This is basically a classic European power struggle between Catholics and Protestants, Bourbon and Hapsburgs, The Holy Roman Empire vs.

In fact it is only today that modern diplomats are tearing apart the Peace Of Westphalia and all that it means. This is the best book written on the great Thirty Years War which reshaped European History and the map of Europe for many centuries. Narrator: Charlton Griffin.īe warned to appreciate this book to the fullest you have to have some knowledge of European History and Geography - something too few people have to this day. Total running time: 19 hours and 48 minutes. As an aid to comprehension, we recommend the online Wikipedia article 'The Thirty Years War' for maps and overviews of the geography, principle leaders, and major battles.

It bankrupted most of the participants while leaving thousands of German villages, towns, and even cities in smoldering ruin.īecause of the political and geographical complexity of the early 17th century, an understanding of The Thirty Years War can be difficult to grasp in the beginning. After 30 years of conflict, entire regions of Germany and Bohemia were depopulated and destroyed by marching armies, fire, famine, and disease. And almost all of it was fought out in Germany. By the end, it became simply a dynastic struggle between Bourbon France and Habsburg Spain. But the conflict soon spread beyond religion to encompass the internal politics and balance of power within the Empire, and then later to the other European powers.

Initially, the Thirty Years War was precipitated in 1618 by religious conflicts between Protestants and Catholics in the Holy Roman Empire.

The Thirty Years War by C.V. Wedgwood