Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

raymaehn t1_itv88ae wrote

Reply to comment by 24benson in TIL The European 30 Years' War 1618 - 1648 began with Czech nobles throwing two Habsburg governors out of Prague castle window onto a huge dungheap. The corresponding carnage - fought over the issue of religious freedom following the Protestant Reformation - left millions dead. by Royal_Bumblebee_

France sponsoring Sweden makes sense from a geopolitical standpoint. It was less a lootfest and more a very calculated move from the French higher-ups to preserve their status.

France was wedged in between Spain which was ruled by the Habsburgs and the HRE which usually had a Habsburg as emperor. The Holy Roman Emperor couldn't actually do all that much without his nobles' consent though, up until the war where the emperor was fighting against some of his most powerful lords.

But Cardinal Richelieu (yes, the one from The Three Musketeers) figured that if the Catholic side (meaning the Emperor) was successful in forcing the protestant lords to re-convert to Catholicism the logical next step would be to take this newfound power and convert the empire into a single centralised realm under Habsburg rule.

That would mean France would quickly lose its status as one of the hegemons of Europe. The best way to prevent this was to keep the emperor small and that meant sponsoring Sweden.

23