Peace of Westphalia
Europe had been battered by both the Thirty Years' War and the overlapping Eighty Years' War. These conflicts exacted a heavy toll in money and lives across the continent. The Eighty Years' War began around 1568 as a prolonged struggle for independence. Protestant-majority Dutch Republic forces fought against Catholic-dominated Spain and Portugal. England supported the Dutch cause with its own Protestant majority population. The Thirty Years' War proved to be the most deadly of European wars of religion. It centered on the Holy Roman Empire and developed into four distinct phases. A large number of domestic and foreign players participated in the fighting. They sided either with the Catholic League or the Protestant Union. Later groups like the Heilbronn League also joined the conflict. Between 4.5 million and 8 million people died in the Thirty Years' War alone. Decades of constant warfare made the need for peace increasingly clear.
Peace negotiations between France and the Habsburg Emperor began in Cologne in 1636. Cardinal Richelieu of France initially blocked these talks. He insisted on including all his allies regardless of sovereignty status. Sweden, France, and the Holy Roman Empire negotiated a preliminary peace in Hamburg during December 1641. They declared that previous preparations were preliminaries of an overall agreement. The main peace negotiations took place in Westphalia within neighboring cities. Münster and Osnabrück served as neutral and demilitarized zones for the discussions. Both cities maintained strict religious controls before the arrival of diplomats. Münster had been strictly mono-denominational since its re-Catholicism in 1535. Only Roman Catholic worship was permitted there while Calvinism and Lutheranism remained prohibited. Sweden preferred negotiating with the Holy Roman Empire in Osnabrück instead. This city was controlled by Protestant forces and housed both Lutheran and Catholic churches. The city council was exclusively Lutheran though many other inhabitants practiced Catholicism.
The peace negotiations had no exact beginning or end point. A total of 109 delegations arrived to represent belligerent states over time. These delegations never met in a single plenary session together. Various groups arrived between 1643 and 1646 and left between 1647 and 1649. The largest number of diplomats were present between January 1646 and July 1647. Delegations came from 16 European states plus 66 Imperial States representing 140 others. Twenty-seven interest groups represented 38 additional entities during the talks. Henri II d'Orléans, Duke of Longueville headed the French delegation. Claude d'Avaux and Abel Servien served as his fellow diplomats. Count Johan Oxenstierna led the Swedish delegation assisted by Baron Johan Adler Salvius. Count Maximilian von Trautmansdorff directed the Imperial delegation. Philip IV of Spain sent two separate delegations for different territories. Gaspar de Bracamonte y Guzmán headed one while Joseph de Bergaigne and Antoine Brun handled another. Fabio Chigi acted as papal nuncio mediator alongside Venetian envoy Alvise Contarini.
France retained bishoprics of Metz, Toul, and Verdun near Lorraine. They received cities of the Décapole in Alsace except Strasbourg and Mulhouse. Sweden gained Western Pomerania known as Swedish Pomeria after the treaty. This territory included Wismar and Prince-Bishoprics of Bremen and Verden as hereditary fiefs. Sweden also received an indemnity of five million thalers to pay troops. The treaty did not decide the Swedish-Brandenburgian border in Duchy of Pomerania. Both powers claimed the whole duchy despite legal claims from Brandenburg. A border was settled later in 1653 but conflict continued underlyingly. Brandenburg-Prussia received Farther Pomerania plus Bishoprics of Magdeburg, Halberstadt, Kammin, and Minden. Bavaria kept Palatinate's vote in Electoral College granted by imperial ban on Frederick V. Charles I Louis obtained Lower Palatinate along Rhine while Maximilian kept Upper Palatinate north of Bavaria. Swiss Confederacy attained legal independence though de facto independent since Treaty of Basel in 1499.
Westphalia guaranteed right to practice Catholicism, Lutheranism, and Calvinism officially. Calvinism finally received legal recognition as an official religion for the first time. Subjects were no longer forced to follow religion of their ruler under new rules. the 1st of January 1624 defined normative date for determining state religion legally. This law became engrained into Imperial law so individual princes could not abolish it. Ecclesiastical property restored to condition existing on that specific date. Holy See remained very displeased at settlement outcome overall. Pope Innocent X called agreement null void invalid iniquitous unjust damnable reprobate inane empty meaning effect all time. The incipit Zeal of house of God quotes from Psalm 69:9 directly. Peace also set up new rules for Imperial Chamber Court judges. Half its judges had to be Protestant according to treaty stipulations. Fifty judges appointed but rarely reached due to financial issues constantly.
Some scholars identify Peace of Westphalia as origin of principles crucial to modern international relations. They call this system Westphalian sovereignty including inviolability of borders and non-interference. Most modern historians challenge association between system and actual treaties signed. They call such views the Westphalian myth regarding historical accuracy. Treaties contain nothing about religious freedom or balance of power as international law principles. Constitutional arrangements of Holy Roman Empire only context where sovereignty mentioned textually. These ideas were not new within that specific imperial framework. While treaties do not contain basis for modern laws of nations themselves they symbolize end long period religious conflict Europe. Fighting continued between France and Spain until Treaty Pyrenees in 1659 anyway. Dutch-Portuguese War went on until 1663 despite peace settlement signed earlier. Portuguese Restoration War also continued until 1668 after initial agreements made.
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Common questions
What were the Peace of Westphalia treaties and when did they end?
The Peace of Westphalia refers to 1648 treaties that ended both the Thirty Years' War and the Eighty Years' War. These conflicts had battered Europe for decades, resulting in heavy tolls on money and lives across the continent.
Where did the Peace of Westphalia negotiations take place between 1643 and 1649?
Main peace negotiations occurred in Münster and Osnabrück within neighboring cities in Westphalia during the period from 1643 to 1649. Both cities served as neutral and demilitarized zones where strict religious controls existed before diplomats arrived.
Which territories did Sweden gain after signing the Peace of Westphalia treaty?
Sweden gained Western Pomeria known as Swedish Pomeria which included Wismar and Prince-Bishoprics of Bremen and Verden as hereditary fiefs. The state also received an indemnity of five million thalers to pay troops following the agreement.
When was Calvinism officially recognized under the Peace of Westphalia rules?
Calvinism finally received legal recognition as an official religion for the first time through the new rules established by the treaty. The normative date for determining state religion legally became the 1st of January 1624 according to these provisions.
Who led the French delegation at the Peace of Westphalia talks in 1648?
Henri II d'Orléans Duke of Longueville headed the French delegation while Claude d'Avaux and Abel Servien served as his fellow diplomats. These representatives negotiated alongside other European powers including Sweden and the Holy Roman Empire.