Thirty Years' War

Thirty Years' War
Map of Europe in 1648. The grey places are small German states within the Holy Roman Empire.
Date May 1618–1648 Location Europe (mostly Germany) Result Peace of Westphalia
Belligerents
Sweden Bohemia Denmark-Norway Dutch Republic France Scotland England Saxony	Spain Portugal Holy Roman Empire (Catholic League) Austria Bavaria
Commanders and leaders
Frederick V Gustav II Adolf † Johan Baner Cardinal Richelieu Louis II de Bourbon Turenne Christian IV of Denmark Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar Johann Georg I of Saxony	Johann Tzerclaes, count of Tilly † Albrecht von Wallenstein Ferdinand II Ferdinand III Count-Duke Olivares Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand Maximilian I
Strength
~475.000, 150.000 Swedes, 75,000 Dutch, ~100,000 Germans, 150,000 French	~450,000, 300,000 Spanish, ~100-200,000 Germans

The Thirty Years' War was fought from 1618 to 1648. It was fought primarily in Germany, but several other countries became involved in the conflict, including France, Spain, and Sweden. In fact, almost all of the powerful countries in Europe were involved in the war, which began as a fight about religion between Protestants and Catholics. As the war continued, the Catholic Habsburg dynasty and other countries used the war to try to get more power. For example, Catholic France fought for the Protestants, which made the French-Habsburg rivalry even worse.

The Thirty Years' War caused things like famine and disease in almost every country involved. The war lasted for 30 years, but the problems that had caused the war were not fixed for a long time after the war had been over. The war ended with the Treaty of Westphalia.