The Catholic League (, ) was a
coalition
A coalition is formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political, military, or economic spaces.
Formation
According to ''A G ...
of
Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
states
State most commonly refers to:
* State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory
**Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country
**Nation state, a ...
of the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...
formed 10 July 1609. While initially formed as a
confederation
A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
to act politically to negotiate issues vis-à-vis the
Protestant Union
The Protestant Union (), also known as the Evangelical Union, Union of Auhausen, German Union or the Protestant Action Party, was a coalition of Protestant German states. It was formed on 14 May 1608 by Frederick IV, Elector Palatine in order t ...
(formed 1608), modelled on the more intransigent ultra-Catholic
French Catholic League (1576), it was subsequently concluded as a
military alliance
A military alliance is a formal Alliance, agreement between nations that specifies mutual obligations regarding national security. In the event a nation is attacked, members of the alliance are often obligated to come to their defense regardless ...
"for the defence of the Catholic religion and peace within the Empire".
Notwithstanding the league's founding, as had the founding of the Protestant Union, it further exacerbated long standing tensions between the
Protestant
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
reformers and the adherents of the
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
which thereafter began to get worse with ever more frequent episodes of
civil disobedience
Civil disobedience is the active and professed refusal of a citizenship, citizen to obey certain laws, demands, orders, or commands of a government (or any other authority). By some definitions, civil disobedience has to be nonviolent to be cal ...
,
repression, and
retaliation that would eventually ignite into the first phase of the
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...
roughly a decade later with the act of rebellion and calculated insult known as the
Third Defenestration of Prague on 23 May 1618.
Background
Peace of Augsburg
In 1555, the
Peace of Augsburg
The Peace of Augsburg (), also called the Augsburg Settlement, was a treaty between Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and the Schmalkaldic League, signed on 25 September 1555 in the German city of Augsburg. It officially ended the religious struggl ...
was signed, which confirmed the result of the
Diet of Speyer (1526) and ended the violence between the Catholics and the
Lutherans
Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched the Reformation in 15 ...
in the Holy Roman Empire.
It stated that:
*
Princes
A prince is a Monarch, male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary title, hereditary, in some ...
of the Holy Roman Empire (numbering 225) could choose the religion (Catholicism or Lutheranism) for their realms according to their conscience (the principle of ''
cuius regio, eius religio'').
* Lutherans living in an ''ecclesiastical state'' (under the control of a Catholic
prince-bishop
A prince-bishop is a bishop who is also the civil ruler of some secular principality and sovereignty, as opposed to '' Prince of the Church'' itself, a title associated with cardinals. Since 1951, the sole extant prince-bishop has been the ...
) could remain Lutherans.
* Lutherans could keep the territory that they had captured from the Catholic Church since the
Peace of Passau
The Peace of Passau was an attempt to resolve religious tensions in the Holy Roman Empire. After Emperor Charles V won a victory against Protestant forces in the Schmalkaldic War of 1547, he implemented the Augsburg Interim, which largely reaffi ...
(1552).
* The
ecclesiastical leaders of the Catholic Church (bishops) that converted to Lutheranism had to give up their territory (the principle called ''reservatum ecclesiasticum'').
Those occupying a state that had officially chosen either Catholicism or Lutheranism could not practice the religion differing to that of the state.
Although the Peace created a temporary end to hostilities, the underlying basis of the religious conflict remained unsolved. Both parties interpreted it at their convenience, the Lutherans in particular considering it only a momentary agreement. Further,
Calvinism
Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Christian, Presbyteri ...
spread quickly throughout the Holy Roman Empire, adding a third major Christian worldview to the region, but its position was not supported in any way by the Augsburg terms, since Catholicism and Lutheranism were the only permitted creeds.
Motivations for a Catholic alliance
Donauwörth processions
The best documented reason of the foundation of the Catholic League was an incident called the () in
Donauwörth
Donauwörth (; ) is a town and the capital of the Donau-Ries district in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany. It is said to have been founded by two fishermen where the rivers Danube (Donau) and Wörnitz meet. The city is part of the scenic route called "R ...
