The Age of Religious Wars Kagan, Chapter 12

Renewed Religious Struggle In the early 16th century Lutherans and Zwinglians attempted to secure rights and freedoms in Central Europe. Religious conflict shifted to western Europe in the late 16th century as Calvinists struggled for recognition in France, the Netherlands, England, and Scotland. The Peace of Augsburg (1555) made Lutheranism “legal” in the Holy Roman Empire, but did nothing for other Protestant groups.

Catholic Counter-offensive After the conclusion of the Council of Trent (1563), the Jesuits launched a global counter-offensive against Protestantism. Calvinism was attractive to proponents of political decentralization while Catholicism found favor with absolute monarchy. Catholic Church enjoyed the baroque art style, which presented life in grandiose three dimensional displays Protestant artists were restrained

Intellectuals preach tolerance When the religious wars erupted in the 16th century, the intellectuals moved to preach tolerance more quickly than the politicians. Sebastian Castellio responds to the killing of Michael Servetus, ordered by John Calvin “To kill a man is not to defend a doctrine, but to kill a man.” Michel de Montaigne asked, “What do I know?” reflecting skepticism for the dogmatic. The Lutheran Valentin Weigel advised people to search within themselves for religious truth.

Politiques intellectuals of the 1500’s criticized the religious strife between Catholics and Protestants rulers who urged tolerance and moderation and became indifferent to religion became known as politiques Elizabeth I of England the most successful politique

The French Wars of Religion (1562-1598)

Protestant Repression in France French Protestants were known as Huguenots Emperor Charles V started the first wave of Protestant persecution in 1525 1534 – Protestants arrested and leader John Calvin sent into exile 1540 – Edict of Fontainebleau makes Protestants subject to the Inquisition 1551 – Edict of Chateaubriand establishes more measures against the Protestants later the Bourbon and Montmorency-Chatillon families become sympathetic to the Hugenots

Appeal of Calvinism John Calvin curries favor with powerful aristocrats like the Prince of Conde who converted to Calvinism the powerful combination of now political and religious (the Huguenots) dissidents made Calvinism a viable religion in Catholic France

The Medicis and the Guises Catherine de Medicis unsuccessfully attempts to reconcile the differences between the Protestants and the Catholic Guises (dominant radical Catholic group of Eastern France) with religious toleration the duke of Guise massacres Protestant worshippers in Champagne causing the French wars of religion Medicis and her young king son go under the control of the Guises

The Peace of Saint-Germain-en-Laye Three wars of religion end with the deaths of the duke of Guise, Protestant military leader Conde and a Huguenot victory peace treaty acknowledges the Protestant nobility, grant Huguenots religious freedom, and the rights to fortify their cities Catherine who once supported the Protestants, turns to the Guises fearing Protestant leader Coligny would draw France into a war with Spain that could not be handled by her son

The Saint Bartholomew’s Day Massacre Catherine convinces her son King Charles IX that a Huguenot coup was about to happen Response is on August 24, 1572 – Coligny and 3,000 Huguenots are massacred in Paris / within three days 20,000 other Protestants are also killed in France Protestant Resistance Theory Protestant cause becomes one of sheer survival In response, Protestant writers call for an active defense of religious rights

Henry of Navarre Henry III, a politique attempts to compromise with the warring religions to save the nation (which was more important to him than religion) Henry of Navarre leads the Protestants in turning back Henry III attempt to rout the Protestants at the Day of the Barricades the two Henrys are forced into an alliance against the Guises, but Henry III is assassinated and Henry of Navarre becomes Henry IV, a Protestant as King of France Henry IV, basically a politique converts to Catholicism horrifying the Huguenots

The Edict of Nantes a formal religious settlement that gave Protestants religious freedoms within their own towns and territories the violence stops, but hostilities remain a Catholic fanatic assassinates Henry IV in 1610

Imperial Spain and the Reign of Philip II (r. 1556-1598)

Philip II Philip II was the most powerful man in Europe until the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588. heir to the intensely Catholic and militarily supreme western Habsburg kingdom

Part of Philip's dominions (1581 and 1598) Spain was very wealthy from bullion and gold from their colonies in the New World.

