1. Germany and the Rise of Brandenburg-Prussia
Reaction to the Thirty Years War, the Reformation and the Failure of the Holy Roman Empire.

2. The Holy Roman Empire 1618

3. Not Holy, Roman nor an Empire
1618: Austria strongest state but not dominate.
North Lutheran
South Catholic
Calvinist minorities
Saxony, Palatinate and Netherlands stronger than Brandenburg in most ways.

4. Rise of Brandenburg or the House of Hohenzollern
Frederick William (16 February 1620 – 29 April 1688) was Elector of Brandenburg and Duke of Prussia – and thus ruler of Brandenburg-Prussia – from 1640 until his death. A member of the House of Hohenzollern, he is popularly known as "the Great Elector" (der Große Kurfürst)
“Winner” in the Thirty Years War
Created the “Prussian” Army (Prussia is not a country with an army, it is an army with a country) Clausewitz

5. Brandenburg-Prussia 1618-1740

6. Two Strong Kings between two Great Leaders 1640-1786
Frederick III (I), 1688–1713
King “in” Prussia
Establishes the Prussian Bureaucracy
Frederick William I of Prussia
Creation of Absolutism
Tied together the strings of Prussia
Created a strong treasury
Father of Frederick II (The Great)

7. Austrian Counter-Point
Leopold I turns southeast and east.
1526: Parts of Hungary are added to Austria
1648: Treaty of Westphalia makes the Holy Roman Empire powerless. As the Hapsburgs were usually the “emperor” this weakened the Hapsburg-Austrian power in the Germany.
France often linked to Bavaria the other major Catholic region in Germany.
1683: Relief of Vienna begins the retreat of the Ottoman Empire.
1699: Conquest of Hungary
1748: Loss of Silesia to Prussia (Brandenburg)

8. Austrian Counter-Point

9. Conclusions Prussia had three periods: Austria had four periods
Expansion
Defeat and Rebirth
Creation of the Modern German State
Austria had four periods
HRE period 14th-17th Centuries
Initial South-East Expansion
Defender of Europe from the Turk
Balkan Phase (Russia and Serbia vs Austria-Hungary)