, a
Free Imperial City within the territory of
Bavaria
Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...
. On 25 April 1606, the Lutheran majority of the town barred the Catholic residents of the town from holding an annual procession on St. Mark's Day, to show the rule of their confession over the town. The Catholics, led by five monks, wanted to pass through the town and on to the nearby village of Ausesheim, showing their flags and singing hymns. They were permitted to do so by the terms of the
Peace of Augsburg
The Peace of Augsburg (), also called the Augsburg Settlement, was a treaty between Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and the Schmalkaldic League, signed on 25 September 1555 in the German city of Augsburg. It officially ended the religious struggl ...
. The city council would only allow them to re-enter town without flags and singing. The conflict ended in a brawl.
On protest of the
bishop of Augsburg
Diocese of Augsburg () is a Latin diocese of the Catholic Church in Germany. The diocese is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Munich.
History Early history
The present city of Augsburg appears in Strabo as ''Damasia'', a stronghold of t ...
, Catholic Emperor
Rudolf II
Rudolf II (18 July 1552 – 20 January 1612) was Holy Roman Emperor (1576–1612), King of Hungary and Croatia (as Rudolf I, 1572–1608), King of Bohemia (1575–1608/1611) and Archduke of Austria (1576–1608). He was a member of the H ...
of
Habsburg
The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...
threatened an
Imperial ban
The imperial ban () was a form of outlawry in the Holy Roman Empire. At different times, it could be declared by the Holy Roman Emperor, by the Imperial Diet, or by courts like the League of the Holy Court (''Vehmgericht'') or the '' Reichskammerg ...
in case of further violation of the rights of the Catholic citizens. Nevertheless, next year similar anti-Catholic incidents of civil disobedience took place, and the participants of the Markus procession were thrown out of town.
Emperor Rudolf then declared an Imperial ban on the town and ordered
Maximilian I, Duke of Bavaria to execute the ban. Facing his army, the town surrendered. According to Imperial law, the disciplinary measures should not have been executed by the Catholic duke of Bavaria, but by the Protestant
duke of Württemberg, who, like Donauwörth, was a member of the
Swabian Imperial Circle. Maximilian ''de facto'' absorbed the former Free Imperial City, which was a violation of Imperial law as well.
Protestant Union formed
In the same year, 1607, the Catholic majority of the
Reichstag meeting in the
Diet of Augsburg
The diets of Augsburg were the meetings of the Imperial Diet of the Holy Roman Empire held in the German city of Augsburg. Both an Imperial City and the residence of the Augsburg prince-bishops, the town had hosted the Estates in many such se ...
resolved that the renewal of the
Peace of Augsburg
The Peace of Augsburg (), also called the Augsburg Settlement, was a treaty between Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and the Schmalkaldic League, signed on 25 September 1555 in the German city of Augsburg. It officially ended the religious struggl ...
of 1555 should be conditional on the restoration of all church land appropriated since 1552. Acting on these events, the Protestant princes formed a military alliance on 14 May 1608, the
Protestant Union
The Protestant Union (), also known as the Evangelical Union, Union of Auhausen, German Union or the Protestant Action Party, was a coalition of Protestant German states. It was formed on 14 May 1608 by Frederick IV, Elector Palatine in order t ...
, whose leader was
Frederick IV of Wittelsbach, the
Elector Palatine.
The foundation of the Catholic League
To create a union of Catholic states as a counterpart to this Protestant Union, early in 1608 Maximilian started negotiations with other Catholic princes. On 5 July 1608, the spiritual electors manifested a tendency in favour of the confederacy suggested by Maximilian. Opinions were even expressed as to the size of the confederate military forces to be raised.
Munich Diet

In July 1609, the representatives of the Prince-Bishops of
Augsburg
Augsburg ( , ; ; ) is a city in the Bavaria, Bavarian part of Swabia, Germany, around west of the Bavarian capital Munich. It is a College town, university town and the regional seat of the Swabia (administrative region), Swabia with a well ...
