 in Milan and 46,000 in Venice, with proportionate losses elsewhere. While less than 2% of the total French state budget, it made up over 25% of the Swedish, and allowed Gustavus to support an army of 36,000. In the end we cannot know how pure his motives and intentions were. Until the mid-20th century, it was seen as predominantly a German civil war and part of the European wars of religion. He was formally and posthumously given the name Gustavus Adolphus the Great by the Riksdag of the Estates in 1634. [62] With French resources tied up in Italy, he helped negotiate the September 1629 Truce of Altmark between Sweden and Poland, freeing Gustavus Adolphus to enter the war. The treaty confirmed Dutch independence, although the Imperial Diet did not formally accept that it was no longer part of the Empire until 1728. Frederick's son Charles Louis regained the Lower Palatinate and became the eighth Imperial elector, although Bavaria kept the Upper Palatinate and its electoral vote. In return, they dissolved the Heilbronn and Catholic Leagues. They must be dependent on the emperor, not the emperor on them.”  The Catholics were also allowed to try to convert the Protestants by force. [122] Well into the 19th century, far more soldiers died of disease than in battle; of an estimated 700,000 to 1,200,000 military casualties between 1618 and 1648, only 25 to 30% were the result of combat, or combat-related injuries. His successor Cardinal Mazarin continued the same general policy, while French gains in Alsace allowed him to re-focus on the war against Spain in the Netherlands. To recover his costs, Maximilian was allowed to annex Donauwörth, which under the principle of cuius regio, eius religio changed a formerly Lutheran town into a Catholic one. [49] In 1621, Hamburg accepted Danish 'supervision', while his son Frederick became joint-administrator of Lübeck, Bremen, and Verden; possession ensured Danish control of the Elbe and Weser rivers. One problem that was encountered by the Protestants during this great war was that each of the nations was too concerned about its own welfare. He wrote at length to Christian of Denmark on October 21, 1627: I have now little difficulty in discerning that the projects of the House of Hapsburg are directed against the Baltic; and that, partly by force and partly by cajolery, the United Netherlands, my own power, and finally yours are to be ousted therefrom. A combined Imperial-Catholic League army funded by Maximilian and led by Count Tilly pacified Upper and Lower Austria before invading Bohemia, where they defeated Christian of Anhalt at the White Mountain in November 1620. [126], The modern consensus is the population of the Holy Roman Empire declined from 18-20 million in 1600 to 11–13 million in 1650, and did not regain pre-war levels until 1750. Having set his affairs with his neighbors in order, Gustavus was ready to face the Catholics of Germany. During his reign, Sweden became one of the primary military forces in Europe during the Thirty Years' War, helping to determine the political and religious balance of power in Europe. They therefore include factors unrelated to death or disease, such as permanent migration to areas outside the Empire or lower birthrates, a common but less obvious impact of extended warfare. This forced them to become smaller and more mobile, with a greater emphasis on cavalry, shortened the campaigning seasons and restricted them to main supply lines. He was well prepared for the greatest war of his life. In a meeting with the princes in 1630, just before Gustavus’ landing, the emperor refused to back down from this edict. [116], The settlement failed to achieve its stated intention of achieving a 'universal peace'. Gustav II Adolf's success in making Sweden one of the great powers of Europe, and perhaps the most important power in the Thirty Years' War after France and Spain, was due not only to his military brilliance, but also to important institutional reforms in Sweden's government. [89] The French also had to rebuild their army in Germany after it was shattered by an Imperial-Bavarian force led by Franz von Mercy at Tuttlingen in November. [16] Related conflicts include the Eighty Years War, the War of the Mantuan Succession, the Franco-Spanish War, and the Portuguese Restoration War. These trials lasted five years and claimed over one thousand lives, including long-time Bürgermeister, or Mayor, Johannes Junius, and Dorothea Flock, second wife of Georg Heinrich Flock, whose first wife had also been executed for witchcraft in May 1628. [80] Cutting the Spanish Road had forced Madrid to resupply their armies in Flanders by sea and in October 1639 a large Spanish convoy was destroyed at the Battle of the Downs. [22], While Emperors were elected, since 1440 this had been a Habsburg, the largest single landowner within the Empire; their lands included the Archduchy of Austria, the Kingdom of Bohemia, and the Kingdom of