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Religion And Religion: The Cause Of War

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As Protestantism began to spread in Europe, tension arose between Catholics and Protestants. The tension caused war between monarchs, nobles, and common people over religion. However, the many wars evolved into being about much more than religion; they became about politics and specifically, a struggle for power. Many people throughout Europe saw religion as a perfect pretext for the real reason of war: power. Through the seemingly infinite wars of religion, politics and religion came hand in hand. As exemplified by the Dutch Revolt and the Thirty Years’ War, religion was the starting cause of both wars, but political power was the true justification in the end. Ruled under Philip II after being passed down from his father, Charles V, the …show more content…

causes coming first and political reasons following. In 1618, the Peace of Augsburg was completely broken by Protestants who hurled two Catholic officials from a castle window. This event commenced the beginning of the war. The war started with what is referred to as the Bohemian phase. Ferdinand I attacked Bohemia, which was part of the land that he had inherited from his brother, Charles V. He did this to crush all the Protestants there, as a loyal Catholic. After the Bohemian phase came the Danish phase wherein Ferdinand I appointed Albert of Wallenstein to lead an army to overpower the Protestants in Denmark. At the time, Denmark was led by a Protestant king named King Christian IV. Due to his strong military forces, Albert of Wallenstein successfully suppressed the Protestants, leaving Denmark to be rightfully Ferdinand’s. At this point, the Thirty Years’ War was not only a fight to extinguish Protestantism, but also a fight for Ferdinand I to gain power, even if he did not want to admit it. Following the Danish phase of the war, the Swedish phase involved a strong Protestant king of Sweden named Gustavus Adolphus. This phase of the war was sparked because of a mix between political and religious reasons. The Swedes invaded Germany due to the fact that Gustavus Adolphus saw the Danish phase as

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