,
Constance,
Passau
Passau (; ) is a city in Lower Bavaria, Germany. It is also known as the ("City of Three Rivers"), as the river Danube is joined by the Inn (river), Inn from the south and the Ilz from the north.
Passau's population is about 50,000, of whom ...
,
Regensburg
Regensburg (historically known in English as Ratisbon) is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Naab and Regen (river), Regen, Danube's northernmost point. It is the capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the ...
, and
Würzburg
Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is, after Nuremberg and Fürth, the Franconia#Towns and cities, third-largest city in Franconia located in the north of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. It sp ...
assembled at
Munich
Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
. The
Prince-Archbishop of Salzburg
The Prince-Archbishopric of Salzburg (; ) was an ecclesiastical principality and state of the Holy Roman Empire. It comprised the secular territory ruled by the archbishops of Salzburg, as distinguished from the much larger Catholic diocese f ...
, having shown disapproval, was not invited, and the Prince-Bishop of
Eichstädt hesitated. On 10 July 1609, the participating states concluded an alliance "for the defence of the Catholic religion and peace within the Empire." The most important regulation of the League was the prohibition of attacks on one another. Instead of fighting, conflicts had to be decided by the laws of the Empire or, if these failed to solve the conflict, by arbitration within the League. Should one member be attacked, it had to be helped with military or alternatively legal support. Duke Maximilian was to be the president, and the Prince-Bishops of Augsburg, Passau, and Würzburg his councillors. The League was to continue for nine years.
The Munich Diet failed to erect a substantial structure for the newly formed League. On 18 June 1609, the Electors of
Mainz
Mainz (; #Names and etymology, see below) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and with around 223,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 35th-largest city. It lies in ...
,
Cologne
Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...
, and
Trier
Trier ( , ; ), formerly and traditionally known in English as Trèves ( , ) and Triers (see also Names of Trier in different languages, names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle (river), Moselle in Germany. It lies in a v ...
had proposed an army of 20,000 men. They had also considered making Maximilian president of the alliance, and on August 30 they announced their adhesion to the Munich agreement, provided that Maximilian accepted the Elector of Mainz, arch-
chancellor
Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...
of the Empire, as co-president.
Meeting at Würzburg
To create a structure, several general meetings of the members were arranged. On 10 February 1610, the representatives of all the important Catholic states, except for Austria and Salzburg — and a great number of the smaller ones — met at Würzburg to decide the organization, funding and arming of the League. This was the real beginning of the Catholic League. The
Pope
The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...
, the
Emperor
The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...
and the
King of Spain
The monarchy of Spain or Spanish monarchy () is the constitutional form of government of Spain. It consists of a Hereditary monarchy, hereditary monarch who reigns as the head of state, being the highest office of the country.
The Spanish ...
, who had been informed by Maximilian, were all favorably disposed towards the undertaking.
The main problem of the League was the unreadiness of its members. In April 1610, the contributions of all its members were not yet paid; Maximilian threatened to resign. To prevent him from doing so, Spain, which had made the giving of a subsidy dependent on Austria's enrollment in the League, waived this condition, and the pope promised a further contribution.
Pre-war years
War of the Jülich Succession
The conduct of the Union in the
Jülich dispute and the warlike operations of the Union army in
Alsace
Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...
seemed to make a battle between League and Union inevitable.
House Habsburg joins
In the year 1613 at
Regensburg
Regensburg (historically known in English as Ratisbon) is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Naab and Regen (river), Regen, Danube's northernmost point. It is the capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the ...
(Ratisbon), the
Austrian Habsburgs joined the League. The assembly now appointed no less than three war-directors: Duke Maximilian, and Archdukes Albert and Maximilian of Austria. The object of the League was now declared "a Christian legal defense".
The membership of the
Habsburg monarchy
The Habsburg monarchy, also known as Habsburg Empire, or Habsburg Realm (), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities (composite monarchy) that were ruled by the House of Habsburg. From the 18th century it is ...
made the League part of the struggles between the emperor and his Protestant vassals in
Bohemia
Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...
and
Lower Austria
Lower Austria ( , , abbreviated LA or NÖ) is one of the nine states of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the country. Major cities are Amstetten, Lower Austria, Amstetten, Krems an der Donau, Wiener Neustadt and Sankt Pölten, which ...