Hungary, with over eight million subjects. In Lorraine, the Three Bishoprics of Metz, Toul and Verdun, occupied by France since 1552, were formally ceded, as were the cities of the Décapole in Alsace, with the exception of Strasbourg and Mulhouse. Disputes within the Empire drew in outside powers, many of whom held Imperial territories, including the Dutch Prince of Orange, hereditary ruler of Nassau-Dillenburg. When he determined that it was time to enter the Thirty Years War, Gustavus was careful to first obtain the consent of his council. Gustavus Adolphus Gustavus Adolphus Gustavus Adolphus was the King of Sweden from 1611-1632, and historically he was credited for Sweden’s rise to be a great European power, by laying the foundation for Sweden to become the modern state that it did post 30-year war. [108], This was accompanied by a struggle for control in the East Indies and Africa, increasing Portuguese resentment against the Spanish, who were perceived as prioritising their own colonies. Soldiers devastated one area before moving on, leaving large tracts of land empty of people and changing the eco-system. [36], By mid-June, the Bohemian army under Thurn was outside Vienna; Mansfeld's defeat by Spanish-Imperial forces at Sablat forced him to return to Prague, but Ferdinand's position continued to worsen. [46] However, Spanish and Dutch involvement in the campaign was a significant step in internationalising the war, while Frederick's removal meant other Protestant princes began discussing armed resistance to preserve their own rights and territories. As present not one of them dares to defend the other: each will look on quietly at the ruin of all. Food shortages were worsened by an explosion in the rodent population; Bavaria was over-run by wolves in the winter of 1638, its crops destroyed by packs of wild pigs the following spring. He attacked in 1625. [117], It has been argued the Peace established the principle known as Westphalian sovereignty, the idea of non-interference in domestic affairs by outside powers, although this has since been challenged. THE THIRTY YEARS’ WAR (1618-1648). [95], This allowed the Swedes, now led by Wrangel, to put pressure on the peace talks by devastating first Westphalia, then Bavaria; by the autumn of 1646, Maximilian was desperate to end the war he was largely responsible for starting. In the last phase of the Thirty Years’ War, the most dominant player on the Protestant side was Catholic France. Delivering these commitments required his election as Emperor, which was not guaranteed; one alternative was Maximilian of Bavaria, who opposed the increase of Spanish influence in an area he considered his own, and tried to create a coalition with Saxony and the Palatinate to support his candidacy. Granted, the French had a bit of help from the Swedes, who had switched roles from fighter to financier. Sources In addition, Christians residing in states where they were a minority, such as Catholics living under a Lutheran ruler, were guaranteed freedom of worship and equality before the law. Gustavus instead turned his eyes back to Poland. He did not think Sweden could stay out of the engulfing conflict much longer, “for the danger is daily drawing nearer our doors.” He was farsighted enough to see that with the Catholic armies controlling Northern Germany, they were but a step away from attacking Sweden. This seemed confirmed when Tilly's Catholic League army occupied Halberstadt in early 1625. [51], In the June 1624 Treaty of Compiègne, France subsidised the Dutch war against Spain for a minimum of three years, while in December 1625 the Dutch and English agreed to finance Danish intervention in the Empire. [88], By now, the devastation inflicted by 25 years of warfare meant all armies spent more time foraging than fighting. The stage was now set for war with Germany. Christian IV of Denmark was also Duke of Holstein, and it was in this capacity he joined the war in 1625. See more ideas about thirty years' war, gustavus, war. He did so with support from the Catholic League, despite strong opposition from Protestant members, as well as the Spanish. The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library. While this gave them seats in the Imperial Diet, it also brought them conflict with both Brandenburg-Prussia and Saxony, who were competitors in Pomerania. On hand to enforce this edict was an army of more than 130,000 men under Wallenstein, who said he would “teach the Electors manners. [124] Although regular outbreaks of disease were common for decades prior to 1618, the conflict greatly accelerated their spread. [73], A serious Swedish defeat at Nördlingen in September 1634 threatened their participation, leading France to intervene directly. [100], While Turenne and Wrangel continued to devastate Bavaria, a second Swedish force attacked Prague, seizing the castle and Malá Strana district in July. 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