The Treaty of Prague
The Peace Treaty of Prague was signed in Prague on 30 May 1635. The treaty ending the Austro- Prussian War and weakened the German princes. The treaty was lenient toward the Austrian Empire and Austria only lost Venetia, which was eventually given to Italy. The Habsburgs were excluded from German affairs and so the Kingdom of Prussia was the only major power in Germany.
The peace treaty included:
Under the terms of the Peace, the Edict was abandoned, with recovery of lands held by Protestants in November, 1627 suspended for 40 years. The selection of 1627 as the normaljahre protected the Northern German Protestant princes while abandoning the interests of the South German Protestants. However, not all was lost for the Roman Church. The bishoprics of Halberstadt, Bremen and Verden were to remain under the Habsburg and Wittelsbach bishops. The Peace was also opened to almost any ruler who cared to sign on to its terms with the exception of princes in arms against the Emperor prior to Gustavus’s landing. Practically this excluded only the heirs of the Winter King and of Baden-Durlach. By late summer 1635, most of the German rulers and cities had acceded to the peace. Only Wilhelm of Hesse-Cassel refused and he was maintaining wary neutrality.
The treaty stopped the fighting between the states and brought an end to religion as a source of national conflict. Ferdinand II gained the alliance of the Lutheran princes, but the restoration of the Imperial authority ultimatively failed. The major states to sign the peace treaty included Saxony, Bavaria and Brandenburg. The peace treaty was a major victory for the good of Europe as a whole.
The peace treaty included:
- The Edict of Restitution was ended, and the Peace of Augsburg from 1555 was reestablished. Ferdinand II continued to push the Counter- Reformation.
- Alliances between States of the Empire were prohibited, which also included the Catholic League and the Protestant League.
- The different state were unified to start an Imperial Army for the Holy Roman Empire which would fight against invading troops.
Under the terms of the Peace, the Edict was abandoned, with recovery of lands held by Protestants in November, 1627 suspended for 40 years. The selection of 1627 as the normaljahre protected the Northern German Protestant princes while abandoning the interests of the South German Protestants. However, not all was lost for the Roman Church. The bishoprics of Halberstadt, Bremen and Verden were to remain under the Habsburg and Wittelsbach bishops. The Peace was also opened to almost any ruler who cared to sign on to its terms with the exception of princes in arms against the Emperor prior to Gustavus’s landing. Practically this excluded only the heirs of the Winter King and of Baden-Durlach. By late summer 1635, most of the German rulers and cities had acceded to the peace. Only Wilhelm of Hesse-Cassel refused and he was maintaining wary neutrality.
The treaty stopped the fighting between the states and brought an end to religion as a source of national conflict. Ferdinand II gained the alliance of the Lutheran princes, but the restoration of the Imperial authority ultimatively failed. The major states to sign the peace treaty included Saxony, Bavaria and Brandenburg. The peace treaty was a major victory for the good of Europe as a whole.