, that would lead to the beginning of the Thirty Years' War.
The first half of the war would see the emperor using the Catholic League forces as the most important part of his
Imperial army.
Bavaria leaves in protest
Duke Maximilian refused to accept the
resolutions of Ratisbon and even resigned the post as president, when
Archduke Maximilian III of Austria, the Prince Elector of Mainz and the Prince Elector of Trier, protested the inclusion of the
Bishop of Augsburg
Diocese of Augsburg () is a Latin diocese of the Catholic Church in Germany. The diocese is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Munich.
History Early history
The present city of Augsburg appears in Strabo as ''Damasia'', a stronghold of t ...
, and the
Provost of Ellwangen in the
Bavarian Directory. On 27 May 1617, with the Prince-Bishops of Bamberg, Eichstädt, Würzburg, and the Prince-Provost of Ellwangen, Bavaria formed a separate league for nine years.
Bohemian revolt
Already having been crowned
King of Bohemia
The Duchy of Bohemia was established in 870 and raised to the Kingdom of Bohemia in Golden Bull of Sicily, 1198. Several Bohemian monarchs ruled as non-hereditary kings and first gained the title in 1085. From 1004 to 1806, Bohemia was part of th ...
in 1617,
Ferdinand II and his Catholic governors were deposed by rebelling Protestant Czech nobles in the
second defenestration of Prague in 1618. The Bohemian estates went on to elect
Frederick V, Elector Palatine as their king, on 26 and 27 August 1619. After his election as German Emperor on August 28, Ferdinand conferred with the spiritual electors at Frankfurt, asking for the support of the League.
Catholic League reestablished
At the end of 1618, the position of the Emperor in Bohemia as in Lower and
Upper Austria
Upper Austria ( ; ; ) is one of the nine States of Austria, states of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, and Salzburg (state), Salzbur ...
gradually became critical. Searching for help, the Emperor tried to restore the League. A meeting of several of the ecclesiastical Princes decided to reconstruct the League on its original basis. It would consist of two groups: the Rhenish district under the presidency of Mainz, and the Oberland district, presided by Bavaria; the treasury and the military command were to be considered separate. Maximilian could only lead the whole of the troops when he had to appear in the Rhenish district. On 31 May, the Oberland both groups were established and bound themselves to render mutual help for six years.
Treaty of Munich
The
Treaty of Munich was signed on 8 October 1619 between Emperor Ferdinand II and Duke Maximilian of Bavaria. Spanish ambassador
Oñate persuaded Ferdinand to grant Maximilian any part of the
Electoral Palatinate
The Electoral Palatinate was a constituent state of the Holy Roman Empire until it was annexed by the Electorate of Baden in 1803. From the end of the 13th century, its ruler was one of the Prince-electors who elected the Holy Roman Empero ...
to occupy, as well as the
electoral seat of Frederick V. Moreover, Oñate exceeded his duties by guaranteeing Ferdinand Spanish support in dealing with the Bohemian rebels. Based on the terms of the treaty, Maximilian, leader of the Catholic League, made his Bavarian forces available to Emperor Ferdinand.
Now the formation of a confederate army began. With 7,000 men, Bavaria supplied the largest contribution to the army, whose strength was fixed at Würzburg in December 1619, as 21,000 infantry and 4000 cavalry. Commander in chief was
Johann Tserclaes, Count of Tilly, a descendant of a Catholic
Brabantine family.
Decline and end of the Protestant Union
Facing the superiority of the League army of 30,000 men confronting the Protestant Union's army of 10,000, on 3 July 1620, the Union agreed to cease all hostilities between both parties during the war in Austria and Bohemia in the
Treaty of Ulm and dissolved the following year.
