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The fight for European Dominance - Coggle Diagram
The fight for European Dominance
The Thirty Years’ War
The Defenestration of Prague
Bohemian Protestants threw the emperor’s Catholic representatives out of the window
This triggered the Thirty Years’ War
The Thirty Years’ War was no longer a religious conflict
It became a fight to make the Hispanic Monarchy recognise the Dutch Republic’s independence
It was also another struggle for European dominance between France and Spain
The Hispanic armies began to win battles and to threaten Paris
After many years of war, the Hispanic Monarchy suffered decisive defeats at
The Battle of the Downs in the English Channel (1639)
The Battle of Rocroi (1643)
In 1621
The Twelve Years’ Truce between the Hispanic Monarchy and the Dutch Republic ended
The Dutch Republic decided to support the rebel Protestants in the Holy Roman Empire
The war with the Hispanic Monarchy was reignited
The Protestant kingdoms of Denmark (1625) and Sweden (1631) also became involved. In 1635, France intervened too, supporting the Protestants
Eventually, the Peace of Westphalia was signed in 1648
This treaty brought about a series of major changes in Europe, the most important being
The right to religious freedom in the Holy Roman Empire
This meant that emperors could no longer impose their religious preferences on the kingdoms of the Empire
A formal recognition of the independence of the Dutch Republic
A modification of the borders of the Holy Roman Empire, as France and Sweden received territories
In the 17th century
Conflicts between the most important European monarchies
Continued as they tried to achieve dominance over the continent
There was a period of peace until 1618, when the Thirty Years’ War began
This was the most important conflict of the century
The conflict was between Catholics and Protestants
The first phase of the war ended with a Catholic victory at the Battle of White Mountain (Bohemia) in 1620
It began in the Holy Roman Empire for religious reasons, when the Habsburg Emperor, Fernando II, restricted some of the Protestants’ religious freedoms
France and the Hispanic Monarchy continued the war until 1659
When the Peace of the Pyrenees was signed
The end of Hispanic dominance in Europe was confirmed
The Thirty Years’ War caused great destruction and many deaths
Historians estimate that
Between one and two million people died, and that 40% of those were civilians
The French Dominance
In the second half of the 17th century, under Louis XIV’s reign
There was a period of French dominance
This coincided with the implementation of the absolutist system
This aggressive policy resulted in the formation of international coalitions against France