WESTPHALIA AND ITS CONSEQUENCES Flashcards
What is the key takeaway?
The way we talk about Westphalia has more to do with its aspirations then it’s actual outcomes.
and
did not put an end to religious and territorial warfare in Europe
How did negotiations for Westphalia work?
2 locations: Münster and Osnabrück (two german cities)
- Sent delegations (groups) of ppl representing - had a leader
- From around 1634 – 1646 and left in 1647 – 1649
Why did there need to be two locations for negotiations?
*Sweden insists on being in Osnabrück because it is controlled by Protestants
*France negotiated in Münster, where Spanish-Dutch negotiations were ongoing
*Münster was re-Catholicize
What was the structure of the negotiations?
No single meeting, many little meetings
- steering people in your favour
And translators cuz sm languages
What is in the treaties? (Main topics)
- Strengthening Peace of Augsburg: rulers can choose their religion, subjects can too
*Calvinism is now officially included as a permitted religion - Setting 1 January 1624 as the normative date for determining dominant local religion
- France and Sweden become guarantors of the Holy Roman imperial Constitution
- Territorial re-arrangement
- Sovereignty & non-interference (Princes can make any deal they want with other princes without anyone (Holy Roman Emperor interfering)
Explain how the Peace of Westphalia rests on legal theories pioneered by Jean Bodin (c. 1530 – 1596) and Hugo Grotius (1583 – 1645)?
Bodin= sovereignty is the indivisible power of the head of state over that state
*Supported monarchical forms of government = absolutism
*Did not support compelled religious faith
Grotius= advocated for international frameworks to govern conduct in war, on the seas, etc.
*Just war theory: self-defence, reparation, and punishment
What is Westphalian sovereignty? How is it similar to the UN?
every state, no matter its size or wealth or power, has an equal right to absolute sovereignty over its territory without interference by any other state
*UN Charter, Article 2: “The Organization is based on the principle of the sovereign equality of all its Members […] All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state
Both recognize independence and want lack of interference
What are Nation states?
State where citizens or subjects are relatively homogeneous (ex. language)
How did Nation States rise after Wesphalia?
Westphalian sovereignty = distinct, individual nation-states
*In German-speaking lands this means that there are a lot of nation-states with their own laws, religious frameworks, and absolute sovereignty over their territory (Like homogenous cities)
*This becomes a bit of a headache in its own right
Had
own laws
religion
and sovereignty over territory
What important Item was created in this time?
The passport! Became common for trades people and aristocracy
What did Pope Innocent X, 1650 say about Westphalia? (his immediate reaction)
The Peace of Westphalia is “null, void, invalid, iniquitous, unjust, damnable, reprobate, inane, empty of meaning and effect for all time
Cynical! (Lost land and pissed)
What is the political consequence for Ferdinand III?
loses much of his power as Holy Roman Emperor, but retains control of Austria, Hungary, and Bohemia
*Turns matters around with the electors and have his son, Ferdinand IV, elected King of the Romans in 1654 = this basically made him heir to the Empire
Consequences for Spain?
Spain’s financial crisis intensifies with the loss of the Dutch Republic cuz Spanish Habsburgs reliant on Austrian Habsburgs
Consequences for the Dutch? (More Religious)
Dutch Republic develops limited (but significant by contemporary standards) toleration for Jews
Consequences for France?
Under Louis XIV and Cardinal Mazarin (little boy), France became more militarily aggressive = guarantor of HRE constitution reinforces Bourbon power
Who was the big winner in all of this?
Sweden!
How did Sweden rise from this?
Significant territorial gains in Thirty Years War + economic dominance in the Baltic = Sweden as a major power
Explain the two follow up wars sweden has?
- Swedish wars on Bremen 1654 – 1666
- Second Northern War (1655 – 1660)
*Swedish wars on Bremen 1654 – 1666
*Sweden claimed that they won Bremen in the Peace of Westphalia, Bremen claimed Imperial Immediacy (that it was under direct control of the Emperor)
*First war: Sweden wins Bremen’s acceptance of King Charles X Gustav
*Second war: Sweden acknowledges Bremen as a Free Imperial City
*Second Northern War (1655 – 1660): Sweden invades Poland-Lithuania, which expands into a regional war
*Solidifies Swedish control in the Baltic
What is going on in Poland - Lithuania?
Expelling Jewish people
- Used to be best place in Europe for them
Russia declares war
Sweden invades
- Habsburgs help commonwealth cuz worried they might be next
- Yearly slaving /looting raids
- Hold off Sweden (but start of end for them) (Outcome disputed but a weakened Poland-Lithuania paved the way for the Russian Empire to rise)
How was Sweden allowed to attack Poland Lithuania with the Westphalia treaty active?
Attacking is not in spirit of treaty BUT Poland - Lithuania are not in treaty, so fair game.
- Also Europe was worried the treaty would shatter and Sweden and France would attack them together
Who does Peace of Westphalia benefit the most?
The rich /powerful - it is an élite agreement
Main benefit for ordinary people: limited religious freedom
What is the Westphalian myth?
The Peace of Westphalia was not actually a watershed for International Cooperation
- Didn’t really stop anything it said