Pillars of Spanish Power Increased wealth and population triggered inflation and an economic gap between the wealthy and the peasants. Castilian peasants were the most heavily taxed people in Europe. Philip II ruled through an efficient bureaucracy and military. The Battle of Lepanto (1571) in the Mediterranean Sea against Turkey results in a great Catholic victory over the Muslim Turks. It stops the expansion of the Ottoman empire in the Mediterranean and leads to Spanish control of the sea

Battle of Lepanto https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPLXaZzIwEw

Battle of Lepanto 7 October 1571 The battle was a naval engagement in which a fleet of the Holy League, a coalition of European Catholic maritime states arranged by Pope Pius V, financed by Habsburg Spain and led by admiral Don John of Austria, inflicted a major defeat on the fleet of the Ottoman Empire in the Gulf of Patras, where the Ottoman forces sailing westwards from their naval station in Lepanto met the fleet of the Holy League sailing east from Messina, Sicily. In the history of naval warfare, Lepanto marks the last major engagement in the Western world to be fought entirely or almost entirely between rowing vessels, the galleys and galeasses which were still the direct descendants of the ancient trireme warships. The battle was in essence an "infantry battle on floating platforms". It was the largest naval battle in Western history since classical antiquity, involving more than 400 warships. Over the following decades, the increasing importance of the galleon and the line of battle tactic would displace the galley as the major warship of its era, marking the beginning of the "Age of Sail". The victory of the Holy League is of great importance in the history of Europe and of the Ottoman Empire, marking the turning-point of Ottoman military expansion into the Mediterranean, even though the Ottoman wars in Europe would continue for another century. It has long been compared to the Battle of Salamis both for tactical parallels and for its crucial importance in the defense of Europe against imperial expansion. It was also of great symbolic importance in a period when Europe was torn by its own wars of religion following the Protestant Reformation, strengthening the position of Philip II of Spain as the "Most Catholic King" and defender of Christendom against Muslim incursion, although this was mitigated by the defeat of the Spanish Armada by the Royal Navy of England in 1588.

Revolt in the Netherlands Cardinal Greenville – leader of the council in the Netherlands who wanted to check Protestant gains by church reforms William of Orange – opposition member of council; politique, placed political autonomy above religious creeds (eventually an avowed Calvinist) Louis of Nassau (William’s younger brother) led revolt against Greenville and had him removed from office the Compromise a solemn pledge (national covenant) to reject the decrees of Trent and the Inquisition revolt by the Protestants after they were called “beggars” by Regent Margaret is violently put down by Philip II ‘s , duke of Alba who executes thousands of suspected heretics

Continued rebellion Netherlands William the Orange comes out of exile in Germany and leads the independence movement of the Netherlands against Spain Orange takes over Calvinist inclined Northern territories Alba replaced by Don Luis de Requesens Spanish Fury – Spanish mercenaries leave 7,000 people dead in November 4, 1576 – the massacre unites Protestant (northern) and Catholic (southern) Netherlands versus Spain under the Pacification of Ghent – declared internal regional sovereignty in matters of religion Unified Netherlandic resistance defeats Spanish army Spain signs humiliating Perpetual Edict calling for the removal of all Spanish troops from the Netherlands

Independence for the Netherlands Southern provinces afraid of Protestant domination make peace with Spain in the Union of Arras and make one last effort to control the country Northern provinces respond with the Union of Utrecht (Protestant) William of Orange is assassinated and replaced by his son Maurice who with the help of England and France finally defeat Spain Netherlands Independence: Spain first signs truce in 1609 and recognizes full independence of the Netherlands in 1648 with the Peace of Westphalia

England and Spain (1553-1603)

Mary I of England very hostile to Protestants (executes great Protestant leaders, hundreds are burned at the stake and others flee to the Continent) marries into militant Catholicism by wedding Philip II of Spain

Elizabeth I of England settled religious differences by merging broadly defined Protestant doctrine with traditional Catholic ritual, later resulting in the Anglican Church all anti-Protestant legislation repealed and Thirty- Nine Articles is issued in 1563 making moderate Protestantism the official religion of the Church of England animosity grows between England and Spain over dominance of the seas

Catholic and Protestant Extremists radical Catholics wanted to replace Elizabeth I with Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, Puritans – Protestants who wanted to purify the church of any “popery”, had two grievances about Elizabeth the retention of Catholic ceremony in the Church of England the continuation of the Episcopal system of church governance Presbyterians – Puritans creation of an alternative national church of semiautonomous congregations governed by representative presbyteries more extreme Puritans, Congregationalists wanted every congregation to be autonomous

Mary, Queen of Scots Catholic ruler of Scotland who later is forced to abdicate the throne and flee to England and her cousin Elizabeth I Elizabeth, who has Mary under house arrest for the fear of a Catholic England uprising , uncovers two plots against her life Mary is compliant with the assassination attempts and is executed by Elizabeth ending all Catholic hopes of a bloodless reconciliation with Protestant England and leads to the invasion of the Spanish Armada

The Defeat of the Spanish Armada Sir Francis Drake of England, shells the Spanish port of Cadiz and raids Portugal delaying the invasion of the Spanish Armada a huge Spanish fleet of 130 ships and 25,000 sailors is crushed by the swifter defending British navy (1/3 of the Armada never return to Spain) Protestant resistance everywhere is given hope and Spain is never again a world power https://vimeo.com/29924757 Mary Stuart https://vimeo.com/29923676 Walter Raleigh https://vimeo.com/29927349 Spanish Armada

The Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648)

