1. The Wars of Religion (1560s-1648) Original Source: Ms. Susan M. Pojer
Edited by: Mr. Stepek
Original Source: Ms. Susan M. Pojer

2. French Wars of Religion
( )

3. The Valois Family: The Tumble into Chaos
Henri II was the last powerful Valois
Ruling dynasty (1328 – 1589)
Died from lance to the eye socket
Three weak sons followed:
Francis II
Charles IX
Henri III
Catherine de Medici controlled the sons:
mother to the weak kings
played both sides in the civil wars
ultimate politique
developed a reputation for ruthlessness

4. Catherine de Medici

5. Mary Stuart (Queen of Scots) (also a niece of the Guise family)
Francis II & His Wife,
Mary Stuart (Queen of Scots)
(also a niece of the Guise family)

6. The French Wars of Religion
Two sides w/the monarchy (Valois) stuck in middle:
Guise family led Catholics in North
Bourbon family led Huguenots in South
Fighting for the royal inheritance
Catherine supported the Guises in the first phase.
St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre (August 24, 1572)
Huguenots in Paris for wedding of Henry of Navarre (Bourbon) to Margaret Valois
20,000 Huguenots were killed
Henry of Navarre survived

7. St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre

8. Protestant Union (Henry of
War of the Three Henrys
Catherine shifted support to the Bourbons.
She feared Guise power grab from
her son Henry III (Valois)
Henry of Navarre defeated Catholic League & becomes Henry IV of France.
Catholic League
(Henry I of
Guise)
CIVIL WAR
Protestant Union (Henry of
Navarre)

9. Triumphal Entry of Henry IV Into Paris – Peter Paul Reubens

10. Henry IV of France Passed Edict of Nantes in 1598:
Ended Spanish interference in France
“beginning of the end” for Spain’s “Golden Era”
After defeat of Spanish Armada
France eclipses Spain as most powerful continental European state at end of Thirty Years’ War.
Converted to Catholicism:
compromise and make peace
“Paris is worth a mass.”
This was an example of politique [the interest of the state comes first before any religious ideology]
Passed Edict of Nantes in 1598:
Granted religious rights to Huguenots
allowed private worship not public
(especially in Paris)
attend universities
can maintain fortified towns
Did not give religious freedom to all

11. The Spanish Hapsburgs & Europe (1556)
Philip II controls Iberia, the Low Countries Milan and Southern Italy, Sicily, Sardinia and Corsica at the end of the 16c.

12. Decline of Spanish Power
Influx of silver and gold is a good thing, right?
Nope!
causes inflation
Leads to income inequality
Nobles lead lives of leisure (work is considered undignified)
while peasants are overtaxed as a result
small middle class
Jews and Moors expelled
Spain spends wealth in places where there is middle-class production.
funnels money to enemies in France, England, and the Dutch Republic.
Spends huge sums defending Christianity in costly wars
Colonies become costly to run
Crown is bankrupt 4x in late 1500s
Decline of Spanish Power

13. The Spanish Netherlands: Union of Utrecht, 1579
Dutch Calvinists est. The United Provinces
1581 declare independence.
iconoclastic
“1st truly capitalist economy”
Eighty Years’ War
Dutch independence officially recognized with Peace of Münster with the Treaty of Westphalia at end of Thirty Years’ War.
Beginning of Dutch Golden Age

14. The Netherlands (1609 and today)

15. Elizabethan Settlement
In response to religious divisions exacerbated by predecessors
Act of Supremacy of 1558
“I’m in charge not the Pope!”
“Supreme Governor”
Act of Conformity of 1559
Book of Common Prayer
Moderate Protestantism mixed with traditional Catholic teachings
Via media or “the Middle Road”
At beginning of reign
Catholic resistance most troubling
Mary Queen of Scots personifies
executed 1587
angers European Catholics
At end of reign
Puritans are more of a challenge
Want to rid Church of England of Catholic influences.
Rivalry with Anglicans becomes one of the causes of the English Civil War
Elizabethan Settlement

16. The Thirty Years
War ( )

18. Characteristics of the Thirty Years War
The Holy Roman Empire was the battleground.
Many countries/leaders want to seize land and influence in Germany since it is at the crossroads of European trade.
Easy to do since HRE is politically fragmented.
At the beginning  it was the Catholics vs. the Protestants.
At the end  it was Habsburg power that was threatened.
Resolved by the Treaty of Westphalia (1648).

19. The Bohemian Phase: 1618-1622 Ferdinand II inherited Bohemia.
The Bohemians hated him.
Despite Peace of Augsburg, Ferdinand refused to tolerate Protestants.
Defenestration of Prague May, 1618
Bohemia named a new king, Frederick II.
Calvinist king of Palatinate

20. The Bohemian Phase: 1618-1622 Ferdinand II becomes Holy Roman Emperor.
Relies on Polish, Bavarian and Spanish support.
Frederick
Relies on English and Dutch support
Frederick loses, ends up losing most of his land.
But, the rebellion in Bohemia inspired others.

21. Bohemian Phase

22. The Danish Phase: 1625-1629 Ferdinand II tried to end all resistance.
Tried to crush Protestants in northern HREmpire.
used Albrecht von Wallenstein for the army.
Wallenstein defeated Protestants in north.
Edict of Restitution (1629):
Restored to Catholics all lands lost since 1552.
Hapsburgs seem on verge of consolidating power in Central Europe
Neither of these were going to happen

23. Danish Phase

24. Albrecht von Wallenstein

25. The Swedish Phase: 1630-1635 France & Sweden now get involved.
Both want to stop Habsburg power.
Sweden led the charge.
France provided support.
Gustavus Adolphus invaded the HR Empire.
Ferdinand II brought back Wallenstein.
Swedish advance was stopped.
German princes still feared Ferdinand II.
Wallenstein assassinated to appease them.

26. Swedish Phase

27. Gustavus Adolphus

28. The French Phase: 1635-1648 France now takes active role.
Acts like a politique on the state scale
Decides that preventing a unified Germany under Hapsburg control is MORE important than Catholicism.
Most European powers now participated.
This phase was most destructive!
German towns decimated.
Agriculture collapsed  famine resulted.
8 million dead  1/3 of the population [from 21 million in 1618 to 13.5 million in 1648]
Caused massive inflation.
Trade was crippled throughout Europe.

29. Loss of German Lives in 30 Years’ War

30. The Peace of Westphalia (1648)
Political Provisions:
Each Ger. prince became free from any kind of control by the HR Emperor.
The United Provinces [Dutch Neths.] became officially independent  southern part (Belgium) remained a Sp. possession.
France rcvd. most of the German-speaking province of Alsace.
Sweden  got lands in Northern Germany on the Baltic & Black Sea coasts.
Switzerland became totally independent of the HR Emperor  Swiss Confederation.
Brandenburg got important territories on North Sea & in central Germany.
Prussia becomes rival of Austria in Germany

31. The Peace of Westphalia (1648)
Religious Provisions:
Calvinists would have the same privileges as the Lutherans had in the Peace of Augsburg.
The ruler of each state could determine its official religion, BUT [except in the hereditary lands of the Habsburgs], he must permit freedom of private worship.

32. Treaty of Westphalia (1648)

34. Nobody Was Happy! Many Protestants felt betrayed.
The pope denounced it.
Only merit  it ended the fighting in a war that became intolerable!
For the next few centuries, this war was blamed for everything that went wrong in Central Europe.