The League in War
Bohemian campaign
Without the risk of an attack the League could use all its military forces to support the emperor. The same month, the army was relocated to Upper Austria. Tilly won the
Battle of White Mountain
The Battle of White Mountain (; ) was an important battle in the early stages of the Thirty Years' War. It led to the defeat of the Bohemian Revolt and ensured Habsburg control for the next three hundred years.
It was fought on 8 November 16 ...
north of
Prague
Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
on 8 November 1620, in which half of the enemy forces were killed or captured, losing only 700 men. The Emperor regained control over Bohemia and the first stage of the League's activity during the Thirty Years' War ended.
Palatinate campaigns
1622 campaign
In the spring of 1622 General Tilly moved the League's army to invade the
Electoral Palatinate
The Electoral Palatinate was a constituent state of the Holy Roman Empire until it was annexed by the Electorate of Baden in 1803. From the end of the 13th century, its ruler was one of the Prince-electors who elected the Holy Roman Empero ...
. They were defeated by General
Mansfeld
Mansfeld (), sometimes also unofficially Mansfeld-Lutherstadt, is a town in the district of Mansfeld-Südharz, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany.
Protestant reformator Martin Luther grew up in Mansfeld, and in 1993 the town became one of sixteen places ...
's troops at the
Battle of Mingolsheim on 27 April 1622. Retreating eastwards they were joined by a Spanish army under General
Córdoba. When another Protestant army under
Georg Friedrich, Margrave of Baden attacked on May 6, Tilly's League force convincingly won the
Battle of Wimpfen, scattering the enemy. The
Battle of Höchst on June 20 proved to be the decisive victory for 1622.
After that battle the Protestant forces still fighting for
Frederick V of the Palatinate Frederick may refer to:
People
* Frederick (given name), the name
Given name
Nobility
= Anhalt-Harzgerode =
* Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670)
= Austria =
* Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria fr ...
withdrew over the Rhine and allowed the Catholic League army freedom of action. Consequently, Tilly captured the city of
Heidelberg
Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...
, Frederick's main city, following an eleven-week
siege
A siege () . is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or by well-prepared assault. Siege warfare (also called siegecrafts or poliorcetics) is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict charact ...
on September 19. Mannheim followed on November 2, after a ten day
siege
A siege () . is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or by well-prepared assault. Siege warfare (also called siegecrafts or poliorcetics) is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict charact ...
.
This could have meant the end of the war. With the exception of the still besieged fortress of
Frankenthal
Frankenthal (Pfalz) (; ) is a town in southwestern Germany, in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate.
History
Frankenthal was first mentioned in 772. In 1119 an Augustinians, Augustinian monastery was built here, the ruins of which — known, aft ...
, the
Electoral Palatinate
The Electoral Palatinate was a constituent state of the Holy Roman Empire until it was annexed by the Electorate of Baden in 1803. From the end of the 13th century, its ruler was one of the Prince-electors who elected the Holy Roman Empero ...
was occupied by League forces while Count Frederick was in Dutch exile.
Stadtlohn campaign
Alas, in 1623, Frederick had
Christian of Brunswick, raise another army to continue the fight.
However, Christian found little success and no allies on his short campaign. When Tilly approached with the League army, the Protestants made for the Dutch border. Tilly cut them off five miles short of it in the
Battle of Stadtlohn
The Battle of Stadtlohn was fought on 6 August 1623 between the armies of the Electoral Palatinate and of the Catholic League during the Thirty Years' War. The League's forces were led by Johann Tserclaes, Count of Tilly, the Protestants by ...
on August 6, destroying another Protestant army.
This victory marked the end of the ''Bohemian-Palatinate phase'' of the war. Armed opposition against the Emperor and his anti-Protestant policies had ceased.
Danish War
This caused Denmark's king
Christian IV to enter the Thirty Years' War in 1625 to protect Protestantism and also in a bid to make himself the primary leader of Northern Europe.
The league's army fought and defeated the Danish on 26–27 August 1626 at the
Battle of Lutter
The Battle of Lutter (German language, German: ''Lutter am Barenberge'') took place on 27 August 1626 during the Thirty Years' War, south of Salzgitter, in Lower Saxony. A combined Danish-German force led by Christian IV of Denmark was defeated ...