Scope of the Thirty Years’ War The Thirty Years’ War was the last and most destructive of the wars of religion. Entrenched hatred of the various sides Seeming determination to sacrifice all for their religious beliefs and extension of political power. Virtually every major European land became involved

Preconditions for The Thirty Years War – Fragmented Germany Germany was an almost ungovernable land of 360 autonomous political entities [Map 12-3, p. 407] Europe’s highway for trade and travel German princes opposed any efforts to consolidate the Holy Roman Empire, lest their territorial rights, confirmed by the Peace of Augsburg, be overturned. German princes were willing to turn to Catholic France or to the kings of Denmark and Sweden for allies against the Hapsburg emperor. After Council of Trent , Protestants were afraid Catholics would attempt to recreate Catholic Europe of pre-Reformation times Imperial diet, controlled by German princes, demanded strict observance of the constitutional rights of Germans Emperor ruled only to the extent to which he was prepared to use force

Preconditions for The Thirty Years War – religious divisions Religious divisions in the Holy Roman Empire [Map 12-3, p. 408] between the equally numbered Catholics and Protestants between liberal and conservative Lutherans between Lutherans and Calvinists Peace of Augsburg had attempted to freeze the territorial holdings of Lutherans and Catholics thru the ecclesiastical reservation Meanwhile, Lutherans had gained political control in some Catholic areas and vice versa Catholic rulers demanded return of all ecclesiastical holdings Lutherans and esp. Calvinists in the palatinate ignored

Preconditions for The Thirty Years War – Calvinism and the Palatine Calvinism was the religious and political ‘leaven’ within the Holy Roman Empire Calvinism unrecognized as a legal religion by the Peace of Augsburg Gained strong foothold when Frederick III, devout Calvinist, became elector Palatine and made Calvinism official religion By 1609, Palatine Calvinists led Protestant defensive alliance supported by England, France, and the Netherlands – Spain’s enemies Lutherans felt the Palatine Calvinists threatened the Peace of Augsburg and the existence of Lutheran themselves

Preconditions for The Thirty Years War – Maximilian I of Bavaria Bavaria: staunchly Catholic, supported by Spain and Jesuits, military and ideological base for Counter-Reformation in HRE Maximilian I of Bavaria counters the Palatine with the Catholic League and fields great army

Bohemian Period of the Thirty Years’ War Habsburg Ferdinand becomes king of Bohemia He immediately revokes religious freedom to Bohemian Protestants Protestant nobility in Prague respond by throwing his regents out the (4th story) castle window – defenestration of Prague Catholics elect Ferdinand II as Holy Roman Emperor Bohemians defiantly name Palatine, Frederick V, their king Spain, Maximilian of Bavaria, and Lutheran elector John George I of Saxony support Ferdinand Ferdinand defeats Frederick’s troops at the Battle of White Mountain thereby taking over Bohemia and Palatine

Danish Period of the Thirty Years’ War Fears of reconquest and re-Catholicization Lutheran king Christian IV of Denmark, eager to extend his influence, and encouraged by the English, French, and Dutch, takes up the banner of Protestant resistance However, Maximilian humiliates Protestant forces in Germany and forces them to retreat to Denmark Ferdinand II distrusts Maximilian’s success and enlists support of Albrict of Wallenstein, opportunistic Protestant and powerful mercenary Wallenstein carries fight to Denmark, breaks Protestant resistance Ferdinand II orders the Edict of Restitution reasserting the Peace of Augsburg unrealistically: illegality of Calvinism, return all church lands

Swedish Period of the Thirty Years’ War Gustavus Adolphus II of Sweden (Lutheran) with help from the French and Dutch turn the tide of the war with a smashing victory at Breitenfield (decisive battle of history) military genius Fire-and charge tactics; light, mobile artillery; fluid offensive and defensive tactics Adolphus is killed by Wallenstein’s forces at the Battle of Lutzen, but then Wallenstein is assassinated himself by Ferdinand who was afraid of his independence Despite religious convictions, the assassination of Wallenstein proved it was more a war of greed and politics Peace of Prague – German Protestant states reach a compromise with Ferdinand, the war however continues elsewhere

Fourth and Final Period: The Swedish-French Period French, Swedish, and Spanish troops for the next thirteen years attack and loot Germany simply for the sake of warring itself 1/3 of German population lost in war

Treaty of Westphalia of 1648 Ends the war within the Holy Roman Empire The Treaty did the following: rescinded the Edict of Restitution and put back the Peace of Augsburg (religious autonomy) Calvinists officially recognized Swiss Confederacy, the Netherlands and Bavaria become independent Brandenburg-Prussia becomes most powerful German state; gains international status along with Austria Pope opposed but powerless to prevent Modern Europe established with it’s distinctive nationalism

Spain and France Spain and France continue to war until 1659, when France emerges victorious France becomes Europe’s dominant power, while Hapsburg Spain never recovers