Basic Guide to The Thirty Years War

The Thrity Years' War

Historical Background

• Since the execution of Jan Hus in 1415, Bohemia has been hotbed of contention between Protestants and Catholics
• By 1600, Protestants outnumbered Catholics in Bohemia, but Protestants were fragmented into denominations or sects
• Catholics forbade Protestants to build churches in towns where Protestant churches did not already exist
• Fernidad II was to be new King of Bohemia, Protestants feared for the worst

The Defenestration of Prague - Protestants set up a meeting with Cathodic officials in Prague on May 23, 1618. When the meeting went badly, the Protestants seized two Catholic officials and tossed them out the window. They also tossed a secretary out too just for the lulz. 

The Defenestration of Prague was the spark that ignited the Thirty years war.

Thirty Years War has four phases:

1. The Bohemian Phase
2. The Danish Phase
3. The Swedish Phase
4. The French Phase

The Thirty Years' War started out because of religious conflicts, but soon developed into an international war of politics.

While the war started as a religious war, the war healed no religious wounds.

The Peace of Westphalia

• Ended the war in 1648
• Recognized sovereignty of the 300+ German princes
• Treaties disallowed papal meddling in German religious affairs
• Upheld the Peace of Augsburg, Nullified the Edict of Restitution

Because of the vast majority of the fighting that took place in Germany, the German states suffered more than any other participants.

The Holy Roman Empire historically had more influence in Germany than anywhere else in Europe; therefore, the sovereignty of the German princes essentially meant the end of the Holy Roman Empire.

Note To Followers :)

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I read your comments (don't worry) and I appreciate the feedback of those who are interested. :)

Unfortunately, I have stupid moments, and I accidently deleted all of your comments! D:

I'll try to figure out how the comments work in the future, but I want to apologize to those that might be upset or hurt that they're not published.

Tl;dr I'm stupid and I accidently deleted all of the blog comments. ): Sorry.

Trade route. 

WTF is Despotism?

Despotism - A government in which a single entity, called the despot, rules with absolute power.

Areas Ruled By Hapsburg family

The combined territories of the Spanish and Austrian Hapsburg family during the rein of Phillip II.


Charles V had divided his estates in order to make them easier to be governed.

The Ptolemaic System

The Ptolemaic System

This system was used to explain the motions of the heavens. 

This cosmological model was espoused by Claudius Ptolemaeus around the 2nd century C.E.

Unlike earlier systems (i.e., the stars move because it is the will of the 'gods'), the Ptolemaic model explained all the phenomena i the sky while holding to Plato's dictum, which states that all motions in the heavens can be explained with uniform circular motion and obeying Aristotelian physics.


According to the Ptolemaic model:

• Earth is at the center of the universe
• Heavenly bodies are attached to crystal spheres
• Moon was the innermost sphere and touched the Earth realm

Problems with Ptolemaic system:

• Size of a planet's retrograde loop (most notably mars) would be smaller, and sometimes larger.

Galileo disproved Ptolemy's model, when, using his telescope, he discovered that Venus goes through phases.

Under the Ptolemaic system, Venus could not undergo all those phase changes. The only reasonable explanation would be for Venus to orbit the sun.

Basic Guide to Marxism

Marxism

A political praxis and social theory based on the works of Karl Marx, a nineteenth century philosopher, economist, journalist, and revolutionary.

Marxist believe that the capitalist society is divided into two social classes:

1. The working class/proletariat

  - "Those individuals who sell their labor and do not own the means of production."

  - Believed working class was responsible for the wealth of a society.

  - Further divided into lumpen proletariat, or those who cannot find legal work on a regular basis. i.e. prostitutes, beggars, homeless

2. The Bourgeoisie

  - Those who "own the means of production" and employ the proletariat.
  - Further subdivided into the very wealthy bourgeoisie and petty bourgeoisie (or those who can employ labour but also work for themselves).


Marx developed these ideas to support his advocacy of socialism and communism.

Some of these ideas are shared by anarchists, though the differed their beliefs on how to bring about an end to class society.
Anarchists such as Mmikhail Bakunin and Peter Kropotkin argued that the state per se was the problem, and that destroying it should be the aim of any revolutionary activity.


Many governments, political parties, social movements, and academic theorists have claimed to be founded on Marxist principles. Important examples include:

• Social democratic movements in 20th century Europe
• The Soviet Union & other Eastern Bloc countries
• Mao & other revolutionaries in agrarian developing countries

The 1917 October Revolution, led by Vladimir Lenin and Leon Trotsky was the first large scale attempt to put Marxist ideas about a workers' state into practice.

Counterrevolution, civil war, foreign interventions, and failed socialist revolutions in Germany and other small countries...

...Led to...

...Opportunity for Stalin to take power when Lenin died.

Stalin's socialism in one country was unable to maintain itself. The USSR ceased to show the characteristics of a socialist state long before its formal dissolution.

Important sites for information:
http://encyclopedia.kids.net.au/page/ma/Marxism