, destroying more than half the fleeing Danish army.
Because this and other victories by Wallenstein, Denmark was forced to sue for peace at the
Treaty of Lübeck.
Edict of Restitution
Supported by the Catholic princes and their victorious League army, the emperor now moved to denounce Protestantism as illegal in many territories of Northern Germany.
In March 1629, emperor
Ferdinand II passed the Edict of Restitution. It was specifically aimed at restoring the situation of the 1555
Peace of Augsburg
The Peace of Augsburg (), also called the Augsburg Settlement, was a treaty between Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and the Schmalkaldic League, signed on 25 September 1555 in the German city of Augsburg. It officially ended the religious struggl ...
in ecclesiastical territories that had strayed from "legal" Catholic faith and rule, in the decades since then.
Bremen
Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (, ), is the capital of the States of Germany, German state of the Bremen (state), Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (), a two-city-state consisting of the c ...
and
Magdeburg
Magdeburg (; ) is the Capital city, capital of the Germany, German States of Germany, state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is on the Elbe river.
Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archbishopric of Mag ...
were the biggest examples of territories to be restituted. Afraid that the Catholic League's army would be sent to enforce this new law, if challenged, their protestant authorities again looked abroad for allies to protect them.
Swedish War
Sack of Magdeburg
While the Swedish King
Gustavus Adolphus
Gustavus Adolphus (9 December N.S 19 December">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Old Style and New Style dates">N.S 19 December15946 November Old Style and New Style dates">N.S 16 November] 1632), also known in English as ...
Treaty of Stettin (1630), landed his army in Pomerania and tried to make alliances with the leaders of Northern Germany, the League's army laid siege to the city of
Magdeburg
Magdeburg (; ) is the Capital city, capital of the Germany, German States of Germany, state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is on the Elbe river.
Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archbishopric of Mag ...
for two months from 20 March 1631, as the city had promised to support Sweden. On May 20, 40,000 successfully attacked Magdeburg. A massacre of the populace ensued in which 25,000 of the 30,000 inhabitants of the city perished while fires destroyed much of the city.
The Catholic League in defeat
In 1630, Ferdinand II dismissed his Generalissimus
Wallenstein. Now, the Catholic League was in control of all the Catholic armed forces.
At the
First Battle of Breitenfeld, the Catholic League led by General Tilly was defeated by the Swedish forces. A year later (1632), they met again in the
Battle of Rain, and this time General Tilly was killed. The upper hand had now switched from the league to Sweden and her allies, who were able to attack and capture or destroy the territories of the Catholic League. Even
Munich
Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
, the capital of the most powerful member state,
Electoral Bavaria, was conquered.
Decline of importance and dissolution
Thereafter, the German Catholic League did not play a major role in later events.
The
Peace of Prague of 30 May 1635, was a treaty between the
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...
, Ferdinand II, and most of the Protestant states of the Empire. It effectively ended the civil war aspect of the Thirty Years' War. The
Edict of Restitution
The Edict of Restitution was proclaimed by Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor in Vienna, on 6 March 1629, eleven years into the Thirty Years' War. Following Catholic League (German), Catholic military successes, Ferdinand hoped to restore control ...
of 1629, was effectively revoked, with the terms of the
Peace of Augsburg
The Peace of Augsburg (), also called the Augsburg Settlement, was a treaty between Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and the Schmalkaldic League, signed on 25 September 1555 in the German city of Augsburg. It officially ended the religious struggl ...
of 1555 being reestablished.
One of the most important regulations was that formal alliances between states of the Empire were prohibited. The armies of the various states were to be unified with those of the Emperor as an army for the Empire as a whole. The result of this clause was the end of the Catholic League, a now prohibited alliance between states of the Empire.
As well as ending the fighting between the various states, the treaty also ended religion as a source of national conflict; the principle of ''
cuius regio, eius religio'' was established for good within the Empire.
References
{{Authority control
1609 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire
1635 disestablishments
1630s disestablishments in Europe
Catholic organizations established in the 17th century