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Main content of the Peace of Westphalia

The “Peace of Westphalia” symbolizes the end of the Thirty Years’ War in Europe (a large-scale international war that broke out in Europe from 1618 to 1648). This series of peace treaties in Westphalia was officially confirmed.

The Thirty Years’ War was a large-scale melee between European countries evolved from the civil war of the Holy Roman Empire, and it was also the first all-European war in history. This war was the product of the conflicts between European countries competing for interests, establishing hegemony and intensifying religious disputes. The war ended with the defeat of the Habsburg dynasty and the signing of the Peace of Westphalia.

This war promoted the formation of European nation-states and was the beginning of modern European history. This war wiped out about 25% to 40% of the population of the Germanic states; three-quarters of the population of Lutheran Wittenberg was killed, 65% of the population of Pomerania was killed, and Siri A quarter of the population of West Asia was killed, and nearly half of the men of the Germanic states were killed.

The Treaty of Westphalia weakened the rule of the Habsburg dynasty, deepened the political division in Germany, demarcated the national borders of various countries on the European continent, and changed the balance of political power in Europe. At the same time, the Peace Treaty, as the first multilateral treaty between the Middle Ages and the modern history of Europe, is an important milestone in the development of international law. It is not only the actual source of modern international law, but also a milestone in the history of international relations. The Westphalian system established by the Treaty of Westphalia is the first system of international relations in the modern sense.

From 1618 to 1648, due to the contradiction between Catholicism and Protestantism, as well as political conflicts and territorial competition among European countries, the international war in Europe with Germany as the main battlefield was called the Thirty Years War in history. It finally ended with the signing of the Peace of Westphalia in 1648.

The peace treaty gave Sweden, France and their allies large swathes of territory; recognized the independence of the Netherlands and Switzerland; affirmed the sovereignty of the German princes, strengthened the power of the imperial parliament, and weakened the emperor’s power. The war and the peace deal dealt a heavy blow to the Habsburg dynasty’s dominance. This deepened the situation of division and division in Germany, a large number of people died, agriculture was severely damaged, and the economy declined for a long time, which prepared the conditions for France to dominate Europe. Spain’s national power declined. Sweden’s strength increased greatly and became a Nordic power.

In religious matters, the contract stipulates that all people – including princes and their subjects – have freedom of religion as long as they are Catholics, Lutherans, and General Reformed Christians (who are considered by many to be subversives). Anabaptists are excluded). The estates owned by the various sects in 1624 were returned to them. All those who rebelled against their lords during the Thirty Years’ War were pardoned – except those in the hereditary lands of the Habsburgs.

There is an agreement within the Protestant Church that if a lord converts from one Protestant sect to another Protestant sect, he cannot force his subjects to convert too. Thus, the basic outcome of this pact was a reconciliation within the Protestant denominations and a clear line between Protestantism and Catholicism. The demarcation line drawn according to the actual control scope of Protestantism and Catholicism at that time basically determined the religious pattern of the European continent.

After the contract, people cared more about the state (dynasties) and politics than theology or canons, and Europe completely got rid of the Middle Ages and entered modern society. Accordingly, it can be considered that the Reformation movement in continental Europe ended.