The book that I chose to read for my book report is called Problems in European Civilization: The Thirty Years' War: Problems of Motive, Extent and Effect. This book is a summary of the history of the Thirty Years war. In my essay, I will show what lead to war and what happened during the war as the authors have told it. The authors give an account of what they have learned throughout the years and show this in their writing. They show how the purpose of the war changed over the years from a religious battle to a political one. The war in their minds was one that included much controversy but in the end was worked out accordingly. .
The Thirty Year's war was one that would be remembered for many years as the one that helped divide many lands in Europe. It was a defining moment in the 17th century of Europe. The dynastic ambitions of many countries resulted in war over certain land. In the beginning the war was being fought for religious reasons but as it progressed it became more political. The importance of religion was secondary to the dynasties" will, to control certain areas of Europe. When the Peace of Augsburg was signed in 1555, it settled the disputes between the Lutherans and Catholics. It did not talk about the practice of Calvinism. The two Holy Roman emperors, Matthias and Ferdinand II, were determined to get rid of Protestantism and to eventually rule Germany. .
In Bohemia the Hugenots, (Protestants) rejected the idea of having a Habsburg as a king. Frederick of Palatinate who was the Calvinist ruler in Bohemia went to war with the Habsburgs. In response to this Ferdinand of Habsburg, soon to be elected Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand II decided to take action against Frederick V. Since both sides were convinced that they were fighting for a holy cause each leader began to gain some allies. In the end, however, Bohemia was made Catholic, and the Spanish took over Frederick of Palatinate's land.